[Dudley's person]

I got 4-yr old Dudley from a rescue two weeks ago where he had been staying for only 2 weeks after being in his first home for years. His first owner "didn't have time for him anymore". I've had small birds before but not a Quaker. We are taking it slow, letting him get used to things and get about 10 hrs sleep a night. I assume he is male because he weighs about 116 g. Have a question:

When I put my hands in his cage to offer a treat or clean his perches, he fluffs out, clucks softly, bows and scrapes his beak on a perch in a very posturing dance. Then he hisses and lunges at me. Is he being protective of his happy hut and cage?

When I first got him I did what the shelter owner did and just cradled him in both hands to get him out of his hut. I don't think he likes it however and he clings to the rungs of his cage so I can't get him out without forcing him. Very attached to his cage. Any advice?

[Cosmo & Marti's Mom]

i would let him come out on his own, qp's are very territorieal, and if he's been bounced from his long time home recentely, his cage may be the only familiar thing he has, so i would give him some time, try not to invade his space too much at this point, let him settle in and come to you..let him trust you before you start going in there! good luck!

[Kiwi Lover]

Yes, quakers can be very protective of their "home". I would leave his door open and let him come out on his own. I was told they like to be handled like a baseball, with both hands cupped around them, it makes them feel secure! Just keep talking to Dudley, and give him lots of attention, quakers LOVE attention!!
Goodluck!

[QTQP4me]

well they are notorious for being cage aggressive.

we haven't had too much problem here yet, but one thing i have read is to rearrange the setup from time to time, just to remind him he is not the supreme being he thinks he is. this happens here, just because i can't remember where things were before i started putzing around.

when we do encounter a bit of nippiness, i just let him be until he decides he is ready to interact - i don't have a crushing need to get him out if he isn't ready, and prefer to not get bitten when he is ready, he calls out for me to come get him, and he will step up to me with my hand IN his cage.

the other thing regarding the happy hut, you could substitute something else for that like a piece of fabric to cuddle against as opposed to hunker down in. i have also read stories about birds becoming "attached" in a lovey way to them. again, not a problem here since louie will not have anything to do with his.

good luck and hopefully others will be along with some wisdom soon.

kris

[jbl]

Shamrock my qp will usually come to me in his cage, but there are times he will pose to attack. When he does this I just wait for him to come to the front of his cage and he will step up from there.

[Carrie~Anne]

Great advice so far. I just want to touch on what you said about you thinking he's a male because of his weight. You definitely can't go by that The size of Quakers has nothing to do with whether they are male or female

[Mandyd1975]

I got 4-yr old Dudley from a rescue two weeks ago where he had been staying for only 2 weeks after being in his first home for years. His first owner "didn't have time for him anymore". I've had small birds before but not a Quaker. We are taking it slow, letting him get used to things and get about 10 hrs sleep a night. I assume he is male because he weighs about 116 g. Have a question:

When I put my hands in his cage to offer a treat or clean his perches, he fluffs out, clucks softly, bows and scrapes his beak on a perch in a very posturing dance. Then he hisses and lunges at me. Is he being protective of his happy hut and cage?

When I first got him I did what the shelter owner did and just cradled him in both hands to get him out of his hut. I don't think he likes it however and he clings to the rungs of his cage so I can't get him out without forcing him. Very attached to his cage. Any advice?

That's a typical quaker, especially one who has been moved about a lot just recently. I would be tempted to open the door, and move away from the cage. Have a treat ready if he decides to come you, and LOTS of praise and silly parroty voice at the ready! I generally believe in giving the bird time to come to you, if they want to come out they will, if they dont they dont. But one thing is for sure, if you keep persisiting if they dont come out at first, the curiosity will get the better of them sooner or later!

[GAIL1975]

two weeks is not very long you have to be patient with these little fellows.he has to learn to trust you.
time and patients is my advice slowly slowly catch a quaker
iam sure in another 2 to 4 weeks you will be writing bout your progress something new every week
good luck my friend but im sure you wont need it

[Dudley's person]

Thanks everyone for all the good input. Will be patient, to extent of avoiding even putting my hands in the cage and letting him (if he is even a him) come out on his own. In the meantime, what do you all have to say about my first question about his posturing, bowing, beak scraping, hissing, lunging and murmuring when I start talking to him or putting my hands in his cage? Possibly a dominance thing?

[QTQP4me]

In the meantime, what do you all have to say about my first question about his posturing, bowing, beak scraping, hissing, lunging and murmuring when I start talking to him or putting my hands in his cage? Possibly a dominance thing?

when i brought louie home, i was just positive he hated us. he did the beak wiping alot, and still does it for no obvious reason (lots of nerve endings there tho, so maybe that's why?). i mistook the tail wagging for fanning, and he now does this cute little dance when he wants us to pick him up - he crouches down, spreads his wings out and turns in circles or paces and turns. if i didn't know him very well, i would probably mistake his "look at me and come get me!!" dance for aggression. i could be wrong, but the lunging and hissing i think are pretty self explanatory as i can't think of any situation where a hissing animal is not a threat. he could be trying to prove to you how "big" he is so that you won't bother him. in his place, i would probably be pretty angry with life and untrusting too.

this is a site i found when louie first came home, and believe me we visited it ALOT. still do on occasion. i wish it had pics, but it doesn't. hope it helps.

http://www.birdsnway...dom/ww15eii.htm

kris

[Buddy2]

Mine is really attached to his happy hut and will hiss and lunge if you come near it. I do not try to go near him when he is in it. I will instead wait until he is ready to come out. Usually when he sees me he knows it is his out of cage time and comes out pretty quick. It took awhile to get to that stage though. At first I thought we had a recluse, and he would just stay in the happy hut and never come out. lol.