[JSlack]

Hello all, my name is Jeremy Slack ans I am a soon-to-be new QP owner. I am waiting for my 2 QP's (hopefully a male and female) to grow up a little and then be shipped to me from St. Augustine, FL. I am currently trying to get their new home set up prior to their arrival but am unsure on what size cage to get, what kind of toys to buy and what is a good spacing on the bars for the cage I get. Can anyone give me a little assistance? I currently have 5 zebra frinches, and know owning a QP will be totally different but any assistance you can give me will be great. I lok forward to chatting with you all and thanks for any info you can give me.

[Glowbird]

Hi and welcome. Are you planning to house your QPs together? If you want them to bond to you and be pets, you'll need to have separate cages with bar spacing no wider than 5/8". Your fids will soon let you know what kind of toys they like, but start with a selection of toys of different types: shredable toys, things that jingle, some with leather parts, some with plastic or small pieces of wood. A bucket of toy parts and sticks for them to carry around is always good. You'll want to go to the section of the forum on diet and nutrition and check out the list of recommended food. Good luck!

[Dave]

Welcome to the forum, Jeremy. Glowbird has offered some very useful information. One other thing that you'll want to consider is that if your new QPs happen to be male and female, you run the risk of having a mated pair if you house them together in the same cage. This could be a problem if they are brother and sister, and they mate.

[Flying Feathers]

Hi, Jeremy!
I'm Jess & I have 5 birds (2 macaws, 2 cockatoos & a Quaker)! Just thought I should clarify things with one statement you made, "I am a soon-to-be new QP owner." I'm sorry to tell you but... you are soon to be owned by a Quaker! LOL You will soon find this out for yourself! LOL Anyway now on to helpful info, I hope! LOL

Since you are getting two Quakers I do have a couple of questions. You need to know for sure whether they are related (and how closely they are related) before deciding on housing. Also, the sex of both birds. Unless you are planning on breeding you do not want to house a male & female together and you don't want to house two siblings (Male & female) together. Cage bar spacing, I prefer 5/8th inch bar spacing myself but 3/4th bar spacing is the maximum bar spacing for Quakers. As far as the cage size the smallest would be about an 18 inch by 18 inch (width & depth). 24 inch by 20 inch is a good size but the bar spacing is (in my opinion) the most important. Think of your birds' cages as a house. It is best to get the biggest and best you can afford than to get something to make due and have to replace a little later.

Toys, my Quaker loves leather strips he can weave through the cage bars. Toys with little wooden blocks or small shapes. Shreddable toys. His very favorite toy is called "Polly Weaver" and is sold by Chopper's and other places. Bells are a favorite but I personally no longer use bells on any of my birds' toys because they take them apart. Also, another little warning about bells. Should you & your birds like bells on their toys please be sure that they are the Liberty bell style & not the Christmas jingle bell style. The jingle bells some birds have accidently caught their beaks and/or toes in between the metal of the bell.

Diet is very important for Quakers as they are prone to fatty liver disease. Too much &/or too fatty seeds may contribute to its development. I recommend a good pellet as the base of their diet along with good vegetables. Fruit has more sugar & less nutrients in them than most vegetables.

The best book to learn more about Quakers is Mattie Sue Athans' Guide to the Quaker Parrot. It can be purchsed at most local bookstores or pet shops & online at Amazon.com.

Well, hopefully this will help you with getting started!

Jess

[Carrie~Anne]

Excellent advice so far

Welcome to the forum

[JSlack]

Thanks for all the great information. I have made contact with the aviary that I am getting my birds from and they will not be brother and sister or from the same parents, so I good to go if they breed. My baby birdw are due to arrive in NY from St Augustine FL on Saturday so I am getting everything set up right now. What types of things should I put in the cage for the babies i.e. toys, nesting etc? Any assistance you can give would be great. Thanks.

Jeremy

[Flying Feathers]

Thanks for all the great information. I have made contact with the aviary that I am getting my birds from and they will not be brother and sister or from the same parents, so I good to go if they breed. My baby birdw are due to arrive in NY from St Augustine FL on Saturday so I am getting everything set up right now. What types of things should I put in the cage for the babies i.e. toys, nesting etc? Any assistance you can give would be great. Thanks.

Jeremy

Jeremy,
I would suggest varous shapes & sized perches, several toys (You may want to switch them out every so often with some new toys.), perhaps a birdy bed or sleep tent & of course the food & water bowls. I would suggest if they are male & female that you not put any nesting material in the cage to encourage them to mate. Also, if you are not keeping them in separate cages I would urge you to get with a breeder and learn how to handfeed a baby as well as all you can about breeding & what you need to know about breeding them (Living in the same cage they will more than likely be mating.). Also, if they are both babies you do not want them breeding too young which can happen when they are placed in a single cage together. I'm not sure but I believe the recommended age for breeding Quakers is 2 years of age. Hopefully someone here who breeds birds can give you better information soon. It is a big responsibility to allow birds to breed. Even if you just let nature take its course you will probably have baby birds from the pair and may lose babies & possibly the female if you are not prepared.

Jess

[sharna82]

Hello Jeremy and Welcome,

i have 2 quakers parrots Roxy and Paris and i keep them in seperate cages as i want to keep them as pets. If you decide to keep them in the same cage they may decide they dont need human contact and kick you out of their little group so its up to you what you want to do like Glowbird said there is also risk of mating.

As for toys its just a matter of trial and error every quaker is different and has their own personality like Paris is very quiet and Roxy on the other hand is very destructive and curious as i have found out. Im sure you will have lots of help here everyone is so nice and always has great advice

[Majj]

Hi!! welcome to the group...
You might want to go perus the Accomadation and accessories forum , you can check out members cages and ask all relivant questions there , you may get more people answering..
If you are housing 2 Quakers together to breed you will need a decent size avairy not the minimum size...5/8" or 3/4" bar spacing not larger..
Members may be able to share links to the type of cage that would suit just start a new message and ask away..
Well it late downunder and I am off to bed , check out all the forums and by reading older posts you will learn a lot and don`t be shy join right in this is a fabulous group...

off to catch some Zzzzzzzz`s..

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