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Post by zim on Apr 30, 2017 3:02:14 GMT -5
Yoshi doesn't seem to have a danger call. When he gets scared or nervous he stays completely quiet.
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Post by zim on Apr 23, 2017 4:32:46 GMT -5
I guess not! He doesn't try to imitate many non voice sounds, which is why it took me a bit to figure out what he was doing.
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Post by zim on Apr 22, 2017 20:28:11 GMT -5
So a few mornings ago I was packing boxes to be shipped out, and Yoshi started making this ugly screeching sound that I've never heard him make before. I thought something was seriously wrong, so I rush over to his cage. He seemed fine, he was in a really good mood that morning and was talking to me. So I went back to packing boxes, and he started making the sound again. Finally I shrugged it off.
Then yesterday morning I start packing some more boxes, and he starts making this sound again. I finally realized that he's trying to imitate the awful sound of packing tape being unrolled, lol. I'm sure you can imagine my concern when he started making that noise!
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Post by zim on Mar 28, 2017 18:15:58 GMT -5
Yoshi is pretty well the same way with toys - he has little to no interest. The only thing I've found that he seems to somewhat enjoy are those chinese finger traps. Ill put them on some of his perches and pull them tight, and he will shred them up. But they don't last no time.
When being with/on me is not an option, he seems fairly content just sitting on top of his cage and observing his realm, or climbing and exploring around his cage (I've got many perches and ropes running all around and on top of his cage). My Sun Conure melly is completely opposite, she HAS to have something to do. She's a little bundle of never ending energy, and shreds more things than a wood chipper.
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Post by zim on Mar 25, 2017 20:44:40 GMT -5
Wow, this is awesome! My first reaction was: But then I remembered I work full time, am getting ready to go back to school, and am slave to 2 demanding feathered devils. I'm gonna have no time to fit something as exciting as this in
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Post by zim on Mar 25, 2017 20:34:13 GMT -5
Yoshi only quacks, when asked if he is a duck. Or if he asks me if I'm a duck, he will quack. I tried to teach him how to moo like a cow, but was unsuccessful. I thought it would be hilarious
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Post by zim on Mar 3, 2017 21:10:58 GMT -5
Asking the hard questions!
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Post by zim on Mar 1, 2017 17:22:52 GMT -5
Yoshi and Melly spend more time in their cages than I'd like, but it's due to work/sleep. When I get home of the morning I wait till 7 to get them out of their cage (if I'm 3 minutes late Melly starts screaming, I swear these guys can tell time better than my watch), but Yoshi always stays quiet. I get them out, fix breakfast, and we all sit in the recliner and eat breakfast and watch a show. At around 8:30 - 9 it's back in their cages and me getting to sleep.
I wake up around 5-6, get them back out, me and Yoshi take a shower (Melly doesn't like the shower), we eat dinner and hang out then it's back in the cage and covers on/lights out at 8:30 so I can get to work.
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Post by zim on Feb 25, 2017 19:35:43 GMT -5
I've always used tinypic for images, and youtube for video.
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Post by zim on Feb 22, 2017 19:41:22 GMT -5
You could try putting Normy to bed first and see what happens. Also, try to think of there are any events leading up to bed time in which Normy might feel things have changed, or feel left out.
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Post by zim on Feb 22, 2017 5:22:28 GMT -5
Just a quick thought - with your new bird, which bird have you been putting to bed first? It could be that he isn't happy with a change of events, involving your new bird. Remember, Normy was there first, so his routine needs to stay the same. Your new bird has no expectations, so his routine should be crafted around Normy's.
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Post by zim on Feb 22, 2017 1:16:23 GMT -5
I'm sure he will be fine. You shouldn't try to swap saliva or anything, but I don't think a bit will hurt him.
Both Yoshi and Melly (moreso Melly) force their beaks between my lips regularly, and it's a habit I can't get them to stop. Both have grabbed ahold of my teeth with their beaks too.
I give both of them kisses mouth to beak, always have.
Funny side note, Yoshi makes kissing noises when I do, lol.
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Post by zim on Feb 18, 2017 20:26:13 GMT -5
First it's important to remember that he may never talk. Not all Quakers talk, it just depends on the bird.
I can tell you that you have made a lot of progress in just 2 weeks.
If you are having trouble getting him out of his cage, try reaching in with a stick and have him step up on to the stick. He could still be unsure of your hands. Gradually start holding the stuck closer and closer to the end where he steps up, and over time he will get comfortable enough that he will step right up onto your finger without hesitation.
You'll want to remove any non pellet food bowls each night. He should always have pellets available in his cage, at all times, as well as clean water.
