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Still Not Getting Along

Nani is still not fond of Mr. Feathersworth despite my best efforts to make her feel as if nothing has changed to the pecking order. I still greet her first, take her out first, give her fun one on one playtime, etc. It does seem to be making some sort of difference however, because she has pretty much resorted to ignoring him instead of dive bombing him at every chance. In fact, to my shock, she allows him to explore the top of her cage as long as she is in his enjoying his food and treats. However, if he gets too close she spazzes and tries to murder him. Here is an example of such behavior:

*facebook readers go to caiqueclowns.blogspot.com to view this video

7 comments:

Bryan said...

I guess it's just matter of time. I'm sure both of them will get use to one another. When I first introduced my Senegal Parrot, Kermit to my lovebird, Kiki, it took me nearly 4-5 months to work on them to accept each other.

DoodleBird said...

I have my doubts! :-)

Best in Flock said...

This is pretty familiar. My conure still gives my pionus the evil eye from across the room, and whenever his flight feathers grow back in he makes a beeline for her (and I don't mean to cuddle).

Stewie wants nothing more than to do injury to Mika, and it's been 2 years.

I hear caiques are even worse about accepting other birds. They are known as really only being able to get along with other caiques.

Just be vigilant and don't give them the opportunity to hurt each other. You'll adjust ... we did.

Good luck!

DoodleBird said...

I knew that Caiques were known to be fearless and think of themselves as a much larger bird. That they have been known to get into trouble or even hurt by going right up to Amazons or Cockatoos. But I never knew they were known to be unaccepting of newcomers. :(

Oh well, they'll just have to be seperated when out of the cage.

Flock Advisor said...

Caiques and Conures seem to share a lot of qualities. If you have a neutral room (one where neither of the birds is familiar with) you could try taking them both there. If Nani is strongly bonded with you, have someone else hold her and you hold Feathersworth. You don't have to get them close to one another right away, but just see if the neutral room has an affect on Nani's behavior toward Feathersworth. A lot of the intolerance you are seeing could stem from cage aggression or protecting you. Conures (like my Sun) will often act very aggressive while they are on "their person" but be totally fine when removed from that scenario. Beautiful baby Pi, good luck with him.

DoodleBird said...

Flock Advisor, read this post (you're right): http://caiqueclowns.blogspot.com/2010/08/notify-press-unthinkable-has-happened.html

Flock Advisor said...

It is amazing what a context shift will do. I read your most recent post. If you want to work on it, you have definitely found a foundation for socializing the two. It took about a year for my girlfriend and I to work through our Sun Conure's issues. She bonded to me, and then became aggressive toward my girlfriend (who had owned her before I had ever come around). We did some research and found a paper written about conure social behavior in the wild. Turns out they pair-bond, and will often fend off their parents from their new mate. She has learned to use her wings, instead of her beak, to let us know when she is uncomfortable or wants to get off of a person. Your two birds may not ever get to where you can leave them alone together (and that is fine), but they can certainly have an enriching life in your home. Your young bird will be evolving a lot the first two years of his life. Tactile may not be something he enjoys right now, and that's okay. An Amazon we brought home in January had severe trust issues, and we had to learn to play with him without touching him to gain his trust. Now he solicits opportunities to scratch his head and neck all the time.

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Nani's Vocabulary To Date:

Pretty Birdie
Pretty Girl
What Are You Doing?
(variation) Whatcha Doin'?
I Love You
Thank You
Look At You!
Peek-A-Boo
Chickie
What?
Come Here!
JoJo
Go Poo Poo
Uh Oh
Flip!
Hop!
I Don't Want You.
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