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Help! Budgie Over Preening Me !!

Abby'sBird

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Abby
Hello all! First post here and it will probably be a long one!



To get started, I have four budgies that are housed together. They have a big flight cage with plenty of toys/perches/food/water so fighting is not a problem. I got Gabriel, the problem bird right now, when she was just weaned somewhere around 3 yrs ago. She is the oldest and has always been the most closely bonded with me. Very recently, like the last week or so, she has started to hang out with me even more than usual (and that’s saying A LOT lol). I don’t mind this part, but while she is sitting with me all she wants to do is preen/chew on my face/neck/hair/hands/literally anywhere on me so much that it really hurts, but no cuts or bleeding. She usually preens me, but never to this extent. I try to move away from her, redirect her, and otherwise try to distract her from chewing on me, but it doesn’t work like it usually does. I even set up some other spots near me with her favorite toys to no avail. I’ve tried refreshing food/water/bath bowls and nothing. It seems like literally nothing can change her mind. She used to just sit with me, play with some toys, preen me a little, but she would stop if I moved away/squeaked, but not anymore. None of the other birds have changed their behaviors, no food changes, regular care schedule, so I don’t think its that. However, it got really warm the last few days, so I’m thinking it’s a hormone thing? I can’t find any answers online, so I’m stumped about how to fix this. Help!

Extra info:
Gabriel- ~3 yrs old, oldest, most closely bonded to me
Peter- ~2 yrs old, most likely the only male, friendly
Tilly- ~2 yrs old, bossy, top hen
Pearl- <1 yr old, very active, clumsy

Food- High quality seed mix, hemp/chia/flax mix, egg food, vitamin supplement, alfalfa hay, dried chamomile <-- four bowls, all refreshed daily
They all have 4+ hours of out-of-cage time daily with multiple perches they can go to with extra toys/enrichment plus the play area on top of their cage
They are covered for around 10-12 hrs with a blanket every night in an attempt to prevent any hormonal changes since I don't want any chicks right now
 
Last edited:

Shezbug

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Can you maybe try offering some preening type accessories on you (safe necklace, earrings etc) to take the interest away from your skin?

@Ripshod
 

Sparkles99

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While waiting for him, up their sleep to a minimum of 12 hours. 10 is too short.

Also, if you post face shots, you’ll get definitive answers about male/female.
 

Ripshod

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Body language - if you can't tell her it's hurting she won't learn. If she hurts you jerk your face away and try and make the angry chipmunk sound, or as close as you can get to it.
If indeed you only have the one male then balancing your flock would mean 6 budgies total, maybe not ideal for you. Getting Gabriel a male friend probably won't spoil your relationship that much, and speaking the same language he could teach her how to be gentler with the preening.
Photos please!
 

Abby'sBird

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Abby
Can you maybe try offering some preening type accessories on you (safe necklace, earrings etc) to take the interest away from your skin?

@Ripshod
While waiting for him, up their sleep to a minimum of 12 hours. 10 is too short.

Also, if you post face shots, you’ll get definitive answers about male/female.
Body language - if you can't tell her it's hurting she won't learn. If she hurts you jerk your face away and try and make the angry chipmunk sound, or as close as you can get to it.
If indeed you only have the one male then balancing your flock would mean 6 budgies total, maybe not ideal for you. Getting Gabriel a male friend probably won't spoil your relationship that much, and speaking the same language he could teach her how to be gentler with the preening.
Photos please!
-That's a great idea! Thank you!

-I'll go ahead and up their covered time, thank you!

-That's what I have done up to this point. When Gabriel was a baby, she would preen super aggressively, but I taught her to be more gentle through the "chipmunk squeaks" like you said which worked up till recently. Thank you for the excuse to get more budgies! Always looking to expand my flock lol

Also, I attached some pictures to see if anyone has a different idea on genders! Gabriel and Pearl are both pied, so they are the two who I've had the most trouble accurately identifying.

From left to right- Peter, Gabriel, Pearl, Tilly
Gabriel and Peter.jpg Pearl.jpg Tilly.jpg
 
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