Falling down when alseep

BirdSquawk · May 23, 2017

For the second time now in a month, Jack has fallen off his perch in the middle of the night. I wake up hearing him hit the ground, and turn on the light/uncover his cage to help him back up. I don't think it's a night terror, he just falls. He sleeps on the highest perch, kind of wedged between a plastic chain toy and the wall of the cage. Maybe the toy shifts and he loses balance?
I'm worried he's going to hurt himself falling, so I was thinking of maybe getting one of those platform perches:

https://www.amazon.com/Niteangel-Wo...qid=1495559246&sr=8-3&keywords=platform+perch

Maybe he needs a nightlight? I don't know why he's falling, perhaps a noise startles him; he's been acting fine during the day. (taking a nap as I write this, lucky boy, I have to go to work) Anybody have any insights?

texsize · May 23, 2017

My Cockatiels have a perch like that in 2 of 3 cages.
They use it but I have never seen them sleep on it.

You might try something like this.

https://www.amazon.com/Prevue-Pet-P...TF8&qid=1495560071&sr=8-1&keywords=cage+shelf

I think the bar spacing might be too big for you bird on this model but you can look for a smaller one

Psittaciformes · May 23, 2017

BirdSquawk said:
I don't know why he's falling, perhaps a noise startles him; he's been acting fine during the day. (taking a nap as I write this, lucky boy, I have to go to work) Anybody have any insights?

So he never falls during the day? He eats and drinks as normal and has his normal energy levels?

BirdSquawk · May 23, 2017

Psittaciformes said:
BirdSquawk said:

I don't know why he's falling, perhaps a noise startles him; he's been acting fine during the day. (taking a nap as I write this, lucky boy, I have to go to work) Anybody have any insights?

Click to expand...

So he never falls during the day? He eats and drinks as normal and has his normal energy levels?

Yep, completely normal during the day and most nights, but now every once and a while he falls late at night. I did change his cage cover a month ago, but I don't know how that could have affected him.

Psittaciformes · May 23, 2017

BirdSquawk said:
Yep, completely normal during the day and most nights, but now every once and a while he falls late at night. I did change his cage cover a month ago, but I don't know how that could have affected him.

Hmmm, that does seem weird... Keep an eye on him for a while and see if you notice any changes, they can be very very very minor, easy to miss, changes, so keep a close eye just to make sure nothing's wrong. If anything changes, you might want to see a vet, just to make sure.

Scott · May 23, 2017

Re: Falling down when alsee

That flat perch looks to be an ideal assist, though I've not had personal experience with solid. Have used similar metal items with curved bars.

Does Jack have any underlying medical history? Might be a fright and a nightlight certainly would not hurt. How are his feet; are the nails appropriate length and is his clenching strength reasonable? (on your finger if feasible)

BirdSquawk · May 23, 2017

Re: Falling down when alsee

Scott said:
That flat perch looks to be an ideal assist, though I've not had personal experience with solid. Have used similar metal items with curved bars.

Does Jack have any underlying medical history? Might be a fright and a nightlight certainly would not hurt. How are his feet; are the nails appropriate length and is his clenching strength reasonable? (on your finger if feasible)

He's always been healthy, I keep his nails nicely trimmed. I don't have much experience holding other parrotlets recently enough to compare grip strength, but I would say he's a gentle gripper. He has fallen during the day when running too quickly on his perch and loosing his footing, could adding some new perches help him get stronger?

I don't know how relevant it is as it has never hindered him before, but he is missing the nail on one of his back toes.

SailBoat · May 23, 2017

Coming from a totally different direction.

* Take a long serious look at his claws and more specifically, the pads. Look for any signs of pink to redness of the pads.

* Double check the sizing of the perches.

* Overly trimmed nails can lead to night falls.

NOTE: See Photos that follow the Segment: Getting to the "Foot of the Problem," located as part of the Sticky Thread: I Love Amazons - ... Located at, near the top of the Amazon Forum. The Photos present the proper positioning of the claw, pads and nails when the Parrot is roosting on a proper sized perch.

* Assure that your Parrot is not using a dowel style perch for a Roosting perch.

If this continues, this is a discussion point as part of your yearly Avian Vet visit. There are underlining medical issues that can /do present with night falls.

NOTE: Night flights and Night Falls are not always separate issues.

BirdSquawk · May 23, 2017

SailBoat said:
Coming from a totally different direction.

* Take a long serious look at his claws and more specifically, the pads. Look for any signs of pink to redness of the pads.

* Double check the sizing of the perches.

* Overly trimmed nails can lead to night falls.

NOTE: See Photos that follow the Segment: Getting to the "Foot of the Problem," located as part of the Sticky Thread: I Love Amazons - ... Located at, near the top of the Amazon Forum. The Photos present the proper positioning of the claw, pads and nails when the Parrot is roosting on a proper sized perch.

* Assure that your Parrot is not using a dowel style perch for a Roosting perch.

If this continues, this is a discussion point as part of your yearly Avian Vet visit. There are underlining medical issues that can /do present with night falls.

NOTE: Night flights and Night Falls are not always separate issues.

No redness or irritation, and his nails are well maintained but not short. His roosting perch is rather smooth, though. I took a carving knife to it and gave it some extra deep grooves and divots and will replace it with another natural perch with more variation.

itzjbean · May 24, 2017

My only recommendation until you can figure out what's going on with him, is to keep a towel on the bottom of his cage to cushion his next fall in the night, just to be safe. Make sure there are no loose threads so he can't get tangled, You could even use paper towels or lower his perch. There's also the possibility you could switch him to a 'sleep cage', that's smaller and therefore wouldn't be as harsh of a fall, if much at all.

SailBoat · May 24, 2017

Okay, its been a couple of days now. Has your Parrot Fallen while Sleeping since you started this Thread?

If so, I would recommend that you ramp this up a bit! Everything else now looked at and adjustments made. This begins to swing this toward a few of the Medical conditions, which Night Falls are known to be associated. This means a discussion with your Avian Vet (CAV if possible).

Warning, Next week Tuesday and the majority of next week maybe a problem in getting an appointment to see your AV.

I do not know your schedule, but if you can call first thing tomorrow morning and be in Thursday, Friday or Saturday morning, it would be better than not getting in at all next week.

Just my two-cents!

BirdSquawk · May 24, 2017

He hasn't fallen since I originally posted this thread and continues to eat/play/act as though everything is fine during the day.
Given that the two incidents were several months apart, he's acting fine, but hasn't had a change in perches for a while, I'm hoping this is just a gripping issue and replacing all the perches with new natural branches will help him hold more.

texsize · May 24, 2017

BirdSquawk said:
He hasn't fallen since I originally posted this thread and continues to eat/play/act as though everything is fine during the day.
Given that the two incidents were several months apart, he's acting fine, but hasn't had a change in perches for a while, I'm hoping this is just a gripping issue and replacing all the perches with new natural branches will help him hold more.

I think that sounds like a good start. It will give his feet different diameter's to grip. He can find what is most comfortable for him.

:rainbow1:

BirdSquawk · May 25, 2017

So today I'm gathering lilac branches from our untreated bush, stripping the bark, washing them with white vinegar/rinsing with hot water, letting them dry out and baking them to disinfect: am I missing a step? I've only ever bought natural perches before.

SailBoat · May 25, 2017

Anytime you can let them dry in bright sunlight, all the better! Bright sunlight has been on short hand here in Michigan this year.

Lacewing · May 25, 2017

I would definitely lower perches at night and put a towel under newspaper to help. A small bird can easily break a leg in a fall.

Falling down when alseep

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