OutlawedSpirit
New member
- Apr 12, 2016
- 1,020
- 21
- Parrots
- Bo - DYH ~ Gus - CAG ~ Twitch - Linnie ~ Apple - Pineapple GCC ~ Goliath - Quaker ~ Squish - Peach face Lovebird
So I figure I should start an ongoing thread for my fids. I know most of you know Chicken and Tiki, but for our newer members, I'll give a smallish introduction.
Chicken was my first Ekkie. I rescued her as an 8 month old that couldn't be taken out of her cage without being toweled. Wow, how things have changed! She is now 17 months old and is an absolute sweetheart. To me anyway. She will gladly go to almost anyone else if I ask her to, but they better not touch! She is a Solomon Island eclectus, and a definite boss. My wife likes to constantly remind me that Chicken wears the pants in this relationship. She will talk, but only about herself. Good Chicken. Pretty Chicken. What you doing, Chicken? Hi Chicken. Unless she's getting snotty, then it's just "WHAT?!". Although I have two, she will always be my number one, and she knows it. (I have to write that, she's sitting on my shoulder, watching.)
Tiki is my second Ekkie. He is a 26 year old Vosmaeri cross, as much as I can tell. Males aren't exactly easy to identify subspecies, especially when cross breeding between subspecies is taken into account. He is nearly completely blind. He may be able to see some light and shadows out of one eye, but we're not even completely sure about that. It seems like sometimes he can, and others he can't. He used to be pretty aggressive, and could only be handled with gloves for safety. Now, as we have built our bond and trust much more, he is handled with gloves for his benefit. He feels more stable on the gloves, I think because of the rough texture. So I usually have a glove on the hand he steps up on, but I can interact with my other hand bare. I have tried getting him to step up on my bare hand, and he will, but you can tell he feels unsteady, so I'll just keep using the glove for his peace of mind. He is my snuggle bug. He loves to come out, lean his head against my chest while I pet him and give him kisses on his beak and forehead. He is even comfortable now with me petting his head, whereas before, he would completely freak if I touched it. I think we can go even further, but it will take time, I will only work at his pace, no faster.
People say that I spoil them, but no, I just love them. They are my fids, I am their mom. I was able to upgrade Chicken to a bigger cage recently, and rearrange my setup, so she has a palace with yard, so to speak, now.
Since she no longer shares a split cage with Tiki, she can climb on her cage again, and she takes full advantage. I moved her tree close enough to her cage so she can move freely between the two, and she eagerly waits for me to open her cage and the curtains after breakfast, so she can survey the neighborhood.
I had thought about getting rid of the double stack cage and getting Tiki a macaw cage like Chicken, but then threw the idea out. Since he is blind, the double stack is wide enough for him, but it is also low. There is less worry if he were to fall about him getting hurt. Although I would love to provide him with a huge cage, it is just not really in his best interest considering his disability. It would be more for my benefit than his. The bottom cage also makes a great storage location for all their extra toys, toy parts, and travel cages.
Tiki doesn't have a tree, because he doesn't feel safe on them. He will stand on it for a little bit, but does not enjoy it. For his out of cage play time, he usually gets put on the floor with some foot or foraging toys, so I don't have to worry about him falling or him being uncomfortable on a stand.
Well, I think that is enough for an initial post, but worry not, there will be more to come, much more. I can't help but talk about my babies.
Chicken was my first Ekkie. I rescued her as an 8 month old that couldn't be taken out of her cage without being toweled. Wow, how things have changed! She is now 17 months old and is an absolute sweetheart. To me anyway. She will gladly go to almost anyone else if I ask her to, but they better not touch! She is a Solomon Island eclectus, and a definite boss. My wife likes to constantly remind me that Chicken wears the pants in this relationship. She will talk, but only about herself. Good Chicken. Pretty Chicken. What you doing, Chicken? Hi Chicken. Unless she's getting snotty, then it's just "WHAT?!". Although I have two, she will always be my number one, and she knows it. (I have to write that, she's sitting on my shoulder, watching.)
Tiki is my second Ekkie. He is a 26 year old Vosmaeri cross, as much as I can tell. Males aren't exactly easy to identify subspecies, especially when cross breeding between subspecies is taken into account. He is nearly completely blind. He may be able to see some light and shadows out of one eye, but we're not even completely sure about that. It seems like sometimes he can, and others he can't. He used to be pretty aggressive, and could only be handled with gloves for safety. Now, as we have built our bond and trust much more, he is handled with gloves for his benefit. He feels more stable on the gloves, I think because of the rough texture. So I usually have a glove on the hand he steps up on, but I can interact with my other hand bare. I have tried getting him to step up on my bare hand, and he will, but you can tell he feels unsteady, so I'll just keep using the glove for his peace of mind. He is my snuggle bug. He loves to come out, lean his head against my chest while I pet him and give him kisses on his beak and forehead. He is even comfortable now with me petting his head, whereas before, he would completely freak if I touched it. I think we can go even further, but it will take time, I will only work at his pace, no faster.
People say that I spoil them, but no, I just love them. They are my fids, I am their mom. I was able to upgrade Chicken to a bigger cage recently, and rearrange my setup, so she has a palace with yard, so to speak, now.
Since she no longer shares a split cage with Tiki, she can climb on her cage again, and she takes full advantage. I moved her tree close enough to her cage so she can move freely between the two, and she eagerly waits for me to open her cage and the curtains after breakfast, so she can survey the neighborhood.
I had thought about getting rid of the double stack cage and getting Tiki a macaw cage like Chicken, but then threw the idea out. Since he is blind, the double stack is wide enough for him, but it is also low. There is less worry if he were to fall about him getting hurt. Although I would love to provide him with a huge cage, it is just not really in his best interest considering his disability. It would be more for my benefit than his. The bottom cage also makes a great storage location for all their extra toys, toy parts, and travel cages.
Tiki doesn't have a tree, because he doesn't feel safe on them. He will stand on it for a little bit, but does not enjoy it. For his out of cage play time, he usually gets put on the floor with some foot or foraging toys, so I don't have to worry about him falling or him being uncomfortable on a stand.
Well, I think that is enough for an initial post, but worry not, there will be more to come, much more. I can't help but talk about my babies.