jo
Hatchling
Posts: 17 
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Post by jo on Apr 12, 2015 12:46:35 GMT -5
Hi, I hope you are all well. Digby is coming along well, he will now sit with me for about ten minutes at a time before flying off and he is accepting head rubs. He's also getting along really well with the dog which is a surprise! It's lovely to see him getting more confident. I have a few questions...number one is he isn't paying with his toys, he has lots but doesn't touch them. It's this something that will develop with time and confidence? He doesn't even use his lovely snuggly sleep house instead he just stays on his perch all night. Number two is how often does he actually need a bath? The couple of times I've sprayed him with water he's just left it to dry and not preened or anything and I'm worried he will be cold. Number three, is his break supposed to completely shut? It seems to be too long to totally close. It's not affecting his eating but i thought I'd better check. He has a cuttlebone but it's one of the things he doesn't use! Thanks in anticipation!
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jo
Hatchling
Posts: 17
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Post by jo on Apr 12, 2015 12:53:18 GMT -5
 Digby would rather sit with Foster than me! Lol |
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Post by julianna on Apr 12, 2015 15:08:07 GMT -5
Hello and what a pretty boy. I will try to answer your questions but I also know others will add to them. Don't worry about him not playing with his toys as this is normal. He may go a very long time and not touch them then another day he may begin. My quaker has never played with his toys... I guess mostly that is because I am his toy..lol.
I have given my quaker 3 different snuggy huts and he will not go in any of them. Yours might go at a later time but remember that they are sensitive to bright colors so hopefully your snuggy is not too bright.
Usually a quaker will bath every 3-4 days... some a little less frequent. My quaker lets me know when he wants a bath. When he hears water running he will flap his wings as if to go... or if I ask him if he wants a bath... he will dance all around. That is how I know he is ready. Not all quakers like to be sprayed also. Have you tried offering him a bowl of warm (a little cool) water? Maybe he would rather bathe?
My quakers bill does not close all the way either... this is normal. Like you said... it isn't interfering with his eating... so all is well.
My little Oscar has not touched his cuttlebone either. Seems the only grit he wants is my finger nails and I have tried many different kinds.
Happy to offer my opinion.
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Post by Jan and Shah on Apr 12, 2015 16:21:41 GMT -5
I agree with Julianna. Shah does not play with toys - he is 10 years old and I have had him since he was 5 months. He does love his happy huts - I have a light grey one, a green one and a yellow one. He refuses to go near the yellow one so just make sure the colours are pretty neutral. Shah's beak is like Digby's. He has never had his beak trimmed - the vet always tells me it looks fine. Shah bathes in a crockery casserole dish - white on the inside and light yellow on the outside with handles each end that his feet can grasp as he likes to check the water temperature with one foot. I usually just take the chill off the water so it is not too cold - even in summer. We had to go through a lot of dishes before he found one to his liking. Sounds like you are doing just fine. It all takes time to sort out what suits them - quakers will teach you patience  |
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Post by easttex on Apr 12, 2015 16:44:12 GMT -5
Same here on the beak. It could be that that Digby has not learned how to play with toys. You can try showing him, and it might help if you kind of hoard them, and act like you're trying to keep them from him. He may start to covet them. Peppy doesn't have a hut, but he seems to love his cozy corners. You might try one with Digby. www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=6380 |
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Post by cnyguy on Apr 12, 2015 19:47:29 GMT -5
It sounds like you and Digby are doing great. It can help sometimes if you show your parrot how to play with toys. When you do, act like it's the most fun you've ever had, and Digby may want to join in. Ralph typically wants a bath every three or four days. As little as once a week is probably good enough for most parrots. It's not unusual for a parrot to let his feathers dry before doing any preening; that's what Ralph does. I got Ralph a snuggle hut when I first brought him home. He had lots of fun tearing it apart, and that was his only interest in it.  |
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Post by aaron on Apr 12, 2015 22:52:06 GMT -5
Sounds like things are going well! Cupcake really doesn't play with her toys much. She has some little foot toys that she likes to play with, and will occasionally bat her toys around when she's bored, but she clearly prefers investigating whatever is going on in our apartment, and so the toys generally don't get much attention. Nothing to worry about. She is definitely more prone to play with them if I play with her. We don't give Cupcake any hut-like things, as she is very nesty, and can get quite hormonal when she has anything like that... and we don't want her to lay any eggs if possible. But that aside, as you see from what the others wrote, some birds don't care for them. Cupcake will ask for a bath periodically by trying to bathe in one of her dishes or one of our glasses of water. We put out a glass pan with cool water when she does and she happily bathes in it. And generally once a week I will take her into the shower with me and get her wet in there. I think at least one bath of some sort each week is a good goal. Digby's beak looks pretty normal to me in those pictures. They aren't really supposed to perfectly close. They have that sneaky little parrot grin. |
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jo
Hatchling
Posts: 17
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Post by jo on Apr 13, 2015 2:12:17 GMT -5
That's great guys, thanks for putting my mind at rest! I noticed this morning he has a broken tail father, is this anything to worry about?
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Post by easttex on Apr 13, 2015 6:07:29 GMT -5
It happens. Nothing to worry about if it happens once. If it keeps happening, you'll want to see if there is something about the placement of things that is causing it, or if he is barbering his own feathers. Unlike lost whole feathers, broken feathers are normally not replaced until the next molt.
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Post by cnyguy on Apr 13, 2015 19:56:33 GMT -5
Since Quakers have such long tail feathers, they're more vulnerable to damage than shorter ones. It's not uncommon for a tail feather to get broken.
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