babys in playtop cages

Hello,

This is a good topic and there needs to be a little clarification on it.

First of all no matter what type of bird you are going to get there are some things that you should do. The things that follow are a good way to make the new bird feel at home.

When you get a new bird a baby especially they are scared and confused as it is and you should try to make this as stress free for them as possible. All birds no matter the age or type will have a so called HONEYMOON period and will show you the false colors of there demeaner. At first they will be scared and confused and will look for you for some type of comfort. This is a great time to try to make that bond and trust factor. The next thing is to have him in a quiet room and have a little contact with all other fast moving things such as cats and dogs and fast moving children. This will make the transishion much easier for you and the bird. The next thing is to have a quarintine area set up for him/her. This is a very important thing to remember. Birds unlike humans hide there sickness and weekness's so good that you will not know that they are sick. They will look fine one minute and then you go and look on them again and you see the bird laying on the bottom of the cage dead. The reason for them hiding there sickness and weekness's is beacuse there natural instincts kick in. In the wild they will not show any signs of sickness because of the fear of birds of prey and pedators picking up on it and making a easy kill. The reason for the quarintine area is to make sure that if there is any sickness that it is not spread from bird to bird. You have made and investment and you need to protect it at all costs. When I say investment it is not just a money issue it is a love and caring commitment for animals that is the important investment. Money can be replaced but the love for an animal can not be replaced. We have all lost a animal at one point of our lives and it hurts so much. Take these percautions and this will make it easier for you to have a long life with your bird. A bird will most likely out live you and taking these steps will make it a long and enjoyable freindship forever. The quarintine time frame should be no less then 30 to 45 days. You should at first go to the AVIAN vet and get a clean bill of health for your new family member to satisfy your conserns about the health of your bird.

These are a few rules of thumb that should be followed to insure the long life of the bird. Be patient and you will be the one that benifits in the long run.

As for the original question you should not keep a bird locked up for the first days. You should do is place the bird in the cage leave the door open and let the bird make the choice to come out and go in when he/she is ready. Every bird as in humans have there own personality and will adjust differently. Be patient and do not force any issues with the bird. The bird needs to have a routine just as children and do your best to make sure that you follow his/her choice. You need to have the upper hand for the most part like sleep times and out of the cage time but the bird will make the choices that they want for the other parts. A bird has to TRUST you first then it will LOVE you forever.

Mario

I would girls, just because of the way SweetHeart was when she got here. She was upset after her flight, and we did leave her alone, but if something like that would have happened to her when the breeder had her, I think she would have been giving her cuddles and trying to comfort her, instead we were suggested by another forum just to leave her be for a few days and now I realize now that I should not have waited to touch her and stuff

I went through months of not being able to pet her or give her neck scratches and it was killing me because everyone else could at least do that with their baby. Finally I got excellent advice from Joe and he said to just pet her and she will get used to it or bite trying lol. But luckily I haven't had any nips and she is doing much better. She is now almost a year old on May 10th! So I wouldn't leave those babies alone when you get them, I mean don't smother them, but I wouldn't leave them be. The breeder would give it love and it would just be a total change from the breeder's home to yours if you left it alone, which in turn I think would make your bird be a little more self reliant. I think that's what happened to SweetHeart she was like Oh I don't need anyone, they haven't touched me besides taking me out of my cage, I can do it all by myself lol. Which I guess is good in a way, but I'm not doing it that way again lol

Thanks ladies. I also read that you should give them about 3 weeks to settle. I agree with Siobahn, I have waited two months for my baby, which should arrive at the end of the month. I can't wait to get it home now I must leave it alone for another 3 weeks. I don't think I could. Relief I can at least give it love when it comes home.

lol yeah mine is doing good with the rub downs and everything when he goes to lightly bit we say to him bailey no bite and he stops but it is never hard, and i know when we try to take him off his play area he dont like it, when he steps up he use his beak to grab to pull himself, i have heard from tons of people to that they dont like to go back into there cage after play time and that is what bailey gets upset about , i know if i do get another bird im going to do what i did and just play with him or her, and not leave him in the cage.

Well I'll tell you, I'm sure you have both heard my horror stories with SweetHeart with her plane ride. She finally got here after a 13 hour flight and than we had a little over an hour to drive home. I did leave her in the cage for the first few days. I let her out and on her play top but than left her be and just let her settle in.

Now with Casper, we are getting him on Wed! And I will not make that mistake again! He is not going in his cage or just to his play top for the first few days. Everyone is going to be holding him and loving on him right away. I think that is one reason why SweetHeart is the way she is now. She has def picked me as her one and only lol. She will go to everyone but if given the choice she will come to me in a heart beat. I thought it was just my daughter that would be able to pet her, but now she can't touch her anymore and she is biting at her. I am the only one that can pet her now without having growls. But I would not repeat what I did with her by leaving her alone those few days. I got to thinking the breeder loved on her, and why couldn't I when she got here? I was thinking she needed time to settle in, you will read many different things and opinions on this but mine is don't let them be when you get them home. Go ahead and start with them just as you would ever day from here on out. I wanted a bird I could touch more and it has been months to get her here. And it still isn't that much improvement but I will take it lol. So my advice to you in the future, go ahead and let them see their cage, but walk them around and hold them when you want to. I wouldn't let them settle again for days like I did her.

Yes, I read that too. I didnt leave either of mine alone either. When you have waited that long for them to come home you just want to play with them dont you? But both of them were happy enough to come out and explore. I suppose if they had seemed nervous or jittery I would have given them some space. It doesnt seem to have done them any harm....

I have a question. I read that when you first get your baby grey that you should leave him or her in there cage for a day or two until they get use to it before letting them out. Now me being a dummy and not follow direction, when i first brought my baby home i put him in his cage for a few minutes look around lol and then i took him out. also the next day i went out and brought him a big cage with a playtop on it, and of course i stuck him in that cage and let him check things out. after maybe 5 minutes i open up the cage and the grey came out and got on top. he was a little shakey at first but he was climbing and checking stuff out. today he is still getting use to his cage hanging upside down and playing with all his toys. my question is should i of just let him alone and waited those first few days before messing with him. i know right now it is too late but in case i do get another bird, should i follow that. i like any other bird owner i was excited and couldnt wait, im just glad he is not messed up because of it.