New to lovebirds, and had a few questions!

[AlFa]

Hi, I just got two baby hand fed lovebirds on friday. I visited my uncle overseas the last two summers and he lives on a farm with lots of animal including canaries and love birds. I wanted to see how it is to raise one of my own. I have been debating on whether I should try this or not over the pas year or so and here I am. I am pretty patient and very caring and determined, so I am sure I will be successful. Anyway, as i am new to this, I had a few questions and was hoping for some help.

When I bought them, the person I bought it from told me that I am supposed to handle them a lot in order to keep them tame. So we basically started playing with them right away. This includes taking them out of their cages, holding them, having them sit on my hand and fingers, even drops of water on them (to bathe them). Was this a mistake?? Should I let them decide when to come out? They stick to the corners of their cage. I have an empty container in there which I am going to fill with some sort of food tomorrow, but one of the birds spends a significant amount of time in there. Is this normal, is it a sign that it is scared and not used to its new cage? Does this reinforce my concern of leaving them in the cage until they want to come out? Should I be handling them this early? They do flutter and get a bit scared when I put my hand in the cage and at first when i bring them out, but after a while they seem content perched on my finger or crawling up my arm. But they do seem scared of my other hand if I bring it near them. I even tried the whole step up thing, and it does come on to my other finger/hand. Does it sound like I should give it more time to get used to its cage before I take it out or handle it? Should I even take it out or wait for it to come out on its own and come to me?

I have been reading a lot of material to help me learn about how to raise, tame, and train them the best I can (but none seem to be specific enough to answer my questions). So, I do whistle at them and try to mimic them when they chirp and whistle. I give them lots of attention periodically throughout the day. But I am worried that I may be moving to fast. I just figured handling them would tame them and get them used to me faster (and ultimately creating that bond faster).

I also was really concerned that they didn't touch their water today. I have had them for only two days now. Yesterday I saw them drink water and whatnot but today I only saw them eat and not drink any water. I did change their water this morning as well as their food. I also sliced banana and mixed it with their mix.

So I am also wondering about their diets. I filled one of their containers with what i think is called mellets. It's basically a mix of sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, dried bananas, these tiny yellow things (I think their some sort of seed also), etc. Beside this I got a bag full of just the yellow seed - like stuff that i mentioned above. There are also these branch like things with shperes of food that they seem to enjoy (Sorry about not knowing the names and the horrible descriptions). I was told these are what I need to get started. I have been giving them mainly the mellet stuff and branch like foods (which they seem to like a lot), and I also tried giving them apples but they didn't touch it (I read something about them not even being able to recognize its food). That's why I tried mixing the babana with their other food. Am I on the right track with their diet??

Also it seems like they are not sleeping. At night when I turn off the lights it gets pitch dark so i dont think i need a cover. but they go to the corner of the cage and hang on with both feet and beak. They dont move much, but it was too dark to see if their eyes were open. Is this normal? I am concerned because I heard that they sleep perched with one leg unless sick. So I am a bit worried and am unsure if they are even sleeping. This morning it looked as they were both really tired, one of them looked as though it yawned!! So I turned off the lights and left them alone hoping they would sleep. They seemed better in the afternoon (by better I mean not as tired).

Sorry about all the questions (and the mini-book I wrote above), I am just new to this and want to do my best. I truly do appreciate anyone reading this through and helping me out. All advice would be appreciated and I'd love to hear any opinions and criticism good or bad. Thanks in advance.

[dieflying]

Not an expert here, but what I can offer -

My bird doesn't use her water nearly as much as her food dish, so it's really hard to catch her drinking. It's possible you just don't see them doing it. Definitely keep an eye on it though!

When offering fresh food like apples and such, I find it useful to put a little of the seed over the fresh stuff. My bird gets tricked into tasting the fresh stuff because she's after the seed and ends up eating the fresh food as well. I only let her have that food for an hour or so and then I give her a bowl of seed to snack on.

Starting out by letting them hear your voice and sitting near them making sounds helps, I've found. After a few days of that with my bird, she started showing signs of wanting out. We're about a month in and she can't stand it when she isn't let out of the cage. So it just takes some time.

As for clinging to the side of the cage, that's what my bird did the first few days. I don't know why, maybe she felt more secure in a corner. When they get tired, they'll sleep.

