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Post by Shelly on Feb 26, 2015 21:04:32 GMT -5
I really love the new look of the forum. Huge thanks to everyone who contributed to this project!
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Post by Shelly on Jul 22, 2014 8:29:59 GMT -5
Posted 7/21/2014 at 09:58 PM on the old forum:
Hello,
Inhave had djando for 18 months now. He is a loving wonderful bird, he talks, sunggles gives us kisses and shakes iur hands and even dances. Hes a pro at step up and has recently learnt to call our dog tonhisnoutsodr cage!
Unfortunately over the last 2 weeks he has decided that he wanys to bite me, just me, not my husband.... he will go from sunggling in my scalf to biting my ear without warning, but over the last week he gets all agitated, lies his feathers flat and goes kind of skittish before he bites me.
I haven't changed the way I handle him or talk to him and when he bites me I push him off balance to make him let go instead of pulling away (but it bloody hurts!)
I have also been trying to give him sunflower seeds when hes in a good mood and he gets put back in his cage when hes skittish.
What would have started this behavior and how can I stop it from continuing. I hate it when he bites me, we were such good friends until 2 weeks ago and I dont want him to learn that it's ok to bite me.
any help would be much appreciated. Thanks.
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Post by Shelly on Jul 17, 2014 8:57:47 GMT -5
I'm so sorry this happened. Poor Muzzy! Please, please let us know how she's doing when you can.
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Post by Shelly on Jul 17, 2014 8:53:13 GMT -5
Welcome to you and Bonnie! Hope the noise issue settles down for you. It sounds like you are handling it well (by not reacting).
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Post by Shelly on Jul 17, 2014 8:47:34 GMT -5
I agree with the others that the price is high. I would expect to pay more from a bird shop than from an individual person or a rescue. I would say $400-500 would be an acceptable price. However, it does vary around the country, and I'm not familiar with Quaker prices in your area.
With that said, if I fell in love with a bird and it with me, I would probably find a way to take it home... but that's just me. LOL! (I would try to negotiate a better price tho.) There's just nothing more special than when an animal chooses you to be its companion, in my opinion.
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Post by Shelly on Jul 17, 2014 8:37:24 GMT -5
Hi Tammi, welcome to the forum. Good catch on Chester and Ollie not being as good of friends as you were told. I bet they are a lot happier now with their own spaces. My two Quaker girls can be like that too. They will hang out all nice together as long as I'm supervising, but as soon as I turn my back, somebody gets their tail yanked. LOL
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Post by Shelly on Jul 17, 2014 8:32:00 GMT -5
So glad to see you over here. Thanks for making the transition with us!
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Post by Shelly on Jul 17, 2014 8:29:13 GMT -5
Welcome, Dustin. I'm sure Polly is glad to be back with you!
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Post by Shelly on Jul 13, 2014 12:46:37 GMT -5
I'm here too!
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Hi
Jul 11, 2014 11:12:40 GMT -5
Post by Shelly on Jul 11, 2014 11:12:40 GMT -5
Thanks for the wave!
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Post by Shelly on Jul 11, 2014 11:10:45 GMT -5
Aww, he has a sweet voice - like you do!
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Post by Shelly on Jul 10, 2014 20:10:35 GMT -5
Awww, adorable! He looks completely at home already, too.
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Post by Shelly on Jul 10, 2014 18:57:41 GMT -5
I love Parrotlets. Yours is so cute, Dani. Love the name. Congrats!
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Post by Shelly on Jul 8, 2014 14:17:02 GMT -5
Dear friends,
Many of you may not know this, but I started the first email discussion list for Quaker Parrots back in 1995. Two years later, I started this forum. Since 1995, I have been the moderator for either or both (I turned the mailing list over to the Quaker Parakeet Society a few years ago.)
The main point is, I have been doing this for a long time and have seen many, many disagreements over the years. Fairly early on, I developed a strict policy for no flaming and treating others with respect based on what I saw happen as a result of these disagreements almost every single time.
Below is a message I wrote in 1998 after a particularly nasty fight on the QP Mailing List. Even though it was written for the mailing list, it perfectly expresses how I feel about the forum. (I have edited it slightly to apply it to the forum.) I'd really appreciate it if you would read it and really think about it.
