New Parrot Mommy

[sillykins]

Hello everyone,

My boyfriend and I recently (and spontaneously) purchased a young Quaker Parrot. It was 2 months old when it arrived at the pet store and was only there for 3 days. We went looking just to see and were planning to do more research and buy from a breeder. Our plan was to get a Conure, but fell in love with this Quaker. We're waiting on the DNA test to find out if it's male or female. If it's a male we're going to name him Loki and if it's a female we'll name her Zoey.

I'm new to owning and caring for a bird, but my boyfriend used to have a couple of Cockatiels. At first I was a little nervous but have quickly adjusted. Over the last 2 weeks we have learned so much and have done everything we can to provide our little baby with the best.

Locally here we have a bird only store and above the store is a bird only vet. We feed it only organic and have bought a variety of toys so it doesn't get bored. We also put out the money to have it checked for any viruses or health issues. We have a healthy parrot!

My mom had a budgie that finally passed away so she gave us her cage. We probably wouldn't have gotten a bird if she didn't give it to us. We did end up buying a new one though because we wanted it to have more space and be comfortable. It's a lot stronger as well and better built for a parrot.

Apparently our little Quaker is very well behaved. We had the band removed, but the vet can't read the number on it. I tried to see if the pet store had record of it but they don't. They MIGHT be able to find out where it came from if we can get the number but it's not looking good. Either way, we're just happy it's healthy!

We're really looking forward to training and seeing what kind of fun we'll have over the years.

[Wolf]

I don't know where it is that you live but here in the USA there are several states that have license requirements or even out right bans on Quaker Parrots. So if you live in the States then you might want to check on the laws regarding them in your state and keep up with them in case you ever move from one state to another one.
I think that they are beautiful birds with a good personality. You should have a lot of fun with yours.

[sillykins]

Yeah we read about that. Thanks for the heads up though! We're in Vancouver, BC so we're good

[Wolf]

That's great, you would be surprised at how often I run into Quaker owners who are in the USA and are totally unaware of the fact that there are laws pertaining to their birds. As a result I try to bring it up early on.

[TheMrsFoster]

Just curious (being a newbie)....why are there laws against Quaker parrots in the US? Just wondering.

[Harpmaker]

Quakers are classed as "agricultural pests". Add to that the fact that they can survive quite well outdoors in a lot of the US. If they get loose and breed into large flocks they can really annoy the farmers. Since California is one of the most restrictive states for things that annoy farmers, they are absolutely not allowed here. Other states have their own rules, but as Wolf said, it is wise to check.

[Wolf]

Just curious (being a newbie)....why are there laws against Quaker parrots in the US? Just wondering.

Since I just finished reading your introduction, I know that you live in one of the states that completely bans possession of a Quaker parrot and will confiscate and put any Quaker parrot down if they learn of it. It is considered to be an agricultural pest.

[Pajarita]

Welcome to the forum. Yes, birds that are considered agricultural pests in their country of origin are automatically banned in American agricultural states and, with quakers, you have the added fact that they are such incredible survivors due to their unique trait of living in communal nests all year round (they are the only parrots out of more than 370 species that do this).

Now, there are two things you need to take into consideration with quakers. One is common to all other parrots and it's that you cannot free-feed their protein food and, although the other one is also common to all birds, it's something that you need to take extra care with quakers because they are not tropical birds and this is that they need to be kept at a strict solar schedule.

[sillykins]

Thanks Pajarita for the welcome and the tips! Thankfully we're already following both of those things =) We're lucky to have a lot of help from the West Coast Tropical Bird Studio here as well as our bird specific vet, not to mention the internet and now you guys. I think the toughest thing will be training and making sure it doesn't learn any bad habits. By the way, does anyone know how long it usually takes to get DNA sexing results? Thanks in advance.

[Pajarita]

Well, how long it takes depends on the lab. The internet ones usually take about three to five days. As to 'bad habits', in my personal opinion, birds don't 'learn' or have any. People usually say that a bird that screams all the time or bites has 'developed a bad habit' but what people consider unacceptable behaviors are nothing but screams for help and caused by us not realizing that these are wild birds that have very special needs which are not been met (and this happens to all of us because we simply cannot reproduce the conditions that nature decreed they should live under to be happy and healthy in captivity no matter how hard we try). I'll give you an example: I took in a 'screamer'. Freddy is Lesser Sulfur Crested cockatoo, an affectionate clown of a bird which eats well and loves his baths but, when he first came to me, he screamed ALL DAY LONG and I am talking pterodactyl-like screams that went on and on and on. Now, most people would say, ignore him and he will, eventually, shut up because he needs to understand that he
cannot scream all day long but this bird lived 21 years spending his entire days alone in a cage and interacting with his owner at night, when they got home from work and eating High Potency pellets for the last two or three years. He was not only overly hormonal from the long days (human light schedule) and high protein diet (and this was done on his AVs recommendation) but also completely frustrated and so very lonely from been on his own (something that never happens to any parrot in the wild) so it wasn't that he was screaming because he was misbehaving, there was a real good reason why he was doing it! It took ten months but he is now fine. He still does the flock call, mostly in the evenings but sometimes also in the morning which is perfectly normal and, now, whenever he hears our voices outside the birdroom door, he doesn't scream but very gently says: Bye bye - bye bye. AND (and I haven't mentioned anything yet here because I did not want to jinx it ) both his legs are completely feathered for the first time in 18 years! So, you see, his 'bad habit' was not a bad habit, it was the only way he knew to show that he was unhappy with his circumstances, the poor baby.