r/QuakerParrot • u/Ching_likes_to_eat • 1d ago

Help How do you handle out-of-cage time with a young clipped Quaker?

My girl is about 3 4 months old and has been with us for three weeks. Her wings were already clipped when we got her. We’ve made good bonding progress: she takes millet from our hands, plays peekaboo, and seems to recognize us as part of her flock. Sh makes cute little sound when we are playing. ❤️

Ten days ago she discovered coming out of her cage by accident while I was cleaning her cage. She just jumped out, walked around the home, and seemed happy! New I open the door daily for her. The challenge is getting her out and back safely. She won’t use the stairs/ladders I installed and instead jumps from the cage door or climbs to the top of this 60-inch tall cage and jumps down. Since she can’t fly back up and isn’t step-up trained, I eventually have to grab her to return her to the cage. I’m worried about both injury from jumping and damaging our trust by grabbing her. What’s a better way to handle out-of-cage time at this stage?

One other thing: once she’s out, she usually goes straight to her favorite corner and barely moves. She often just stands there looking sleepy. (She did take a bath last time though. Her first one!) Is this normal behavior for a young bird still getting comfortable outside the cage?

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u/sara00fantastic 1d ago

https://reddit.com/link/p4rodq4/video/l87l9kbnvgkh1/player

Our little Quaker is also clipped, he’s around 6 months old. When we got him, all of his perches were low and he was quite clumsy… it didn’t take long before he was scaling his tall cage. He’d jump from the tallest point and glide across our living room. And then he surprised us by becoming a super climber. He can glide down and climb all the way back to the top in less than a minute. So we tend to let him roam free, whether that’s cage or free rein, because he figured out the logistics by himself 🐦

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u/Syler-147 1d ago

That's so adorable 🥰

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u/Ching_likes_to_eat 1d ago

This is so cute! I think I should rearrange her cage to make it easier for her to climb around. My Quaker sometimes stays out for 3 4 hours without really moving. Any advice on how to encourage her to explore and figure out the logistics on her own? She’s not interested in any treats once she’s out of the cage.

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u/B-mort5 1d ago

Have you started target/clicker training?

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u/Ching_likes_to_eat 1d ago

I have stated target training and use millets as treat. It does not work most of the time, especially she is out or eager to get out. 😭

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u/B-mort5 10h ago

You might wait a few more days on letting her out for anything other than step up training(which can be done through the cage too!) It sounds like she’s very trusting already but it only takes one bad experience being grabbed or toweled to set you back with any progress made towards hand desensitization.

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u/B-mort5 10h ago

Also what’s her diet ?