"A Higher Purpose"
I would like to take a few moments to talk about what this forum really means to me and to explain why some of the guidelines have been developed and why they are enforced, particularly the one stating that there is no flaming allowed. This is a long message, but I'd really appreciate it if you'd give a few minutes of your time to read what I have to say.
One thing I noticed while I managed the mailing list is that a much larger number of people than usual signed off the list whenever there was a flame war. This is harder to track with the forum, but I imagine it's no different. Sometimes it is people who post to the forum who leave, but usually it is the lurkers. For the most part, they don't post to the forum to complain about the flaming. Nor do they often write to a forum moderator or me to complain. For the most part, they just quietly leave and never come back.
Whenever this happens, I always wonder about those people. I don't know much about them, never having had the opportunity to "meet" them if they seldom posted to the forum. But I assume that they joined the forum to learn more about Quakers. I wonder if they read Bird Talk or if they have Mattie Sue's excellent book. I wonder if they have any other source of good bird information other than the forum, which now is no longer available to them either. I wonder if we could have kept them on the forum for a month longer or even a week longer, if they would have learned something that would have helped them to have a better relationship with their bird - or perhaps something that would have helped that bird live a happier, healthier life.
I consider all of you to be my friends. I feel like I know quite a few of you pretty well, and some of you I have had the great pleasure of meeting in person. I think of the huge amount of knowledge about parrots that is available through the people on this forum, and I am very grateful for everything all of you have taught me. I have nearly 25 years of experience living with parrots, yet each and every day I learn something new from one of you! That is how I feel, and I am just one person. But do you realize that when you share your knowledge with the forum, you are educating literally hundreds of people at one time. And if you consider the forum over a period of a couple years, there have been several thousand people who have come and gone. Amazing, isn't it?
I don't know about you guys, but when I look at it that way, I feel a huge weight of responsibility to try to make and keep the QP Forum what people want and need it to be. And for the most part, we do know what people want out of this forum. They want a forum where they don't have to worry about being flamed or ridiculed for sharing their opinion or asking a question. If they post something to the forum that isn't quite correct or that you disagree with, they want to be told about it in a kind and respectful way.
Many of you on this forum have tremendous bird knowledge and use that knowledge every day to take excellent care of your birds and to give them enriched lives. I think that's why it's so easy to forget that not everyone has that same knowledge. We are all at different places along the road in the journey to learn more about our birds. None of us knows all of the answers, and we all still have much to learn. For me, the challenge of living with birds is a part of the joy of it.
Certainly, I think most of us are very aware that not every birdie out there is as well cared for as most of the birds on this forum are. And, when someone joins the QP Forum, I just have to believe they are open to acquiring some additional knowledge and using it, no matter where they are in their journey but especially if they are one of the folks at the beginning of the road. And that is why I feel a need to try to provide an environment on the forum that they feel comfortable with - so that they can get the knowledge that they need to improve their birds' lives.
When you post a silly little story about singing with your bird to the forum, do you ever wonder how many people try singing to their bird that day - for the first time ever?! I do - I can see in my mind Quaker feathers fluffing up in absolute joy and delight at hearing their humans sing to them for the first time! Or if you post about an inexpensive and safe toy idea that your bird just loves, ever wonder how many people run out the next day and buy what they need to make one for their own birds?
If you post about sharing your dinner with your bird, do you wonder how many birds will experience a taste of "real food" other than seeds later that day for the first time in their lives?! Dozens (perhaps hundreds) of Quakers have been converted to healthier diets, including pellets and fresh foods, due to the Quaker Forum. Do you ever think about those Quakers out there who soon have healthier, stronger bodies? If you close your eyes, can you see those beautiful, bright green feathers replacing the rather drab ones after the next molt? Can you imagine the number of years that have just been added to that bird's life?
And if part of your journey is to live through a tragedy, such as losing your bird to an accident, disease or because it escaped from your home, do you realize how much good you do when your share your story with us? Even as we share your pain, we learn from your experience. I'm sure we will never know how many parrot lives have been saved because of this forum and the people who are courageous enough to share their stories, even as their hearts are breaking from the loss.
I think sometimes we forget what a powerful tool this forum is, but I promise you that every single time you post a knowledgeable, helpful note to the forum or even if you just share a story or experience - some little bird out there somewhere is going to benefit from it. You don't know it's face, most of the time you don't even know it's name - but that doesn't matter. It's life has been forever changed for the better.
