Quinn's new home

[Flowwie]

Hello everyone!

As this is my very first post (big moment for me) I'd like to start by thanking you all, both the experts, who have undoubtedly gotten calloused fingers from all their great advice and the beginners for all their updates and questions. I have learned a lot from you all.

Now you can probably derive from the title that this post is about a parrot, not unlike many other posts on this forum. In this case, in two days I am going to pick up my new friend, Quinn, from the breeder. Quinn is a Senegal Parrot, which is also how I found out about this forum. (Seriously, try YouTubing 'senegal parrot' and not seeing Michael and Kili pop up everywhere on your screen )

I have spent the last two months eagerly anticipating and preparing myself. I have watched most of The Parrot Wizard's YouTube channel, read his book, blog articles and perused most of the forums here. I even picked up a few books on parrot health, anatomy and common diseases and other ailments. I therefore feel that on a theoretical level, I am quite prepared. I also think that, similar to war, most plans do not survive the first contact with the enemy, or in this case, the parrot. I am therefore eager to seek out some of the more experienced parrot owners for tips and tricks.

Quinn will be six weeks old when I will pick him/her up. I know this is quite young, but I believe I have found a good breeder who has given me lots of information about taking care for this young bird. I also found an avian vet really close to me, just in case, and of course to get Quinn checked out asap.

The main thing I'd like to focus on now is the cage. The breeder told me the bird is still too young for a cage and will have its own special house thingy. However, I was very anxious, and yes, I may have gotten a bit carried away, but anyway I spent some time repurposing an outdoor cage that used to belong to two cockatiels. The cage has been quite thorougly disinfected and cleaned, together with everything in it.

(The cockatiels, my first birds, have sadly made a desperate bid for freedom a few months back. This is to say that they were outside in their cage, to enjoy a bit of sunshine when the cage, another model, really meant for inside use, fell over because of the wind and burst open. Result: no more cockatiels.)

I think it is fair to say that I have definitely learned from my mistake(s). After all, I erred in more ways than just allowing those birds outside in an apparently faulty cage. By attentively reading Michael's blog and book I realised that I had made several rookie mistakes, such as reinforcing bad behaviour (giving attention to screaming), putting the cockatiels on freefeed, and generally not being aware of their potential for training and tameness.

With the arrival of Quinn I am determined not to make the same mistakes and to try and raise a baby Senegal following the principles in Michael's book to achieve a happy, healthy companion for what will hopefully be a very, very long time. That being said I am quite sure I will regularly have questions for you or maybe I am just too excited and simply have to share a parrot related story, in which case I hope you will indulge me.

As I said I wanted to focus on the cage. I'd be delighted to get some feedback, tips and tricks about it. Do you think there are enough toys? Or too many? What about the perches? Do you think the cage is safe and so on?

I am looking forward to your advice, suggestions, tips and tricks.

Floris.

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[Wolf]

Hi and welcome to the forum.

I can't say that I have ever quite seen a cage like the one that you have. The horizontal bars suggest that it was designed with climbing in mind, but I am not sure that it was actually designed with birds in mind. One of the reasons that I say this is that I have never seen a bird cage with a door as close to the floor as this one has. Regardless, it will probably get you by for a while any way, but I would get some sort of clip or lock, to make sure that the doors are secure as some of our parrots can be quite the little escape artists.

As far as the setup that you have, it looks fine, but depending on the way that the bird reacts to all of your hard work, you may be better off starting with just one or two toys to begin with and then slowly introduce more as you go along. Senegals are a much more aggressive species of parrot than cockatiels, but like most other parrots they have a tendency to be afraid of new things, especially in their cages.

I have much more to say about your bird than I do about the cage, but since you asked, I can't say that I like the cage itself and think that you would be happier over the long run with a different cage than this one.

At this point in time I only have a couple of things to say about your bird and these are do not allow the breeder to clip the birds wings for any reason, no matter what they say, and when you bring your bird home make sure that you get some of the handfeeding formula from the breeder and then get your own package of it to use when what you get from the breeder runs out. Make sure that the handfeeding formula is the same one that the breeder is using.

Expect your new baby to be afraid of its new home for a while and also of you, unless you take the time to visit it often and get it accustomed to you handleing it in the presence of the breeder. Have the breeder teach you how to feed your baby with a syringe and don't wait until the bird goes home with you to learn this , learn it from the breeder and practice doing it several times before bringing the bird home. This will help to make the transition from its current home to its new home be easier on the bird.

Please feel free to ask any questions that you have, there are no experts on parrots or parrot care as we just don't really know enough about them because up until the 1970's there was no research done on parrots for ant reason. Everything we now know about them is relatively new.

[Flowwie]

Thanks for the reply!

I guess you cannot see it very well on the picture, but the doors are padlocked. As for the bird being scared, I was just showing an 'end' result. I also hope I can desentisize the bird to the cage somewhat, by having it in the same room. Of course if the bird is not happy I will replace it.

Thanks for your tips on handfeeding. I will be sure to get a demonstration and I already ordered handfeeding formula from the dealer. I think it is best to keep offering formula as long as the bird will take it? I am told they refuse it eventually if you provide food in their cage.

Floris.

[liz]

He is young but is developing a personality. Get as much info from the breeder as you can to help him adjust.

They are like little orphans since you don't really ever get enough back up info on them. Remember that no matter how social he is adjusting to loosing the home his family and home to be added to yours. Your first few months with him will be the base of your relationship with him.

[Wolf]

While you are getting the demonstration on hand feeding this bird don't forget to get a feeding schedule for the formula. Yes they will quit eating the formula over a period of time and you respond by cutting out one formula feeding at a time as it refuses one feeding until it is refusing any of it. There will be one time that they will refuse some of the formula that has nothing to do with the birds actual weaning process. This is the period just before it fledges, it will refuse to eat as much because it is adjusting its weight in preparation for its learning to fly, after which it will resume its normal feeding habits.

One should also bear in mind that when the bird does this and begins to fly a little bit that it is time to start introducing the bird to a variety of fresh raw and partly cooked fruits and vegetables. This is when most breeders are starting the bird on seeds and/ or pellets and very little else which is a mistake as this is the period that the parent birds teach their young what to eat as well as how to find it.

Do not get too attached to Michaels methods when it comes to food with your bird. You do want a well behaved and well adjusted companion bird, but Michaels bird are not exactly companion birds, they are a part of his business and as such they must perform reliably, which your bird will not have to do. Also your bird is much too young for the methods in Michaels books as he is actually referring to a fully mature bird as far as the feeding methods in his books. This will not occur in a Senegal parrot until the bird is a minimum of 5 to 6 years of age. Unfortunately Michael did not make this clear in his books.

You have the right idea about the cage being kept in the same room as the bird and the toys that you have in it should also not present the bird with any real difficulties if they are left in the cage so that he/she can see them and gradually get accustomed to them. I would begin with the cage across the room from the bird and gradually move the cage closer to the bird based on its reactions to it. I would also go to the cage while the bird is on you so that it can get used to it and as it remains relaxed maybe even putting the bird on a perch placed on the outside of the cage for this purpose. Just go slow with the bird and watch its reactions and only go closer when the bird is calm and relaxed. Patience is going to be your best friend in working with your new bird and you will find that sometimes you think that you are being patient and going slow enough and find out that you are going too fast for the bird. So always feel free to ask any questions that you may have, don't ever be concerned about thinking that they are stupid or too basic as I can assure you that they are neither. We will be very happy to answer your questions and we appreciate being allowed to help you and your new bird friend to grow together and build a wonderful relationship together.