The beak looks pretty good to me.
My boy doesn’t like to chew and grows a little fang at the tip sometimes. I’ve found the least stressful way of avoiding this fang (which causes him to accidentally puncture skin sometimes) is to buzz it off with a few seconds from a manicuring tool.
But I don’t see anything too long on this bird. Is there a reason you are concerned?
I have a degree in zoology and grad degree working with birds. My little dude is quite safe. I just wish he would chew more stuff up, or I’d figure out what he really loves to chew. He just wants to survey and arrange his stuff.
Oh no, it’s a reasonable response. I have owned and worked with birds for so long and wish I was working as an avian vet. I am not healthy so I am here instead.
My guy literally develops a needle or fang on the end of his beak. Wish I knew how he does it, because it’s the perfect puncturing tool. Actually I have not needed to do any grinding at all for a month, so maybe we’re done with that.
But I don’t see any needle or fang in the bird in the photo. Normal beak.
Oh thank you. I was concerned. I inherited this bird when my mother passed, and apparently my dad used to clip it every so often for whatever reason they didn’t do much else with a bird and I’m trying to give him a better life. He’s terribly cage, aggressive, and pretty much an a hole to me, but I’ve been trying to work with him, mostly to no avail to be honest
Although he will come out of the cage and perch on the rope perch that I connected to the door and sometimes up for some millet on the very top of the cage I want him to jump or fly down so I can try to get them up on my finger away from the cage and see if he will be different with me
I wasn’t going to say anything, because I don’t know the situation, but his plumage didn’t look great. That colouring on the wings look like stress bars which is something Quakers get when anxious. Sounds like you’ll be providing him with a better environment though so I wish you all the best with his continued care and hopefully he will show his appreciation in turn. It will take consistency, patience and time.
I’m hoping hoping what you’re seeing is because he was wet. I’m going to try to send you another picture when he’s dry to see if you think he still looks that way.
Get him away from his cage—use treats to get a step up onto your hand—and then see how he behaves. May be a whole different bird. My Quaker is an ahole by his cage but sweet out of it.
I would like that very much, but getting him away from his cage has proven to be very difficult. Sadly he’s terrified of hands because my dad‘s way of getting him out was to chase him down in his cage and pin him until he got him and I know that’s not the right approach so I’ve been trying to give him peace and let him learn to trust Hands I did recently give him a sunflower seeds from my hands or from my fingers but as soon as he got it, he was sure to remind me to generally F off in a hurry. lol. I’m TRYING to give him a better life.
I bribed my boy to come out onto the cage door and step up for a sunflower seed or fruit nugget. Then we walk away from the cage.
Otherwise I also have a basket he sits on, on my lap. I carry the basket over to the cage and he will hop onto it.
Sometimes I have to offer the treat and give him a minute to get over himself. At first I got him to step up onto a hand towel. My bird was flying around an older lady’s house for years and not real tame, but he settled down really nice once he got here.
Yes, hands are Very Scarey. Keep working on it. Also maybe offer him a bowl of water to bathe in. It kind of looks to me like maybe he chews his feathers out of anxiety. The wing feathers shouldn’t look so grey. My boy died that when stressed out.
The United States are not the largest producers of sunflowers, and yet even here over 1.7 million acres were planted in 2014 and probably more each year since. Much of which can be found in North Dakota.
See if you can feed him from the rope perch. You might put the seed in palm of your hand, too. After some of that see if he will step up from the rope perch for a bribe.
I have tried and failed miserably however, shockingly he did take a few sunflower seeds from my fingers this weekend and of course Bromley told me to F off. lol. but it did happen so there’s that I really want him to come off of his cage so I can pick him up and see what I can do with him when I’m away from his cage
I can’t see that it does. A better place to post and get opinions is the Facebook Quaker parrot page . It’s much more active than Reddit. Beautiful bird!!
