Budgies are fun and active pets. In order for a bird to always be healthy and in good spirits, it is important, when it is kept, to ensure the correct sleep and wakefulness. And for this you need to know how long it takes a parrot to sleep.
Sleep duration
In nature, wavy parrots live in Australia. It is very hot here, and therefore the birds often prefer to doze even in the daytime, hiding from the scorching sun in the shade of dense foliage. In the genes, this habit has been preserved also by individuals bred in artificial conditions, therefore many of them like to rest at noon, most often in the summer. The owner should not be intimidated by this behavior, daytime sleep does not speak of boredom or parrot disease - this is the norm. Usually, a pet needs at least half an hour for a day rest. In order for the bird to sleep peacefully at night, it needs to provide complete darkness and silence. A full night sleep of a parrot lasts 10-12 hours, in winter this period can last up to 14 hours.
If the pet is constantly energetic, mobile and active, it can sleep through even more time.
Posture to sleep
Experts in the field of ornithology recommend to observe in what position the parrot is sleeping. Many of them love to sleep, standing on one leg. Only hardy and strong birds are capable of this, only they can maintain balance. If the owner does not notice that the pet is sleeping on one foot, then this may be an indicator of the unhealthy state of the bird. If she is weak, injured, has caught an infection or is in poor conditions, then, most likely, she will sleep on two legs. Old individuals prefer the same position for sleeping.
Having seen that the parrot is sleeping, cackling and having buried its feathers in its beak, the owner should know that, most likely, the pet has frozen. In this position, he tries to keep his body warm. The owner needs to change the temperature in the cage of the feathered pet, as overcooling is quite dangerous for a wavy parrot.
We create conditions for sleep
Noticing that the bird sleeps up to 12 hours a day, do not worry. Worse, if she does not manage to sleep in due time. A sleepy bird will feel uncomfortable, her appetite will be spoiled, she will be given enough time to sleep at night, which will distort the necessary sleep and wakefulness regime and adversely affect the health of the parrot. To ensure a good full sleep for your pet, with the arrival of the night it is necessary to exclude all extraneous sounds, turn off the computer, radio, music, close the window and even close the curtains tightly.
The parrot can be frightened by the shadow of a car driving on the street or a hanging toy that has stirred from the draft.
It is important to turn off the phone so that an unexpected night call does not frighten the wavy. Many people can not fall asleep without a TV and turn it off only after waking up in the morning. The parrot in this situation will be alarmed all night, the flickering of the screen will alarm the tired bird, and then it will have to compensate for the hours of sleep in the daytime. Another moment that can scare a parrot is falling from a perch. Many owners clean up all the swings and poles for the night. The fact is that a parrot that has fallen asleep on one leg at night can lose its balance and fall. He is unlikely to get a trauma, but he will get very scared and will not be able to fall asleep for a long time. Some owners put a cardboard shelf in the cage as a “bed”, from which the bird cannot fall.
If one doesn’t succeed in observing sleep and wakefulness mode, and the pet is active at night, and then sleeps all day, then one can cover his cage with a cape for the night. Choose a breathable material so that there is normal ventilation in the cage. Do not expect that the sleep of the parrot will improve immediately, but after a few days the pet adapts to the new regime and will perceive the cape as a suitable condition for immersion in sleep. After some time, the wavy driver will fly up to his usual place to sleep when he sees the veil in his hands. If suitable conditions for sleep are not created, then the bird will practically not sleep. For an animal with chronic sleep deprivation, the following symptoms are characteristic:
- feather loss;
- tendency to pluck feathers;
- regular drowsiness and lethargy;
- irritability;
- depression;
- aggression;
- lack of appetite;
- unplanned egg laying.
If during the examination and analysis nothing terrible was found, then the owner needs to change the conditions of detention, including the adjustment of sleep and wakefulness.
Is it possible to wake up?
Sometimes a parrot is required, on the contrary, not to be put to bed, but to be awakened. For example, a pet settled into a familiar half-hour daytime sleep, but the owner planned a trip to the vet. As already noted, the bird should feel safe during sleep, and therefore it is impossible to abruptly wake the parrot with loud noises. A pet, who was awakened by sudden, loud music during sleep, will start a panic attack, which can provoke even cardiac arrest.. If such a terrible outcome does not follow, then a sharply awakened bird will become nervous, fearful for a long time, it will not fully sleep for several days and may lose its credibility to the owner.
Tips on parrot sleep mode - in the next video.
