Okay, so... Red is home, and she's doing great. She was out on her perch playing this morning, so I opened the cage door to see what would happen, since it was still relatively quiet at our house.

She acted like she wanted to come out, but just kind of stayed on the perch. I probably shouldn't have, but I used one of the receiving blankets that I had over her yesterday, and put it around my hand, and softly grabbed her, and placed her on top of her cage.

She did not retreat back in, she went down to her cage door, and just stayed there for a while, and went back to the top of her cage, etc. Okay, I was sitting on the couch next to the cage, and talking to her, she was saying "Hello". I walked over to the cage, and asked her if she wanted to step up, and she put her foot up, so I put my hand up, and she stepped onto my hand!! Then, she went directly to my shoulder.

Now, I know that someone told me not to let her go to my shoulder, but I really don't know what to do next. I feel so silly. I wanted this parrot so badly, and now I have no idea what I'm doing. I don't know how to play with her, she just kind of hangs out on my shoulder.

She DID tho, when I was making kissing sounds, she rubbed her head along my cheek. Is that a good thing? I'm assuming, but I have no clue.

Hi! I'm glad you started this thread. Maybe we'll all get some great play ideas.
I remember feeling just the way you're feeling last year around this time. I had just gotten my first quaker parrot and had no idea what to do with him.
It sounds like she is progressing normaly (from what I've learned.) You'll get conflicting messages about the sholders. I've read that putting them on your sholders creates bad habits but that is where my fid is most of the day. I've also read about several people who DO carry their parrot around on their sholders.
I've read that it's not good to let them snuggle up to your face and then I've read others that say this is one of the greatest joys they receive from their parrot so I guess it's a matter of how you want to raise her.
I think the best thing to do is read through a lot of these threads and then decide how you want to train her.
for instance today I will be doing a lot of catch-up cleaning and vacuuming and my fid, Dobby will right on my sholder the whole time. He loves the vacuum and hates the broom.
BTW, I like your signature. Mrs Blank, that's great!!!

Well, you are right about not taking her out in a blanket. It is best to let her come out on her own. You don't want her to get used to you having to towel her to get her to come out. The goal here is to have her step up onto your finger to get her to come out



Woooooohooooo!! That is GREAT!! That is a major achievement




Some Quakers do well on their owner's shoulder. It is really up to the owner and the QP as to whether the bird becomes a shoulder bird. For a new bird, I wouldn't allow them on my shoulder until I knew what to expect. Right now you and Red are going through a 'honeymoon' period. She may be a little unsure of her new home and most likely is on her best behavior because of her nervousness. Now, I'm not saying she'll turn into a little demon bird But you may find as the weeks go on, her behavior may change, so keep that in mind.



Yep, sounds like a good thing to me!!

As for playing, you can have her on your finger and just talk to her. They like higher pitched voices (as if your talking to a baby or small child). You can allow her to walk along the back of the couch, or on your bed and just lay there with her, talking to her. Get a couple foot toys and hold them for her...she may play tug-o-war with you.

Sounds like Red is adjusting really well, and that's an excellent sign. Just remember not to rush her too quickly.

Okay, so I felt really bad about the blanket situation, so after I put her back on her cage, and she went back in there, I just left the door open, and she eventually came out on her own. She also did let me reach in to pet her head, and scratch her neck, and she didn't run from me inside the cage.

I think I do remember reading about the honeymoon phase, so I'm going to try to prepare myself for her suddenly not wanting to play like she does right now.

I guess I'll just let her show me the way for right now, and go into more stuff later on, once we feel each other out

Thanks for the ideas, we'll see how today goes.

Oh, and as far as the shoulder thing..... even if I try to play with her on my hand, she wants to continuously crawl up onto my shoulder, so I'm thinking she's just used to that, but we'll see what happens.

I am totally in love with her, even though she wants to eat my rings and earrings, lol.

No worries, live and learn, right?




