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I have one very mean bird. It fights with the other birds and doesnt want to let them eat.. I have tryed to patiently, and softly talk with this bird while letting it get used to me but this is not working and I have to put it in a cage by itself to let the other birds eat. I do have it housing with another bird but this is becoming hard on the other bird.What should I do? I dont know the sex of this bird and its cere is white with no signs of changing. It is a young bird but how young I'm not sure. The eyes are all black with no visible white if this helps to determine age.
Optional Information: Type of Animal: parakeet Gender: ? Age: ? Name of Bird: ?
Greetings, I am Dr. Pat. I have worked with birds for many years. I will do my best to help you.The commonest cause of aggression is overcrowding. The birds should be in a LONG (NOT tall) cage with minimum 4 square feet floor space per bird. Females are often the more aggressive. If you have the bird in a separate cage with a "friend" it may still be too small cage.The following guidelines help with basic issues such as nutrition, obesity, good immune status. Surprising how the following can make a bird healthy, and how infrequently birds are ill if they are on the following regimen. No amount of medicine is going to work if the birds' basic needs are not met.Birds should be on a high-quality, preferably prescription, pelleted diet (I prefer Harrison's High Potency, TOP , Tropican). In addition, they should be offered dark leafy greens, cooked sweet potatoes, yams, squash, pumpkin; entire (tops and bottoms) fresh carrots and so forth. No seeds (and that means a mix, or millet, or sprays, etc. etc.) and only healthy, low-fat high fiber people food. A dietary change should be closely monitored and supervised by your avian vet. convert to pelletsgood diet Birds should get 12-14 hours dark, quiet, uninterrupted sleep at night. Any less and they can suffer from sleep deprivation and associated illnesses. They should be covered or their cage placed in a dark room that is not used after they go to bed. They should have access to bathing by daily shower, misting, bath bowl, etc. basic maintenanceThe cage material should be cleaned everyday, and twice a day if the bird is really messy. Paper towels, newspaper, bath towels are ok. Never use corn cob, sawdust, wood chips, or walnut shell. Consider getting a large cage that is longer than tall--as birds move in a horizontal rather than vertical orientation; and have several feeding stations. cagesNever give grit, gravel sandpaper or cement perches. A bird will eat those to excess when it is not feeling well or if there is a nutritional deficiency. They do not need it at all (an old myth from the poultry days, even poultry do not need it). It can cause an impaction and lead to serious or fatal consequences. daily routinehazards