what critters have scared your bird(s)?

[65sunnyday]

One night, as I was about to put Nicky in his roost, I heard a cricket chirp. Since Nicky was sleeping next to my wide-open bedroom window, & there WERE crickets chirping outside, I wasn't that concerned, even though THIS cricket sounded louder than the others. As I'm putting him in his sleepy hut, & cricket chirped & jumped out of the hut. Nicky let out a scream & flew downstairs for the first time, squawking the whole time. So what critters have scared YOUR bird(s) during the night?

 

[SandraK]

I don't know if I can really call them all critters but they scared the birds. The hawk that used to fly over our old house would have everyone jumping right left and center because he'd fly from across the street straight towards the front picture window over the house and then down past the dining room windows where the birds cages were.

My hubby and sons/friends or anyone who entered the back garden by the side gate and walked past the dining room windows - course the lawnmower would also set them off.

But the funniest was when I blew soap bubbles at them. We'd been to a wedding and instead of rice they gave out little soap bubble holders. I know it sounds mean, but the reaction to the soap bubbles was as bad as the reaction to the hawk (which I can understand) but it was kinda funny to watch. Everyone jumped or flew right, left and center all screaming their "dainger!dainger!dainger!" calls.

 

[QP4CAG]

Anyways, i would have to say the dyson sweeper. Ross is the WORST w/it....i swear i think he's going to give himself a heart attack The funny thing is, not only does he sQUAWK like there's no tomorrow, but in between the squawking you'll hear, "whatta doinnnnn" and "goooooooooooooood-boy" over and over and over and over again. Jax is still young (8mos) so EVERYTHING scares him right now...poor wittle bubbas

 

[lzver]

One night at our trailer, there was a moth flying around in Jessie's cage that sent him into a night fright. Of course, that scared Lucy as well (this was a few summers ago and we didn't have Kylie at the time).

Other than that, if they are just usual bugs flying around they don't bother them. It seems to be more of an issue at night time.

 

[suncoast]

The last one was a bear that came out from under our lanai. He scared all the birds. We usually take the Littles out and they love it out there but that day they were out about 10 seconds, looked all scared and slicked down and then EVERBODY zoomed back to the bird room. We just thought they wanted their millet treat early. (Stupid humans.) So then Truely goes out and starts screaming a scream that I've only heard one other time and that was when she got her foot caught in the thread of her house, so I tell Craig to go look and see if she's okay, and he yells, "Ging there's a BEAR out here!!!"

Ginger

 

[QP4CAG]

The last one was a bear that came out from under our lanai. He scared all the birds. We usually take the Littles out and they love it out there but that day they were out about 10 seconds, looked all scared and slicked down and then EVERBODY zoomed back to the bird room. We just thought they wanted their millet treat early. (Stupid humans.) So then Truely goes out and starts screaming a scream that I've only heard one other time and that was when she got her foot caught in the thread of her house, so I tell Craig to go look and see if she's okay, and he yells, "Ging there's a BEAR out here!!!"

Ginger

 

[Erin1979]

I can't think of many critters than have scared them, but one night we had a skunk outside and the dog and all of the birds were freaking out by barking, yelling and screaming. Couldn't see the skunk, but you could smell it.
Slim used to freak out over my ferret that I later gave to my mother-in-law who has a ferret utopia, I don't blame him though. Sunny hates my daughter's house bunny, puffs and screams if he sees it.
The things that freaks them out the most are the airplanes and big jets that fly over. It sends the birds into screaming fits as they are flying around the house in full panic. I live near the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum and it was like all hell broke lose when they brought the Spruce Goose by my house. The house was shaking and it felt like the house was going to fall down around us. You could see them landing from the window they were near. Not a critter, but maybe to them it was.

 

[Feather]

Not a critter, but my flock once encountered a helium balloon. Scariest thing on the face of the planet.

 

[IggyPepito]

Well, I had Iggy out one day and for some reason I don't know how but there were about 3 flies in my house! YUCK! Two of them kept antagonizing Iggy. Poor bird. They kept flying over his head and Iggy kept ducking and trying to get away. I had the fly swatter near me but the stinkin' flies wouldn't land anywhere! They just wanted to annoy my baby boy!! That's about the only critter that has scared Iggy...So far...That I know of anyways...There was a huge hornet in the house the other day and it fly into Iggys area so idk if it fly over him or not. ( I know it scared the giblets out of me though!!)

 

[suncoast]

Saroj's Emily is scared of Brocolinni.

