Mental Stress Stresses can be physical, mental or both. A wild-caught bird that received rough treatment in a gloved hand will consider a glove a threat. Sometimes just the sight of a glove will send a bird into a panic. This glove is a fine example of a mental stressor. A child who repeatedly teases a bird, waving his hands around the cage, is another.
Psychological stresses are very real and threatening to birds.
Other psychological stresses can result from a bird's physical environment. Strange sounds, new people or pets, changes in diet and moving to a new cage, room or house can all act as stressors. Abrupt changes in temperature or humidity can also stress a bird. People who keep their pet birds up until all hours of the night, disrupting normal sleep patterns, also create stress for their birds. Separation anxiety is one stressor that warrants mention.