It is natural for them to want to move to the highest point...which is our shoulder. What I usually do is sit on the couch, and put my elbow resting on my knee, so that it is lower then my hand. Then Max is perching on my fingers and she won't crawl down my arm, so she won't move. But if I lift my elbow off, then she'll try to crawl up my arm to my shoulder (and she's not allowed up there).



LOL, I had that issue yesterday cleaning cages. My tiel came over and was yanking on my gold hoop earings Word to the wise...not a good idea to let our fids play with our jewelry for toxic reasons, as well it is easy for them to injest a stone, or a small earing

I cannot wait to hear how Red's next few months go. Please keep us posted on how the two of you figure one another out

OK...you've found out 3 things today so far...that she know's how to step up, that she talks and that she prefers shoulders.

I am one who says no shoulders...at least until you are VERY comfortable with the bird and know its body language and its tendencies.

Though here I sit with Ollie on my shoulder. I know, I know, Practice what I preach...

So since you now know that she does know the "step up" command (a very good thing) you can start experimenting...or practicing with what she knows from there. You can see how cage aggressive or territorial she might be when you open her cage door hold your hand just inside the door and ask her to step up..If she willingly comes to you and steps up this is a very good thing. But if she hisses and lunges she's showing you that she's protecting her home... You have several options from here...you can persist in asking her to step up by moving your hand closer and see if she will and if her initial warning was just a threat and she will comply anyway by stepping up or if she's serious about protecting her domain.

I would not force her out of her cage at this point...Give her a chance to get to know you better and allow her to come out on the top. Before you attempt to do the step up. However, if she readily steps up for you from inside her cage, GO FOR IT...Tell her in a happy voice what a good girl she is...Your reinforcing a good behavior by doing so.

Realize that Red is probably going to go through what we call a honey moon period where they are sweet as can be and do almost anything for you that they know how to do...but chances are this period will be brief...could last a few days or a few weeks...Then when she's truly comfortable with her surroundings, she will begin to exert herself to see what she is going to be allowed to get away with. NOW and before is the time when you need to decide what things you will tolerate and what you aren't going to tolerate.

As I said earlier, I suggest you not tolerate the shoulder sitting at this point...For several reasons... As Birdbluff stated there are conflicting opinions as to why. Let me give you my opinion as to why.

Since you are a first time bird owner, the bird is going to push your buttons every chance it gets once the honeymoon period is over. Its just the nature of the beast! And if you haven't done so already, I would strongly suggest getting the book, "A guide to Quaker Parrots" by Mattie Sue Athon. In the book she explains how hiearchies work etc and she will explain body language, she'll explain how to hold the bird etc.

I'll give you a quick overview of my take on it. and again its just MY opinion.

Birds in the wild develop a pecking order with the most dominant or strongest being given the honor of the top most perch. Everyone else are underlings, meaning they are expected to do as the "Top Bird" says, SO, by allowing them on your shoulder right away you are saying to them...Oh yes...you are superior to anyone below you...children, animals anyone sitting while your standing etc. Plus the bird will most likely challenge you for the top spot and this is where being on the shoulder can lead to problems. You can not see the birds body language while it is sitting on your shoulder. You cannot see what it is actually looking at and know with certainty what the reasons for its actions are. While its true, MOST of the time they are very happy to just sit and play on your shoulder and preen your hair and face, there will come a time when something may startle it and it lashes out with a severe bite either on the neck or the ear or the face (lip, eye, cheek) now for a quaker, to an adult this may not be very hard bites but I have seen quakers draw blood and actually take a small chunk of skin..To a child with much more delicate skin this could be very traumatic.

Also after a while the bird will resist coming down from your shoulder when asked because it feels its the dominant one and you are to do what it says...so it will bite you or it will move to the back of your shoulder where you can't reach, then what? When that happens that is a show of authority...that it doesn't have to do what you want because it feels its the boss. Trust me, these episodes can get very rough and frustrating.

SO, I would really strongly suggest that until you learn more about Red and her body language and her temperament that you keep her on your hand where you can control her and observe her body language.