So you see, that is why we have some of these guidelines and the no-flame rule in particular. It doesn't have anything to do with who's right or who's wrong, or who deserves it and who doesn't. However, it has absolutely everything to do with keeping people on the forum so that we can continue to learn from and in turn educate each other. We are really blessed to have some very knowledgeable Quaker people here, but I believe that everyone has something important to share. I know if we work together, we can keep the Quaker Forum a great place to continue our journeys to learn more about our birds and how to best care for them.
Thanks for listening,
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Post by Shelly on Jul 8, 2014 14:09:48 GMT -5
(Note: This list was compiled and posted by Carrie-Anne on the old forum.)
Ever asked the question, "What does FID mean?" or "What's a QP?" Well, I know I've asked before and I'm know other members have as well. So I thought it would be great to have a post on abbreviations! A place to find a quick explanation as to the lingo the members use on the forum.
FORUM LINGO:
AKA - Also Known As AFK - Away from Keyboard BBL - Be Back Later BCON - Beer Coming Out Nose or Beverage Coming Out Nose BTW - By The Way DH - Darling Husband Fids - Feathered/Furry/Finned Kids Fratts - Feathered/Furry/Finned Brats FYI - For Your Information IDK - I Don't Know IMHO - In My Honest Opinion ITA - I totally agree JK - Just Kidding JMO - Just My Opinion LOL - Laugh Out Loud MBS - Multiple Bird Syndrom PITA - pain in the a$$ ROTF - Rolling On The Floor ROTFLMBO - Rolling On The Floor Laughing My Butt Off ROTFLMAO - Rolling On The Floor Laughing My A$ Off SWMBO - She Who Must Be Obeyed (wife) SO - Significant Other TIA - Thanks In Advance TIAGI - This Is A Great Idea TMI - To Much Information YMMV - your mileage may vary (eg. as in my bird acclimated to our family in 2 weeks time, but YMMV)
PARROT ABBREVIATIONS:
AKEET - American Parakeet BCC - Black Capped Conure BC or BCC - Blue Crown Conure BE2 - Bare Eyed Cockatoo BFA - Blue Front Amazon B&G - Blue and Gold Macaw BHC - Black Headed Caique BP2 - Black Palm Cockatoo BSL - Blue Streak Lory BWP - Bronze Winged Pionus C2 - Citron Cockatoo CAG - Congo African Grey CBP - Coral Bill Pionus CM - Catalina Macaw DP - Dusky Pionus DYHA - Double Yellow Headed Amazon E2 - Eleanora Cockatoo EKEET - English Parakeet Ekkie - Eclectus G2 - Goffin Cockatoo GB - Great Bill GC or GCC - Green Cheek Conure GCC - Gold Capped Conure GCP - Grey Cheeked Parakeet GE - Grand Eclectus GS2 - Greater Sulphur Crested Cockatoo GW or GWM - Green Wing Macaw HH - Hawk Head Parrot HM - Hahn's Macaw HMC - Half Moon Conure HYM- Hyacinth Macaw IR or IRN - Indian Ringneck IM - Illigers Macaw KEET - Parakeet LGC - Little Green Chicken LP - Lineolated Parakeet LS2 - Lesser Sulphur Crested Cockatoo M2 - Moluccan Cockatoo MM2 - Major Mitchell (Leadbeater) Cockatoo MBC - Maroon Bellied Conure MGM - Miligold Macaw MM - Military Macaw MS2 - Medium Sulphur Crested Cockatoo MP - Maximillian Pionus OW or OWA - Orange Winged Amazon PC - Painted Conure Plet - Parrotlet POW - Princess Parrot QP - Quaker Parakeet RB2 - Rose Breasted Cockatoo RLA - Red Lored Amazon RM - Ruby Macaw RSE - Red Sided Eclectus RV2 - Red Vented Cockatoo SIE - Solomon Island Eclectus SM - Scarlet Macaw T2 - Triton Cockatoo TAG - Timneh African Grey TIEL - Cockatiel TOO - Cockatoo U2 - Umbrella Cockatoo VE - Vosmaerie's Eclectus WBC - White Bellied Caique WCP - White Cap Pionus WFA = White Fronted Amazon YCM = Yellow Collared Macaw YNA = Yellow Naped Amazon
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