I’ve read posts from members on the forum of walking outside and having someone’s (probably lost) parrot land on their head or shoulder and always chuckled at the idea of parrots just dropping from the sky. I think this story out of Australia takes it to a whole new level. The comments on the page are priceless. Enjoy.

“Drunk parrots litter Australian town” « Don Surber

The story: “Hundreds of seemingly drunk parrots are falling out of trees and the sky in a northern Australian town, mystifying veterinary surgeons who are struggling to care for them. The brightly coloured lorikeets are showing classic …

Publish Date: 06/05/2010 8:00

And boy are they noisy! How’d you like to have that in your back yard? LOL

Video: Lorrikeets get drunk on fermented flower nectar

It’s not as difficult to get started with training your Quaker Parrot as you might think. You can start by teaching your Quaker a few basics, and this is true whether your pet has been with you a few days or a few years. In my opinion, one of the best things you can teach your bird is to have a reliable step up response. What this means is that your Quaker will step up immediately onto your hand when you give it the command to “step up.”

Why is this important? For one, it allows you to remove the Quaker Parrot easily from its cage. It also helps when trying to remove it from a shoulder – either your own or someone else’s. Some Quakers will try to bite when being removed from a shoulder, but this is less of an issue with a bird that is well-trained to step up. You will find that a QP that has learned the step-up command is easier to handle in unfamiliar or even dangerous situations such as if the bird would ever escape your home accidentally. Plus, it teaches your bird to cooperate with you, which as you can imagine is an important advantage as well. So all in all, the step-up command is a great place to start when first beginning to train your Quaker.

Quaker Step-ups 101

The step-up command is an easy behavior to teach your pet bird. You simply place your finger in front of the bird’s feet and say “step up.” At first your Quaker is not going to understand what you want it to do, so you may need to gently press your finger against the lower belly area which will cause the bird’s balance to shift backwards. In most cases, the QP will step onto your finger as you give this gentle push. Be sure to enthusiastically praise your bird when he steps up correctly. You can then practice a few more times asking your bird to step-up from finger to finger.

Instead of stepping up, some Quakers will cling to the perch for dear life. Who knows what is going on inside their heads, but this is how you handle this situation. Keep your finger in front of the feet as described above, but take your other hand and move it around behind the bird like you are going to scoop it up from behind. This presents the parrot with a choice – either step up to the hand in front or be scooped up from behind. Nine times out of ten, your bird will choose to step up. Again, wildly praise your pet for being smart enough to know that stepping up was the better choice. LOL!

Keep on Stepping!

Keep practicing step-up with your Quaker on a regular basis. It’s a good idea to practice daily at first. But even throughout the bird’s lifetime, it’s still helpful to occasionally practice step-up just to reinforce the behavior. If more Quaker Parrot owners did this, they would find that their birds would be much more cooperative with them, and even the “terrible twos” are easier on a bird and owner who have learned the step-up command together.

I recently wrote an article about blue and green Quaker Parrots and the differences I’ve noted between these two color varieties. A question popped up on the Quaker Parrot Forum yesterday about whether there are differences between male and female Quakers, so I thought I’d try to address this question here.

In my experience, I have not noticed any differences between male and female Quakers in personality, talking ability, train-ability, aggressiveness, intelligence or any other trait or skill. There are only a few responses to the question so far on the forum, but those who have responded up to this point agree with my own experience.

Now, I have to qualify this statement to say that this is true when Quakers are housed separately. When a male and female are kept in the same cage, all this can change. From what I understand, this is true of other types of parrot pairs as well. For a particular species, generally either the males or females become more aggressive when kept in pairs. For Quaker Parrots, it is the female that becomes more aggressive. But again, this is ONLY when they are kept in pairs. This extra assertiveness does not present itself when a female Quaker is caged by herself.

With one of my pairs, this female aggressiveness is particularly evident. The female will squawk and try to get a nip of me through the cage bars whenever I go near the cage. The male will actually push her out of the way and then squeeze his own beak through the cage bars. The only difference is that he is asking for kisses instead of wanting to rip my flesh apart. LOL!

