Bad weather, bad mood?

[WillowQ]

Today is warm and very windy. There’s a fire warning. I had Willow Quaker out for a while.
I returned Willow to his cage and went to get Jasper out. Opened her door and stepped her up from where she was hanging upside down and flailing with one leg to grab me.

A few steps later I went to pick up a small box with my other hand and Jasper bit me really hard. She was hanging off my hand grinding. I grabbed with the other hand to support her again and she got that hand.

I didn’t yell and I brought her into my bedroom to her tree perch. She ate avicake while I washed out my bites. Now we’re sitting and I’m trying to work out what happened. Jasper hasn’t bitten me for months. My feelings are hurt as well as my hands.

I’m trying to figure out what set her off. I was carrying something in my other hand. So wasn’t completely focused on her. And it was very windy and the wind was whistling. I noticed that she whistled back at the wind a few times after the bite.

This hadn’t happened in a long time so I’m disappointed. She didn’t want to be pet long so is back on her tree. Squeaking “I love you” which is not so convincing and eyeing my bookshelf.

 

[WillowQ]

—I noticed there’s some construction out the windows and wonder if that was upsetting.

 

[Xoetix]

I definitely think that the weather can affect a birds mood just the way it does ours. I know when it is cold and wet and rainy out, my cockatoo is a lot moodier than when it’s sunny out. Which I get, I’m also moody when the weather is crappy when the wind is really blowing outside both of mine seem a little jumpier and more anxious overall, I think the noise is what does it.

 

[Pixiebeak]

I think picking something up can do it. My birds can freak out if I pick something up.

I can set them down , pick up the object then ask if they want to step back up often then they are ok. Sometimes not always, least they can refuse the step up and ket me know , that the object is too scary

 

[WillowQ]

It is Friday; two days since THE BITE. And Jasper is sitting on my hand as I wrote this.
She got scared when I lifted a blanket to put it over my cold toes and flew to the bookshelf. But she stepped onto my hand nicely and is now relaxing and crunching her beak.

I am not sure what was up on Wednesday but I think there was just too much happening at once. Jasper doesn’t like it when I try to carry anything besides her. But she is being polite with her beak today: she grabbed my thumb and held it when my head scratching was too enthusiastic.

 

[WillowQ]

Today was a nice sunny day and Jasper was singing like a songbird. Well, as close to a songbird as she can. I think she’s taken the pitch changes in my voice and translated them into whistles or chirps.

i had most of the day with one bird or the other. Jasper was in a good mood. I pet her tummy while she was hanging horizontally off the side of her cage and she tried to feed me hanging there. Later I was able to kiss her tummy and her feet and rub her tummy as she lay in my hand.

 

[WillowQ]

Jasper ate ALL of her peas porridge. It was a hit. She is so happy tonight it’s funny. She’s head bobbing enough she’s about to fall off my hand.
Jasper has gotten a lot more cuddly and friendly this winter. I had found a young person who very much wanted to adopt her, but now all these things are in the way. His car won’t get here (75 miles); his mom’s best friend died and he’s helping clear out her house. Meanwhile, Jasper has turned around completely.
I’m not sure that’s going to happen any more. It is spring and I suddenly feel more capable of managing two birds.