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Considering a Quaker! Tell me about yours?

Xoetix

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A friend of mine is in pretty dire straits and is looking at possibly having to rehome her boy.

I have read the “Good Bad and Ugly” post, and want to know more! Tell me about yours - likes, dislikes, quirks, personality, food, etc. I want to know as much as possible before I potentially take him in.

From what I gather, he doesn’t have “one” person, he is pretty friendly to all. Cage aggression seems to depend on his day and mood. He’s playful, a bit goofy, but overall an easy bird.
 

cnyguy

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Ralph is 12 years old and has been with me since he was 6 months old. He has none of the stereotypical qualities of a Quaker parrot. He isn't noisy and he's not cage aggressive. He is really rather quiet. He knows a lot of words and can use them in context but he's not very talkative. He is very curious and inquisitive and has to inspect everything. He is playful and has a well-developed sense of humor. He especially likes to play tapping games--he taps on something a certain number of times and I am supposed to tap back the same way. Like many parrots, Ralph also likes to play fetch-- he drops something and I retrieve it. He enjoys spending time in the kitchen, sometimes sitting in the empty dishwasher. I had to clear a shelf in one cupboard because he likes to sit in there. As he sometimes says himself, he's a funny Quaker. :D
Ralph has some of the Quaker parrot nest building instinct but doesn't want to build an actual nest. He has thin wooden dowels he likes to arrange and rearrange inside his cage. He isn't especially interested in things that are meant to be parrot toys.
Ralph dislikes anything colored orange and people running on TV. He likes listening to music and watching the wild birds he can see through the window.
Ralph's favorite food is fresh green peas. He likes lots of different vegetables but isn't fond of fruit. His favorite treat is popcorn.
Of course every parrot is an individual and has a unique personality, so your feathered friend may be a lot different from Ralph, but they'll probably have some things in common too.
 

Sparkles99

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The quaker at the pet store (not for sale; they don't sell any pets) is lovely. He comments on your purchases & is never rude or scary. He's around 25 years old. I really like him. :cool::quaker:
 

April

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@Mizzely has had 2 Quakers I'm sure she would have some insights to share. :)
 

Pixiebeak

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Of there is a parrot in need and you can help.

I worry of how this effects your cockateil? How are you guys doing? Have you progressed in building trust? A cockateil doesn't have any defenses against a quaker, if there was aggression. Tho quakers tend to be on the social side.

I love mine, but I got because they were loud and a problem for previous owners. So I warn of their tendency to be screamers, and the screaming sessions can be hours. A caged quaker is quickly board. A large cage and plenty of things to chew up and play with.

Let us know what you decide @
 

Pixiebeak

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I think they should be kept flighted to help reduce these intelligent parrot frustration abd behavior issues. Out of cage time 5 hours or more daily. Free choice bathing I use serving dish or like a glass casserole dish with about 2 inches of water

Mine all love veggies and took to them quickly, even the old seed eaters rescue started eating a few veggies right away. Like CNGUY peas are a favorite of one, Swiss chard and/or romaine are eaten every day by mine , green beans , baked sweet potatoes, red chili pepper and bell pepper.

A large cage with plenty of stuff to chew up and play with. All of mine have sleep tents in an upper cage corner. ( no fuzzy ones, replaced e when chewed)
 

Xoetix

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Of there is a parrot in need and you can help.

I worry of how this effects your cockateil? How are you guys doing? Have you progressed in building trust? A cockateil doesn't have any defenses against a quaker, if there was aggression. Tho quakers tend to be on the social side.

I love mine, but I got because they were loud and a problem for previous owners. So I warn of their tendency to be screamers, and the screaming sessions can be hours. A caged quaker is quickly board. A large cage and plenty of things to chew up and play with.

Let us know what you decide @
Tteok is… I think I would call him a barnacle. If he could attach himself to my butt, he would :laugh: we haven’t had any mistrust issues - he’s a goofy little dude who seems to like everyone but loves me in particular.
 

Mizzely

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I think most of what I had to say was in the quaker thread you already read. They are very big personalities and will absolutely take advantage of you if you let them lol
 

Pixiebeak

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I think most of what I had to say was in the quaker thread you already read. They are very big personalities and will absolutely take advantage of you if you let them lol
Agree. I get a lot of good natured testing....trying to beak boss. But have easily learned beak pressure. I've seen mine try and bully guests, but I'm always right there and guide guest interactions or step in.
Today mine met their first toddler !
 

ems08

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I have a year-ish old Quaker and he's everything I want in a bird. He's so goofy and entertaining, loves nothing more than to be as close to me and my mom as he can get, and communicates so clearly.