So there you go. In case you were wondering if a male or female Quaker would make a better pet, I’d like to reassure you that males and females make equally wonderful companions. We have 5 females and 2 males in our household, and I wouldn’t hesitate to add either a male or female to the flock if the inn wasn’t already full here.

A question that sometimes comes up about Blue Quaker Parrots is if there is any difference between them and green Quakers other than the price. This is an important question, because Quakers are often chosen as pets not for their looks but for their great personalities. They truly are “a lotta parrot in a little package.” So if there is a difference in personality in blues vs greens, I agree that it should be noted.

I have two green Quakers, three blues, one split to blue (visual green) and one cinnamon blue (also known as a pallid blue). In addition, I have talked to many, many Quaker owners of all color varieties over the years. So here are my general observations of the differences, keeping in mind that this is not a scientific study and that birds are individuals with traits that don’t always follow the “rules.”

Size and Health

The first and most obvious difference is that Blue Quaker Parrots are usually a little smaller than greens. My green Quakers range in weight from 110 grams to 130 grams while my Blue Quakers are more in the 90 gram to 110 gram range. So in my personal experience, Blue Quakers can be 10-25% smaller than greens. Of course, as with anything else mentioned in this article, there are exceptions.

In case you are wondering, I have not noticed that blues are any more prone to health issues than greens are. On the other hand, I think that blues may be less prone to feather plucking than greens. None of my Blue Quakers have ever become feather pluckers, and I don’t often hear of other blues becoming feather pluckers, either.

Sweetness

Again this is in my experience, but I have found Blue Quakers to be a little “sweeter” than the greens. Of course, this is a very difficult thing to measure, and there are definitely many, many sweet green Quakers out there. However, I have to say that I’ve found the blues easier to work with, and they don’t seem to be quite as ”sassy” as the greens. I think that blues are more likely to be the birds that will go to anyone, and therefore may possibly be better suited as a pet that the entire family will enjoy and be able to handle.

Talking Ability

All of my Blue Quakers have learned to talk at least a little, and Kaylee (pallid blue) in particular has picked up quite a few words and phrases. Still, both of my green Quakers far outshine any of my blues when it comes to talking ability. Not only have my greens learned more words and phrases, but they use them more often and seem to be better at using human language in context than my blues. This seems to be an area where green Quakers are superior to the blues… in our little bird family, anyway.

Again, I have to remind you that these are my observations only and that not all blue and green birds will match these observations exactly. Each bird has its own individual personality, and that personality is determined not just by genetics (or color) but by how the bird is raised, first by the breeder and then by the owner. Still, this question comes up often enough that I thought it important to document the few differences that I personally have noticed.

What do you think? Do you have a Blue Quaker Parrot or a green? Do my observations hold true for your bird? Post your comments below and let me know.

Sadly, Alex the African Grey Parrot passed away about a week ago at the age of 31. Since I named my first Quaker after Alex, it seems fitting to recognize his passing and celebrate his life. I remember first reading about Alex more than ten years ago. I was charmed and amazed at his human language skills. I even have several video tapes in my library about this very special African Grey.

A remembrance page has been set up if you would like to express your condolonces. And many newspapers around the globe have reported on Alex’s death (See Bird Brain or Parrot Prodigy and Death of Gifted Parrot Stuns Scientists). I’m sure you can also visit any parrot forum on the Internet to witness an outpouring of sadness and respect for this very unique Grey.

Dr Pepperburg has stated that Alex never stopped learning. In one of the above articles, she relates how Alex made some new progress just last month. We have learned so much about our own parrots because of Alex. This was the first real research that showed parrots are able to go beyond simple mimicry and actually understand the human words that they learn to say. Alex the Grey will be deeply, deeply missed.

Simply put, our Quakers should eat as we should. Not as we do, however. Quakers are somewhat prone to fatty liver disease and hypertension, and therefore it is extremely important to offer them only foods that are low in saturated fats and sodium (salt). There is some debate over the ratio in which our birds should eat, but it is somewhere between 60%/40% pellets-fresh food and 80%/20% pellets/fresh food. Your Quaker will probably set its own pace somewhere within that acceptable range.

