It's Been a While...

[Saerphe]

...But I'm back. I've kept up my adoration of birds through university, and not only have I graduated, but I just yesterday got a brand-new feathered baby.

Akimi is 2-years old, and her previous owner couldn't keep her any more because she was going back to school. She's a cutie and has been pretty good so far, but has a couple behavioural issues we'll have to work through, mainly nippiness and being somewhat cage territorial. She likes me enough to preen me, and seems to like my brother though, so we'll get there.

[liz]

Can't get cuter than that.

[Saerphe]

Can't get cuter than that.

Thanks! She is very cute. After reading through a bunch of posts from people with similar problems, I'm starting to realize that a lot of her nippiness is because of me being overeager to bond with her (of course, heh. ). Today is only her third day here, and I have to keep reminding myself to chill out and let her set the pace. She seems to like my brother just slightly more than me, and it's probably because he's not quite as in her face as I've been... though she also bit him much harder than she's bitten me so far, so that eased my jealousy just slightly.

I'll work on cooling my jets and letting her set her own pace from now on. She was content to sit under my chin and preen my face for a couple hours yesterday and even let me pet her head a little with my nose and lips. So cute. <3

[Wolf]

Yeah, they need a little time to get over losing the things and people that she knew, as well as to settle in to their new environment. Although they need reassurance during this time, they need time to get to know you and learn to trust you as well. Giving them a schedule and also allowing them to set the pace for interaction give them some assurance and the feeling of being a bit more in control of their lives and it lets them know that you are listening to them, a great trust builder, confidence builder and general great bonding strategy. Relax and you will do fine.
By the way welcome back to the forum.

[Saerphe]

Yeah, they need a little time to get over losing the things and people that she knew, as well as to settle in to their new environment. Although they need reassurance during this time, they need time to get to know you and learn to trust you as well. Giving them a schedule and also allowing them to set the pace for interaction give them some assurance and the feeling of being a bit more in control of their lives and it lets them know that you are listening to them, a great trust builder, confidence builder and general great bonding strategy. Relax and you will do fine.
By the way welcome back to the forum.

Thanks. Now that I'm back at work for the week, a regular schedule will be easier to set. I also plan on making sure her cage gets covered in the evening (probably around 8:30 or 9:00 each night) so she can get enough sleep. I covered her last night and she settled more easily than she did her first night, so it seems to have helped.

[Saerphe]

She's already showing a lot of improvement with me - she sits comfortably on my shoulder for long periods, and steps up without nipping more often. She suddenly decided she really doesn't like my brother right now and has drawn blood from him a couple times, but I've instructed him to try interacting with her without asking her to step up for a while. :\