100 replies to this topic

[Kiwi's_mom]

This was funny! Kevin can put Hank in his hand and lay him on his back for a Tummy rub.

This is so cute... how long did it take you and Hank to get use to this tummy rub trick? My Kiwi is 8 weeks and I would like him to enjoy tummy rubs to. Great pics, thanks for sharing!

[KevKaos]

This is so cute... how long did it take you and Hank to get use to this tummy rub trick? My Kiwi is 8 weeks and I would like him to enjoy tummy rubs to. Great pics, thanks for sharing!

That's me in the pictures with Hank, and I don't really know the answer to that. Hank is 7 years old, and I don't know if he ever was coached at being on his back in the past. I think the boy got him to do it a couple weeks ago. Hank is wary of a lot of things, but he seems to trust that I am not going to hurt him. He is not 100% passive and enjoying himself in those pictures. He was nipping lightly at my fingers to let me know that he wasn't totally into it. We are trying little things at a time to help Hank become a little more interactive. For the first month he was with us, he was fine when out of the cage, but really only wanted to sit on my shoulder. When he was in his cage, he would just sit on a perch in the front of the cage and watch us almost as if pining for me to take him out. Hank is much more comfortable now. He now plays with the numerous toys we have given him and has taken to bathing daily in his water bowl. Hank is just like a clingy child that has to be shown that its ok and safe to things other than hang on Daddy. He is getting much more vocal as well, which is a good sign that his comfort levels are up. We are trying to teach Hank that the "tickle tickle" game is fun and enjoyable, but he isn't buying into that yet. Tickle tickle is where Rita says tickle tickle and Chula lifts her wings up so that Rita can tickle her underneath. Then they both laugh about being "silly girls". I think Hank just feels to manly for such silly "girls" games.

[KittyKitty]

Silly girls games are the most fun! We always have all the best toys, and we eat the tastiest snacks.

Jealous much?

We don't discriminate in our fun - we invite you two grumpy old men to join in on our happy times.

[KittyKitty]

His and Hers boings!

Finally, Hank has his own boing - fully loaded with shreadable toys! Here is is. He is a little nervous about them but we are hoping, just like all other new Hank things, he will warm up to them and start destroying them.

Presently, the boing is his quiet preening spot in front of the window - Chula is just happy to get him off of her boing!

For easy Identification, Chula's boing is black, and Hank's is white!

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[KittyKitty]

So, I have been told that I am being a slacker and not posting enough about Hank.

Since the introduction of Hank's boing, there has been a general sense of peace and quiet. Hank is discovering his space - jury is still out on his boing toys, but he has been known to pace the coil and find good perch zones to watch the world go 'round.

He has started to nip again - so we are taking corrective measures. Hank spends most of his time with Kevin, so REALLY he should be doing the postings! I am just a spectator, and frequently Chula and I are doing our own "Silly girl games" and not paying attention to "those guys". ;-D

Kev and I are talking about a visit to JB - Hank can handle drives, he doesn't mind riding in the car. We take him to the bird lady and pick up toys - let him shoulder ride to see around the shop, and see or hear the other birds. He doesn't get stressed, but does get tired early when we get home and needs to get to bed by 7:30!

Calm down people, he has a carrier! We don't let him ride free in the car. That could be dangerous.

Not to say he hasn't escaped long enough for me to get the CUTEST picture of Hank navigating from Kevin's shoulder! But that was only for a brief "just long enough to use the cell phone camera" moment. We are good parents, but not perfect.

[KittyKitty]

Hank woke up on the wrong side of the cage today! He called me, I went to get him, and he attacked like a bull in a ring. So I dropped the cover back on his cage and I will have my breakfast without him. He will be sorry when he sees I have blueberry yogurt. Key lime would hurt his feelings more - but I am all out of that.

I am not angry he bit me, but I am not letting him get away with it. He will have a new attitude tomorrow.

[KittyKitty]

This morning things were much improved. He came right up to join me. We had our brekkies and went up to our shower. I honestly don't understand what makes him nice one morning then such a prat the next!

