[Justine]

Uncle Rico has been with us for a few weeks. I “rescued” him from the pet shop; that is how I look at it because he was socially and emotionally neglected there. He did bond with another parrotlet (clutch mate? Idk) and then a week or two before we took him home they separated them. So he’s had a rough start. He lets me touch his breast, but will not step up yet. He “bites” but it’s more like sweet little nibbles. And he stops when I very gently touch his beak and say gently “no”. He’s about 6 months old. Maybe 7 now (unless pet shop lied to me). He is pretty quiet and chill. Does not play with toys or show any curiosity about them. Same with new foods. I had no idea. I thought I was going to get a “big bird in a little body” — basically I have a very shy parakeet. Lol. But we still love him and I accept him as he is. Just curious as to others’ experiences. Thanks!! ❤🐦❤

 

[JackieRTP]

Congratulations on Uncle Rico who is very cute! It is recommended to only pet their head and necks as any other place on their body has a sexual connotation. Most are food motivated, so you can use long stalks of millet for training and rewards. If he will eat from the long stalk, gradually over time you can move your hand closer and closer until he is standing on your finger or hand to eat from it. Be prepared to be patient and allow time for training him.

When it comes to new foods, many times you need to provide them over and over and over for your bird to eat them regularly. Sometimes it can even take months.

 

[David Miller]

Welcome to the forum! I love the name, " Uncle Rico "! He has been on display and neglected for a while. He needs more time to settle into your life. You are doing great with him! Keep trying different foods. They are hesitant to take on new foods, but they will eventually try them out. Offer fresh veggies . Take a broccoli floret and put it between the bars of his cage and leave it. Do this every day. He will try it out one day...and love it.

Chop up some fried egg and give it to him or cut a hard boiled egg in half and let him eat on it. Try to hand feed him hemp seeds, one at a time. You can feed it to him in the cage or out. Let him eat as many as he can.
I see you have wood perches in his cage. Good! Make sure you give him a variety of sizes of perches. This helps him on his foot health.

Keep talking gently to him. He loves this! Make sure his cage is in a warm area and in an area where there is activity going on. He need 11-12 hours of darkened and covered sleep time each night. Change his water every day after cleaning the container.

Most important!!! Keep in touch with us! We are all experienced owners and we have seen just about everything in this forum. There is no question too unimportant!

David and Vicki 🦜 🦜

 

[JackieRTP]

Eggs are now recommended to provide to pet birds only once a week or less since they can contribute to atherosclerosis

 

[Justine]

Congratulations on Uncle Rico who is very cute! It is recommended to only pet their head and necks as any other place on their body has a sexual connotation. Most are food motivated, so you can use long stalks of millet for training and rewards. If he will eat from the long stalk, gradually over time you can move your hand closer and closer until he is standing on your finger or hand to eat from it. Be prepared to be patient and allow time for training him.

When it comes to new foods, many times you need to provide them over and over and over for your bird to eat them regularly. Sometimes it can even take months.

Thank you! Really had to adjust my expectations - I was expecting a “clown.” an assertive bird. Not so! Uncle Rico has us on his schedule now. Lol. I will introduce new goods routinely; I had stopped as I thought it may be stressing him out. He watches closely. He pretends not to, but I can tell he does!

 

[Anya]

Hold on!

 

[Justine]

I have encountered ice storms where the power was out for a few days. It is not fun. If the power goes out and your house starts getting cold, a smaller cage or carrier would be easier to keep warm. Put extra blankets over the cage. I remember when my house got very cold, cold seemed to radiate from the walls, so add an extra layer of warmth at the back of the cage. Put rolled up towels under doors and at the base of any drafty windows. One time, during a blizzard, I was living in an apartment, with no storm door, and the cold was coming through, so I covered my whole front door with a blanket. Close the vents. Does you have a gas stove? You can give your bird some warm food – like some wheat spaghetti and grains. Do not heat up dry food. Birds use up lot of energy trying to stay warm so make sure they are eating.

Uncle Rico is warm. I meant he is very lazy “chill” -

 

[Anya]

Uncle Rico is warm. I meant he is very lazy “chill” -

Haha! What happened? Bloody hell. Stand by, please! lol

 

[Justine]

Haha! What happened? Bloody hell. Stand by, please! lol

Lol! Are/is your parrotlet(s) active, kind of lazy like Uncle Rico?

