Nesting behavior?

wildheart

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I've read a whole lot about breeding behavior but I really want to know what happens when there are no male? I also read a thread about a parrot that displayed nesting behavior and chose a ledge and stayed there all the time, which was a problem.

Sterretjie's food was packed into a carry bag because we went home for 3 days, this is when I discovered that she absolutely LOVES climbing into things. She is so funny! :D

I gave her a box with treats inside yesterday, the box is big enough for her to completely clime in - tail and all - and it has flaps at the top. She spend the whole day yesterday climbing in and out of the box. She loved it so much that she did not even clime off her cage to say hello to me when we got home. (That was a first!) She just climbed back in her box and we could hear scratching-scratching.
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When I checked I saw that she tore parts of the bottom into pieces and also took envelopes that was hanging around her cage and tore it and threw it into the mix. That must have been SOOO much fun!

But, what does this mean, is she just playing or is she building a nest? It really looks like a nest inside. I did not have trouble taking her away from the box nor did she get angry when I took the box.

I gave the box back to her this morning and I can see on the cameras that she is a real busy girl again.:D

I am thinking that I should treat the box as a toy and give it to her every now and then. That I should only completely remove it when she displays aggression over it. What do you think?

I also had confirmation that she is indeed a girl and about 4 years old.
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(After long discussion with my husband and doing days and days - weeks and weeks of reading we have decided that we just do not have the time for another parrot. We also travel long distances at least once a month. We have an iguana, 2 bearded dragons and a parrot in the car and not one of them tolerates the other and all wants my attention. The other house is also just big enough to accommodate the 4 in different rooms while we are in Kruger - there is really no more space.)

For this reason I am providing her with an extremely rich environment - she has a huge cage with loads of branches and toys. She moves freely in and out of it and have a huge tree full of toys plus a swing that hangs from the ceiling and another self-made swing that has lots to do on it. I play a dvd for her that I made about Kruger birds and it also has my voice on it. I change things often as well.


So what do you do when you have a single girl?
 
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wildheart

wildheart

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Ok, but seriously, what must I do? I dont want the box to become a problem - will it become a problem? I read on a website that providing a nestbox can also help the girl with frustration?

Here is when I got home tonight, I took a full photo so you can see her setup as well. Inside her cage is a sisal lock thats been there since day one. She hollowed it out halfway but has never shown any aggression about it. (That is mos also considered a nest, isnt it?) She also has a mirror because somebody on this forum said that it might help her with the obsession she had with me.
She loves her mirror.

The little cage in front is what we use as her car seat.
The box is in the left hand corner and she was inside it.

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PLEASE tell me if there is any thing wrong or if you notice something that will/can cause problems.

I called her and she popped out of the box and came to say helo to me like she always does.
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After a while, when my arm got tired she climbed back into her box, but only for about 5 minutes and then she came surging for me. She tears the box inside and tears the pieces in smaller pieces.

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Please tell me if it is ok? Also, she LOVES climbing into anything and everything.
 
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antoinette

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Wow Steretjie is sure a busy body, with so many toys, and she sure loves boxes.
The pictures are telling a story, she seems happy with what she is doing inside the boxes.
Mishka went through a phase where she played in boxes, and ripped them apart.
I never placed treats inside, perhaps that is why she "lost" interest.
Ek weet nie (I do not know)
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Sorry I am not much help regarding nesting behavior.
 

Bobby34231

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I'm afraid I'm not much help on this subject either, though I did enjoy the pics, I have to say its seems like she lives better than I do :p...lol, Thanks for sharing :)
 
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wildheart

wildheart

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though I did enjoy the pics, I have to say its seems like she lives better than I do :p...lol, Thanks for sharing :)

She needs all I can give - I need to make up for the previous miserable 4 years she had.:D

I cant believe there is nobody here who has a single female? :(
 

Ratzy

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though I did enjoy the pics, I have to say its seems like she lives better than I do :p...lol, Thanks for sharing :)

She needs all I can give - I need to make up for the previous miserable 4 years she had.:D

I cant believe there is nobody here who has a single female? :(
I have had a single female budgie. I never added a nest box, so she never displayed that kind of behaviour. I suggest you remove the box, or make it more open with draughts at the bottom. This kind of thing ( not sure if it applies to your species ) causes chronic egg laying, which leads to a much shorter lifespan.
 
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wildheart

wildheart

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Thank you so much, I've been googling the wrong thing, I should have googled chronic egg laying.

I now found loads of info on this and I am definitely going to take her box away and her sisal log.

thankyou.gif
 
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wildheart

wildheart

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How long does it take for the eggs to form? What will happen if it already started and I remove her nest?
 
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Ratzy

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It takes the eggs to form about 1-3 days. It she lays after you remove the nest, that is fine as she will probably lay off the perch and won't pay any attention to the egg. Changing the cage around and shortening daylight hours will throw her off that course as well.
 

Auggie's Dad

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Auggie similarly loves boxes. He has a large box that he's turned into his bachelor pad. He'll always be working on it if I leave him on his own.

But Auggie (as far as I know) is a male, so I'm not worried about egg laying/binding. Contrary to some advice out there I have never faced a single problem due to his 'nesting' behavior. Whenever I come in the room he'll pop out of his nest and we'll spend time together - when I need to leave for a bit he'll go back to work fixing up his pad.

On the few occasions where I have checked out his 'nest' for safety he gets a little grumpy and defensive of it - but not to a problematic level. And once I check it out and walk away he holds no grudge.
 
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wildheart

wildheart

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AD, that sounds similar to Sterretjies behavior the past 3 days. I checked the box this morning and she actually made a hole right through the bottom.
She still did not show any aggression about her box.

I already phoned my cleaning lady and she took the box and threw it away, I was scared that there will be eggs when I got home.

I HATE being so inexperienced with tame birds, I feel so clueless!
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If it is just her love of climbing in things then I will give her a bag and put treats wrapped in coffee filters in it and see what she does. ?
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wildheart

wildheart

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Ok AD I decided to not be paranoid about this and I think that I was influenced by wrong/one sided answers on other threads.

I told Craig about your bachelor pad and he had a good chuckle. :D

I gave Sterretjie 3 different boxes this morning. One is a toner box so it is long and just big enough for her to walk in - heaven knows how she is turning around in it, but she is! There is pellets and raisins inside it.

A much smaller puzzle box - I made a hole in it, took the pieces out and removed the plastic and I then filled it again with the pieces and dried fruit.

Lastly a paper box, the kind that holds 4 reams. I made a hole on the top and a hole on the side and there is just a little bit of torn paper inside.

I've been watching her now for 5 hours and oh boy she is busy! She loves the toner box most and goes in and out as if she is playing peekaboo with something. She also loves the puzzle box and I can see pieces flying everywhere - I've got lots of pick up to do when I get home.:rolleyes: She has only gone to the paper box about 3 times - looked inside and came out immediately - there is no food inside only paper.

She rested under her warm light at about 12 and after 20 minutes she started all over again. (It is winter by us.)

This behavior makes me think that she is foraging and playing, if it was nest building then I would think the paper box would have been much more interesting. What do you think?
 

Bobby34231

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I think you worry to much :p, but then I guess thats just part of being a good mommy ;)
 

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