Ginger

 

[Anne & Gang]

Well, I had Iggy out one day and for some reason I don't know how but there were about 3 flies in my house! YUCK! Two of them kept antagonizing Iggy. Poor bird. They kept flying over his head and Iggy kept ducking and trying to get away. I had the fly swatter near me but the stinkin' flies wouldn't land anywhere! They just wanted to annoy my baby boy!! That's about the only critter that has scared Iggy...So far...That I know of anyways...There was a huge hornet in the house the other day and it fly into Iggys area so idk if it fly over him or not. ( I know it scared the giblets out of me though!!)

yes, I am afraid to say that Queen Samantha is the scaredy tiel here...she once had a huge night fright over a fly in her cage...

 

[itzmered]

Tango used to be terrified of any flying bug especially the chinese beetles or lady bugs. Jasper just runs at them and tries to catch them so now they pretty much dont bother Tango anymore. He wouldnt want to look like a wimp in front of Jasper He did freak out a little bit the other day over a Gnat flying around in his cage outside

As far as sounding the alarm call they will both do it if they see the Blue Jays, Crows, Turkey's the rest of the outside birds pretty much dont bother them.

 

[Bridgette]

People on bicycles scare Kiwi.

 

[Laurul Feather Cat]

Emmie freaks if anything touches him at night while in his cage. I don't blame him, really. Usually it is a spider, fly, moth or the like. One day I heard Emmie alarm call and I went into the birdroom to find a tiny mouse. Which I trapped and removed. Three months later I found a dead mouse in Emmie's cage; he had pulled off its head! The one thing Emmie was really freaked by in the past few months was the new Swiffer WetJet I bought. The sound the pump makes on the new WetJets caused Emmie to make the real CAG threat growl. He fluffed up, pinned his eyes and leaned forward with open beak ready to attack the WetJet. I had to remove it from the birdroom and use the older model I kept upstairs. He was seriously freaked over that sound.

The cockatiels are afraid of the squirrels who come up on the deck to eat the left over birdfood. You would swear the squirrels were rabid monsters! Precie and Pedro love the squirrels; they had a squirrel buddy at their former home for many years. The zons are afraid of the big old opossum that lives under my deck, however. The other birds ignore him, but the zons are sure old Whitey is going to attack any second (through the double pane glass, of course).

 

[HelenVanessaDavies]

Percy's freaked out by the chickens. I let Percy play in the conservatory..when he first saw the chickens through the window I thought he was going to poo himself!!

 

[crzybrdldy]

Emmett and I were sitting in the big girl chair in the birdroom one afternoon when I got home from my jobsearch,Precious was perched in the doorway of her cage and then there is Sam. All of a sudden Emm screamed like a little girl and took off through the house, Precious was so startled she almost fell and Sam . I tracked him down in the livingroom behind the tv stand trying to be very small. I got him and we went back in and sat down I still didn't have a clue until he did that little head tilt and he crawled up under my chin and starting his alarm call , low and behold I look up and on the tower behind my house there are 20 Blackheaded Vultures. He never wants to go back to his cage, voluntarily that is, but that day he was ready.

He enjoys watching the bunny wabbits but not the vultures I told him that they would only bother him if he was dead but he didn't believe me.

 

[Crackaleen]

Buddy is an enormous chicken too. I have one hilarious story regarding Buddy's fear of flying bugs. Several years ago, I was laying on the bed watching TV with Buddy on my chest. It was a summer night and one of those harmless giant mosquito eaters had gotten in the room (just found out they're called crane flies) and was flying laps around the ceiling. Buddy was busy preening and was completely oblivious. The bug was flying circles around us, gradually coming lower and lower and getting closer and closer. Buddy was still completely preoccupied with making himself beautiful - he was all turned around preening his back and tail when the crane fly landed gently on his chest, hugging him. Buddy had no idea for several longs seconds that he was being lovingly hugged by this huge bug until turned his head around to preen his chest and came face to face with it. Lol, he froze for a second - nose to nose with the thing - and then gave the most comical cockatiel shriek I've ever heard and took off. I quickly made sure he was ok, but I have to say that was one of the funniest things I have ever witnessed.

There was another time when I brought Buddy and the OWA we had at the time (Oliver) out onto the screened in porch at my parents house. We were all eating dinner out there and the birds wanted to be included so I put them on the back of their favorite wicker rocking chair that we had in the corner of the porch while we ate dinner. I looked over to see the two of them standing really tall, feathers slicked down, Buddy's crest standing straight up, glancing nervously behind them at the floor behind the chair. I went to investigate and there was the largest slug I've ever seen slowly making its way across the floor back there. That thing was easily the size of a large banana.