He doesn't yell much-- if he does it's in response to the blender, vacuum, sewing machine, or something equally noisy. Mostly he talks to himself and sings (old mcdonald, twinkle twinkle, I love you, I'm a little Quaker). He loves his cage and isn't bothered by me moving toys around or cleaning it-- he's only possessive and aggressive if I'm handling the bowl where he gets his fresh food daily. It's has favorite thing in the world! He's a great eater-- pellets, sugar snap peas, green peppers, and corn are his favorites though he also likes sweet potato, broccoli, hard boiled egg, apple, carrots and I'm sure other things I can't think of at the moment.

He has started nest building and he has a seagrass mat for his "bed" in an upper corner of the cage. He weaves straws and finger traps into it, as well as popsicle sticks. He takes it apart pretty quickly so it's not over the top yet and seems to provide hours of fun for him.

He does like to destroy softer wood and paper and is an expert at untying knots. A small piece of leather with a whole bunch of knots will entertain him for a while.

Unlike CNYGUY's quaker, my boy is a scardy cat. He doesn't investigate anything new or that he hasn't been introduced to by me-- he won't even go in the drawer where the toys are kept to pick something out because it's not a level surface to stand on I guess? Some new toys are immediately good, others take weeks to warm up to. My mom was in the hospital and came home with a walker and now Riley hides in his bed whenever she walks up to the cage because the walker is too scary! The benefit to this in general is he never goes on the floor and he only lands on his cage/designated perches when he's flying around the house. He gets treats if he goes to his cage to poop, so 90% of the time he does that and the other 10% he poops on my clothing haha.

I don't know about interacting with other birds, but Riley has done great with friends and family visiting. My nephew (11) is on the autism spectrum and has ADHD so he's not great at reigning in his energy when interacting with him. I create very careful buffers and rules for him and he still always pushes Riley's boundaries, which means he's had 2 gentle warning bites. On the flipside my niece (3) is super quiet and meticulous and she can hold her hand out flat and Riley will super gently take a treat from her. He will play peekaboo with anyone, so that's the best ice breaker.

He does beak my hands if he wants something and I'm not doing it, but I tell him to be gentle, redirect towards some training or deposit him back on his cage depending on how bossy he's trying to be and how much training we've already done. So far he hasn't picked up any bad habits-- he even unlearned nipping my mom after she didn't respond very well to it in the beginning.

He's both a brat and total sweetheart and we love him to bits! Hope that helps your decision a bit :)
 

Xoetix

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I have a year-ish old Quaker and he's everything I want in a bird. He's so goofy and entertaining, loves nothing more than to be as close to me and my mom as he can get, and communicates so clearly.

He doesn't yell much-- if he does it's in response to the blender, vacuum, sewing machine, or something equally noisy. Mostly he talks to himself and sings (old mcdonald, twinkle twinkle, I love you, I'm a little Quaker). He loves his cage and isn't bothered by me moving toys around or cleaning it-- he's only possessive and aggressive if I'm handling the bowl where he gets his fresh food daily. It's has favorite thing in the world! He's a great eater-- pellets, sugar snap peas, green peppers, and corn are his favorites though he also likes sweet potato, broccoli, hard boiled egg, apple, carrots and I'm sure other things I can't think of at the moment.

He has started nest building and he has a seagrass mat for his "bed" in an upper corner of the cage. He weaves straws and finger traps into it, as well as popsicle sticks. He takes it apart pretty quickly so it's not over the top yet and seems to provide hours of fun for him.

He does like to destroy softer wood and paper and is an expert at untying knots. A small piece of leather with a whole bunch of knots will entertain him for a while.

Unlike CNYGUY's quaker, my boy is a scardy cat. He doesn't investigate anything new or that he hasn't been introduced to by me-- he won't even go in the drawer where the toys are kept to pick something out because it's not a level surface to stand on I guess? Some new toys are immediately good, others take weeks to warm up to. My mom was in the hospital and came home with a walker and now Riley hides in his bed whenever she walks up to the cage because the walker is too scary! The benefit to this in general is he never goes on the floor and he only lands on his cage/designated perches when he's flying around the house. He gets treats if he goes to his cage to poop, so 90% of the time he does that and the other 10% he poops on my clothing haha.