To learn more about the best foods to feed your Quaker, please click through to The Best Quaker Parrot Diet. A list of toxic foods is included at the end of the article.

I don’t like bugs. I really don’t like spiders. I have no problem with removing them (one way or another) when they invade my home. With that said, an itsy bitsy spider has taken up residence in my bathroom. Now, this isn’t just any little spider, mind you. This is a very SMART little spider!

I noticed him a few days ago. I think he was even a little bit smaller then. As I walked up to… err… dispose of him, my body cast a shadow over him, and he scampered to a little web that he has made for himself. Here is a picture of our itsy bitsy spider in his little web house.

So what makes this little guy so smart? He has found an absolutely ingenious place to live that pretty much guarantees him a longer life than most spiders who step foot inside my house. And now that I have shared his story with the bazillions of people on the Internet, it will be even harder to "invite" him to leave. I can just see the emails now from concerned parents stating that I have traumatized their children because I flushed the itsy bitsy spider down the toilet. Which, by the way, would be very easy to do since he built his home about 3 feet away from one. (Okay, maybe he is NOT so smart!)

So where did the itsy bitsy spider build his web home?

Quite literally, in the arms of an angel. Check this out…

Keep looking…

And finally…

The angel figurine stands about 6 inches tall and was given to me as a gift. So there you have it – a true story of why a spider-hating lady is now sharing her bathroom with an itsy bitsy spider. After all, how can I remove a spider that is being protected by an angel?

A while back I wrote an article that discusses egg laying in parrots. It focuses more on chronic egg laying, but the advice in the article is still appropriate and helpful even if your Quaker only lays one or two eggs. If your pet Quaker has suddenly produced an egg and you’re wondering what to do, this article on egg laying in parrots should help.

When I first became involved with Quaker Parrots, the wisdom of the day was to purchase a cage that is no smaller than 18×18×18. I believe the thinking was that this size would be sufficient to allow a Quaker to stretch and flap its wings. Of course, that would depend on how many toys and other items are in the cage, but that was the general idea. After living with these birds for a number of years, I agree that this size provides a sufficient home for a Quaker and personally would never consider a cage that was smaller than this.

Read the full article: The Best Cage Size for Quaker Parrots

Please take a few moments and send a postcard to the address below to help the Quakers in NJ. This would be the first legislation of its kind and as such could have an impact on the wild Quakers in other states as well. Thank you in advance for helping out our friends in New Jersey. Also, once you have mailed your postcard, I’d love it if you’d post a comment below to let everyone know.

URGENT! Bill S1768 must be heard before May! If not, we lose everything we have worked for thus far and will have to start all over again beginning in the Assembly!

Please send a postcard to Senator Bob Smith, Chairman of the Senate Environmental Committee, and ask that he posts Bill S1768 for a hearing! Be sure to include your name and address, as well.

Senator Bob Smith, Chairman
Senate Environmental Committee
SenBSmith@njleg.org
216 Stelton Road, Suite E-5
Piscataway, NJ 08854

SUMMARY: In brief, the Monk Parakeet (or Wild Quaker Parrot) has been living wild and free in NJ for over 30 years (originally released intentionally or by accident). They have never harmed native species nor posed a threat to agriculture as the State thought they would when they put them on the "potentially dangerous species" list. By being on this list, they are afforded no protection under the law. This bill would remove them from the list and afford the birds, their nests, and their eggs protection from inhumane treatment. It would also allow us to construct alternative nesting platforms and provide safe sanctuary and new homes for the urban parrots. Presently, any efforts to assist the wild parrots while they are on the list of "potentially dangerous species" would result in a $5000.00 penalty!

UPDATE: On Monday, May 22nd, in a bi-partisan triumph, Bill A1237 was unanimously passed (77-0) by the full Assembly! http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/bills/BillView.asp?BillNumber=A1237

I am hopeful that we will get the support of the Senate Environmental Committee, and then we will appear in front of the general Senate, where I am also hoping for a win. At that point the bill will be submitted for review by the Governor, and, hopefully, turned into law! If the bill is passed into law, it will be mark the first time-ever-that legislatio"  –Steve Maillet L40@aol.com