SilverSage
New member
- Sep 14, 2013
- 5,937
- 99
- Parrots
- Eclectus, CAG, BH Pionus, Maximilian’s Pionus, Quakers, Indian Ringnecks, Green Cheeked Conures, Black Capped Conures, Cockatiels, Lovebirds, Budgies, Canaries, Diamond Doves, Zebra Finches, Society F
I bought a pair of Maximillians's Pionus Parrots in October for breeding purposes. They are a producing pair which I bought from a retiring breeder, vet checked and "healthy," but I watched in dismay as they ignored toys and new foods, sitting so still so much of the time that I felt I could have simply placed two 3x5 index cards under them, and simply changed those out, because they pooped in only those places. Not potty trained, just not moving.
I was very disheartened, so I got to work. It has taken months, but now all at once we are seeing some huge steps!
-Eating new foods!! Both chopped up and in spears held in a foot and munched on. Where once they would eat only the pellets they have always eaten, they now eat millet (my beginning temptation, they don't get it often), carrots in spears or disks, apples in spears or cubes, spinach leaves, Kale leaves and stems, 2 types of pellets, Post Great Grains cereal with walnuts and dates, lettuce, dried bread chunks in small pieces, and tomato bits! They also chew happily on the small dish of organic grass that I put in their cage and remove to water.
-They now both forage around the floor of their cage! That is new as of today! I am trying so hard to get them curios and interested in their surroundings! The male has also taken to "walking" back and forth upside down on the top of the cage. I keep the bottom clean, I use sand instead of news paper and scoop it regularly so they are not sorting through messes to find what they drop.
-Sitting on new perches! Even though they have always HAD these perches the whole time, they are finally using them instead of sitting in the same place all day every day.
-Morning and evening vocalization. It may sound silly, but they were so quiet it was concerning. They still are the quietest parrots I have ever owned, but now they celebrate the sunrise and sunset for a few minutes at a reasonable volume.
They remain very easy to work with, I believe both were pets before being breeders. I can put food in their treat cups by reaching into the cage and dealing with things as close to them as 4 inches with very little reaction, and Sam, the male, will take treats from my hands. The female, Lady, has only done so once, and it was between the bars of the cage.
My hope is to get them to a happy, curious, mentally alert state, much closer to their natural mentality.
I was very disheartened, so I got to work. It has taken months, but now all at once we are seeing some huge steps!
-Eating new foods!! Both chopped up and in spears held in a foot and munched on. Where once they would eat only the pellets they have always eaten, they now eat millet (my beginning temptation, they don't get it often), carrots in spears or disks, apples in spears or cubes, spinach leaves, Kale leaves and stems, 2 types of pellets, Post Great Grains cereal with walnuts and dates, lettuce, dried bread chunks in small pieces, and tomato bits! They also chew happily on the small dish of organic grass that I put in their cage and remove to water.
-They now both forage around the floor of their cage! That is new as of today! I am trying so hard to get them curios and interested in their surroundings! The male has also taken to "walking" back and forth upside down on the top of the cage. I keep the bottom clean, I use sand instead of news paper and scoop it regularly so they are not sorting through messes to find what they drop.
-Sitting on new perches! Even though they have always HAD these perches the whole time, they are finally using them instead of sitting in the same place all day every day.
-Morning and evening vocalization. It may sound silly, but they were so quiet it was concerning. They still are the quietest parrots I have ever owned, but now they celebrate the sunrise and sunset for a few minutes at a reasonable volume.
They remain very easy to work with, I believe both were pets before being breeders. I can put food in their treat cups by reaching into the cage and dealing with things as close to them as 4 inches with very little reaction, and Sam, the male, will take treats from my hands. The female, Lady, has only done so once, and it was between the bars of the cage.
My hope is to get them to a happy, curious, mentally alert state, much closer to their natural mentality.