We discovered Hanks Latin side!!!!! He likes Arroz con Leche! Woo hoo! Hank is on the left..

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[Iain]

Hi Rita:

How's the little guy doing? I traded a few emails with JB this week and he was asking for all of you.


Iain

[KevKaos]

Hi Rita:

How's the little guy doing? I traded a few emails with JB this week and he was asking for all of you.


Iain

Hank is doing extremely well. Rita gets up earlier than anyone else in the house, and doesn't usually wake up Chula (who has her sleepy time cage in our bedroom on my side of the bed). If Hank is sleeping in, she leaves him be. many times, when he detects motion or hears something, he chirps. He has his cage fully covered at night except for the bottom couple of inches. I was just covering the back, but one night I covered the front as well and Hank did not object. As a matter of fact, the next time I put him to bed, I covered the back of the cage and was going to leave it that way. Hank kind of stood on his perch outside of his cozy hut and stared at me like he was saying "you gonna finish?". I covered the front and said goodnight and he appeared to be happy. Maybe he feels a little more secure that way. Anyway, back to the story. If Hank is awake, Rita takes him out of the cage and has some "quality time" with him. No Chula throwing her weight around. hehehe Of course quality time means goodies. I havent weighed hank, but he seems to be filling out nicely. I know JB said "don't let him get fat", but I think he was underweight. We had a local breeder (who we trust with wing and nails trimming) look at him. She said that he wasn't dangerously underweight, but his keel bone was a little to prominent. I always thought that his wings felt a tad boney as well. As Hank has gotten more comfortable with us, he has been coming out of his shell a bit. He flaps his wings a lot more than he did. I hope that helps him build up the muscles in his wings a bit. He still doesnt let anyone help him preen his quills. His loss, as he doesn't know what he's missing. hehehe He has been preening himself like crazy, and Rita was a little concerned that he might be plucking. We are watching him closely, as I have heard him noticebly pluck what looked like a good feather out. I don't think it is anything to be concerned about at this point. Watching him closely though. Hank is playing more with toys now. He has a new favorite. We got him a hanging toy that is made of shiny metal pieces. He loves to stand on his top perch, grab the bottom piece of this toy and give it a good shake. So it seems he REALLY likes the shiny toys. I found a place online that has stainless steel toys for birds, so I am probably going to hook Hank up with some good stuff. Hank has his own boing, but he has decided that he likes to be on Chula's boing with her even though she really gets on his nerves and there are sometimes great beak battles between them. One of the other stainless steel toys they have is like a small metal cup that mounts horizontally in the cage by its bottom and has a length of chain coming out of it. The idea is that the bird will shake the chain and it will make noise. While I think Hank will get some joy out of that, I think he will also stick his head inside the cup and make his clucking noises like he does in the morning perched on a partially filled water glass. Speaking of noises, every day at some point, Chula will start making some noise or talking in her cage, and Hank lets out this series of loud sqawks. He keeps going until Chula stops. It's like he's telling her to shut up. Very funny. I swear Hank is trying to talk to me sometimes. Usually he starts making sounds like he is talking when I am talking to him. I stop, he stops. I start, he starts. Go figure. I have also found that Hank likes a good tussle. While tickling his neck, he will get to a point where he acts sort of aggressive. I kinda roll my finger around his head and neck as he tries to snag my finger for a good bite. The funny thing is that when he does catch my finger, he latches on, but doesn't bite down. It's like his way of saying "Ha, I got you. I win". Oh, and he is learning Rita's tickle tickle game. He is slow to accept it, but he is starting to see that these tickles under the wing are nice. I think its just a trust thing with him. Anyway, you say tickle tickle and he kinda starts to put his wing up a bit. I imagine before long he will be like Chula, throwing both wings up when he hears tickle tickle.

