My name is tom and i am new to the bird world. i just bought a 3 month old quaker yesterday and i just have a few questions. i know that it is going to take a while for the bird to get comfortable with his new surroundings but there are still things i was hoping some of you could help me out with. first off i am having a hard time getting my bird to step up once away from his cage. i leave the door open and he comes right out and wants to play. but he won't step up to my other hand. all he wants to do is jump off my hand and walk around on my chest or shoulders. he is also very nippy but i'm sure that will pass. my main concern is what he does at night. he gets up on his top pirch and foes all the way to the side of the cage so he is like behind one of his hanging toys but he is totally non responsive to anything, sounds, touch, opening of his cage door. last night (the first night i had him) and tonight he crawled into the corner around 9ish, and you can tell that he is not sleeping. is this natural or is it just because he is in a new envoirment. i'm sorry for writing so much but like i said i am new to all this and want as much information from all of you experienced bird owners as possible. thank you in advance,


Tom

Hi Tom,

Welcome! I am sure there will be lots of responses from others, but I wanted to say right away that this crawling into a corner and sitting there resembles a little bit what my quaker Sioux is doing at the moment. She lost her buddy Mohawk on the 5th after 13 years together.

So maybe it's is something they do when circumstances have changed. She does this in a corner where neither bird used to sit, tucked in next to a piece of torn t-shirt; she is not totally unresponsive, but then, she's known me for 13 years.

And yes, they don't often go to sleep right away, anyway. My guys often used to mutter and preen a bit before they really tucked in. You may also sometimes hear them rummage around at night (though not often) or say something to you.

What's your little one's name?

Ange

PS
Stepping up is something humans teach birds; it does not come naturally. (Not quite sure if you mean this, though.) More posts to follow about this, I am sure!

Hi Tom, Welcome to the forum!!!

If that's Binghamton New York, I'm your neighbor over in Endicott.

There are a LOT of very knowledgable people around who are absolutely wonderful about sharing their knowledge so don't hesitate to ask questions.

I'm sure your little one is being a bit cautious right now while he learns what to expect from his new home.

I think the main thing is to realize how amazingly smart these little guys are and treat them accordingly. Talk to him exactly as you would a bright human toddler and you'll be amazed at how quickly he starts to understand what you're saying.

It sounds like your QP's bet time is about 9! LOL He must be used to going to sleep about that time. Perhaps the pet store closed around that time. When our QP is ready for nite-nite, he crawls behind his favorite hinging toy (in the corner, BTW) and says "Night Night", and really doesn't move or respond (unless I ask if he wants a treat!) until I cover him and give him his nite-nite attention. And the nipping will pass if you handle it correctly. If you check the QP behavior threads you will find GOBS of info for that.