Steps to get my awesome Quaker to think I'm awesome

[Grubio53]

I am a first time bird owner and I have a new 6 month old Quaker. Her name is Emory . I have had her 5 days and she is not very fond of me at this point. She allows me to put my hand on the cage, she just stands there and stares at it. When I put my hand inside the cage she runs for dear life. Every now and then she will take a treat from my hand from outside, never from inside. She also spends most of her time on a perch a made for her way on the top right corner of her cage.

I got her from a pet shop and I am feeding her the same food the pet shop was and she eats normally. My only problem is that I do not think I am taking the right steps to get her to like me. I am already in love with her lol.

 

[cnyguy]

First of all, be patient. It takes longer for some parrots to get used to new people and new surroundings, so give Emory all the time she needs. Something that works well is to just sit near your parrot's cage and talk softly to her. Tell Emory how pretty she is and how much you love her and want to make her happy. She'll understand. You can read to her and sing to her too. That will help her get used to you and the sound of your voice.

You might place a hanging perch on the outside of Emory's cage, just below the door. Leave the door open while you stay nearby, and eventually, she may decide she's ready to venture out of her cage. Until she's more comfortable with you, it's better to keep your hands outside her cage, except when necessary to clean it or change food and water. A parrot's cage is his/her safe, personal space and it can be upsetting to have hands stuck inside, even friendly ones. Keep offering Emory some favorite treats from outside the cage, and that can help her see that your hand isn't such a bad thing since it brings good food.

 

[Grubio53]

You are awesome!!! Great advice! I will do that.

 

[Tuukee]

i made a bird playgym after bout a month, and put Tuukee on it. i let him watch me make it, and i played with it while in front of him too to show him that its a toy. also treated him a lil when he'd make progress. it built trust between us and that worked very well, also food is a great bonding tool. givin your baby food that is parrot save- you eat a bite- then offer some to your babes, then you find out what fresh foods she likes. by letting her know that she can flock with you is a good step. now the lil booger is a flocker- but only with me lol. he wants everything i have and to do everything with me- even if it scares him... but i love that beak!

 

[Riggsy]

Now while I can only recommend being patient. With ONE of my birds I have taken the aggressive route (NOT ADVISED UNLESS YOU CAN READ BIRD BODY LANGUAGE VERY VERY WELL, Not to mention being able to handle them well). This was the route I took with my cockatiel "Tango" ... The utter love of my life (this bird knew the sound of me going to the bathroom over 6 other family members and flock called when I did, not to mention she knew the sound of my footsteps). My god did that bird break my heart when she passed . Anyways she was on Day 7 of open cage door in my room with me in there every hour I was not at work. 90% of the day... I placed my hand slowly in the cage, and very slowly approached her, Eventually grasping her while she bit me a little (she was young and that young beak can't do much). I held her and brought her to my face and with the other hand with 2 fingers held her little beak down and spoke to her and kissed her. once she calmed down i brought her to my knee while sitting with one hand over her wings (all my birds ALWAYS have the right to fly) after 10-20 mins she was completely at ease with me being completely still. And the baby steps continue from there.

I don't recommend this to anyone who cannot read a birds body language incredibly well. If you scare/scar a bird to badly you can cause Almost irreversible damage (Leda has HORRIBLE fear of hands (because of the breeder and his method of catching her in a free flight cage) and its been an on going process for years now, but she is slowly coming around).

What I can recommend to ANYONE AND EVERYONE with a new birdy is the stay in the same room as much as possible and open the cage. Once he/she has started climbing on/around their cage... You should then be able to move on to hand feeding if you haven't already. So on and so forth, baby steps. Trust must be earned one way or another.