Wow, I have been on a tear here, with no paragraphs. sorry about that. Lastly though, Hank has been a comfort to me lately. My daughter suddenly and without notice moved out of the house and we have had no way of contacting her. She is 19, but decided that she didn't like the rules of the house. Needless to say, I was very upset. Hank would sit in his cage and look at me when I would come home and sit there overwhelmed by it all. I can't let him sit there looking at me know that he wants to come out. He props himself up on my shoulder and kisses me all over my face. He doesn't want anything but love and offers nothing else but love in return. It was a great help during a trying time. So, in closing, Hank is doing FANTASTIC.

Edited by KevKaos, 09 September 2010 - 03:36 PM.

[Iain]

Thanks for the update Kevin. It sounds like you guys are doing great and Hank is loving his new surroundings.

Sorry to hear about your daughter. I hope everything works out.

[KevKaos]

Thanks for the update Kevin. It sounds like you guys are doing great and Hank is loving his new surroundings.

Sorry to hear about your daughter. I hope everything works out.

Thanks. Maybe one day my daughter will come to her senses. I am just happy to have Hank. He really is a nice addition to the flock.

[KittyKitty]

I apologize for not posting lately - we have been busy, I do have some photos to post and we have been having fun with the Hankster. He is happy and healthy - starting to really voice his opinions, and to flex his attitude with us. Kevin can reach right into the cage and get no aggression - Kevin actually chases Hank around the cage with his hand and can scoop him out of his sleepy hut without loosing any flesh or bleeding!!!! They do it in play - personally, I would NEVER reach in to pick Hank up unless he was on the front purple perch and dancing for me to do it!

I thought he said Love yesterday - after I said 'love love love' to him while he kissed all over Kevin.

Hank likes to share my snacks - mostly they are low fat and healthy. I share with both birds equally, but Chula is the pig of the pair.

I don't play too much with him, as he is Kevin's baby. Hank only gives me kisses and loves when Chula is nearby and he can make her jealous.... I am not making this up! I want to video and post it, but no one is ever available to do it for me. Chula is supposedly the "trouble maker" but I see Hank instigating a beak bashing too!

No matter who starts it, they still prefer to be on the same boing, and share all nom noms with me, and Hank hangs with me when Daddy isn't available. If one goes out of the room with a family member - the other calls out for status checks. We are bird taxis in the house: Taking them where they need to go.

I still haven't got Hank to let me preen his quills. I tried the other day, and a quill broke in two and he bled a little on me. I got scared and left his quills alone until I get my nerve back up again. He makes it difficult by constantly trying to beak me while I try to locate and isolate these dastardly little features that I must get rid of!!!!! He has plenty.

I will have some quiet time tonight - so expect a couple of pics posted. I have cute ones of the birdies sharing a nectarine and a peach with each other! Healthy snacks!!!!

[Iain]

Thanks for the update Rita. It's great to hear how well he's doing.

[KevKaos]

Thanks for the update Rita. It's great to hear how well he's doing.

I was finally successful in preening Hank. It was a struggle for both of us. He does get mad at me, and sometimes he stays mad for awhile, but he always gets over it fairly quickly. This time was no exception. Hank is plucking a bit. I got him good and wet so that his feathers were slicked down. He has a spot about 1/2 inch long and maybe 1/4 inch or less wide. It's between his wings on his back. You can only really see it when he is wetted down like that. It doesn't look like it has bled and there are no scabs or anything. He had at least 15 quills that I was able to preen on his head and the back of his neck. Those spots that he can't get without rubbing up against things. I'm not so sure that Hank is plucking out of stress or compulsion, as it isn't that much. I think he is bothered by the quills, and isn't really sure what is causing the discomfort, so he gets a little carried away in his preening of the places he can reach. I say this because he is a bit of a "rough" preener, and he doesn't seem to pluck feathers randomly. Not sure if that makes sense. I feel bad for him though. If he would just learn to embrace the Mommy preenings, he would ultimately be so much happier. As it is, he has to deal with my fumbly fingers. I try to be very careful to only get the very end of the quill so that the rest starts falling apart by itself.