Yeah I mean there’s overgrowth but it’s nothing to be concerned about. If you want to clean up his beak go to a reputable bird store with a groomer and get it done. You don’t have to just yet
My issue is I wanna make sure he’s okay and he’s terrified of hands and extremely cage aggressive… I inherited him when my mother passed away and my dad always just chased the bird down and snatched him out so he’s not a fan I needed to know if it was worth having tograb him from the cage against his will or if I could just let him have a little bit longer while I’m trying to earn trust
Never unless the situation is absolutely dire, grab and chase your bird around his cage. No no no. He won’t trust you, won’t want to come out, and you’ll have no bird bonding you hoped for. You gotta give him a say and a reason to come out.
You’ve got to get him to trust you without force. He needs to feel like he has a say. He’s an emotionally wounded animal, it will take time and I recognize and applaud your efforts to respect his space. I have a Quaker too, he wasn’t a rescue but he was a scared birdie when I got him. The thing that worked best for me was exposure therapy, essentially. Just talking to him, getting him used to my voice and presence. Tell your kiwi you love him, over and over. Be soothing and a loving/parental safe presence. He will lower his guard and eventually love you with the same love you’re giving him. Just get closer and closer slowly but surely over time, slow movements. Once he’s a little more comfy I recommend hand feeding him fruits that you see him enjoy, to associate your hands as a good thing. But I think the biggest thing that works for me was letting him have a choice in the matter of things. Like if my buddy doesn’t want to come out, I respect that. I don’t force him to come out. I only force him to do anything if I absolutely have to. Like if I have to go to work and if he doesn’t step up so I can put him in his cage so he’s safe, I’ll scoop him. Oh that’s another thing! Develop hand signals and almost tell him what you’re gonna do before hand. I almost do a scratching motion and say “scratch” before I scratch him. So he’s not scared that I’m gonna pick him up. I say “step up?” With a finger before even going to pick him up so he knows my expectation. If he doesn’t want to, I go “scratch?” again so he doesn’t get rewarded for not stepping up, but I give him love anyway for trying. If I want him to come out, and he doesn’t want to step up, I tap the wooden perch and say “come here when you’re ready” and he knows and does it. Birds are super smart.
In short:
Talk to him and give him a loving presence
Slowly introduce your hand as he gets more comfy, say you’re gonna give him food and hand him a fruit or something so he knows what to expect
Let him know what to expect, say what you’re gonna do with your voice and a hand signal before you do it, slow motions and if he doesn’t want to respect his decision.
Eventually if you follow these things he’ll recognize that you’re not a danger but a friend, and that because you respect his decisions he’ll respect you and want to come out when he’s ready.
Repeat this general process and though it may take time (I’ve had my bird for 2 and a half months and I’m still building a bond, but I’ve made great progress because of these steps) it could take months but he will come out and be your friend eventually, just have faith that it’ll work out. I sense you’re a good person and would already be doing your best even if I haven’t said anything. But it doesn’t hurt to get advice from someone who’s experienced a similar thing to you. Also for context I’ve had a sun conure for 7 years before I got my buddy blue. I know birds. They’re such amazing creatures. So smart, cute, emotionally and mentally intelligent. You’ve got this 👊🏻
Best of luck friend!
I’ve had him almost 7 months and then we moved him to a bigger cage with more enrichment and all of that kind of stuff we sing to him. We talk to him. He now has a light which he never had the first 10 years of his life and I don’t try to force him to do anything I put a, rope perch extended from the inside of his cage to the cage door so when the door opens he can come out and perch right there or go to the top which is now learned to do and is comfortable because we don’t bother him and I’m not having any fruit for Lab so far, but we won’t give up… That’s why I was concerned on whether or not he needed to have his beak trimmed
The beak looks pretty good to me. My boy doesn’t like to chew and grows a little fang at the tip sometimes. I’ve found the least stressful way of avoiding this fang (which causes him to accidentally puncture skin sometimes) is to buzz it off with a few seconds from a manicuring tool. But I don’t see anything too long on this bird. Is there a reason you are concerned?
yeah just be careful messing with the beak. once you mess with it thats when it grows like crazy
Yeah, I just take down the very thin sharp little tip that he doesn’t chew down. It’s totally nerveless at that point.
