I am owned by a 7 year old green cheek conure named Kiwi (though I've only had her for 4 or 5 months) and a handsome little year and a half old parrotlet named Jack the Ripper (i've had him since he was a few months old). I love my feathered kids so much!
I was never a bird person... i was more into dogs.. and still am... but on our wedding night, my husband and I stayed a bed and breakfast in Elora and the owners had 2 macaws, a cockatiel and a parrotlet... and it was little Maui, the parrotlet, that sparked a love of birds in me. Her parrotlet was so cute and so little! I knew we had to have one. After a month of research, one of my close friends took me to Exotic Wings (our bird specialty store)and bought me my Mr Ripper as a birthday present. And it has been amazing ever since!
Jack has been the perfect bird! Knowing parrotlets could be territorial and aggressive, I made all the necessary preventative measures and thus far have had no issues what so ever. Even being fully flighted for 10 months hasn't caused any dominance or aggression. We clipped him when we brought him home, but allowed his flights to grow back in after his first big molt. I just recently upgraded him to a HQ flight cage, and the little squirt is happy as can be in his mansion. Every now and then I work double shifts and don't get home early enough to get out of cage time (he usually falls asleep around 9 pm).... and now I don't feel bad if he misses a day being out. He no longer demands to be out, and is quite happy in his huge cage. He spends all day ripping, shredding, tearing and foraging for his food. It keeps him very busy
When he isn't foraging, I have him out to fly. He loves doing laps around the house, zooming to and fro. He has such a blast flying! Throughout my house i have various playstands and perches hung (like most of you, I imagine), and he alternates landing spots. It's amazing how large the gusts of wind his little wings make!Now for Kiwi. She came to us 4 or 5 months ago as we had just rehomed our lineolated parakeet. Our linnie had been with us just over a year and she had overly bonded with Jack. She had become very sexually frustrated and aggressive, to my husband and I, and Jack... causing lots of stress on all of us. It was a very hard decision to rehome home, but definitely the best. I am still in contact with her new owners and as an only bird she is much happier. Anyways, 2 days after rehoming my linnie, one of my good friends called me up and asked if my husband and I wanted a conure. For some time we had been discussing getting a conure, but we hadn't planned for it to be any time soon. It ended up that a friend of my friends was moving to France for a new job and was unable to take Kiwi with him. So, a few days later, Miss Kiwi joined our family. She came to us a feather chewer and odd smelling, but was deemed healthy after a vet visit. She was on diet of fruit pellets and fresh fruit. The only veggie she ever ate was corn. In her cage were three toys. I was saddened by the scraggly little girl.... but her eager to cuddle and ride on my shoulder every I went attitude soon melted my heart. I switched her over to a natural pellet and veggie mash diet in two days, and filled her cage with toys, as well as offered some full spectrum lighting. In the few short months I've had her, it is amazing to see the changes in her. While she still has some scruffy tail feathers and upper shoulder feathers, the new ones growing in are lush and beautiful.... and her feather chewing has stopped to a normal bird preen. I no longer see her preening herself constantly or chewing her feathers to bits. She has become less clingy and more independent. While she still loves spending as much time with me as possible, she is quite content to spend time playing on her playstand during times I can't have her on me. And last night she flew to the playstand and spent half an hour playing there. Most times I have to put her on the playstand, to give my shoulder a break, but not last night. She purposely flew over there on her own and spent a decent amount of time chewing and playing with the various toys I have attached to the playstand
Like most conures, Kiwi loves her baths. I start doing the dishes and she nearly divebombs into the sink. She has learned now to dive bomb into her birdbath instead. lol! She is a snuggle bug, and adores cuddling on my shoulder, burrowing herself in my hair, quacking happily. Then moments later, she is up, running over to my husband, to preen his facial hair. Then with happy quacks she runs back to me for some snuggles.
I couldn't ask for better fids!
And luckily these two tolerate each other, and see one another as flockmates, but prefer the companionship of people... preferrably me. It's quite normal to have Jack on one shoulder and Kiwi on the other.
So i'm here, hoping to get some info on how to teach Kiwi tricks, as well as train her to wear a flight harness. As stated, both my birds are flighted and I would like the opportunity to take Kiwi places (as she's a social butterfly and loves everyone), ensuring she is safe and won't fly away.
