Little Louis is Fitting In... First Time Pet Owner

[Litilchef]

Hello! My name is Elizabeth. I now have my very own first personal pet and general sweetie bird. I adopted him from my dearest friend who also has an African Grey.

I guess you can say I am a doting mommy to both my children (five and one) and to Louis. Louis is a White Bellied Caique, and he was hatched on November 16, 2007.

I have questions, and my friend's health is really poor right now. I just really don't want to give him any concerns about Louis fitting in with our family.

So... Here I am. I will use the search tool to start out. I have called the lady at the bird store four times already. I have Had Louis for two *fun,* but a bit nervous, weeks.

I don't have anything to offer in terms of bird expertise, but I am not good-for-nothing. People who know me bring me questions about marketing, grammar, cooking and baking. If there is an off-topic section of the forum, I can try and go there to help out.

Kind regards,
Elizabeth

 

[Ecclipse]

Hi there Elizabeth, your lil Louis looks adorable!!! Reading through the forum is the best way to learn more about taking care of your lil fella. Welcome, you have come to the right place. Ask any questions you may have and there are many experts who can help you. I have learnt loads in the last couple of months.

 

[Spiritbird]

In this circumstance I suggest a trip to an avian vet to check on the health of birdie. You will feel better for this too. Nutrition is a very important area of concern. If bird eats a seed only diet the vet can make suggestions to get bird on a pelleted diet. Also lots of fresh fruits, vegies, grains, beans and nuts. Educate yourself on the dietary needs because there are some no no's also. Go slow and establish a bond with the bird with gentle handling, one on one time out of cage. Are the wings clipped? There are safety needs to consider also such as being careful about non stick cookware, sprays, candles and the list goes on.
I hope you can find an avain certified vet because they really know their birds and how to handle them. Keep us posted and have fun with the bird. He is adorable.

 

[Auggie's Dad]

Welcome to the forums,

There are many common concerns covered in older posts that you can search through, but don't hesitate to ask any questions if you have concerns.

 

[HRH Di]

Welcome, Elizabeth. There is so much wonderful info on this site.

 

[antoinette]

Great to have you joining us.
Thanks for sharing the lovely pic of Louis.
Louis is so beautiful, I could cuddle and kiss him mwah
Super advise given from the posts above.
Keep us posted.
Bye for now

 

[WhataCracker]

Oh, how I'd love a Caique. I just don't have the money to buy one at the prices round here.

 

[Litilchef]

Thank you! Great advice here. Some things are things I have been thinking about, but your encouragement helped me find out how serious some of these matters are... candles, pans, sprays etc. I got almost all my questions answered yesterday by searching. I do have the name of THREE avian vets around here for me to choose from. I am going to go in the next couple of weeks.

Thanks again so much for your comments and welcoming words!

 

[WhataCracker]

Oooh, as for the cooking; I'm quite the foodie myself! I would love to share recipies!

 

[Litilchef]

More information about Louis: He has a nice new cage. 24"x22"x32" inside with a play gym on top. He sleeps in a snuggle hut. He has some cute toys, but doesn't play with them yet. I feed him water from our r/o filter (what we drink) and a mixture of zoopreme pellets, seeds and nutriberries. I also give him some fresh, cooked veggies and fruit, but just getting started with that. (At my friend's he was on pellets only, but they advised me against that at the bird store where I bought the cage.) He has taken two showers in two weeks (shower perch), and I plan to start giving him four showers per week.

One problem is trying to acclimate him to all four of us at once: myself, my husband and my two kids. He bit my husband last week. I think that was mostly because he doesn't know how to encourage him to step up in the right way. I think he started to pull away when Louis tried to test him for being safe. Much to my husband's credit, he tried again with him last night and they did a great job together.

I am a bit skittish with him, because I am new to pet ownership. I think I am doing a nice job handling him very gently. The only thing is that I have to keep his cage in my office, because I can't have my one year old sticking his hand in the cage. The office door is an open door to the kitchen (where everyone always is) but it has a baby gate in the door to keep both the baby and Louis safe. I also spend a few hours a day in the office and some face time with him out of the cage.

Sorry that was a lot. I won't make my posts this long, but I thought I'd post this here in case I ask another question somewhere else. I can see the moderators have visited me here. Thanks so much to everyone! Kindest Regards-- Elizabeth