Fresh fruits, fresh vegetables, these are both safe bets for foods to share with him. Things to avoid include chocolate and any other food/drink with caffeine, and avocado (this can kill your parrot!). Along those lines, if you haven't already, ditch all your teflon cookware - that kills parrots as well.
Honestly the best way to teach him to talk, in my opinion, is to spend lots of time with him and talking to him. Repeat words and phrases you want him to catch onto often, and reward and praise him for even the slightest improvement. When you do finally hear him attempt to say something, get very excited, give him praise and a treat, and immediately repeat back what he said, as clearly as you can. He probably won't talk clearly at first, but he will get there! You may also find that he will practice his voice when you're not in the room (or at least he thinks you aren't around).
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Post by zim on Feb 17, 2017 20:25:06 GMT -5
I'll start by saying that I'm far from an expert - I'm just speaking from my experience raising Yoshi from a 3 month old Quaker to his current age of about 1.5 years.
For training, what kind of environment are you attempting to train in? My advice is to get a training stand (which is basically just a free standing perch that will have him at least at chest height to you). Take that to an area of the house where he cannot see his cage. This should calm him down enough, and make him pay more attention to you, as it's slightly out of his comfort zone. Start off training with very small things. The first trick I taught Yoshi was to shake my hand (or, finger). I accomplished this by saying the phrase "shake my hand" then taking my finger and forcing his foot up off the perch onto the tip of my finger. He caught on to this very quickly, and within a week I could say "shake my hand" and he would lift his foot up, ready to grab onto my finger while I slowly shook my finger up and down. We only trained on this for maybe 10-15 minutes at a time, maybe once or twice a day.
I'm not 100% sure what you mean by "settle down", but I will be completely honest - when he starts going through puberty you will likely have a harder time with him. That's the point when he could start becoming cage aggressive, or protective towards certain things. I consider myself very lucky with Yoshi, he isn't cage aggressive at all. I'd like to think I played a part in that by spending time rotating toys and perches in his cage, but I can't say for sure. The main changes I've seen in Yoshi since he started puberty is that he won't let me touch or hold him in some of the same ways he would before. Before he started puberty, I could say "let me see your wing", and he would let me lift his wings up to inspect them without hesitation. Now if I try, I get bit immediately. I used to be able to say "lay on your back" and flip him over in the palm of my hand, and he would lay there without issue. I can't even attempt this now without getting bit. These are actually some of the only times he will bite, however.
As far as talking, most things Yoshi says aren't things I "trained" him to say. He picks up on things that are said a lot on his own. When he first started trying to talk (which was around 5-6 months of age, I believe) it wasn't clear at all. I realized that he would practice talking when he was by himself and (at least believed) that I wasn't around. By what I've read from other Quaker owners, this is a common thing. Now, since I work night shift and sleep during the day, I can wake up in the middle of the day and hear Yoshi in his cage chattering away. It's not uncommon for him to be saying something I've never heard him say before. And most of those things I still haven't heard him say in my presence. It's as if he thinks he has to perfect them before he will say them in my presence. So my advice there is to just give Pidge some time, and he will likely practice and start talking more clearly. Also, if you do try to train him to say phrases, make sure you say them as clear as you can.
For crying when you're not in the room, is he screaming, or is it just contact calling? Contact calls are short, loud squawks. He's doing this because he considers you his mate and wants to be in contact with you at all times. When you aren't in his line of sight, he is worried about you. He expects you to respond to his contact calls. You're best bet is to pick a sound (maybe a whistle) or a word or phrase to yell back at him when he contact calls you, and try not to use that same sound / word / phrase anytime outside of that scenario. For Yoshi, it's "pretty boy!". After he's contact called me a few times, and I've called back, he will say "pretty pretty pretty!", and then usually stop. At least for a minute.
Parrots are a handful, and can be challenging. They definitely aren't for everyone, and they rarely are that perfect picture you have in your mind after watching the cute video on YouTube. That's not to say that every single one of them can't have moments of being that perfect picture, but there is a LOT more to them than that.
My advice is to stick with it. Do your research, read posts here, ask questions - we are here to help you in any way we can.
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Post by zim on Feb 14, 2017 1:08:28 GMT -5
I would say harness training would be your best bet. I haven't any experience with this (yet), but other members here have successfully done this. beccilouise in particular has a thread somewhere about training her QP, Maya, maybe she will chime in with advice. She also has a thread about taking Maya for walks, with great pictures. If you want to check that one out, here's the link: www.quakerparrotforum.net/thread/1611/mayas-weekly-walks-park
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