[KevKaos]

Not claiming a total victory yet, but since I helped Hank with his preening, I have not seen him plucking out feathers during his usual preening. I'm thinking that the quills were getting to him and he was getting a little carried away in his preening activities. Still watching him closely. He's really starting to look better now.

Edited by KevKaos, 17 September 2010 - 01:23 PM.

[jaytee]

[KevKaos]

Hank is feeling in control of his world now. He is showing some cage aggression, even with me, but he knows that I am just going to reach in and gently pull him out. With me, I think Hank feels like it is a bit of a game. Silly chicken. He is very possessive of me and will start striking with the beak if someone tries to take him off my shoulder. I try to temper this by not playing into his game. I simply take him off my shoulder and hand him over. That way he knows (even if he doesnt except it) that he can't always have me for himself.

Hank is looking much MUCH better now. Admittedly, he was looking really rough for awhile there. Constantly looking like he was molting. But now, he is looking rather handsome and dapper. I think he understands the word handsome because he really perks up when I call him Handsome Hank. He stretches his body and neck to look larger, like he is posing for a picture.

Both birds have been growing flight feathers like crazy. We can't seem to keep them clipped enough to avoid some flight. Mainly because of so many blood feathers. Hanks wings have always felt rather boney, so I thought letting him have some flight would exercise those wings. It seems to be working a bit. Hank is a pretty good flyer. He only flies across the living room to his cage but he is VERY good at his landings (something the Chula has not quite mastered yet). Hank hasn't really figured out that he can jump and flap his wings to achieve flight. He really only flies when I launch him like a hawk off my hand (only once he is ready and sees his target cage). He still knows that he can jump short distances by flapping his wings, but he was doing that when we got him. Anyway, it already feels like he might be getting some muscle tone to his wings.

Not sure if I mentioned it before or not, but we have tried to give Hank different oppurtunities for baths, but none seem to be to his liking. He does bathe in his water bowl though, so hes not a total dirty bird. Matter of fact, he actually smells pretty good now. I think he finally molted out his feathers that might have had nicotine on them.

I think in the next month or so, we are going to move Hanks cage into the same room as Chula's daytime cage and I am going to put my desk in there with them. It is our dining room right now, but we hardly ever use it for dining. It is the room that gets nice daytime sunshine without being direct sunshine, and they can see the wild birds in the back yard.

Bottom line is that Hank is still doing very well and is firmly entrenched in our flock.

[LuvMyHarley1]

I haven't read all of the posts because by the time I saw and got into this thread, it was getting very long...

I just want to say to be careful of the open top cage..they scare me in going back shut and maybe trapping birdie in between, which has happened to other birds so many times....

He is a beautiful quaker, wishsing you all many happy years together.....

[KittyKitty]

I was a little wary of the open top cage at first - but the cage doors are very heavy - and they do not budge at all. We also use a wooden perch sometimes so the perch keeps the doors wide open.

Mostly they are closed. I open them and let him climb all over the cage when he doesn't want to come out on my hand to play. His cage aggression is unpredictable - and I don't want him to feel neglected as I play with Chachi.

[KittyKitty]

Update on Hank....

This boy is really confident in his superiority! He has started to act up with Kevin. He is biting Kevin and absolutely being a big green booger. Kevin was reading that having the sleepy hut in his cage could be a major contributing factor to this increase in cage aggression - I wonder if anyone else has had a similar problem.

At the moment - Hank is flying, we think that could be a contributing factor. We let him grow his flight feathers because his wings were so bony compared to Chula or Blue's. He flies to his cage and between chairs (more like a long hop) usually - but this weekend, he was flying too wherever I was. He was following me! He doesn't really care much for me, but I guess since he is acting out towards Kevin, I am the lesser of all evils........

Wings shall be clipped really soon!

Considering Blue just came home 7 days ago, that may also be a factor. Kevin plays with Blue trying to get her/him to do her love dance for him like she/he does for the teen and I - Hank pays close attention and may be resenting the presence of the little blue bird of love......

I am trying to be patient, there has been a lot of change - and maybe he doesn't appreciate it.