Pictures New Parrotlet! Pretty inactive, is that normal?

[Eleven]

Hi everyone, first time parrotlet owner here! We just picked up an 8-week old parrotlet a few days ago. He's American white and very pretty.

The pet store did a phenomenal job of hand-feeding him. (Shoutout to Parrot Stars in Arlington Heights, near Chicago!) He's already very comfortable being in my hand and loves being close to me. It's amazing to me that he preens himself while he's on my hand and even falls asleep on it.

Few questions for you all:

1. He's surprisingly very inactive. He'll sit in his cage on the exact same spot for hours. He looks content, but I expected him to be more active than that. Is it normal for parrotlets/babies to be this inactive?

2. He weighs only 26 grams right now. Based on that and him being only 8-weeks old, would it be okay for him to start clicker-training, or should I wait?

3. Potty training - yay or nay?

 

[greys4u]

Let him get adjusted first, its a new journey for him, his world as he knew it has been turned upside down. Now he needs to get to know you, get a routine going and chill Just be patient, follow his lead right now, you are his flock. By the way, you have a cutie!

 

[Jas]

Aww so cute! Welcome to the forum.

Birds should be active with clear eyes, nostrils and vent. A baby will tend to nap more but will still have times when they are active and Playful. If they are sat on the perch or cage floor puffed up then that's not a good sign. With any new bird a wellness check with an avian in vet is important

I'd make sure that they are eating and are comfortable with their new surroundings, remember they're still a baby and there is no rush. But some light training training with a clicker is a good place to start.

I have no personal experience with that, in the meantime keep a poop rag handy.

Also is that dowel perch? Dowels are bad for birds feet as they are too smooth and can cause bumble foot. Natural perches are best, cotton and sisal are soft on feet.

 

[nu2birds]

Welcome to AA..........your little Parrotlet is cute. I think he is just taking it all in right now and maybe a little bit intimidated by the new surroundings. Just keep working with him at his pace, don't make him do anything he is not comfortable with. Don't reach in the cage to catch him.........let him come out on his own. This is the time to build trust and it sounds like you are already getting there with the little feller. It was between Lovebirds and Parrotlets for me last July. I ended up getting two Lovebirds but I think Parrotlets are pretty sweet. Good luck!

 

[sunnysmom]

Welcome. Your baby is so cute!


1. He's surprisingly very inactive. He'll sit in his cage on the exact same spot for hours. He looks content, but I expected him to be more active than that. Is it normal for parrotlets/babies to be this inactive?

He's a baby still and adjusting to a new home. I think it's pretty normal. However, to be safe, a vet check is always a good idea for a new bird. And also keep an eye on his droppings. Dropping can tell a lot about the health of a bird.

2. He weighs only 26 grams right now. Based on that and him being only 8-weeks old, would it be okay for him to start clicker-training, or should I wait?

I would also weigh him to make sure he isn't losing weight Sometimes new babies regress and need some hand feedings again. So make sure he's getting enough food. I think it's okay to start clicker training if he's comfortable and seems interested in it.

3. Potty training - yay or nay

No. It's really not healthy for little birds to hold it. They're not like dogs and can make themselves sick if they hold it too long. So it's a risk you run if for some reason he can't get back to where he's supposed to go to the bathroom. Also, my rehomed cockatoo came to us potty trained. When we're outside of the house, he sometimes completely panics because he doesn't know where he's supposed to go to the bathroom.

 

[GracefulWolf]

He’s just settling in right now. Taking everything in and getting comfortable. He’ll start exploring more as he gains confidence. But it’s normal for them to just chill in one spot. Milo and Luka like to sit on the high part of the playstand where they preen and nap.

I wouldn’t push click training right now. It’d be better to wait a bit until he’s settled in. 26 grams isn’t bad. Just keep track of it and you’ll learn over time what his average weight is. Milo gained weight as he grew older (23 to 26) but Luka’s never changed (29). I put that down mostly to Luka having a good breeder and good food unlike Milo.

Potty training is okay as long as it’s only positive reinforcement for where you want them to poop. Like if you see they’re about to go and you hold them over a play gym and give them a treat. But never tell them no or scold them for pooping elsewhere. Birds can get prolapse from holding poop in.

What’s his name?

 

[Eleven]

His name is Eleven. And yes, we're replacing the dowel perches with more natural perches.

Thanks for all the helpful replies!

 

[hedylarue]

Hi everyone...new to the board too but not to parrotlets. P'lets are the best! Just let him sit on you as much as you can...super important to bond with these little guys early and get them used to being held early on...even more so I think than bigger birds. I agree with everyone that you shouldn't even think about training at this point. As far as potty training goes...I've never heard of a p'let that will hold it....have any of you actually done that?? I had an awesome p'let that I considered "potty trained" but what that meant was that he knew when I said "Go poop" what I meant and if I put him on a perch every 20-30 minutes or so, I could mostly avoid being pooped on. However, if I forgot to give him the "potty break", he wasn't holding it in and he wasn't looking for the potty perch on his own...lol! They poop quite frequently. He did a few tricks and mimicked some noises but I think he was an exceptional little guy. The two I have now would probably poop on me in protest if I tried to tell them what to do!

 

[CheckeredTail]

New here too. My parrotlet potty training was super similar to what was described by @hedylarue because he was well aware of what "poop" meant, and would go on command if I moved him to the right place (on his cage or rope perch) when he had to go, but he would barely ever fly there himself when he needed to go. It was very often, every 20 minutes. So we would miss that window a lot. He would get a bit antsy or nippy sometimes to warn us he was ready to go. But he was also vindictive sometimes and since he knew poop was a mess we'd have to clean would use his poop as a weapon sometimes when we took away something he wanted or weren't scritching him when he wanted haha.

Hopefully this is just a new baby still settling in, but always good to be careful. keep a close eye on their breathing and feeding habits to be sure they're healthy!

 

[Garet]

I have two potty trained birds and never really had an issue with them holding it in. They have a little place to go inside their cage and one does her morning poop on her stand. Other than her morning poop, she usually just.... does what a bird does. I think the trick is to not really enforce it outside of the cage.

Mind you, I don't really enforce it inside the cage, either. I just let them have their toilets so they aren't stressed out and let them do their own thing.