Hi from Chicago

[Redbeard]

Hi parrot people.

A couple of weeks ago, my wife and I brought home our first bird, a female Solomon Island Eclectus, named Edie. She was hand-raised and we got her right after weening. She's adjusting well, I think (I hope), and we're starting with some basic training. I've got her stepping onto my hand on command most of the time (when she's not distracted), and today, for the first time, she flew onto my arm when asked, and then we repeated it a few times.

We're aware of her dietary needs. My wife's a dietician, so this was of particular interest to her, and Edie's taking to her mix of fresh veggies and pellets well.

I've got a couple of newbie questions though.

First, we've also got a dog, a Samoyed, who's super gentle, but very excited and maybe even a little jealous of the new family member. I fear that trying to keep them separate will be a losing battle, especially if she's ever going to get out-of-cage time, and I'm hoping that his interest in her will die down. I'm wondering if any of you have experience introducing a bird into a house with a dog, and if you've got any advice in that regard.

Second, while I'm trying to give her out-of-cage time, she doesn't really want to be around us for long, and flies back to the top of her cage (a dome, not a playpen). In some ways, I'm happy about that, she's developing confidence in her ability to fly, and has progressed in just the couple of weeks that she's been with us from not really being able to control herself to being able to fly through the doorway and around a corner from the living room to her cage in the dining room. I'm guessing that this is because she's not yet confident in the house and feels safer atop her cage, but I'm wondering how long it usually takes before they want to hang out with us? At the moment we're not really forcing the issue and letting her go back to the cage when she does, but I've read so much about how important it is to give them attention and time to be with us, but no real idea how to make her want to do that.

Anyway, thanks for reading, and nice to meet you all

 

[Flboy]

Hello and welcome! Dog vs bird? Bird dies! Been there! Nightmare!

 

[Flboy]

Bumping you back into the daylight!

 

[itzjbean]

Hello! I have a nearly 5 year old Doberman Pinscher, two cats and two cockatiels. Our Doberman sounds a lot like your Samoyed (love the breed, want one someday!) in that he is gentle, but very excitable when it came to the birds.

The good news is, it is possible to keep them in one room, all happy, together. However, NEVER do this unsupervised or without proper desensitizing. Both species need this. Especially with Samoyeds, who, like Huskies and Alaskan Malamutes can have quite a high prey drive, you want to make sure that he knows going after the birds is NOT acceptable. Luckily we've taught our Zuko to ignore prey animals. On a walk he'll 'point' to a squirrel or rabbit but will not pursue. He'll give chase to the cats in the house if they run, but will stop when reminded. We've taught him to remain still when the birds take flight, and now he just ignores them. I always make sure the birds are NEVER on the ground, though. He could easily step on them, being cockatiels and small, he's a bit clumsy as it is. How does your Samoyed react to prey animals while on a walk?

To get them acquainted I first kept the birds in their cage for a few days (in the living room) and let the dog sniff the cage all over, which he did. He liked eating the seeds they flung out onto the floor, and still does, lol. He eventually did lose interest in their cage, and then I took the birds out and placed them on their stand. He watched them, but I kept myself between birds and dog. When they took off into the air he would be interested, but I kept him still and told him to stay. As time went on their interactions gradually got closer and closer, until eventually his wet dog nose touched beak and that was that. Both went 'meh' and went back to their activities. Though I know some gentler dogs can be very good with birds (walking all over them, I've seen the videos on YT) you have to work with both species.

As for your bird flying away from you back to her cage, that may just be her personality. Some birds, like the Electus, don't necessarily want to be cuddled or loved up like other species (cockatoos, for example) do. This is ok, and something you just may need to accept. Tasty treats always help, and keep training sessions short (5-10 minutes max), she may just be getting somewhat bored with the training, especially if it is for an extended period of time. Does she take to treats?

 

[Redbeard]

Yeah, we're not leaving them unsupervised. Payton (the dog) has actually completed therapy dog training and is registered as such, but even so, accidents can happen, especially with the size difference. He'll pull to chase squirrels on walks, (he never gets walked unleashed either) and chase things in the yard, because as you say, they've got a prey drive. I'm guessing the desensitivation process just takes time.

I'm keeping the training sessions short, and take away her food bowl about an hour before I plan to do one. She definitely into the treats - I'm using a bowl of sunflower seeds as they're smaller and easy to eat. I had some popcorn with seeds on it, but ten minutes of training would turn into eight minutes of just eating with those.

I'm not looking for constant cuddles or perching, and read what you said about eclectus not always wanting to be touched several other places. But I kind of expected that she'd at least want to be in the room with the people when she was out of her cage. But she's still only been here a couple of weeks, so I'm hoping she'll come around.

 

[GaleriaGila]

I'm enjoying your introduction.
Welcome. Glad you found us!
Gorrrrrgeous bird...

 

[Scott]

Welcome to the forums, thanks for joining!! Maintaining a safety zone for Edie is possible but will require eternal vigilance. I am not familiar with Samoyeds, though some dog breeds are more amenable to family parrots. None of my present (or future) rescued dogs are breeds known to have strong prey drives. While there is some individual moderation of temperament, it is hard to train away innate instincts. Even the best of circumstances will require absolute supervision when both species are in uncaged proximity.

Eclectus are typically not cuddle-bugs like cockatoos, but there is plenty of variation. My female Ekkie, Angel, does enjoy closeness but strictly with one person - me. She was paired with a hand-fed male who tolerated very little handling. They are stunning but enigmatic birds!

 

[OutlawedSpirit]

Hello and welcome from not so far from Chicago. I'm just outside of Rockford. Anyway, I have a female SI ekkie myself and they are a joy to have, as long as you accept their personalities tend to not be quite like other birds. While you have said you've seen they are not big cuddlers and don't like to be touched a lot, I've also found there are quite a few times that my girl just wants to be left to her own devices. Sometimes she just is enjoying doing her own thing in her house and wants to be left alone. She lets me know it too. Personally, it's something I actually like about the ekkies. I enjoy their independent streaks. They sort of remind me of the cats of the bird world. They want the attention, but they want it on their terms and only when they want it. I've just noticed that she does not want constant attention like a lot of bird species. She wants to come out, get some attention, then go do her own thing. I wouldn't worry about it too much, unless she stops wanting to come see you at all. Right now, her cage is her safe place, it's her home.

 

[wrench13]

Hi and welcome. My opinion, dogs and cats and parrots dont mix. Having said that, my dog basically sleeps, eats, poops, and runs away from Salty. ANd when she goes, no more dogs.

2nd, you got to give her a reason to want to be with you. TREATS and more treats are the mosr effective. Seriously. She must feel that ONLYgood things come from you. Good luck!

 

[Scoza]

The whole birds and dogs thing ended in tears for me. The dog is the most timid, gentle scaredy cat dog you could imagine. Nothing was ever a problem till accidentally a minute of alone time and it was over. Be very vigilant


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