My Quaker parrot is terrified :(

[S11own]

He looks like he is warming up to you fast!


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I hope so, he does still seem really scared, but its deffinetly getting better!! [emoji16][emoji16][emoji16]


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[S11own]

UPDATE: I got him out the cage tonight by opening when he was out he would sit on his cage, but as soon as i walk over he would fly away and sqwark, i managed to get him back in with a tea towel, although it was hard to get close to him, would it be a good idea to trim his wings or not? I know some people are against it


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[dennisbro3112]

I am no expert but I tamed my first bird with non clipped wings and it took a while, but I clipped my other 2 and it took waaaay faster and I tamed then away from the cage that way they don't get distracted by it and not go back to it. Clipping is your choice and I advise it as you will be able to take it away from the cage and tame it so it doesn't want to go back and focus on training.

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[wrench13]

You better do something, because all your doing now is teaching him to be afraid of you. Chasing him around with a towel is not a trust building exercise. Your in it for the long haul, I hope? Slow down , take a week or 2 and just sit next to the cage, reading to him for an hour a nite, with a treat thru the bars every 15 min. Hell, I wouldn't trust you either if you were chasing me with a towel.

 

[dennisbro3112]

I think he was just mislead by all these people saying to use on eon the net. But I agree never do that again or it will be more scared of you

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[Notdumasilook]

That bird is subject to injure or kill himself if you chase him around like that.!!!!! FIRST.. yes.. have someone that knows what they are doing give the secondary flight feathers a trim. ( cut a blood feather they can bleed to death ) THAT way he wont fly like a rock.. if he does a panic jump he will glide down instead of hit the floor with a thump. Once the bird is trimmed THEN you can do the "up" thing with him. If he is on the floor he will want to get up to a higher spot. Offer him perhaps a T perch first, if he is scared of your hands. Do the "hand taming" in a small room... like your toilet.. somewhere with little furniture, confined, and quiet. Once on your hand talk to him quietly like you would a 3 year old kid. Wanna go further? try maybe rubbing his foot or his belly... don't go for the head scratch yet.... and when you do DONT come in from over his head,, come from the side. Be patient... he has to learn you are just a big ugly but NICE bird that wants to be his friend. Do this a few times a day going further each time. Expect to get a nip.. don't make a big deal over it.. hes skeered of you!!.. Once the basic trust happens nips of FEAR will disappear. Work with him patiently til you can rub his head and belly... stay clear of the wings.. that's the LAST place you touch once trust is there. Done right you can have this bird roaming the house with you on your shoulder.. begging food from off your plate and giving you sugar in a week. Birds want to be in a flock and once you get that bond going spend as much quality time as possible. Once the taming is over don't sweat trimming wings again.. just pay attention to the safety issues with having a flighted bird in the home. Best of luck to ya and your birdie

 

[EllenD]

I would absolutely have his wings clipped by either an avian vet or a breeder immediately, it makes taming and training so much easier. First of all they need to rely on you to get up off the floor, back in their cage, etc. And soon they realize that they can't fly off, so they will stop trying and just stay on your finger. Second, if you towel him many more times you're going to have a HUGE problem ever earning his trust. My Quaker was hand raised and I could hold her from day 1, and I clipped her wings the day after she got home, simply in anticipation of needing to in order to train her as she was only 9 weeks old. Plus she was flying into things all over my house because it was new, so it was also a safety thing. I didn't even need to towel her, I just clipped her and she was fine. Now she's full flighted. However, I had a budgie that was a parent raised baby and was scared to death of me, and once I clipped her I had her tame in a couple of weeks, to the point I could hold her and give her scritches.

That being said, never towel your bird unless you've built a strong bond with it. At that point the bird will get mad/scared at the towel, not your hands. I always let the vet towel my birds so there is no problem with me doing it.

Also, don't try to clip it's wings yourself unless you know what you're doing, they can bleed to death from a blood feather quickly.

I would make an appointment ASAP with a certified avian vet that is local to you, and preferably the avian vet you'll be using in the future. You should have a well-birdy checkup done since I don't think you've done it yet. You should always do this as soon as you get a new pet bird, whether the breeder/pet store says they did it already or not. They will do a full exam, weight check, fecal smears for parasites (bring a fresh dropping from right before your appointment), and some like to do blood work. They can then clip your Quaker's wings and toenails, if the toenails need it. They can also talk to you about proper diet and nutrition, common issues to Quakers, talk about behavioral problems, and answer any other questions you may have.

I would do this like YESTERDAY. You'll be amazed how much more quickly taming your bird will go once it's wings are clipped. And who knows, your bird may have a parasite, mites, wing lice, etc. that could be effecting it's behavior as well. If a bird is in pain, is sick, or is itchy and constantly uncomfortable it's impossible to build trust with him as he can think about nothing else but his health problems, and he probably blames you for the problems.

 

[GaleriaGila]

Awesome applied behavior analysis, folks!
S11, glad you're reaching out!