EVERYTHING!!!

[Aussie Girl]

Hi All

My little Aussie is now about 6 months old. We have been getting along really well, and we have grown a very good bond together (although he/she doesn't like my partner very much Anyway, the past 2 days, it has decided to become a really nasty bugger and starting to bite me again, and is also lunging for my face!! What has brought this on? Why is it so moody all of a sudden?
I try and spend as much time as possible with Aussie, and always let him out of his cage for an hour in the morning, and about 4-5 hours at night. I open his cage and he goes up top onto the perch, then when he is ready for a wander, he will sqaurk for me to pick him up (the last couple of days not as much and when I do come near him/her, it goes to bite me and lunge...)
I work all day and am gone from 8-6 everyday, but as I said, I let him out for long periods of time.
I'm considering getting another IRN and a larger cage for it/them. Will getting another bird help him? Make him happier?
Someone said that I would lose the bond with him though, is this true? Can't I have a good bond with both of them?
If I was to get another bird, should it be an IRN or another breed? I don't want to breed them, so will need to get the same sex bird????
Also, what size cage is best suited to 1 or 2 birds?

All knowledge is greatly appreciated!!

Thanks!!!

[brownbeak]

My little Aussie is now about 6 months old. We have been getting along really well, and we have grown a very good bond together (although he/she doesn't like my partner very much Anyway, the past 2 days, it has decided to become a really nasty bugger and starting to bite me again, and is also lunging for my face!! What has brought this on? Why is it so moody all of a sudden?

I read that around this age of life the IRN's can sometime's go through "the terrible two's" if u r not familiar with that phrase it mean's mood swing's and tanty throwing. they grow out of it and return to normal within a few months with some understanding and TLC.

also when he bites u, a way to punish this is to return him 2 his cage so he learns that if he is going to act that way, he will not be having any fun or rewards.

If I was to get another bird, should it be an IRN or another breed? I don't want to breed them, so will need to get the same sex bird????

I believe if you get another bird for Aussie's company it should be an IRN cos I believe that they would understand each other betta than if u got a different breed.
If you dont want to lose ur bondwith him, house the new IRN in it's own cage next to Aussie, or within Aussie's sight. Therefore, In theory, aussie will have something to show off to wen he has playtime with you(especially if you get the opposite sex,) and to chat to and stare at during the day.

If you put one in with him, all of his attention will turn to the new bird, and he could end up having little or no time for you as far as he is concerned!
Also I would wait until his temprement returns to normal b4 getting another IRN bcos his aggression toward's you may heighten.

Hope that helps

[Jodie]

Hi,
I agree alot with the other person. I feel that if you get a playmate for Aussie then house them separately. I would first try a mirror. Find a nice sized mirror and hang by Aussie's cage. See how Aussie handles this. This might solve your problems. I have a conure that I felt needed a buddy. I put a mirror up to see how she would handle it. Now she goes in front of the mirror time after time during the day. She is so cute! I have heard that if you place a mirror in with the bird, they will become unsocial with you, but in my case this is not true. Perhaps, before you mount a mirror, have Aussie on your shoulder and go in front of a bathroom mirror. If Aussie is interested, hang a mirror.

The behavior change is probably that dreaded rebellion/bluffing stage. The bluffing stage is when your bird tries to go wild. At times, it will almost bring you to tears because they are behaving so badly. They won't step up, bite or lunge and bite. There are may scenerios. It primarily happens with young birds about six months to a year. They decide to test their limits and see if they can be bad. It is a phase that they go through. It is advisable to just pretend they are not misbehaving and they will resort back to their training and be good birds again.

I do disagree with the other person in whether another ringneck is a suitable compaion for Aussie. I have my pet conure with ten breeder ringnecks. Believe me, they all understand one another. I even have a male ringneck flirting like crazy to get my conures attention! I have my conure in the same room as the ringnecks, but she is separated by a curtain. She knows they are there and goes into their territory all the time. I have noticed one difference in her since the new birds. She doesn't like to be out of the room as much as she did before. She still is the same other wise. Actually it is kinda nice to be able to get chores done without claws digging in my shoulder reminding me it is time to trim her nails again! I feel she is still a tame, good bird even though we spend less time together, but my conure is 9 and I have had her for 5 years, so she is definately trained. You have a younger bird that needs daily reminders of training you want to instill in it. But I think the tricker part is spending time with both birds. This can be quite challenging. I had three babies I was raising and a very jealous conure. I was trying to train the babies to be on my shoulder. Well, it is kinda hard when a big bad conure hogs one shoulder. Imagine three babies on one shoulder and a conure on the other! Not a very good situation. You do have two shoulders but if one does not like the other, there could be problems! Just a thought. It is so easy to get wrapped up and buy more and more birds. They are just awesome and each one has their own personality but gosh, I never thought I would have eleven birds. And I am even more nuts to hope they will give me babies! What am I thinking? But it is wonderful. Anyways, I hope this helps you figure out what you need to do!

[Guest]

hi Aussie girl! im an aussie too..

your baby could just be testing you, so dont get another bird unless you feel that YOU want to. ringnecks can be happy by themselves but they need to be kept occupied - ie lots of toys while you are away!

if you want to get a partner for your bird there is nothing wrong with getting another ringneck, BUT:

make sure that it is a tame bird (and preferably a young one)
introduce them slowly and in seperate cages initially
make sure you still spend time with both of them together

i have a male and female ringneck living together in the same cage. they are easy to handle, and my male is teaching the female to talk. i also have seperate daytime and night time cages - i believe this 'commuter lifestyle' is great for birds.