Sleepwalking Lovebird

[Theodore Marshall]

So, I have two lovebirds, Re and Mi. Mi has been acting a little odd, but apparently it is from birth and has gotten better, although there is one thing that still stands.

At night, Mi would fall into a very deep sleep and would start to sleepwalk, mostly would sleep while attached to the cage walls. Should I wake her up so she can go back to her original place, or just leave her be? I've been thinking the latter as she does not lose her grip as she used to, and even if she would we put soft cushioning at the bottom.

 

[zERo]

So, I have two lovebirds, Re and Mi. Mi has been acting a little odd, but apparently it is from birth and has gotten better, although there is one thing that still stands.

At night, Mi would fall into a very deep sleep and would start to sleepwalk, mostly would sleep while attached to the cage walls. Should I wake her up so she can go back to her original place, or just leave her be? I've been thinking the latter as she does not lose her grip as she used to, and even if she would we put soft cushioning at the bottom.

Is she walking around with her eyes shut? I’ve never heard of birds sleepwalking!
Are there lots of perches up high for them to sleep on?
I try to offer at least two in the top 6 inches of my birds cage.

I’ve seen birds sleep on the cage bars, especially when in a new home or when stressed.
Do you cover the cage at night?

 

[SailBoat]

Sleepwalking in humans commonly occurs with the individual in a semi-awake state, with their eyes open. Their movement would seem fairly normal with only minor indecision regarding direction. Normally, it is not recommended that the individual be woken as they commonly will circle back and return to bed to further sleep state. Leaving the home, if that is happening, it is recommended to wake the individual and help them to return to their bed.

With Parrots, it would be very uncommon for them to sleepwalk as while sleeping their claws set in a closed position on the branch /perch. To the most receive information, companion Parrots are likely to sleep deeper than in their natural setting and for much longer time periods. The belief is that the safety of the our home allows that to occur when compared to their natural setting.

Parrots falling from their perch while sleeping can be linked to strokes or like massive nervous system disruption and in their natural setting is very rare.

Likely, as so well stated above, your Parrot is likely stressed or fearful. Please follow zERo's recommendations.

 

[Theodore Marshall]

Is she walking around with her eyes shut? I’ve never heard of birds sleepwalking!
Are there lots of perches up high for them to sleep on?
I try to offer at least two in the top 6 inches of my birds cage.

I’ve seen birds sleep on the cage bars, especially when in a new home or when stressed.
Do you cover the cage at night?

Do I have high perches? (plus extra details)

I put them and their cage up high at night, and we recently moved their perches higher, this one bird just- attacks the cage walks in a deep state of sleep. How do I know she's in a deep state of sleep? She would absolutely got notice me at all, not even when I was right next to her and touching her feathers.

She had been like this for a couple days, then she stopped and was active again, and now she's doing it again.

During her sleep she either climbs the cage walls or throws herself off the perch, one thing I noticed is that she never does this when she's in direct physical contact with her partner.

Another thing to mention, she also falls asleep abruptly while eating, and in random spots in general. I don't know if she's just closing her eyes but she stays still as if she were sleeping and gives no sign of- anything.

We spoke to a local veterinary doctor, which said she was just sick and had given her antibiotics, but after a week of antibiotics she was still like this. Then we spoke to another, from overseas, who said that it is a neurological issue that's not commonly known, but I really don't know what to do to make it better.

She's not malnourished, she eats a lot and her diet is okay, although she still seems a bit weak. She's taken plenty of falls before from her flight, and when she did fly she would almost "lose her balance" during the flight and crash head first into something. That doctor also said it's weird that they aren't masturbating or showing any signs of interest for breeding/sexual activity, but I'm not sure if that has anything to do with this.

Do I cover the cage at night?

No, as a matter of fact I actually leave them a bit of light in case she falls again, I was never told to do that anywhere. Most people I've asked about it discouraged it? Should I? I'll 100% get on it if that's the case.


Anyway, I'm sorry if this is too big of a mess to read, but I've put the important parts in italics.

 

[zERo]

Is she showing any other odd behaviors? Does her tail bob when she breathes? Or is she puffy like she’s cold all the time?
What antibiotic was she on?

It sounds like night frights, but the other things don’t, it’s normal for a bird to nap, but not just fall asleep all the time.

As far as covering the cage, it’s really up to you and how you think your bird would do with it.
You could still leave a night like on for her though.

 

[DonnaBudgie]

Is she walking around with her eyes shut? I’ve never heard of birds sleepwalking!
Are there lots of perches up high for them to sleep on?
I try to offer at least two in the top 6 inches of my birds cage.

I’ve seen birds sleep on the cage bars, especially when in a new home or when stressed.
Do you cover the cage at night?

I hope she doesn't raid the freezer and eat all the ice cream!

 

[Theodore Marshall]

Is she showing any other odd behaviors? Does her tail bob when she breathes? Or is she puffy like she’s cold all the time?
What antibiotic was she on?

It sounds like night frights, but the other things don’t, it’s normal for a bird to nap, but not just fall asleep all the time.

As far as covering the cage, it’s really up to you and how you think your bird would do with it.
You could still leave a night like on for her though.

We've tried covering the cage, it's better as she no longer "attacks" the cage in her sleep. And I continue to encourage the fact that it's a state of sleep since she does not react to anything while in it.

After consulting with someone who specializes in exotic birds, this is a really rare psychological problem.

Not sure how I would translate this, since I live in Romania, but it's called Oxyvit something.

Here it's Oxyvit S, but I'm not sure if the S works in English