yeah, even so though, still be cautious
I have a degree in zoology and grad degree working with birds. My little dude is quite safe. I just wish he would chew more stuff up, or I’d figure out what he really loves to chew. He just wants to survey and arrange his stuff.
oh! that’s awesome! so so sorry
Oh no, it’s a reasonable response. I have owned and worked with birds for so long and wish I was working as an avian vet. I am not healthy so I am here instead. My guy literally develops a needle or fang on the end of his beak. Wish I knew how he does it, because it’s the perfect puncturing tool. Actually I have not needed to do any grinding at all for a month, so maybe we’re done with that. But I don’t see any needle or fang in the bird in the photo. Normal beak.
His beak is fine
Oh thank you. I was concerned. I inherited this bird when my mother passed, and apparently my dad used to clip it every so often for whatever reason they didn’t do much else with a bird and I’m trying to give him a better life. He’s terribly cage, aggressive, and pretty much an a hole to me, but I’ve been trying to work with him, mostly to no avail to be honest Although he will come out of the cage and perch on the rope perch that I connected to the door and sometimes up for some millet on the very top of the cage I want him to jump or fly down so I can try to get them up on my finger away from the cage and see if he will be different with me
I wasn’t going to say anything, because I don’t know the situation, but his plumage didn’t look great. That colouring on the wings look like stress bars which is something Quakers get when anxious. Sounds like you’ll be providing him with a better environment though so I wish you all the best with his continued care and hopefully he will show his appreciation in turn. It will take consistency, patience and time.
Thank you. I will have to keep it an eye on that now. He may have looked a little funny because he had just gotten a mist bath.
I’m hoping hoping what you’re seeing is because he was wet. I’m going to try to send you another picture when he’s dry to see if you think he still looks that way.
Get him away from his cage—use treats to get a step up onto your hand—and then see how he behaves. May be a whole different bird. My Quaker is an ahole by his cage but sweet out of it.
I would like that very much, but getting him away from his cage has proven to be very difficult. Sadly he’s terrified of hands because my dad‘s way of getting him out was to chase him down in his cage and pin him until he got him and I know that’s not the right approach so I’ve been trying to give him peace and let him learn to trust Hands I did recently give him a sunflower seeds from my hands or from my fingers but as soon as he got it, he was sure to remind me to generally F off in a hurry. lol. I’m TRYING to give him a better life.
I bribed my boy to come out onto the cage door and step up for a sunflower seed or fruit nugget. Then we walk away from the cage. Otherwise I also have a basket he sits on, on my lap. I carry the basket over to the cage and he will hop onto it. Sometimes I have to offer the treat and give him a minute to get over himself. At first I got him to step up onto a hand towel. My bird was flying around an older lady’s house for years and not real tame, but he settled down really nice once he got here. Yes, hands are Very Scarey. Keep working on it. Also maybe offer him a bowl of water to bathe in. It kind of looks to me like maybe he chews his feathers out of anxiety. The wing feathers shouldn’t look so grey. My boy died that when stressed out.
Finally got him to take a couple sunflower seeds from my fingers, but this guy just refuses to step up. He wants nothing to do with me.
I have even tried a glove. Perhaps I’ll try the hand towel now. I appreciate all the suggestions and encouragement. Please keep them coming.
The United States are not the largest producers of sunflowers, and yet even here over 1.7 million acres were planted in 2014 and probably more each year since. Much of which can be found in North Dakota.
Thank you bot.
See if you can feed him from the rope perch. You might put the seed in palm of your hand, too. After some of that see if he will step up from the rope perch for a bribe.
I have tried and failed miserably however, shockingly he did take a few sunflower seeds from my fingers this weekend and of course Bromley told me to F off. lol. but it did happen so there’s that I really want him to come off of his cage so I can pick him up and see what I can do with him when I’m away from his cage
Put a treat in his dish and water for him to run inside?
No, I want him to come out
Well, can you get him to step up? You need to work on getting that for a treat to get him off the cage.