 

[Anya]

Haha! Take two. Welcome to the forum. Feeling cold lately? lol No, seriously, let me start off by saying that Uncle Rico is beautiful. Such a beautiful blue. My mind has gone blank. I can't remember what I had written before. I must have a brain freeze. lol

 

[Anya]

Parrotlets do tend to be on the feisty side, but not all of them are little fuzzy sticks of dynamite. They each have their own personality that sets them apart from other parrotlets. Since Uncle Rico is still young, his real personality will not develop until he has matured some more. So, you may have some surprises in store for you. The longer he is around you and gets to know you, the more his personality will come out, even if he remains to stay on the quiet side. He is a parrotlet, nevertheless, and that makes him awesome! Even though Uncle Rico has had a hard start in life, I am so glad he is with someone now who is going to love him no matter what. And I like that you have a sense of humor. That always comes in handy with these guys at times. And, yes, they do watch us! It seems I cannot do anything without Cleopatra knowing about it. I will try to be sneaky, like drinking some bottled water, and she flies over in a shot. Why she thinks every water bottle belongs to her is beyond me!🙄

 

[Rubydoo252]

He is adorable!
Some parrotlets are chiller than others, but I suspect he is secretly watching you to discover that is going on. That long in a pet shop is a rough start to life, and he is used to watching the world around him. It is a long relationship that you are embarking on, and as he grows more comfortable and confident he will let you know what is up. The fact that he is not drawing blood is a great sign - parrotlet beaks can do some damage when they want, so the gentle bites are a sign that you can build a relationship together. Just keep building your relationship a bit at a time, and see if there is something that works as a treat. Don't be surprised if he falls for something weird - many parrotlets do! Tumi started out going nuts for the sound of crinkling plastic, and now is in LOVE with tissues. It sounds like Cleopatra is a water bottle lover - there are also pill bottle lovers, running water lovers, and bottle cap lovers. Sometimes they are slow to show their personalities, but even the quiet ones are definitely watching everything you do and figuring you out!

 

[rizzie5022]

My Sunshine is also very chill. Quiet also. I have had him since Nov 30th. I got him right as he was weaned (3 months). He is not afraid of my hands but he chooses not to step up in his cage with both feet.

I have my chair next to his cage. He comes out of his cage and climbs over and peers at my computer. I have played parrotles on here so I think he is looking for the birds. I can speak to him but if I move my hand toward him he scurries back into cage. If he goes on the top of the cage I can have him step up...... until yesterday and again today..... we have a new game. He climbs to top of cage calls to me to get my attn. As I move to get up he flies over to his play gym and I swear he is laughing at me lol. Im ok with this because he is now exploring the play gym.

I also have a cage full of chew toys that I would have said were ignored, but yesterday I came home to on on the floor. Sunshine chewed through the twine holding the toy up so he is starting to discover new things.

He is an interesting bird, I'm hopefull he continues to open up and get friendlier.

Patience is not my strong suit.

 

[ChristiSharon]

LOL Sunshine sounds like Cookie! She used to step up onto my finger, but now she will only step up onto the plastic perch that came with her traveler case! Like you Rizzie, I have her cage very close to my computer, and I talk to her during the day, etc. She will come out and get extremely close to me, give me that goofy look and tilt her head but if I ask her to step up it's GAME ON! She flies to the top of the shutter, then if I go ask her to step up, she flies back to the shelf and back and forth she goes! I don't know really what her exact history is, and I feel like I need to be extra patient with her. She's slowly coming out of her shell, playing like crazy now with toys that she used to ignore; exploring new veggies and eating her food! Whoever recommended putting in the tops of red or green peppers with the seeds and stem is amazing! She loves that! The vet estimates her birth date as 7/4, but we don't exactly know. If anyone has any advice for getting her to listen to me when I want her to step up onto my finger, I'm open!!

 

[Justine]

My Sunshine is also very chill. Quiet also. I have had him since Nov 30th. I got him right as he was weaned (3 months). He is not afraid of my hands but he chooses not to step up in his cage with both feet.

I have my chair next to his cage. He comes out of his cage and climbs over and peers at my computer. I have played parrotles on here so I think he is looking for the birds. I can speak to him but if I move my hand toward him he scurries back into cage. If he goes on the top of the cage I can have him step up...... until yesterday and again today..... we have a new game. He climbs to top of cage calls to me to get my attn. As I move to get up he flies over to his play gym and I swear he is laughing at me lol. Im ok with this because he is now exploring the play gym.

I also have a cage full of chew toys that I would have said were ignored, but yesterday I came home to on on the floor. Sunshine chewed through the twine holding the toy up so he is starting to discover new things.

He is an interesting bird, I'm hopefull he continues to open up and get friendlier.

Patience is not my strong suit.

Birds can def help us develop patience. lol. Uncle Rico sits in the same spot all day... for the most part.... watching, watching, watching. He shows NO interest in toys. I hope he blossoms as he matures. He is a cutie!