Our first week together in pictures

[Natacha]

Léa has been here for a week.

I posted more about it on my blog, but will post pictures here that were taken all throughout the week

Link to blog post:
http://poiworld.blogspot.com/2011/09/on ... later.html

Pictures

[Cage Cleaner]

Awesome! Your baby looks so happy. What is that window perch that you have? And where can I buy one?

[Natacha]

Awesome! Your baby looks so happy. What is that window perch that you have? And where can I buy one?

Thanks! The window perch is a Wingdow. It might appear expensive and for the longest time the price stopped me from buying one. Recently I got wind on there being a few cheaper ones so I got a medium one and loved it, as well as birds, so much so that I got a large.

https://www.wingdow.com/home.html

[Mum2rory]

Oooh, so cute. Every pic , she has something in her beak, what a busy girl she is and so pretty

[Natacha]

Oooh, so cute. Every pic , she has something in her beak, what a busy girl she is and so pretty

She does love to play

[sora no tori]

Finally got your cape. How sweet! She's adorable, Natache. Gratz!

[Maria]

She looks so cute, and so, so happy. Didn't I read somewhere you posted about how you were visiting with her from time to time when she was still with the breeder? If so, that's why she's so use to you, and therefore, so happy and comfortable as she looks. Because she's come to be familiar with you and know you, and has began a trust with you. It is a very good thing to visit your bird even before the time you can take them home, for these kinds of reasons. I would visit with my parrot when he was still a baby, and while he was almost ready to be weened off of formula on to regular pellet food. During this time, also, he was on the lay away plan for me at the parrot shop. So our bond started to grow before he even came home. Otherwise all they know and grow to bond with are the people who feed them at the breeders and parrot shops. It is good for them to make the transition - the familiararity with you. Visiting and feeding them, before you bring them home. Hand feeding. Holding, cuddling, playing with them, letting them hear your voice talking to them sweetly. It is also good for them because any time a parrot is pulled into unfamiliar surroundings, it can be a bit stressful for them at times. So the familiararity aids in helping them adjust fairly quickly. When I brought my parrot home, I also brought home with me, for him, the toy he always use to hold and play with at the parrot shop.

Another very, very good thing to do, when they are shifted like this, into their "new home", which will aid in the bond starting to grow pretty quickly also, is when you first get them home, simulate the formula stage for a week. This hand feeding formula stage is when the baby bird felt most loved and secure. And whala, bond and trust growing, because it brings back those feelings in the bird's memory of when they felt most loved and secure. They associate this with love. Of course you would still give them their pellet food and water as normal too. But on the first day you take them home, also, about a half hour before you put them to bed for the night, puree a little banana (with a bit of water in it) in a blender. This simulates the formula. Warm the banana mixture in a saucepan on the stove to LUKE WARM ONLY, NOT TOO WARM, NOT HOT. Put the banana mixture in a little bowl, get a little spoon. You can put a towel on the kitchen counter. Put the bird on the towel on the counter. The bird will eat the banana mixture right off the spoon like he can't get enough of it! You may need to gently show the bird the little bowl of banana, then you may need to let the bird see you dipping your finger in the banana, and touch the birds beak, ya know, with it, giving him a taste. Once he gets a taste, he'll probably go after the bowl, getting it all over his feet LOL, and stuff. That's when you then let him see you dip the spoon in the bowl, bringing the spoon with the banana toward him. Believe me, he'll start licking and lapping from the spoon, eating the banana. AND BIRDS LOVE THE TASTE OF BANANA. Do this every night for a week. After you do it, put your bird to sleep. He'll be happy, with a warm, full crop, which will also be soothing to him. The last few days of the week I did this for my baby, I just put him on the perch tree stand, letting him stand on that. And BOY! as soon as he saw me coming with that same bowl and spoon, he KNEW! and was coming toward me to get it! and ate so happily off the spoon. I also used the same little bowl and spoon all the time for familiararity, so that he learned, and got all excited like that, knowing one of his favorite things was coming After this week of "banana formula" (LOL), his bond grew so deep he was chasing me around the house and we've been like glue ever since LOL.

You can also use the "simulated formula" tactic on, for example, a day when you know your bird has been stressed or afraid (like if something happened that got him stressed or afraid and nervous). Us this tactic that evening to help soothe him, and help bring him back to calmness, and feeling secure, and feeling that love. But only do it for that one night/day. Don't keep doing it. Once your bird is "weened" off of formula (soft mushy type food), you don't want to get them use to eating that way again. It's important for them to eat their pellet food for many reasons. But this tactic can be used once in a while for instances like this.

Like, one day my bird got very stressed and afraid when there were kids in my home, and the kids got a little out of hand for a few seconds. I immediately got the kids away from him, as the bird was trying to get to me, because he was afraid. Then I spent a bit of time with my bird alone, talking to him sweetly; then when I seen that he was then calming down a bit, left him alone just to rest - but I also did the banana formula thing that night for my bird, to help soothe him, etc.

Oh, I've been singing my bird to sleep ever since I brought him home to, every night. And it's the same song I would sing to him on layaway visits at the parrot shop LOL. So that became his "sleep song". Now, every night (since about two weeks ago) he's put this word combination together:

Me: "Baby, ready to go night night?"
Baby: "Mama, night night; come on! sing!"

LOL - too cute.

Bottom line, your very young bird is very happy and comfortable. That is clear in the pictures. And it is because of the time you have already taken with her, while visiting with her as often as you can - even before you brought her home. That's love

Love, Maria