Do my quakers hate me? Help...

[depedean]

I apologize for the length of this message, just at wits end. So, bit of background -- I am not new to birds, had several parakeets, a cockatiel, and conure when I was younger. I now own 2 fem Quakers, Luna & Lucy (they've been sexed).


I know it's not ideal to get birds from a pet store, but my husband and I fell in love with them and visited them a few times a week for 2 months at the store talking to and holding them. I also know it's not ideal to have two birds together and that they will want to bond to each other, but they were hatched together and at the time we bought them in Nov. had never been apart from each other.


About the first month or so, they were relatively tame and willing to step up, although they didn't always stay on my finger. So for the past 4-6 weeks they have turned into extremely LOUD, hard-biting monsters.



Their wings were clipped and though they don't fly, they are out of their cage (the top opens) for several hours a day. The cage is 32" X 23" which seems like there is plenty of room and they have lots of toys they play with, and will take baths when I put dishes on the cage.


In the last few weeks I am at wits end on what to do. They squawk when I am quiet, squawk when I try to talk to them, squawk almost nonstop. I knew conures were loud, but that was nothing compared to these two.



I have a ladder at the bottom of the cage and so sometimes if I lie on the floor they will come down and walk over to me and preen y hair, and sometimes hop up on me. If I approach them, totally different story. They will sit on my shoulder nice for a few seconds then bite my ear, finger, whatever they can get -- HARD. The blue one (Luna) is the worse of the two. She has drawn blood several times, doesn't matter if I hold still, tell her bad bird, etc.



So I know they are right around a year old, hormones and all, but I seriously am at wits end with what to do. I have considered putting them in separate cages, they will hit beaks sometimes, but still like to sit side by side a lot. I would be okay without a super tame bird, but I can't take the constant noise and biting much longer.


Do I separate them, I have 2 smaller cages they could use to sleep in or spend time apart. Any other ideas, they were tamer in the first couple months than they are now and I am nearing the end of my patience.

 

[wrench13]

Quakeers get extremely cage defensive. At first not so much but they will develope it. Best bet is tomove them once out of the cage(s) to a separate play stand, out of sight of thier cage. Noise, well thats going to be a long haul, be careful you are not inadvertantly giving positive re-enforcement to them.

 

[Laurasea]

You need two cages or a bigger cage, now that they are adults they may make bad roommates.
Quakers as adults are cage agressive, you just have to let them out, then they should be good. Sometimes they claim the outside top of cage too. Only my male has done this, I moved his cage over 2 feet and re did the top perches that helped me.

Quakers are loud, they are loud for hours. They need even bigger cage each. They need a ton of stuff to do easy to shred stuff.

They are very very smart and social. You gotta spend a lot of out of cage time together. I have 3, and they need lots if head scritches, time with me. I keep mine flighted with several locations to hang out. All the cage tips are full if perches on the top and sides. Then I use ceiling hooks and fishing line to hang hoops and bungirs just a few inches over the cage tips. Then I use the ceiling hooks and fishing line to hang hoops over my breakfast bar. Then I have one ot those metal stands with a huge role bungee that I can move around. Each station has treat sticks, toys, chew stuff.

I love mine like crazy. But if I don't keep them busy they are loud.

It's possible as puberty they are a little more wound up right now.
When I need planned quit time they get a bath, then millit spray or treat in cage, gets me about 45 min of quiet.

 

[depedean]

Thank you so much for the insight. I have to figure out where to put 2 big cages, I honestly thought the one I have is big. I will try separate cages for a while -- it can't be much louder than it is now.

 

[Laurasea]

They will still be loud unless they are busy doing stuff. They like the sound of their own voices they like to be making noise socializing, active. In the wild flocks are notoriously loud and vocal.
You gotta consider them African grey smart, and cockatoo social! Get them talking that's easier to take. A talker will still do a riff rollof all their words for an hour or more. They can be an amazing parrot but they got to busy, out if the cage with you or near.
Right now Neptune is on his cage going through all his words, Pikachu us sitting on my shoulder snuggle, Penny is hanging out on a swing seems to be watching TV lol
Give em a paper back book to shred, little stuff to make their elaborate nests with or they kind of try, foot toys, puzzles, foraging stuff. I use veggies cut big as stuff to eat and stuff to destroy ,they like going up and down latter's carrying stuff, they fly around with their little toys.

 

[depedean]

I tried cutting some strips on a frozen dinner box and they act like they are terrified of it! I am thinking maybe the cage they are in now can be their daytime play area and the smaller ones I already have to sleep in, just so I'm not spending money on another cage. I attached a copy of them in the one I have been using.

 

[Laurasea]

Nice cage. Need more stuff! Little short let he's staggered to jump around the cage, little chew stuff at each perch, a bungee rope, yucca chips that soft stuff that is easy to shred mine love those, pet smart sells a plastic forage box, it comes with stuff in it, but you can open it and out your own stuff in it too. A cup full of plastic bottle caps. I go to the dollar store and get little plastic boxes that have a sliding shelf. Showed them once, out food in shut draw and they figure it out in one second and open for treat. I thread plastic hoops on a stick rgeyov to remove them all. When they are out I thread all the hoops again and soon as they get back to the cage they are loook nooooo and take them all back off.
Watch them see what they like and get creative! We have the whole section on DIY.

I always play with something first in front if them before I give it to them.
I also try to a not so hrm by putting stuff right at head hieght were they sit..

I'm always trying to make sure they use every inch of the cage, by placing high value good, treats or toys in different spots.

They need more to do than sit at the tip of the cage.

And my rescue Penny always act scared and threats at first, so we chill a bit, then she snuggles..

Anyway I want you and the birds happy!

You can use a casserole dish, float plastic bottle caps with a seed in them in shallow water, mineike that.

Mostly your cage needs more stuff, and perches

 

[depedean]

Thank you for the ideas, I am going to work on that. I know they like using ladders, I put one at the bottom so if they can't get back up they can climb up. I will give it another go!