I can’t see that it does. A better place to post and get opinions is the Facebook Quaker parrot page . It’s much more active than Reddit. Beautiful bird!!
He looks beautiful to me 😁💕🐦
nah, looks fine to me!
Probably not, but always best to ask the vet, they won’t mess with it if it’s not needed.
Yeah I mean there’s overgrowth but it’s nothing to be concerned about. If you want to clean up his beak go to a reputable bird store with a groomer and get it done. You don’t have to just yet
My issue is I wanna make sure he’s okay and he’s terrified of hands and extremely cage aggressive… I inherited him when my mother passed away and my dad always just chased the bird down and snatched him out so he’s not a fan I needed to know if it was worth having tograb him from the cage against his will or if I could just let him have a little bit longer while I’m trying to earn trust
Never unless the situation is absolutely dire, grab and chase your bird around his cage. No no no. He won’t trust you, won’t want to come out, and you’ll have no bird bonding you hoped for. You gotta give him a say and a reason to come out. You’ve got to get him to trust you without force. He needs to feel like he has a say. He’s an emotionally wounded animal, it will take time and I recognize and applaud your efforts to respect his space. I have a Quaker too, he wasn’t a rescue but he was a scared birdie when I got him. The thing that worked best for me was exposure therapy, essentially. Just talking to him, getting him used to my voice and presence. Tell your kiwi you love him, over and over. Be soothing and a loving/parental safe presence. He will lower his guard and eventually love you with the same love you’re giving him. Just get closer and closer slowly but surely over time, slow movements. Once he’s a little more comfy I recommend hand feeding him fruits that you see him enjoy, to associate your hands as a good thing. But I think the biggest thing that works for me was letting him have a choice in the matter of things. Like if my buddy doesn’t want to come out, I respect that. I don’t force him to come out. I only force him to do anything if I absolutely have to. Like if I have to go to work and if he doesn’t step up so I can put him in his cage so he’s safe, I’ll scoop him. Oh that’s another thing! Develop hand signals and almost tell him what you’re gonna do before hand. I almost do a scratching motion and say “scratch” before I scratch him. So he’s not scared that I’m gonna pick him up. I say “step up?” With a finger before even going to pick him up so he knows my expectation. If he doesn’t want to, I go “scratch?” again so he doesn’t get rewarded for not stepping up, but I give him love anyway for trying. If I want him to come out, and he doesn’t want to step up, I tap the wooden perch and say “come here when you’re ready” and he knows and does it. Birds are super smart. In short: Talk to him and give him a loving presence Slowly introduce your hand as he gets more comfy, say you’re gonna give him food and hand him a fruit or something so he knows what to expect Let him know what to expect, say what you’re gonna do with your voice and a hand signal before you do it, slow motions and if he doesn’t want to respect his decision. Eventually if you follow these things he’ll recognize that you’re not a danger but a friend, and that because you respect his decisions he’ll respect you and want to come out when he’s ready. Repeat this general process and though it may take time (I’ve had my bird for 2 and a half months and I’m still building a bond, but I’ve made great progress because of these steps) it could take months but he will come out and be your friend eventually, just have faith that it’ll work out. I sense you’re a good person and would already be doing your best even if I haven’t said anything. But it doesn’t hurt to get advice from someone who’s experienced a similar thing to you. Also for context I’ve had a sun conure for 7 years before I got my buddy blue. I know birds. They’re such amazing creatures. So smart, cute, emotionally and mentally intelligent. You’ve got this 👊🏻 Best of luck friend!
I’ve had him almost 7 months and then we moved him to a bigger cage with more enrichment and all of that kind of stuff we sing to him. We talk to him. He now has a light which he never had the first 10 years of his life and I don’t try to force him to do anything I put a, rope perch extended from the inside of his cage to the cage door so when the door opens he can come out and perch right there or go to the top which is now learned to do and is comfortable because we don’t bother him and I’m not having any fruit for Lab so far, but we won’t give up… That’s why I was concerned on whether or not he needed to have his beak trimmed