Ping… ping… ping- this was the soundtrack to spending any time in Maud’s company. Maud is a 2-year-old Budgie & she was also an obsessive bar pinger. Bar pinging like this has no goal or function, it’s a deeply ingrained form of stereotypic behavior that comes about due to a lack of chewing opportunity. There are areas of cage bars that are entirely stripped of paint due to her obsession with stripping them.
MYTHS – There are so many myths surrounding this kind of behavior & it only makes the situation worse for the Bird. Below are just a few myths, which I will correct.
- IT’S CHEWING OUT OF IT’S PRISON BECAUSE IT WANTS TO BE FREE! – No, this could not be any further from the truth or the thought processes of a Bird who is domestic & comes from a long line of domestic Birds. They don’t know about living in the wild & they are unable to survive in the wild. To Maud, that cage is not a prison, it’s a safe haven. It has been the armor between her & the unpredictable people who scared her so much & it is the only constant through a tornado of unsettling change. The prospect of flying in a safe & secure room with the people she loves is too terrifying, the outside world would destroy her. She couldn’t cope & that should count more than a person’s ego & the views they force onto pet Birds.
- SHE WANTS TO COME OUT FOR A BIT- This deep-rooted behavior goes far beyond this. It’s an obsessive behavior that is carried out for significant time during the day & night too. Maud has never been out to fly before & her severe health issues mean that, right now, it isn’t possible either.
- IT IS DELIBERATELY TRYING TO WIND YOU UP! – The behavior carried out by ‘problem Birds’ who are trying to wind up their caregivers are never what they seem & there is ALWAYS a deeper reason that they are desperately trying to get you to understand. Maud only sees the world from Maud’s point of view; she isn’t even aware of what I may be thinking in response to her desperate attempt to cope. People so often come down far too harshly on a Bird & convince themselves that the Bird is spiteful or out to get them, it just isn’t so- they need love, help & understanding.
So, what IS going on there? – Chewing & stripping bark from natural wood is a natural instinct that has remained throughout the generations of domestic Budgies. With little exception, chewing & stripping is a deeply rooted natural instinct & is vital to maintain muscle tone & keep their continually growing beaks warn down. The environment we provide domestic Birds is almost always severely lacking in chewing opportunity. Maud was in a cage with a hard & smooth dowell perch with no bark to chew & 3 solid plastic toys. The floor was covered in tough & sharp abrasive sheets. There was NOTHING to chew.
Her instinct was telling her to chew something & the instinct to strip & peel bark was driving her to act. Then one day, in frustration, she bit the bar & a small fleck of paint came off. That peel & strip instinct was fulfilled more than ever before & she felt great! So, she did it more. The more she did it the better she felt & slowly, when nothing else filled her days, it became an unshakable obsession. This is the same situation when that ‘damn Bird’ chews & strips your furniture, door frames or wallpaper. People punish them, but it’s our fault because what we provide isn’t fulfilling that innate primal need that is driving their behavior.
After introducing natural toys like this, natural wood perches & the platform you can see behind the toy, which is edged with natural bark, Maud & her sister Hedwig, have spent all day stripping bark excitedly from every surface, no bar chewing, no frustration. They were singing, flapping & bouncing their heads with uncontrollable excitement as their deepest soul felt fulfilled at last. They are heard. Felt. Understood. Forever. It was that moment they noticed- they are finally home.