Looking for Tips for when i bring my Lovie home!

[EricaLynn]

I am going to be the owner of a blue masked lovebird and as it is my first bird was looking for advice. I am buying him/her from a pet store and even though some advise against it this place is extraordinary to their birds.There is a bird expert on staff (who knows a lot) and they don't sell hybrids and there is a guarantee if your bird is not tame you may get a full refund. I have been visiting my little one almost everyday they let me walk around with him so we can bond, anyways here were my questions

1. what is the first thing i should teach my bird, he already knows step up so is there anything else i should teach him when he gets home

2. He or she (have been saying he) has gotten DNA tested in store I'm just waiting for the results do any of you prefer male or female and why

3. i want my bird to bond to me and my fiancee not just one of us, is there anything i can do to encourage that

4.how are the temperaments of masked compared to others

5.how long should i wait before i stop getting his wings clipped or do i let them grow out right away

Sorry for the long post >o but i just want to be prepared :)

[linda040899]

I am buying him/her from a pet store and even though some advise against it this place is extraordinary to their birds.There is a bird expert on staff (who knows a lot) and they don't sell hybrids and there is a guarantee if your bird is not tame you may get a full refund.
Sounds like you may have actually found one of those pet shops that are the exception rather than the rule and that can be a good thing. Too many pets shops have a bottom line profit agenda and the pets pay the price for that. I'm just going say one thing here. Your lovebird is used to the evironment where he/she is currently living. Changing that can cause him/her to regress to being untame for a while. Parrots learn trust by experience and in a new home for him is like being in a strange city for you where you don't know your way around, nor do you know anyone. Patience..............

I would hold off on any kind of training until you see his personality. Masked Lovebirds tend to be a bit more shy and flighty than other species but I can tell you from first hand experience that they also can make adorable pets! Let him get used to you and see what he does that you can expand on.

I have no real preference, male or female. Each gender comes with its own particular quirks but I like the fiestiness of females. Oh yes. They can be a handful but it's that spark that I like. Make no mistake about it. I've got several absolutely adorable male pets and I enjoy them just as much. For me, it's a toss up.

How old is your new lovebird? Flight feather clipping is a very personal choice and you need to make the right one for him. As a breeder, I never clip flight feathers until my babies are experts at flying. Then I start with 4 on each wing, if that's what I want to do, to see what kind of an effect it has on flight ability. The purpose of flight feather clipping is to limit flight, not eliminate it. He should still be able to fly short distances horizontally and glide to the floor/landing surface rather than falling with a splat.

Looking forward to hearing more about your new lovie!

[Pips mom]

1. what is the first thing i should teach my bird, he already knows step up so is there anything else i should teach him when he gets home
Don't worry about teaching right now....your new lovie will need some down time to get used to his/her new surroundings. Spend your time getting to know his/her personality and favorite things like foods or toys. Once he/she is settled in and used to the new home, THEN you can try teaching new things.
2. He or she (have been saying he) has gotten DNA tested in store I'm just waiting for the results do any of you prefer male or female and why
I've only had a male, but I think I'd have to chose male over female because you never have to deal with egg laying or mean, nesty behavior. They say females are feistier, well I don't know if I can handle much more than what I get with Pip! He's a handful! I love my humpy lil boy!

3. i want my bird to bond to me and my fiancee not just one of us, is there anything i can do to encourage that
Simple.....whoever gives love and attention, recieves it back!

4.how are the temperaments of masked compared to othersdon't know, sorry!

5.how long should i wait before i stop getting his wings clipped or do i let them grow out right away This is something that you have to decide as you go. Alot of times lovebirds will get crazy out of hand when their flights grow out. With Pip, I've always let his grow as long as he behaves and goes in his cage ok for me, and he's gotten better over the years and I've let those feathers grow quite a bit more, but it all depends on the bird and their safety and if you want to spend forever chasing them around and have to call work saying you're going to be late because you can't get your bird back in his cage! Like Linda said though......make sure you never clip too much, it's real easy to do! Learn to do it yourself and start with clipping 3 flight feathers give the bird a chance to fly to see how he/she does. Then if flight seems the same, clip one more, and test it out. Remember......when a bird goes long length of time without being clipped, their wing muscles can actually get weaker because flight is SO much easier, so if you're not keeping up on the clip and then decide to clip after some time, go easy at first! Clips are meant only to make flying harder so they will tend to stay put more in a certain area instead of all over the place. Flight feathers grow back pretty quick, so at least you have that if mistakes are made........I know with Pip, he's been clipped a little too much a couple of times when I've taken him to get it done, this is why I do it myself now.

Best of luck and congrats on your new lovie!

[light487]

Just remember things need to be on his/her terms, not yours.. and things should go swimmingly :) I want to echo the statements about letting him/her have a couple of weeks (minimum) to get used to his/her surrounds before starting anything like training.. but at the same time, don't leave it too long that he/she picks up bad habits :)

With regards to the training, after you've waited for them to settle in.. start from the beginning.. don't just start from whereever the previous training left off. Start with the touching the end of a stick/pointer.. get him/her used to the training done by yourself.. get them comfortable with that.. then move on to the steup up and other things like allowing you to examine their feet.. so a trick like "shake hands" might be a good step towards that.. but ultimately once you've trained them to know the "good" signal (the click, if using clicker training).. anything should be possible with time and patience.

[EricaLynn]

Thank You for the Advice Everyone :)