I don't know about interacting with other birds, but Riley has done great with friends and family visiting. My nephew (11) is on the autism spectrum and has ADHD so he's not great at reigning in his energy when interacting with him. I create very careful buffers and rules for him and he still always pushes Riley's boundaries, which means he's had 2 gentle warning bites. On the flipside my niece (3) is super quiet and meticulous and she can hold her hand out flat and Riley will super gently take a treat from her. He will play peekaboo with anyone, so that's the best ice breaker.

He does beak my hands if he wants something and I'm not doing it, but I tell him to be gentle, redirect towards some training or deposit him back on his cage depending on how bossy he's trying to be and how much training we've already done. So far he hasn't picked up any bad habits-- he even unlearned nipping my mom after she didn't respond very well to it in the beginning.

He's both a brat and total sweetheart and we love him to bits! Hope that helps your decision a bit :)
Dawwww he sounds precious.

What have you found to be the best/easiest way to train him? My friend says hers doesn’t bite, but I doubt that’s highly accurate, and I’d like to have some ideas as a Quaker is a bit bigger than my Tteok :roflmao:
 

ems08

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Dawwww he sounds precious.

What have you found to be the best/easiest way to train him? My friend says hers doesn’t bite, but I doubt that’s highly accurate, and I’d like to have some ideas as a Quaker is a bit bigger than my Tteok :roflmao:
He's highly food motivated, so I use safflower seeds, sunflower seeds or small bits of almond as rewards for the behavior I want to see. To teach something from scratch I mostly model what I want to see-- ie waving my hand if I want him to wave his foot. That got a bit lost in translation in the beginning and he ended up bobbing his head rather than waving his foot, so I started asking for "wave" and then used my finger behind his leg to gently push his foot forward so he would lift it. Then immediately gave him a treat and lots of praise-- making sure to repeat the command with the praise "what a good wave!". Learned it after 3 tries!

He also learned the word treat pretty quickly, so if it's something he knows like step up and he's being stubborn, I'll say "will you please step up? I'll give you a treat!" And he immediately listens. Which might make him more prone to being stubborn if you aren't careful, because he knows it will get him extra treats, so I don't do it all the time, only when I need his cooperation more urgently.

He mostly learns words just by what I say to him a lot, not because I give him treats. But he also knows what words and phrases will get more interaction or a treat, like if he asks "wanna play peekaboo?" There's a decent chance I'll walk over and play and then he gets a treat.

As far as biting, the rare occasion he tried with me I set him on the floor or on top of his cage and turned around. If he's nippy multiple times and clearly over stimulated or wants something I'm not doing, I'll put him back in his cage and set a 3 minute timer. Me ignoring him is the absolutely clearest signal I can send that I don't like and won't tolerate whatever he was just doing. When the timer is up, I'd let him back out and we immediately do an easy trick or play with a favorite toy so we restart things on a positive note.

I bought a clicker but never started using it because he responds so well to "good job" as a marker just like how you would use a clicker and then I don't have to have that on me all the time. But in principle I think he would respond well to it, since it's still that inherent promise of "oh you just did what I want you to do, let me give you a treat".

I do recommend target training. Riley will fly to his cage or perch if I point at it and tell him to go there, fly to me or my mom with the "come here" command, as well as moving around inside his cage wherever I tap, since he knows that will get him a treat soon. It's a great way to get him to exercise, bond with new people, and reinforce that coming to me is really fun in case it's ever needed in an emergency. I also use his targeting to get him to stand on a scale to be weighed, so that skill can be especially useful for general husbandry.

Your friend says this bird doesn't really bite, but I think you're wise to take that with a grain of salt. I would say the same of Riley but that's because of our relationship, not some inherent trait nor is it automatically transferable!
 

ems08

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I bought a clicker but never started using it because he responds so well to "good job" as a marker just like how you would use a clicker and then I don't have to have that on me all the time.
I also wanted to add that this is so effective for how Riley's brain works that if I do what I think he wants (and I got it right, I guess?) he'll tell me "good job" quite often. :laugh:
 
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