[linda040899]

Hi and welcome to our community! Congratulations on your 2 new lovebirds! If you are looking for information, you've come to the right place. This site is the equivalent of an online book so spending time just reading should be a big help! Of interest to you should be our Resource Library, Care Forum and Behavior & Taming Forum. Since each lovebird is different, it's important that you get to know your own fids (feathered kids)!

Attention, attention and more attention is the way to keep lovebirds tame. They are very social and since you have 2 of them, they could easily get attention from each other if they don't get enough from you.

The behavior you are seeing now is very, very common. Trade places with them. They are in a completely new environment and have no idea what's going to happen. They need to learn from experience that they are safe and can trust you. You would feel the same way if your life suddenly changed as theirs has.

Most of us have found that it's best if you let them come to you. Lovebirds are very curious and have to check out everything. Just leaving the cage door open and interacting with them without touching should be enough to catch their interest. Talking/whistling back to them (contact calls) is a good way to communicate with them. I do this all the time with mine. You need to join their flock so you do what's necessary!

Once they come out and you want to pick them up, try offering a wooden perch instead of your hand. Many lovebirds just plain don't like hands and will respond better to a perch. Let them hang out with you and explore your person so they become familiar with you. Most lovebirds do not stay in one place very long, simply because it's a big wonderful world out there and there's tons of stuff to see and get in to!!

While some lovebirds will eat fruit, most will not. Fresh veggies are a different story, however! Foods that are off limits include avocado, chocolate and fried food. Birds don't digest lactose so the only dairy product they can have is yogurt. Tiny bits of cheese won't hurt but make those infrequent.

The seed on a stem is millet and most birds adore it! It does have some nutritional value but I limit the amount I offer to, say, 1 stem a couple of times/week. The base food should be Cockatiel seed. You can add pellets if you like but not more than 40%. Per my avian vet, pellets are actually too much nutrition and too many pellets can cause death by kidney failure. If you offer seed, a few pellets and a lot of fresh veggies, that should have the diet covered pretty well. Most of us here feed a varied diet.

Some lovebirds do sleep hanging from the side of their cage. While it doesn't look comfortable, they do it. If you put a perch near where they are, they will most likely use it.

Hope this information is helpful.

[Bella]

One thing I found was good with my lovebirds was to play the "shut eye" game. You look at them whilst they are in the cage, close your eyes very deliberately for a couple of seconds, and open again. Repeat a few times. If the lovebird starts doing this back, it means it is comfortable with you being around and is a sign it is starting to accept you.

[lemonypickett]

Hi and welcome. I liked your description of the millet, I knew right off what you were talking about. It is like candy.

As to the sleeping, my birds go into a sleeping room which is black, but I always cover the cage too. I had read that it makes them feel secure. Almost like imagine you are in a huge black room that you can't see monsters in. Or... in a small, cozy dark tent. It gives them a smaller area to worry about dangers from. I use a blanket that is not too heavy for good air flow.

[BarbieH]

Hi and welcome.

Did you mention how old your birds are? Younger birds especially adore having dark little cozy corners to curl up in.

I also like eating near my birds' cages to help them feel comfortable with me. It helps bring me into their flock -- and if they eat when you eat, you're in!

[bookworm0550]

they are just settling in and they'll get used to you as time goes by. yeah, they're probably cautious of you cuz they don't know you, but as you spend time w/ them, they'll come around. Spending time w/ you can mean anything from them just sitting on your shoulders, playing next to you, etc...

one thing a lot of people on here do is take their birds to the bathroom and hang out in there w/ millet as a treat. just make sure toilet seat is covered and mirrors are covered w/ a towel or something. that worked wonders w/ my first bird. it's less distracting in bathrooms i think.

oh yeah, clinging to the cage to sleep is normal too. it doesn't look comfortable, but i've seen it done. In my opinion, they either like sleeping that way or it makes them feel more safe (as in they have something to cling to in case a monster snatches them in the dark). But yeah, you can offer them a sleeping tent.

I don't think it's too early to play w/ them, but that's just my opinion and my experience. Maybe if they were really scared, I wouldn't. You just have to use your best judgement. You can always just let them out of their cage so they can explore around the area and whatnot. Just keep an eye on them.

