Just a reminder, Fall is quickly approaching. Fall means daylight is shorter, and the inside lights are on earlier in the morning and later in the evening. This simple change in our behavior can also affect our birds behavior. In the wild, when the hours of sunlight are less, birds are not thinking about mating, but foraging for food (the supply of food starts to dwindle). Birds have to fly further to find food.
Ah but the birds in our home are nice and cozy in their comfortable cages with a bountiful of food. No need to fly for food, it is right there in a food dish. If the bird wants more, a couple of crazy screams, and the humans comes and fills the dish with more goodies. In addition, humans are nice enough to leave the lights on all day as darkness comes early. Yup, all the conditions of spring: warmth, food and light.
Start preparing now:
1) The food bowls should be about half full with the birds food (but not the favorite food). Move those favorite foods into foraging toys. What your bird does not know how to forage? Easy fix, get smaller bowls and place portions in several bowls in different locations of the cage.
2) Any boxes, shredding material, fluffy toys (and possibly tents) should be watched to make sure, these items are not being used as nest. If so, you should remove them.
3) Move items around in the cage. Move a perch, change up the toys, remove/add a toy. Predictable change in the environment.
If you start training and adding enrichment, you may get ahead of the ‘undesired’ behavior. Birds can learn new things and change behavior. This all comes with us training them on how to adapt to changes. Labels on behaviors are just that labels, they do not assist with addressing the issue.
Hormonal, Aggressive, Lazy are just labels. What do these labels mean? These labels seem to have this meaning that there is nothing we can do to change the ‘undesired’ behavior. When you start to describe the behavior in visual verbs, then this may give you an insight on how the behavior could be changed.
So if I am described lazy at work, I should still get paid. If, per say, my co-worker denotes I am lazy. Does that really mean I am lazy? Maybe, what if the co-worker described what I was doing. She is always staring at her computer, and never goes to meetings.
Maybe the issue is that I am not lazy, but maybe I am stuck on a problem and do not know how to resolve the issue. I have no one to ask how to resolve the issue. Until someone investigates the root of my behavior, my behavior will continue. I might start banging my head on the table.
When start watching birds behavior prior to the ‘undesired behavior’, what is happen when the ‘undesired behavior’ happens, and why does it continue. You can learn your bird’s signal of not understanding. A birds behavior has a purpose, and most times it is a signal that we are moving too fast. Watch those feathers, Watch those eyes, and Watch the movement.
These are important to assist your bird through the Fall Behaviors.
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"Happy Bird, Happy Family"