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Jul 11, 2016 15:28:36 GMT -5
Post by quakeradventurer02 on Jul 11, 2016 15:28:36 GMT -5
Hi my name is austin and I have been researching Quakers for a year and a half now nonstop because I will be getting one as soon as I get home from summer now I already have a cage and have decided to have my parrot on a pellet diet and its name will be shu-shu wether it's a boy or a girl and I have a book on them and have gone on many many websites and forums for advice and knowledge but because I have never actually owned a quaker or any type of bird before I would like some extra suggestions if you could give me ideas for toys and how to make them, the best treats to give, and how to make its transition to my house as smooth as possible (I will be getting a 3-5 week old just weaned) or any other advice or ideas you happen to have to give to me would be amazing thank you
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Jul 13, 2016 3:50:36 GMT -5
Post by biteybird on Jul 13, 2016 3:50:36 GMT -5
Hi there, Austin & welcome to the Forum!  The best suggestion I can give you for now is that you browse through all the threads on this Forum, as all the questions you are asking have been addressed in the different sections on here. It's great that you're getting a quaker - but I must say that a 3-5 week old baby quaker sounds FAR too young...unless you know how to handfeed, which is really difficult and time-consuming if you've never done it before. Most QPs are just weaned around 8 weeks old, so if I were you I would double-check with the person who is supplying you with the baby. I would not want to be doing handfeeding if you've never had a bird before. You are in for an exciting time! It's good that you have been researching quakers for a while. There are threads you can read if you click on the Search link you can find out about toys, treats and how to ease the transition into your household. But if you can't find the info, please just post your specific questions and someone will always reply. Hope this helps. |
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Post by beccilouise on Jul 15, 2016 4:46:36 GMT -5
Hello Austin! Another really good resource to buy into is the parrots magazine, which can be subscribed to here: www.parrotmag.com/, subscription for 12 months is roughly £35 and I have found it invaluable. They have loads of ideas for diet, toys, housing, foraging and more and keep you up-to-date with how various parrot populations are doing around the globe. They are a UK based publication but ship globally. It's also a good idea to look up the following bird diet manufacturers: KAYTEE's Harrisons Lafebers Hagen Parrot Cafe Tidymix Zupreem The Birdcare company Tidymix are really good for providing nutritional extras, such as mixed pulses, sesame products, dried fruits and garlic treats, these make excellent supplements alongside pelleted diets. Maya has Kaytee's cockatiel rainbow mix. She's a small quaker and so the cockatiel sized pellets are perfect for her, the fact that it's 'cockatiel' doesn't really matter, as essentially, the pellets are nutritionally balanced and so bigger birds will just eat more of them to get what they need, but the conure and parrot pellets are also quite a good size for slightly bulkier quakers. However, these pellets are coloured and so can change the colour of a bird's poops. This is nothing to worry about, but can make it a little more difficult to notice inconsistencies in poop if you don't know your bird very well. Poop consistency is an important indicator of health and is changed by factors such as diet, liquid, food consistency, stress and, importantly, illness, so if you want to keep a close eye on this and are worried about not knowing the signs, the best thing to do is to put the birdie on a diet of pellets that do not come in multiple colours, such as Harrison's adult lifetime or Zupreem natural bird food. Northernparrots.co.uk is a really good resource (also UK based, but there will be loads of other resources in the US and Australia) to find good food choices. Parrots magazine has lots of information about how to measure your bird's health, signs to look out for and first aid implements to get hold of to help with immediate treatment or the administration of medicines. Northern parrots also have lots of toys that you can get hold of and have sizing recommendations to help you choose toys of a suitable size for your bird. Best of luck! |
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Jul 22, 2016 20:02:18 GMT -5
Post by quakeradventurer02 on Jul 22, 2016 20:02:18 GMT -5
Wow thanks a million that info is sure to be a lot of help.
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Post by EllenD on Aug 10, 2016 11:03:38 GMT -5
Congrats on your first bird! Quakers are great companions and your life will never be dull again!
I have to agree that there is no way you should be getting a 3-5 week old bird of any kind. A Quaker parrot at 3-5 weeks will not be weaned, and hand feeding and weaning a bird can be difficult for an experienced breeder, let alone for someone who has never owned a bird before.
You need to talk to the breeder or shop where you are getting your bird and verify the bird's age and whether or not it is actually weaned, because the bird should be around 9-10 weeks old at the youngest to be weaned and ready to go to it's new home.
Some breeders are very unethical (in my opinion) and will send home baby birds that are not weaned, and they will give the new owner some hand feeding formula to take with them like it's no big deal. It's my opinion that no bird, puppy, kitten, etc. should go to it's new home without being fully weaned. Unfortunately this happens often and birds end up going back to the breeder, in the avian vet's office, or sadly dead. 3 weeks isn't even old enough for the bird to have all of it's feathers let alone being weaned. At 3-5 weeks there could be all kinds of problems with the baby, it won't be nearly mature enough to go home with you. So please verify the age and refuse a bird that is younger than at least, the very least, 8 weeks.
Other than that enjoy, and ask any questions that you have!
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