Hi, so I really need some advice for my lovebird, Boba. This post is kind of long and I think some parts may be unnecessary, but I really need to vent.
Background: I have had him since late August of 2020, and I believe that he's around a year old now. I first bought him from a breeder, and he was tame and really cuddly. He liked being held and preened by feathers. I bought him with another lovebird, Snoopy, from a different seller. Snoopy was also tame and would step up, but didn't like being held and preened like Boba. I played with them everyday, but Boba went on to be more like Snoopy as he grew up and would bite fingers and refuse to be held and preened. And that was fine with me, because they were still tame and liked playing with me. As they grew older, Snoopy was more calm and laid back, while Boba was more hyper. Unfortunately, in January, Snoopy flew away. Their cage is located outside in my backyard, under a roof, where they're protected from the elements. I live in Southern California, so the weather is mild enough to have them out there. I accidentally left one of the cage doors loose the night before, and my little sister didn't notice and close it when she took them out that morning (they slept in an indoor cage). Both birds got out of the cage, but Snoopy's flight feathers had grown in more than Boba's, and he got away while Boba stayed behind. I l looked for weeks, but Snoopy's wings were still clipped to an extent, so I believe he died. So then it was just me and Boba.
Diet: Boba gets chop and Roudybush pellets every morning. There is a foraging toy filled with sunflower seeds, nutriberries, and colorful strips of paper currently in his cage, and sometimes I put in an acrylic foraging toy filled with millet and paper in as a treat. I give him millet whenever I see him. When I bring him inside to play, I give him little origami stars filled with sunflower seeds or I roll up sunflower seeds in a tissue for him to forage. I will admit that I tend to indulge him in all the treats he wants when I play with him or whenever I see him.
Cage: Boba's cage isn't small. It's a dome top A&E cage, 24"x22"x61". Currently, he has 2 platform perches, 3 natural wood perches, 1 wooden ladder, 1 seagrass hut, and 1 triangle rope swing. He has a big foraging toy in a corner and various toys in and around the seagrass hut. He has a bigger triangle rope swing, a dowel wooden swing, and a rope spiral perch that aren't currently in his cage. He used to have a small indoor cage to sleep in, but he got aggressive and protective of it, so now he has to sleep in the outside cage.
Toys: For the moment, I think that Boba has enough toys to play with and tear apart. However, my supply is running kind of low, so I'm working up the courage to ask my mom to buy more. I already have a few picked out on Amazon. My grades should come in the mail soon, and I'm planning on using them to get my parents to buy me more bird toys as a reward.
Problem Behavior: Boba HATES fingers now. He won't let them anywhere near him. He won't step up onto my fingers, he goes on my arm or shoulder. He doesn't actively seek out to attack them, so I just try to keep them out of the way and he doesn't bite. When I go to hand him toys, like the origami stars filled with treats, he lunges to my fingers to bite them. He does let me kiss him though, so it's not as if he is never touched. The problem with his aversion to fingers is that without Snoopy or my fingers, he doesn't have anyone to preen his head, and I'm worried about him. He is very territorial about his cage, both the sleeping cage and the day cage. He used to growl at me and try to bite from the sleepy cage, but now that he sleeps outside, he growls at me from his outdoor cage (only at night, he doesn't growl from his outdoor cage during the day). He used to have a bird house in his outdoor cage, but he never went inside it. He sat on the top and used it as a platform perch, but he got aggressive over it, so I removed it and replaced it with real platform perches, thinking that it would stop his behavior. It didn't and now he's just aggressive over the platform perches. Since I don't let him sleep inside anymore, he's becoming more protective of his day cage. To combat this, I recently rearranged his cage because I heard it would help stop the territorial behavior, but I don't think it worked. He was scared of his new set up for a while, but then got used to it and went right back to being territorial. Since it's located outdoors, he can hear all the wild birds in the neighborhood calling to each other. Boba likes to hop and fly around his cage while screaming to the other birds.. He calms down in the afternoon, and I catch him all fluffed up and chattering to himself on the platform perch instead. Sometimes the wild sparrows come down to eat the seeds he spills on the ground around him cage. Boba spends a lot of his day screaming and calling for the other birds, and I'm worried that he's getting lonely. Boba has a history of trying to fly away to follow the wild birds, so his wings are clipped. I don't want to get another bird to help with the loneliness because I'm scared that they won't get along well. Introducing a new bird into an aggressive and hormonal bird's territory just doesn't seem very smart to me. I don't want to complicate the situation more by adding a new variable. I try to play with Boba as much as I can. I put aside an hour everyday to bring him inside to play with him, but it just doesn't seem like he likes me. Our play time mostly consists of me giving him foraging toys to work on while I just sit there doing nothing. I heard that training him to do tricks would help with his aggression, so I tried for a while. He didn't understand any of the tricks I tried to teach him and was just interested in the treats he got. He was aggressive the whole time, so I scrapped that idea. I just don't think that Boba like me very much and is only interested in the treats I have to offer him. It seems like our "play time" just isn't very fun for either of us, but I don't know what to do with him.
