Expectant Alexandrine Owner in Melbourne

[Holden1960]

Well, we are no longer expectant parrot parents.

Yesterday our household was joined by Jacob the Alexandrine. He is obviously very nervous about all of these humans, but today he did accept some seeds and corn kernels from or hands.

It is going to take time for him to adjust to his new digs, but I think so far we are off to a good start.

We spent about 15 - 20 minutes introducing the clicker and rewarding through the cage as he is very reluctant to approach the front of the cage when the door is open, so we are certainly allowing him to dictate the pace at which this relationship is going to progress.

Cheers
Harry

[liz]

Keep in mind that he is a baby but very aware of his surroundings. Not only is he in a new place and surrounded by strange people but he does not see the Momma who fed him or the rest of his bird family. It would have been easier if there was already another bird but there is not so he needs more attention.

You have taken him from the only world he knows and brought him to an alien world. Clicker training should be put off until the baby comes to you. The inside of his cage, though it is also alien, is the only thing he has of his own. Limit putting you hands in his cage. All birds are instinctively afraid of hands. They are not afraid of faces.

My Maggie is a 4 year old breeder bird. The only time I have touch her is after she was tired from flying and wanted to go back to the cage. She will come to the side of the cage near me so we can whisper secrets. She is bonding with me even though I have not made actual physical contact.

Your baby came without baggage.

[Wolf]

Not wanting to rain on your parade, but I really think that you should forget about the clicker and training for at least the first month. Concentrate your efforts on personal interaction and bonding for now, there will be plenty of time for training later on. At this stage you are building the foundation for all that is to follow and to do this earning your birds trust is imperative.
At this point, Jacob will be both curious and fearful as there is little to nothing in this new environment that is familiar to him and it will take him at least a month to acclimate to you and his new home. This is time best spent in learning about each other, you need to spend a lot of time just hanging out with him, talking to him and watching him to learn his body language, teaching him to eat a healthy diet and getting him on a solar light schedule.
This is also a good time to bird proof the space that he will be allowed to roam in. He will need to learn to go in and out of his cage without you having to do anything more than asking him to step up to return to his cage when you need to do things where you can't watch over him. There will be plenty to do with just teaching him the social skill needed to fit in to your family and this is not just things that he needs to learn as you also must give in to the things that he needs so that you can adapt your lifestyle to mesh with a healthy, flighted bird living and sharing the same space as the rest of your family.

[Pajarita]

I don't know how old he is but you can't start training until they are in their puberty so, please, stop the clicker or any sort of training session. These are NOT easy birds and not creating the bond at this point in time would be terribly detrimental to your relationship with him. What you need to do now and for the next weeks is to shower him with constant attention and love, start him on a good diet (and that means no dry corn whatsoever!), set up strict schedules and routines and get to know each other. And, unless he is and adult (one year or older), don't forget to handfeed once a day and to offer, at least, two kinds of soft food served fresh twice a day.

[Holden1960]

Thanks Paj, we are definitely letting Jake (That's his name) dictate the speed at which things are running, but you might like to know that he voluntarily stepped up onto my wife's hand and then mine, prior to taking a flight around the lounge/dining room and going back to the cage for a good night's sleep.

His eating has improved and he is spending more time all around his cage and playing with his toys. We made a whole bunch of foraging toys which he had a ball ripping all the paper to pieces to get the treats inside.

He has only been with us for three days and we have a long road ahead, but the early signs are good. He is really comfortable with us and each day has become more lively.

The greatest surprise is how bright his feathers have become since he arrived on Friday.

Cheers
Harry

[Pajarita]

Stepping up for a baby is not really training because been on people is what they like best so that's fine. It's the using the clicker for other things that don't come naturally to them that needs to wait. Baby birds are like toddlers, you don't send them to school to learn anything but you do teach them things like to eat properly, good manners, sharing, etc so it's not as if they are not learning all the time.

But, where are our pictures?!!! We want to see Jake (was he dna'd a boy? because psittaculas are not usually dna'd as all you have to do is wait a couple of years to find out)

[Holden1960]

Ladies and Gentlemen, Cocks and Hens...introducing Jake the Alexandrine Parakeet!!!!!!





And yes, he was DNA'ed a boy.

[Pajarita]

Awwww, sweet baby bird! Beautiful boy!

[shiraartain]

Just read through the thread, and congratulations! The name suits him. My conure even left his spot on my shoulder to come a few inches closer and examine the picture.

I'm going to agree with everyone else on the clicker training. I felt equally ready once my bird initially displayed signs of affection, but now our bond is much deeper since he isn't a baby and comes to me by conscious choice. (Still young though, I got him late spring/early summer.)

[Water]

Hi, I'd like to welcome you to the Alexandrine club. I'm new to this forum but am thrilled to find another Alex owner. Mine looks like yours. Without neck rings. I think it's a girl. Not been sex-identified, but aren't guy Alexes supposed to have neck rings? We take ours as a girl. Her name's Mithoo.