Any advise for beginner please? :)

[Apt]

Hello! I have been busy browsing the forum since I bought my eastern Rosella 'Ferdi' last week.
I have a million questions and hope that you guys can point me in the right direction.
Ferdi is currently in a large parrot cage and is on the sheltered verandah during the day where he gets an hour or two of afternoon sun and comes inside before it gets dark.
He gets a parrot seed mix with millet, sunflower and oats. I bought some rainbow pellets but gave since read that the coloring isn't good for them so are just adding a small amount until I get some natural. I have learned that he likes apple, grapes, grass seeds and spinach and I have put some weeping willow and poplar branches in for him. I add dried fruit and nuts that he just drops on the bottom. He has wooden toys made of seedpods etc and a budgie mirror and a bowl of bathwater on the floor.
I am guessing he is not long weaned, about 3-4 months old because of his coloring, he has alot of green on his head etc and only 3 tailfeathers. He got loose when we put him into his cage and when my husband caught him his grey downy feathers went EVERYWHERE!!! He doesn't seem to lose many in his cage though. If I manage to post a photo could anyone here confirm that by looking at him?

He is shy but will eat grass seeds from my hands ( if I hold the stem about 20cms away from him) he seems to be slowly getting more comfortable with our hand in the cage and has started going to lower perches which I assume must be a good sign ?

I would like to have him as a companion that will sit on my hand and come out of his cage to fly.

My husband doesn't like birds in cages and would like to one day get a huge aviary for him, he will look quite small in a big aviary and I wouldn't be interested in breeding. I have heard they can be aggressive, in a huge aviary what other birds could he br compatible with? Cockatoos or small finches perhaps?

Any hints or tips? I want to dO my best to make him healthy and happy!

[Shelby]

Take the mirror out if you want him to be at all tame. They bond to the mirror instead of you.
Also, get him all natural pellets ASAP! Those colored ones are nasty and not good for them. Harrison's and Roudybush are popular all-natural feeds. Feed more veggies than fruits because fruits are just sugary water. Fruit is ok once in a while, but doesn't have much nutritional value compared to veggies. The darker the veggies the better - kale and spinach and string beans are good for example, as well as carrots. It's good that you're putting the cage outside so he gets some fresh air, but don't take him outside if he's not in the cage because even if he's clipped, he could still fly with a little wind.

Also, read Michael's blog. I suggest starting with his Taming article. He also has several articles on diet and habitat which will be helpful.

Best of luck with your new birdie friend! Keep us updated!

[Apt]

Thanks for your reply!
I have since discovered that he is a she!
I havnt tried many veggies yet, bit will start tomorrow.
How much spinach etc should she get?? As much as she will eat? She loves the stuff!
I pick her different grasses with seed heads and milk thistle that she loves. She is getting closer and closer to my hand for the grass seeds and will follow me from one side of the cage to another now, so feels like we are making progress.
Should I wait until she is tame enough to step up on my finger before I let her out for a fly around the house?
Her beak looks a bit cracked and shelly towards the tip.. Is that normal or a sign of poor health/nutrition?
Will she lay eggs without a male bird?
I just love her, will try and get some pics up soon.

[Polarn]

Ive sed it in other threads as well, about letting the birds out. I dont consider any time to let them out to be too early to be honest, to have the birds out of its cage gives the bird the opportunity to show you when she wants to interact or get closer to you. I personally find it easier to tame the birds when their not enclosed in their cage, well perhaps not easier, but more on their terms...especially if she is flighted, then if she thinks your pushing it too far she can fly away and that is her way of telling you, hey your moving to quick slow down a bit, while if confined, even though you learn to read your bird, but beginner birdownersoften push their birds a little extra and then the bird will most likely resort to biting, then YOU most likely back off... the only thing this has done for your bird is teaching it "If i bite they leave me alone" and this is a behavior that can follow your bird for quite some time if it is learnt in the beginning and requires a huge amount of training to get rid of. And while you if you get bit dont want to back off, you at the same time don't wanna push more to frighten your bird of the hand... it's a fine balance there... however, best solution... dont get bit,give the bird the opportunity to back away instead, that will teach the bird that "if I dont want to be with you at the moment, all I have todo is to leave" wich is a far better solution than biting in my oppinion.
I'm definitly not saying you will never get bit, but most likely if she bites when not scared it will be barable and you will be able to hold your hand steady waiting for the bird to take a step back instead of you....

