Just a personal theory, not science..

[Saemma]

Emma is always the first one up in the morning. She seems to get be with as little as 8-9 hours of sleep. It doesn't even seem to affect her sweet disposition or mood. I've often wondered why she doesn't want or seem to need more sleep.
Another thing, she doesn't poop throughout the night in her cage.
On the other hand, Sachi does poop through the night and enjoys 10-12 hours of sleep.

Is it possible that the reason why Emma is up so early, is because she needs to relieve herself?

 

[itzmered]

Neither of my birds poop during the night and they usually sleep for 10 - 12 hours. Look out when they do go after holding it for that long!!

 

[lotus15]

I have no idea if it's connected to her needing to relieve herself, but I have read that in the wild, greys are one of the only birds that does not get 10-12 hours of sleep

 

[Mojo's daddy]

y is it recommended for 10-12 hours of sleep then. Mojo does poop where he sleeps, and he does wake up bright and early as well. That being said i don't think it is due to the need to go.

 

[Marlene]

Kramer my grey, does not poop at night. He is also my only bird that does not need more than 8 hrs of sleep. He also has the biggest poop in the morning!

 

[Saemma]

I have no idea if it's connected to her needing to relieve herself, but I have read that in the wild, greys are one of the only birds that does not get 10-12 hours of sleep

Really? I really had no clue. Is there an internet link?

 

[Saemma]

Kramer my grey, does not poop at night. He is also my only bird that does not need more than 8 hrs of sleep. He also has the biggest poop in the morning!

Emma drops a big PLOP every morning!!

 

[drop]

I think alot of parrots don't poop where they sleep, to do with the instinct of not soiling their roosting site and to not attract predators.

Mine get about 10 hours of sleep or so, maybe they wake up before, but they don't make any noise so I wouldn't know. Cody poops while in his sleep cage, Ash does not. Consequently, Ash has a huge poop in the morning and Cody does not.

That's interesting about Greys not getting 10-12 hours of sleep in the wild. Would love to see the link too if the article was on the net.

 

[lotus15]

Really? I really had no clue. Is there an internet link?

I believe I've read it in a few places, here's the first link I found:

Generally speaking, Central and South American parrots are happiest when getting a full 12 hours of darkness and uninterrupted rest. African Greys, once mature, frequently need a bit fewer hours of sleep than this. This is substantiated by the fact that they have been observed in the wild flying well after darkness has settled. Macaws are normally late risers but most birds will wake up as soon as some light creeps under their cage covers and waiting for the owner to uncover them can create a lot of stress and boredom, two reasons for plucking.

(from Avian behavior)

Also almost all research you find on birds always says that in the wild, as soon as the sun is down, their vocalizations stop and they are roosting, and won't get up until it's light out again (to avoid predators). I believe the Pionus Parrot book we both have, for example, says that. Greys on the other hand are actually active and vocal in the dark. Jean Pattison, the "African Queen," wrote an article on recovering a lost grey parrot that includes:

Always look for a grey BEFORE sun-up while it is still dark, and AFTER sundown. They are the most vocal then, and the most active.

(from Recovering Missing Birds)

Also of interest: while looking for these links I read on several sites that Greys typically won't poop where they roost to avoid cluing off predators!

 

[Saemma]

Thanks Lotus!!

 

[DarkSoldier246]

i get a big paper towel out when i take out mai tai in the morning and i hold it under her the whole way to her playgym, i have her 60% potty trained (she was 80% when i got her but i got lax with it :[ )

but she usually starts tucking hr head around 9 or so, then if i get her out at 9 she poops, but if its later like 930 or 10, she already pooped her HUGE morning poop in the cage...

 

[drop]

Thanks Lotus, I had read about them having a tendancy to be vocal around sunrise and sunset, I think it was also on Jean Pattison's site. I guess I always assumed that even so, they got more then 8hrs. The average time between sunrise/sunset this time of year in Cameroon and area averages about 12hrs, I wonder how long they are active before dawn and after dusk? I figured they still could be getting around 10hrs of sleep at night?

Interesting. Though I would still like my 10hrs of sleep even if they don't necessarily need it.

 

[JLcribber]

Does Emma nap during the day?? Also a possible factor.

 

[Saemma]

Does Emma nap during the day?? Also a possible factor.

John.. I have no clue if she naps when we aren't home but I can definitely say that she NEVER naps when we are home all day. In fact, I have never had a chance to see what Emma looks like when she sleeps from the time she was about 3 months old. It's quite strange!

 

[avianantics]

While I cannot point you to an Internet link. I have personally observed both Grey's in the wild and wild caught, as well as domestic bred pairs in Aviary situations. Greys do not seem to require the often recommended 10-12 hours of sleep.

Both in the wild and in the aviary, there is much chattering going on after dark, for quite sometime. The chattering resumes very early in the morning before the sun comes up.

In 1992, I spent 6 weeks in West Central (Equatorial) Africa. Two of those weeks was spent on safari following a wild flock of Grey's in Ghana. My observation over that two weeks, based on when the chattering stopped and then started again, was that the amount of actual sleep they get varies from night to night. Some nights it was 6-7 hours, others it was 7-8 hours and on occasion it was close to 9 hours. Of note, is that Grey's both in the wild as well as in captivity, do nap. My own CAG takes several naps throughout the day. The breeders in the Aviary also nap several times each day, and Grey's in the wild nap during the day as well.

In addition, we had nest cameras and microphones in our aviary for many years. I observed the same sleeping patterns with breeders in captivity.

Combining these observations with the fact that my own CAG has been on 'my' schedule, (which averages, lights out between 10:30-11:00pm and breakfast at 6-7am, for all of her 12 years, with absolutely no ill effects; I would say, based on my observation and experience; that while individuals may vary, the 'average' African Grey, on average, requires between 7-9 hours of sleep each night.

Just my own personal observations and experience.

 

[Saemma]

Thanks Shelly!! It's very interesting to know this info. I always kind of wondered about Emma and her sleeping habits.

 

[magni]

My 4 greys sleep less also, they are up so early. Talking away with each other and yelling. They poop outside the cage in the morning, big ploops

 

[Danita]

John.. I have no clue if she naps when we aren't home but I can definitely say that she NEVER naps when we are home all day. In fact, I have never had a chance to see what Emma looks like when she sleeps from the time she was about 3 months old. It's quite strange!

Mine all nap, I call it naptime in the jungle here. Usually around 1-5, they nap, all of them. Then they are raring to go.
Newman does the whole tuck his head under his wing in front of whoever is around. Bea does that too, but on the sly, I have caught her.

 

[avianantics]

Two other unrelated but interesting observations about Greys.

*They *do* eat bugs. In the wild, they will follow behind (on the ground) herds of whatever is passing through and eat bugs that are kicked up.

*We have observed via nest cameras that Greys (and every other species of bird we bred, as well) feed their young during the night. Which is why I always handfed my youngsters every so many hours around the clock, and not just during certain hours.

 

[Saemma]

wow!! This really helps me to understand Emma a bit more. No matter how late I come in, she wants to come out of her cage and spend some time with me even if only for 5 minutes. Sachi on the other hand, when it's bed time, do NOT even think of bothering her. Sleep time is sacred.