# Some squeaker questions



## pipelineaudio (Dec 25, 2011)

Hi, I am new here, but I've been lurking for a few weeks to pick up tips, but now something screwy is going on and I think its time to ask some questions.

Some time ago, I was at the marsh, feeding the galinues and kingfishers and a baby pigeon just came walking up. It couldnt pick up and eat the bits of food the way all the adult pigeons could and couldnt seem to fly. My wife grabbed it and we took it home and have been taking care of it ever since, using the instructions on this forum. She had a bunch of weird yellow baby feathers when we got her but theyre gone now. I think weve had "her" for a month or two

She couldnt eat on her own, so for the first while (seemed like forever) I had to pry open her mouth and shove bread balls and seeds and stuff down her throat. I would come home from work for lunch to feed her and generally spent a lot of time making sure she ate, even though she was supposed to be my wife's bird.

Now, she doesnt squeak anymore, and sometimes makes throat clearing type noises. She flies away if my wife tries to pick her up, and lands on my head or on my lap. She runs to me, and flies to me, and gets weird if I go downstairs.

All of a sudden tonight she started making way more of the throat clearing noises, and if my wife puts her hand near the bird, the bird starts doing a jackhammer on the ground and "grumbling" from her throat and acts like shes going to bite my wife. She won't do it to me, but maybe its just a matter of time till she does.

Whats going on here? Whats with her voice? is this bird puberty? Is this even a girl? Her name is Tweet, so if it turns out to be a boy, he may be upset about his name

Merry Xmass!


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## Libis (Oct 8, 2010)

pipelineaudio said:


> Hi, I am new here, but I've been lurking for a few weeks to pick up tips, but now something screwy is going on and I think its time to ask some questions.
> 
> Some time ago, I was at the marsh, feeding the galinues and kingfishers and a baby pigeon just came walking up. It couldnt pick up and eat the bits of food the way all the adult pigeons could and couldnt seem to fly. My wife grabbed it and we took it home and have been taking care of it ever since, using the instructions on this forum. She had a bunch of weird yellow baby feathers when we got her but theyre gone now. I think weve had "her" for a month or two
> 
> ...


It sounds like maybe you're the bird's favorite.  A lot of times a single bird will pick a human stand-in companion as a replacement for a mate. I think it does sound like a female--but you can't really tell until it lays eggs. 

Btw--do you have pictures? Just curious.


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## horseart4u (Jun 16, 2011)

it getting it's " coo" voice, something they all do as they get older. as far as the sex, you wont really know till he / she gets older and starts courting " you" the birds as attacthed it's self to you because you are the one who has been spending the most time with it, it see's you as mom & dad right now...if it still had yellow fuzz it may have been 2 or about 3 weeks old, it wont mature till he / she is about 4 to 6 months of age..when TWEET does mature, if TWEET dances, circles, bows his head and drags his tail and follows you courting, fly to a nesting spot to get you to follow then its a male, If it coos, bows and raises it tail it may be a female wanting to mate. pic's will help alot, and if at any time in the not so near future you see 2 eggs then you know TWEET is a hen for sure.


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## Revolution Lofts (Aug 7, 2008)

I have a feeling she is actually a he! Only time will tell however like horseart4u. Since you fed her/him, he/she is more bonded and comfortable with you than your wife.


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## pipelineaudio (Dec 25, 2011)

At night, Tweet will often stand on one leg and then alternate to the other leg in a few minutes, is this normal?


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## horseart4u (Jun 16, 2011)

yes its normal they sleep either on one leg or the other or lay down.


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## Msfreebird (Sep 23, 2007)

pipelineaudio said:


> At night, Tweet will often stand on one leg and then alternate to the other leg in a few minutes, is this normal?


Yes, that's how they sleep.
I agree with the others.....Tweet is bonded to you. Hen's will usually squat down and growl. Cocks are a little more forward/brave......might grab your hand (but it doesn't hurt . When they first start to get their voice, they sound like a duck quacking. I think your wife will get the first 'wing slap'!  They go thru a 'teenage' stage, then they settle down. If you've never owned a pigeon.....your in for some fun! Caution: their addicting!


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## pipelineaudio (Dec 25, 2011)

If you call tweets name, or, if shes hungry and you even look at her, she does a strange sort of twitch with her wings. Like a very small beginning of a flap. What is that?


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## Libis (Oct 8, 2010)

pipelineaudio said:


> If you call tweets name, or, if shes hungry and you even look at her, she does a strange sort of twitch with her wings. Like a very small beginning of a flap. What is that?


Depending on her age, it's either "feed me/come here" or more of a "come hither look." Sometimes the "feed me" stuff goes longer in hand-raised birds than it would normally. 

It pretty much is how she would communicate with her parents or mate to come her way. She might even be showing you potential nesting locations.