saying all this I have to say there is as many tricks to train your bird as there is birdowners, and this is my oppinon and others might disagree. But I would let her out, worst case scenario... you have to catch her and put her back in the cage, either becouse she needs to go back for food and water or because for some reason you can't have her outside during nighthours or whatever.

[Apt]

Thanks for your input!
I have read the taming article and the target training just seems so far out of reach if possible at all after all I've read about rosellas being untrainable!
Sometimes she just looks like she wants out, usually in the afternoons for sbout 15 mins or so she gets noisy and becomes very active in her cage like she gets a bit hyper! Mostly though she is pretty calm and relaxed.
I think I will keep on with what I have been doing and aim for target training at some stage.
Could I let her out in a room with no where to land except on me or would that be to stressful?
Her cages roof opens and you can place a perch on top, will they usually go back into the cage of their own accord?
In the future if we get a large aviary, could she happily share her time between aviary (when we are not home for example) then come back in the cage when we are around to enjoy her company?
My gosh.. So many questions!!!!

[Polarn]

I think you absolutely should be able to targettrain her, targettraining seems to be one of the easiest things for them to figure out, think of it like one of the waterbottles you use for rabbits, push the ball and out comes water/touch the stick and in comes a treat.
As for if they usually comes back into the cage, some does other doesnt, I've had to catch my little fella 3 times in total, before he figured out that I wont close him into the cage just becouse he goes back, i basicly caught him closed the door, and as soon as he started to eat and drink i opened it again, then he just sat contempt eating and drinking before leaving the cage again, had todo this for 3 days, now the cage is open 24/7 and he spends about half his time in the cage (daytime that is) even if it is open and he is free to be someplace else. I basicly now take him out of the cage in the morning, if he has slept in it, say goodmorning give him a treat and set him down on the swing next to my computer, check my email and then I ask him to step up and take him back to the cage (I do this mostly for the training of actually wanting to step up to go either out or in from the cage, since i usually leaves him alone if he is in his cage and we train or play around when he goes out of the cage to be closer... but yeah expect that you might have to catch your little birdie a couple of times in the beginning.

about spending time in an aviary and in a cage, I honestly dont really know couse i got no experience of that, but I don't think there should be any problem for her to have 2 homes, as long as shes not visiting the cage inside only once or twice a year or the other way around, but if she for example is out during the days and inside during the evenings and nights or out one day in the other etc, i dont think it would stress her out, but I would suggest waiting for someone else to fill in on this subject for you.

about letting her out in a room where she has no place to land except on you, I wouldnt do that to be honest, they usually are curious enough to explore (including you) and if enough time outside the cage with you just doing your own thing in the same room, my guess is that you will notise a big difference in quite a short time when it comes to being spooked when you go closer or touching her feet or whatever. I would basicly just try to have a couple of places around the room/area where she has some branches/playstands with toys or swings or something to keep her busy outside the cage, and perhaps place something next to the sofa/computer or someplace you would naturally sit so she can go closer to you, basicly next to you without having to fear that you will grab her or force her to sit ON you...

[laducockatiel]

Ive sed it in other threads as well, about letting the birds out. I dont consider any time to let them out to be too early to be honest, to have the birds out of its cage gives the bird the opportunity to show you when she wants to interact or get closer to you.

You can say that again. I let my cockatiel out on the first at and it gave him a chance to get used to my house.

[Apt]

Grrr cant shrink a pic small enough to upload....

[GlassOnion]

570w x 800h?

[Polarn]

I've never tried to upload any pictures up to the forums server, i always upload them to my private ftp server. but any istockphotos or something anyone else uses should work fine, the only thing you have to adjust then is the dimensions of the picture