Vet: I have been trying to convince my mom to take Boba to the vet for months now. When I first got Snoopy and Boba, I begged her to let them get a check up to make sure nothing was wrong with them, but I was quickly shut down. I mentioned it a few more times since then, but every attempt was rebuffed. When Boba started showing aggressive and hormonal behavior, I tried again with my mom. I found an avian specialist near us that could help, but my mom said that it would be too expensive. I tried to compromise and said that I would find a cheaper vet that wasn't a specialist, but I was dismissed again. My mom said that Boba's personality was just mean and that going to the vet wouldn't fix anything and would just be an expensive waste. I understand that she's reluctant to spend money, but it's not like we're financially struggling. We live a nice, middle class life. I would pay for the vet myself, but I have no money and I'm not old enough to have a job in my area. I also have a bad feeling about his health. Sometimes, the area around his nostrils is wet, and Snoopy's nose was never like this. I know that birds are good at hiding sickness, and I'm concerned.
BTWs: My parents won't move the cage indoors because they don't like the noise and mess. I've discussed this with them already, and it's always a resounding no. He also gets territorial over my laptop, so I don't use it around him anymore. I also think that "he" is probably a female based on his behaviors, but I haven't gotten him DNA sexed so I really don't know.
Summary: Boba is aggressive, territorial, and hormonal. How do I stop these behaviors? I'm not sure how to play with him, so I need advice on that too. If you have any critiques or thoughts on how I can improve Boba's life, I'd really appreciate it.
So I'm at a loss for what to do now. I really love Boba, and he was really sweet in the beginning. I have considered selling him and getting a new bird, but the thought of that makes me want to cry. I don't want to abandon him to a total stranger on Craiglist or something, and I don't know any experienced bird owners that I could rehome him to. If I do have to get rid of Boba, I won't get a new bird. I feel like the problem is with me and how I take care of him that's leading to his aggression issues. If possible, I want to work through his behavior and make him a happy and carefree bird. Selling or rehoming him is a last resort, and it would feel like such a waste of all the time, effort, money, and love that I've sunk into this little bird. Lately, I've just been feeling like the worst owner ever and like I can't do anything to help Boba, so I'm posting this in hopes that some experience bird owners can help me. I'll take all the advice I can get, and thank you in advance. Sorry that this post was so long.
Background: I have had him since late August of 2020, and I believe that he's around a year old now. I first bought him from a breeder, and he was tame and really cuddly. He liked being held and preened by feathers. I bought him with another lovebird, Snoopy, from a different seller. Snoopy was also tame and would step up, but didn't like being held and preened like Boba. I played with them everyday, but Boba went on to be more like Snoopy as he grew up and would bite fingers and refuse to be held and preened. And that was fine with me, because they were still tame and liked playing with me. As they grew older, Snoopy was more calm and laid back, while Boba was more hyper. Unfortunately, in January, Snoopy flew away. Their cage is located outside in my backyard, under a roof, where they're protected from the elements. I live in Southern California, so the weather is mild enough to have them out there. I accidentally left one of the cage doors loose the night before, and my little sister didn't notice and close it when she took them out that morning (they slept in an indoor cage). Both birds got out of the cage, but Snoopy's flight feathers had grown in more than Boba's, and he got away while Boba stayed behind. I l looked for weeks, but Snoopy's wings were still clipped to an extent, so I believe he died. So then it was just me and Boba.
Diet: Boba gets chop and Roudybush pellets every morning. There is a foraging toy filled with sunflower seeds, nutriberries, and colorful strips of paper currently in his cage, and sometimes I put in an acrylic foraging toy filled with millet and paper in as a treat. I give him millet whenever I see him. When I bring him inside to play, I give him little origami stars filled with sunflower seeds or I roll up sunflower seeds in a tissue for him to forage. I will admit that I tend to indulge him in all the treats he wants when I play with him or whenever I see him.
Cage: Boba's cage isn't small. It's a dome top A&E cage, 24"x22"x61". Currently, he has 2 platform perches, 3 natural wood perches, 1 wooden ladder, 1 seagrass hut, and 1 triangle rope swing. He has a big foraging toy in a corner and various toys in and around the seagrass hut. He has a bigger triangle rope swing, a dowel wooden swing, and a rope spiral perch that aren't currently in his cage. He used to have a small indoor cage to sleep in, but he got aggressive and protective of it, so now he has to sleep in the outside cage.
Toys: For the moment, I think that Boba has enough toys to play with and tear apart. However, my supply is running kind of low, so I'm working up the courage to ask my mom to buy more. I already have a few picked out on Amazon. My grades should come in the mail soon, and I'm planning on using them to get my parents to buy me more bird toys as a reward.
