Would it be cruel to take away all weaving materials?

[CrazyBirdChick]

Wow what a nest!

It does look comfy in there

 

[cnyguy]

You might take away the nesting materials completely for a while, then provide a few straws for Blu to work with. He seems to have become obsessive with the paper rope so it may be better to avoid that. If you have dollar stores near you, you'll probably find big packages of straws for a dollar a package, and should be able to stock up on them before they become unavailable in January.

 

[Rain Bow]

It does look comfy in there

View attachment 314537

Probably nice & warm too! What a good little weaver, such a shame it's gotta
splode

 

[CrazyBirdChick]

You might take away the nesting materials completely for a while, then provide a few straws for Blu to work with. He seems to have become obsessive with the paper rope so it may be better to avoid that. If you have dollar stores near you, you'll probably find big packages of straws for a dollar a package, and should be able to stock up on them before they become unavailable in January.

That's a great plan! Thank you so much!

Probably nice & warm too! What a good little weaver, such a shame it's gotta
splode

It is a shame. I really do like when he does it. Just not this fiercely and obsessively. Hopefully once we take a long break he can get back into more of a normal weaving outlet some day

 

[Beasley]

The way he peeks out and gives you a warning is so cute even if he is definitely being a butt

 

[AkasyaEllric]

He is definitely a talented little angry fluff butt.

 

[Birdlover42]

It's amazing what they can do! I tried giving Skittles some things to build with but she didn't and after reading this I'm glad she didn't. I feel like she would become obsessed and become more hormonal. It's their nature and instinct to build big elaborate nests which I feel they should not be deprived of but then if they start doing that they become less of a pet. I'm not sure if that makes sense but it's so hard to balance with them. Quakers like any exotic pet are not easy to deal with and they are not domesticated which is why so many people abuse their birds or re-home them. They aren't like a dog or a cat. Granted they can be trained but are still somewhat like a wild animal. I feel like it takes special training or education to deal with exotic pets. It's not even a balance because they are what they are. You give them something that they love to do and they run with it and seem to become obsessed with it and then there seems to be no balance and they become hormonal and bite you. This is something I struggle with. Do I let her be an exotic bird and do her thing? Or do I try and make her a pet which is against her instincts??? I've been trying stick training and Skittles does NOT like it. I tried it the other day and she perched and turned her back to me and I swear she said. I DONT LIKE YOU! She wouldn't even look at me or come near me. Having a quaker is so hard sometimes!

 

[CrazyBirdChick]

The way he peeks out and gives you a warning is so cute even if he is definitely being a butt

Thanks! I agree! The boxy angry floof is definitely adorable

He is definitely a talented little angry fluff butt.

Thank you! I think so too!

It's amazing what they can do! I tried giving Skittles some things to build with but she didn't and after reading this I'm glad she didn't. I feel like she would become obsessed and become more hormonal. It's their nature and instinct to build big elaborate nests which I feel they should not be deprived of but then if they start doing that they become less of a pet. I'm not sure if that makes sense but it's so hard to balance with them. Quakers like any exotic pet are not easy to deal with and they are not domesticated which is why so many people abuse their birds or re-home them. They aren't like a dog or a cat. Granted they can be trained but are still somewhat like a wild animal. I feel like it takes special training or education to deal with exotic pets. It's not even a balance because they are what they are. You give them something that they love to do and they run with it and seem to become obsessed with it and then there seems to be no balance and they become hormonal and bite you. This is something I struggle with. Do I let her be an exotic bird and do her thing? Or do I try and make her a pet which is against her instincts??? I've been trying stick training and Skittles does NOT like it. I tried it the other day and she perched and turned her back to me and I swear she said. I DONT LIKE YOU! She wouldn't even look at me or come near me. Having a quaker is so hard sometimes!

Totally makes sense, and yes, they are hard sometimes! At least Skittles just gave you the back and not a bite this time
Thank you!

 

[CrazyBirdChick]

I just took him outside for a bit of fresh air and then brought him back in and kept him in his travel cage downstairs while I took every last bit of weaving materials away. When I brought him back in his room he went immediately looking for stuff to weave. It's like a habit now.

He gave up looking as of 5 minutes ago and is now sitting on my knee grinding his beak. I hope he can forget all about it soon. I will update this thread as time goes by to let you guys know if his aggression calms down.

 

[CrazyBirdChick]

"Let me out of here! I need to go back to finish building!"



Btw- he did not even enjoy being outside today. So we only stayed out for 5 minutes

 

[CrazyBirdChick]

The crazy look in his eye is gone!

 

[AkasyaEllric]

The crazy look in his eye is gone!

Yay! I'm so happy you got your buddy back

 

[CrazyBirdChick]

Yay! I'm so happy you got your buddy back

Thank you!! I'm so happy too! He's sooo much sweeter already! He bit me a couple of times but nothing like what's been going on for the past few weeks. He's preening alot and just relaxing. I think he needs to catch up on taking care of himself


The main thing I'm worried about is bed time. That's going to be very difficult

 

[CrazyBirdChick]

Just wanted to update again

Blu was extremely sweet all day long! Just exploding with love and talking and kisses. I enjoyed his company so much again!

When I left him alone for a few hours he was totally fine. Then when I put him to bed it was a little confusing for him because he kept going to the top of the cage looking for his nest. But I showed him one time that he can go into his cage on the old sleeping perch and he went straight in ground his beak a bit and went to bed.

Everything is so much better now! Thank you all so very much for all the help and advice!!! It's so true that you shouldn't let a bird have nesting materials. It made him temporarily insane!

 

[Mizzely]

Fantastic news! I am so thrilled you had immediate results!

 

[CrazyBirdChick]

Fantastic news! I am so thrilled you had immediate results!

Thank you! It is pretty amazing how quickly he changed his tune. Every so often he'd go up to the top of his cage and look around for something to weave but when there was nothing there he'd just get over it right away. I am really starting to believe that having to build (and protect) the nest might actually stress him out! I thought I was doing something good for him

 

[Beasley]

What an adorable little love bug! I am so glad to hear that Blu has had such a rapid shift back to his usual sweet self! I hope he lets you kiss those fluffy little cheeks hehe they look pretty darn irresistible

 

[CrazyBirdChick]

What an adorable little love bug! I am so glad to hear that Blu has had such a rapid shift back to his usual sweet self! I hope he lets you kiss those fluffy little cheeks hehe they look pretty darn irresistible

Thank you so much! The cheeks are definitely fun to kiss but my favorite thing is kissing the top of his beak. He kisses right back! He's been a dream bird again today so I'm definitely convinced that weaving isn't such a good thing.

 

[Beasley]

Oh yes beak kisses are definitely the best Blu sounds like he’s much happier without his weaving worries

 

[Rain Bow]

Oh, I'm so glad that this turned out to be a swift & easy attitude adjustment! Also, glad your little blue luv bug is ALL the way back to his sweet self!