Am I being preened?

[carrier]

Ok, so now whenever Fenway is out of her cage she is a velco-birdie. She will not play on the new playtop I got her...she just wants to be on momma. :)

To say she bites me would be a huge overstatement, but she definitely nibbles on my ears, eyeglasses, hands, fingers, zippers, buttons, snaps, and even seems to "groom" my hair the way she preens her own feathers (she works her way all the way down the length of her feathers when she preens, and does something very similar to my hair) She even seems to watch me from my shoulder, waiting for me to speak to her and as soon as I open my mounth she goes for my lower lip...something that worries me, as when she does this she is coming into contact with my saliva sometimes....I don't want her to get sick from this....she is so darn quick and even though I know she will probably go for my lip I am just too slow!

So....is this her preening me, and if it is, should I let this behavior continue? (If so, I am now fearing the imminent regurgitation that seems to accompany this sort of attachment.:omg: )

Don't get me wrong, I love my birdie and love that she loves me... :p

I just don't want to encourage any unhealthy behavior. Does anyone have any advice or experience with this? :confused:

[Janie]

Carrie, sounds like Fenway is preening you. :D I'd keep him away from your lips to avoid contact with saliva. Or, when he approaches your lips, tuck them inward! :D

[Mummieeva]

Yes you are. My birds preened me and gave me new hair styles.lol. I normaly wear my hair to cover my ears as my birds loved nibbling me ears.



Steph

[thebubbleking]

lol what is it with lovies and thier ear nibbleing.. is it the texture? the salt? or is it the precursor to the high pitched eardrum bustin whistle they do right into your ear? lol

[Kirby]

It could be the different textures of everyone's skin. I know that Kirby delights in screaming in my ear just because it's convenient and he doesn't have to do it across the room.. :x go figure.

Covering my ears never works as both my brats somehow end up getting tangled to the point where cutting my hair would be easier to get 'em out than untangling.

Skittles will also be grooming Kirby and then happen to venture up my face and onto my lips and groom me. It's such a neat feeling. Not only because they're tickling, but because they're treating you like one of the flock!

[thebubbleking]

Ok kirby that was to sweet... i think my testoterone dropped a point or two tho.
j/k lol

[Kirby]

heh heh don't get me started on commenting on the testosterone lvl of men now-a-days :D
:whistle:

[Sweetpeaches]

peaches does exactly the same thing as all your lovies! i was lying on the floor the other day and she was happily hopping all over me, thot she'd venture for the floor to explore things, but liked my body the best. i truly think this is her way of bonding with me and i love it...altho at times her nibbles can be a little "sharp". but i know she doesn't mean it. she also enjoys ears, nostrils, lips, eyelashes, hair, etc..etc....they're just too cute and curious!

[ittyandrita]

My senegal does this. He can just sit there and lick/preen me for hours. He has a fascination for the mouth as well. While I love the attention, he thinks its his duty to remove any mole he sees, and this is a bit painful.

[chromasnake]

My senegal does this. He can just sit there and lick/preen me for hours. He has a fascination for the mouth as well. While I love the attention, he thinks its his duty to remove any mole he sees, and this is a bit painful.

My Quaker used to try and to remove my skin tags...OWIE! He actually managed to nip one completely off before I realized what he was doing. Needless to say we trained him NOT to bite the neck any more. (But he needs reminding.)

Fortunately, I had all my rabies and distemper shots, so I didn't infect my birdie with anything...been quite a few months. I did notice his beak growing longer on full moon nights though...