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## pipelineaudio (Dec 25, 2011)

I keep forgetting to ask, what sort of treats can I give her that will help bend her to our will?  Maybe if my wife gives her treats, Tweet wont run away from her


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## Msfreebird (Sep 23, 2007)

pipelineaudio said:


> I keep forgetting to ask, what sort of treats can I give her that will help bend her to our will?  Maybe if my wife gives her treats, Tweet wont run away from her


The wing twitching is what babies 'squeakers' do when they beg for food.
Peanuts! Pigeons love peanuts, but make sure you break them up, don't give a whole peanut. I buy bags of peanut hearts. They also love safflower seed.
The other thing she can do is put some seeds on the floor of her cage and use her fingers to make believe she is 'pecking' the seeds. Then she can put some seeds in the palm of her hand and do the same thing. The pecking motion with her fingers entices the bird to eat. That's how they learn, they copy.


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## Libis (Oct 8, 2010)

pipelineaudio said:


> I keep forgetting to ask, what sort of treats can I give her that will help bend her to our will?  Maybe if my wife gives her treats, Tweet wont run away from her


They like unsalted raw Spanish peanuts (like what you buy to make peanut brittle.) 

He might like chopped up grapes--my doves do, but you have to be very careful how much he gets. The peanuts are easier.


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## horseart4u (Jun 16, 2011)

the wing thing could be him / her saying "come cuddle" with me also..as they mature and want a mate they do that when calling the mate to the nest.


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## pipelineaudio (Dec 25, 2011)

While I was at work, my wife turned on the ceiling fan and Tweet flew into it. Her wing is looking funny, but she's holding it up all the way and I cant find any broken bones. It also doesnt look like any of the broken wing pictures I've seen. I'm hoping to take her to the vet tomorrow, but now she groans at me the way she only used to do to my wife. I think she may have forgotten me or become brain damaged. Crossing my fingers that the vet says she's OK


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## Michy (Jul 29, 2011)

Oh wow! So sorry to hear! Hope the vet visit goes well.


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## Msfreebird (Sep 23, 2007)

pipelineaudio said:


> While I was at work, my wife turned on the ceiling fan and Tweet flew into it. Her wing is looking funny, but she's holding it up all the way and I cant find any broken bones. It also doesnt look like any of the broken wing pictures I've seen. I'm hoping to take her to the vet tomorrow, but now she groans at me the way she only used to do to my wife. I think she may have forgotten me or become brain damaged. Crossing my fingers that the vet says she's OK


Number 1 rule of bird ownership- NEVER TURN ON A CEILING FAN WITH THE BIRD OUT! (shredded tweet!) Your lucky she wasn't killed. 
Hopefully she just bruised it. Otherwise, is she acting OK? Eating, drinking, holding head straight, walking? When they are afraid, they will growl (groan). Hold her to comfort her and regain your trust, gently massaging her around the neck/shoulders helps with that. Make sure you tell the vet that she is your pet....most will want to euthanize if not. Many of us here have 'handicap' birds, they do fine. Hope she's OK, keep us posted


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## horseart4u (Jun 16, 2011)

tweet is most likely in pain and stressed from hitting the fan, hope vet visit goes good.


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## pipelineaudio (Dec 25, 2011)

How do I hold her? Normally she flies onto the top of my head and stays there till I have to leave to work in the morning. I dont know if she likes to be held. I used to have to grab her to open her beak to feed her, but I havent grabbed her since then.

Since the accident, she doesnt come over to me, and seems like she would run from me and I dont want to stress her


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## Libis (Oct 8, 2010)

pipelineaudio said:


> How do I hold her? Normally she flies onto the top of my head and stays there till I have to leave to work in the morning. I dont know if she likes to be held. I used to have to grab her to open her beak to feed her, but I havent grabbed her since then.
> 
> Since the accident, she doesnt come over to me, and seems like she would run from me and I dont want to stress her


Scroll down to the handling portion--but do alter it a bit to be careful of her wing.

http://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalog/4h/4-h154.pdf


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## pipelineaudio (Dec 25, 2011)

Well, its been a long while, got quite depressed over Tweet losing her ability to fly, but she seems sort of OK. She gets carried wherever she wants to go, and does the occasional hop and flap up to the tops of furniture. I don't if she's super depressed about it or not.

My wife left to the mainland for a while, so I have been bringing Tweet to work at the music school, and all the kids like her. With her diapers on, she has the run of the place, and during daylight hours is very curious and picks up anything she can lift and spies on any new people she hasn't seen before

At night and in the mornings, she'll often flick her wings slightly and make a sound like "grOOOO" until I pet her or if I leave the room and she can't see me. If I leave her alone long enough, she'll stop making the sound and then come look for me. I'm not sure what the sound means. Sometimes she'll make it till i pet her and then she makes it louder, so I don't know if there's something wrong.

Its not very like the "bucket a boooo! bucket a booo rooooo" sound she makes when she's mad or doesn't know someone


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## pigeon is fun (Sep 6, 2010)

im glad shes doing ok.


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## hamza syed (Jun 22, 2012)

that sound "grooo" is when the male pigeon calls his mate (mostly)..


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