My new albino parakeet flips out when i cover her cage at night am i doing something wrong?

Question

My new albino parakeet flips out when i cover her cage at night am i doing something wrong?

Answer 1

no they dont need to be covered up unless they cant sleep.just put a night light near by and they should be okay.

Answer 2

Most likely you're scaring the bird by doing it too quickly. Or if the bird's already sleeping when you come up to cover the cage, and you wake him up & scare him.

Answer 3

to the answer above, covering them is recommended because in the wild the parakeets would sleep in holes in eucalyptus trees. covering the cage at night replicates that kind of environment.

the flipping out is on account of it being your new parakeet.  just keep covering it at night. eventually he'll understand the schedule.

Answer 4

she just is a little stressed from the move, may have never been covered before and its prob a little scarey  check out http://www.parrotcentral.net/bringing_ho... for tips on new birds

Answer 5

It just doesnt want to go to sleep yet! :)  You're not doing anything wrong. She'll get used to her bedtime and will be ok.

Answer 6

Not if you are moving real slow and not flipping it around and flagging it? Why are you covering it up for? They don't need to be covered up. That is a old wives tale from the time when wood stoves and coal stoves were used. The houses were drafty and would get very cool by morning if no one got up and put a piece of coal on the fire. (and no one better get up and put any in either) That would keep the birds from getting in a draft. As long as your house isn't drafty you don't need to put a cover over the cage. They don't need a nest to sleep in. The pet shops tell people these things to get them to purchase dry goods for their pets. That is where they make their money. They double the livestock and quadruple the price on dry goods. That is where they make their big money. The animal is the cheapest part of ownership. It is the supplies that you buy  that runs the expense up.

Answer 7

I have always covered the cage at around 7:30 to 8:00. Birds need a lot of sleep to insure they don't get cranky.  They just get freaked out a bit seeing this big blanket of darkness above them. But they calm down quickly and the darkness helps them catch more zzzzzz's

Answer 8

If you aren't turning out the lights and going to bed,you may be.If you are up and moving around,the bird may feel insecure and may feel like it is missing out on something.If the blanket is see through,it could be just as upsetting.I use fleece throws for my Conure,when the kids get noisy and it screams like crazy.

Answer 9

She's just mad. Our budgie at work does that too.

Answer 10

I would cover her cage only half way so she can still see out but so she is still covered from drafts and can hide out if she wants to. Some birds have night frights where they are afraid of the dark and being covered. I cover half way and leave a night light on for my birds. When you cover do it slow and talk in a silly little voice to her . Make her think the cover is a good thing. Reward her with praise when she does not flip out over it and is just quite. when she flips out do not say a word just take back the cover some. hope this helps some.

Answer 11

like ALEXIS's answer, you are not doing anything wrong. your bird is in  new environment and still needs to adjust to his schedule. pretty soon he/she should get used to the cover and it won' t be such a problem. my cockatiel still hisses at me when I cover him and he is 7 years old, he just thinks something is attacking him but when he is covered everything is fine.  hope your question is solved!