Problem Behavior: Boba HATES fingers now. He won't let them anywhere near him. He won't step up onto my fingers, he goes on my arm or shoulder. He doesn't actively seek out to attack them, so I just try to keep them out of the way and he doesn't bite. When I go to hand him toys, like the origami stars filled with treats, he lunges to my fingers to bite them. He does let me kiss him though, so it's not as if he is never touched. The problem with his aversion to fingers is that without Snoopy or my fingers, he doesn't have anyone to preen his head, and I'm worried about him. He is very territorial about his cage, both the sleeping cage and the day cage. He used to growl at me and try to bite from the sleepy cage, but now that he sleeps outside, he growls at me from his outdoor cage (only at night, he doesn't growl from his outdoor cage during the day). He used to have a bird house in his outdoor cage, but he never went inside it. He sat on the top and used it as a platform perch, but he got aggressive over it, so I removed it and replaced it with real platform perches, thinking that it would stop his behavior. It didn't and now he's just aggressive over the platform perches. Since I don't let him sleep inside anymore, he's becoming more protective of his day cage. To combat this, I recently rearranged his cage because I heard it would help stop the territorial behavior, but I don't think it worked. He was scared of his new set up for a while, but then got used to it and went right back to being territorial. Since it's located outdoors, he can hear all the wild birds in the neighborhood calling to each other. Boba likes to hop and fly around his cage while screaming to the other birds.. He calms down in the afternoon, and I catch him all fluffed up and chattering to himself on the platform perch instead. Sometimes the wild sparrows come down to eat the seeds he spills on the ground around him cage. Boba spends a lot of his day screaming and calling for the other birds, and I'm worried that he's getting lonely. Boba has a history of trying to fly away to follow the wild birds, so his wings are clipped. I don't want to get another bird to help with the loneliness because I'm scared that they won't get along well. Introducing a new bird into an aggressive and hormonal bird's territory just doesn't seem very smart to me. I don't want to complicate the situation more by adding a new variable. I try to play with Boba as much as I can. I put aside an hour everyday to bring him inside to play with him, but it just doesn't seem like he likes me. Our play time mostly consists of me giving him foraging toys to work on while I just sit there doing nothing. I heard that training him to do tricks would help with his aggression, so I tried for a while. He didn't understand any of the tricks I tried to teach him and was just interested in the treats he got. He was aggressive the whole time, so I scrapped that idea. I just don't think that Boba like me very much and is only interested in the treats I have to offer him. It seems like our "play time" just isn't very fun for either of us, but I don't know what to do with him.
Vet: I have been trying to convince my mom to take Boba to the vet for months now. When I first got Snoopy and Boba, I begged her to let them get a check up to make sure nothing was wrong with them, but I was quickly shut down. I mentioned it a few more times since then, but every attempt was rebuffed. When Boba started showing aggressive and hormonal behavior, I tried again with my mom. I found an avian specialist near us that could help, but my mom said that it would be too expensive. I tried to compromise and said that I would find a cheaper vet that wasn't a specialist, but I was dismissed again. My mom said that Boba's personality was just mean and that going to the vet wouldn't fix anything and would just be an expensive waste. I understand that she's reluctant to spend money, but it's not like we're financially struggling. We live a nice, middle class life. I would pay for the vet myself, but I have no money and I'm not old enough to have a job in my area. I also have a bad feeling about his health. Sometimes, the area around his nostrils is wet, and Snoopy's nose was never like this. I know that birds are good at hiding sickness, and I'm concerned.
BTWs: My parents won't move the cage indoors because they don't like the noise and mess. I've discussed this with them already, and it's always a resounding no. He also gets territorial over my laptop, so I don't use it around him anymore. I also think that "he" is probably a female based on his behaviors, but I haven't gotten him DNA sexed so I really don't know.
Summary: Boba is aggressive, territorial, and hormonal. How do I stop these behaviors? I'm not sure how to play with him, so I need advice on that too. If you have any critiques or thoughts on how I can improve Boba's life, I'd really appreciate it.
So I'm at a loss for what to do now. I really love Boba, and he was really sweet in the beginning. I have considered selling him and getting a new bird, but the thought of that makes me want to cry. I don't want to abandon him to a total stranger on Craiglist or something, and I don't know any experienced bird owners that I could rehome him to. If I do have to get rid of Boba, I won't get a new bird. I feel like the problem is with me and how I take care of him that's leading to his aggression issues. If possible, I want to work through his behavior and make him a happy and carefree bird. Selling or rehoming him is a last resort, and it would feel like such a waste of all the time, effort, money, and love that I've sunk into this little bird. Lately, I've just been feeling like the worst owner ever and like I can't do anything to help Boba, so I'm posting this in hopes that some experience bird owners can help me. I'll take all the advice I can get, and thank you in advance. Sorry that this post was so long.