Since she is already pushing the shoulder issue, I would suggest that when she is on your hand before she runs up your shoulder to put your thumb lightly across (on top) her toes so she can't leave your finger, until you want her to. If she runs up your arm you can stop her by placing your opposite hand in front of her below your shoulder and moving it back down toward your hand basically forcing her to move back down there. If you need to do this be sure to tell her NO shoulder when you put your hand up to stop her...and be consistent!

If during this time she gets on your shoulder and doesn't want to step up to your offered hand and runs behind your head or shoulder, Go over to a wall and starting from the waste/hips lean against the wall or doorway and start moving up so that you force her back to your shoulder and to where you can reach her with your hand. By doing this she has no where to escape to and has to comply.

Once she's learned that she isn't supposed to be on YOUR shoulder then you'll have a little more control over her.

First things I would recommend you doing (playing with her) is to make sure she knows step up practice it daily 2 or 3 times a day for 5 to 10 minutes. Just by alternating her stepping from finger to finger/hand to hand And while you in the "honeymoon period" if she already knows the command, its an easy way to win her over and start developing your rank in the pecking order. Keep her below eye level and preferably below shoulder level slightly away from your body. You still teaching her rank by doing this. Each time she steps up reward her with a "Good bird, Good step up" that way she learning that being good is expected. When she sits quietly on your hand without trying to bite or anything again, "GOOD BIRD" this helps establish what GOOD is and this is considered positive reinforcement. So hopefully she learns that GOOD Bird is associated with compliance and being calm while on your hand. THen when she acts up you can say "Be a GOOD BIRD" and she'll know that she is to calm down and sit quietly.

Since Red is 3 she probably knows a lot of this already, but you need to reinforce it so YOU or any of your family members establish their place in the pecking order.

Wanting to know how to play with them...What I would suggest you do for now until you both gain confidence and respect is while she is on your hand talk softly and try to pet her pet her chest and try petting under her wing in a short scritch motion. you can try placing your hand lightly on her back and petting her from shoulder to tip of tail..when she allows you to do what ever without throwing a fit reward her with GOOD BIRD try scratching her head and her neck and if she allows you to "GOOD BIRD" if she is hesitant to let you that's something you can work on during your play sessions Keep it down to 10-15 minutes per session so she or you doesn't become bored Always end on a happy note. Then you can reward her with a small treat of some kind and you can then put her on her cage or play stand or even back in her cage

If there are more than just you in the household, each member should get comfortable with holding her and asking her to do things like step up...and remember keep her below chin/shoulder level, especially the kids...Instruct children to not jerk back if she lunges, even though its our natural instinct to do so...instruct them not to scream or yell or cry because that is only reinforcing that she can make them do that behavior by doing something undesirable Quakers LOVE drama! And they will do what ever they can to have it...

So now that this Long winded explanation has gone on and on Sorry...
you have something to practice.

Hope I didn't bore you to tears...

That gives me a great idea on where to start. Thank you all so much! I'm am working on ordering that book, as I heard it would be a great resource, so hopefully by next week I should have it.

I think I was just overly excited this morning, and was overtaken by how calm she was acting. I'll definitely put your suggestions to good use, and watch where the road leads us.

Thanks again!!!

Couveigh's favorite game is peak a boo!! He even ducks and pops up to say "peek a boo" or "I see you!" When he is really into it and I start laughing he says "You're so silly!!" or "You're funny" I love my little man!!

Andy enjoys q-tips. We put them on the table and he runs around the table pushing them with his beak or throwing them off the table and saying Uh-Oh. He also loves to dance when we sing the ABC's.
When we get up in the morning and I go to open his cage I ask him "do you want to come out?" and I wait for him to say "Out" then I open the cage. We also do this when we pick him up, I say "Do you want to come up?" When he says "up" then I let him step up. I personally let him on my shoulder. But I have had some occurences when he has turned on me and bit my neck- it's a chance I'm willing to take. I just have learned to watch his behavior and test to see if he is moody before I let him up. Usually he just wants to be close and cuddle up with me.