Also try napping next to them and eating next to them too. I've read that that helps. Everyone's given you some real great advice.

Oh and uh, Photos please. We really love pictures around here.

[AlFa]

Oh wow!! Thanks for the all the attention and advice.

So I've decided to let them get used to their cages and not bother them by touching them too much (atleast for the first two or three days). Then I'll try taking them to the bathroom like some of you have advised.

They shouldn't be more than a couple of months, the bird store owner said they were "new born." I am guessing between 2 - 5 months.

I think I got the foods down(thanks to you guys)...lol. So millets are branch like and are good once every few weeks; Cockatiel seeds are the mixed seeds with pumpkin and sunflower seeds and should be they're main source of food; I also have pellets which are the yellow tiny things and they are god as treats and should be given to them minimally (because they are too nutritious). Veggies are better than fruits and I should mix them with their seeds. I am a quick learner, Thanks guys!!

I am wondering, how often do your lovebirds blink, or what are your lovebirds eye patterns? I sat next to the cage and watched them today and they blink and close their eyes a lot. After leading a lot of these threads I've become paranoid about illnesses...lol. Also they are not very talkative. They chirp every once in a while, and they dont move from their corner much. Just wondering the usual behavior of these guys to see if these are symptoms i should worry about.

Hey, I really appreciate the warm welcome and am grateful for the help. I will keep you guys updated for sure, and will probably bother you guys a lot as I learn about these lovebirds. I am still trying to decide on names for them. I'll post pictures soon (within the week). Thanks for all the support.

[maya_exquisite]

Hi and welcome!! Can't wait to see photos!! Until then, could you tell us the general colors of the birds? Face, body, rump colors?

They shouldn't be more than a couple of months, the bird store owner said they were "new born." I am guessing between 2 - 5 months.

What color are the beaks?

I think I got the foods down(thanks to you guys)...lol. So millets are branch like and are good once every few weeks; Cockatiel seeds are the mixed seeds with pumpkin and sunflower seeds and should be they're main source of food; I also have pellets which are the yellow tiny things and they are god as treats and should be given to them minimally (because they are too nutritious). Veggies are better than fruits and I should mix them with their seeds. I am a quick learner, Thanks guys!!

You can give the millet a couple of times per week like Linda said. For the pellets, you can mix the small amount in with their seed. Mine personally don't like pellets and avoid them in the dish. Haha. For the veggies, more than mixing it in with their regular seed, you may want to try sprinkling some millet over their veggies. Since they love millet so much, they may be more inclined to try it out. For me, I have their regular seed dish and then I have a separate dish for their veggies because I don't want their seed to get soggy and yucky.

I am wondering, how often do your lovebirds blink, or what are your lovebirds eye patterns? I sat next to the cage and watched them today and they blink and close their eyes a lot. After leading a lot of these threads I've become paranoid about illnesses...lol. Also they are not very talkative. They chirp every once in a while, and they dont move from their corner much. Just wondering the usual behavior of these guys to see if these are symptoms i should worry about.

It depends on what my birds are doing. If they're paying attention to something, they don't blink all that often. But if they're just hanging around and doing nothing on a perch, they'll "blink" a lot but it's more of that "dozing off slowly" type of blinking. And birds need lots of sleep so maybe they're doing the dozing off thing? As for the chirping, it could be because they're just still scared... once they're more comfortable, I'm sure you won't be able to get them to shut up. *lol*

Hey, I really appreciate the warm welcome and am grateful for the help. I will keep you guys updated for sure, and will probably bother you guys a lot as I learn about these lovebirds. I am still trying to decide on names for them. I'll post pictures soon (within the week). Thanks for all the support.

Oooooooooooooooh!! We looooooooooooove helping with name suggestions!! Once we see pictures, I'm sure we'll all be chiming in with suggestions!! My suggestions are always Hawaiian or Japanese words and names. Hehe.

[momo]

re: chirping.. my lovie was/is the same.. when I first got him I didnt hear much of a peep out of him but once he settles in.. they can get quite chirpy when they want too.

they are still really new to our house so they would be quiet scared.. for the first couple of days I couldnt get with in a two meter radius of elmo's cage without him freaking out.. though he was a baby but a little wild as well. it all just takes time and you will all be friends soon