Any parrot owners here?

Do any of you guys here own a parrot or two and have good experience training them?

i have as young senegal parrot who can be rather naughty at times, i live in goodwood in cpt, the bird is friendly and gets on your hand and things like that, but very MOODY, and sometimes just naughty, i cant allow him onto my finger anymore because as soon as he gets on, he runs up my arm, and then i cant get him off my shoulder, so yesterday he did this, and everytimei try taking im off my shoulder, he runs to the other shoulder, til he eventually bit my finger really hard.

so if there are any parrot owners in cpt that would be willing to help and teach me a bit, that would be awesome.

Cheers
N

 

how old is the bird? I have 2 african greys, both under 6 months old, and sometimes the female just wont wont to come off my shoulder. She even bytes my ears and hair. You just have to have Patience with parrots. Keep it out the cage more than in the cage, or it will become naughty. If it's still very young then that is understandable, but if it is old then it might not be getting enough attention. Im in Durban so sorry i couldn't help in any other way besides the forum.

 

its cool man, any help or advice would be great, the lady i got the parrot from said he is 6 months old.

is it maybe that im trying to bond with the bird too early??? i only have the aprrot 3 days now, but he was very comfortable with his previous owner(ingrid), he hopped on ingrids finger and chilled there and sat on her shoulder calmly.

is it possible that he needs more time to get use to the new enviroment and the new people? should this be in cage or out of cage time? i keep him in the cage during the day cos im at work, but let him out in the evening and then back in when it is sleep time.

what do you suggest? i want the parrot to trust me and so on, and i dont mind bein patient, but i am terrified of being bitten, ESPECIALLY IN THE FACE OR ON THE EAR OR NECK.

 

Hi Nadeem,

I am no expert but have had a senegal parrot that i bought as an older bird and not from young(i guess he was about 2 or three years old when i bought him).He was understandably not to trusting at first and also bit me many times until i put into practice a piece of advice that i received.
Point no.1 should be that you remove the parrot from the cage when you want him to come out and not just open the cage and let him make his way out on his own.2)for 10 or so mins every day, straight after you take him out his cage, hold the parrot against your chest(no to tightly as you do not want to injure him) and talk to him while stroking his head(if he tries to bite you hold him behind the head with one of your hands while still caressing and talking to him).

The first time i did this he seemed to be slightly shocked by my strategy and did not attempt to bite me at all when i did this.It will take time for him to trust you and for you to be able to trust him!This is a gentle way i suppose of showing him who is in charge.

The issue of going on to your shoulder could be him being used to this with his previous owner,or as with most birds a higher perch sets them at ease and provides a position of dominance which they may abuse!

Just my two cents worth and something that worked for me.All the best, you will need patience! When i got my parrot the first 2 months or so were very testing!

Cheers
Shayne

 

Interesting reading considering the other half wants to buy her mom a parrot.

 

I have a old African Grey. His name is jack. He loves swearing and biting

 

Hand a hand raised cockatiel and have at present two ring necks

 

We have a young african grey about 8 months old and very well behaved.
We raised it from about 6 weeks old.

Parrots usually bond with one person. He might have bonded with the other lady somwhat
before. With patients he will trust you just as much.

You need to teach him the up command first. Hold your hand and say up so he gets up.
He should do this where ever he sits. Same as dog training a treat is nice for correct
behaviour.

Don't scold the parrot as this can make them rebels
If he does something he should not take him to his cage. Tell him its a no no
and ignore him for 10min.

He will learn that naughty things gets him ignored and they love attention.
When he is on your arm and climbing up your arm hold your other hand in the way so he
has to get on it. Then put him back on his cage and try again later.

Make sure your the one that gives him food and stuff this helps to make him see your
his care taker.

O and he will be naughty as they need a LOT of attention and things to keep him occupied.
So make sure he does not get bored.

Ours belong to my wife and I am not allowed to handle him or touch his cage
unless he wants something from me

He is real smart and potty trained. We have a piece of news paper on the floor outside
his cage he uses as a toilet
He hates pooping on or in his cage and will almost never poop on my wife.
I on the other hand are apparently good to poop on
He can fly a little but would sometimes juts sit and call my wife so she can
take him to his toilet

Has become very smart and do things that always amaze you if you think a parrot
can be that clever.

Gerhard

 

Don't have any birds now but I was raised with many, and as a kid, "tamed" many. I found an approach almost like training dogs worked well. Make sure the bird knows who's boss. The technique outlined by Shane works well, tho i used a towel to wrap the bird, leaving only the head exposed. Speak to the bird constantly in a low, soft tone. I have never met a parrot who doesn't like being scratched behind the ears, they bliss out and it's a good positive reward. And like with dogs, showing any fear is FATAL! I've met a pub macaw who hated every woman it ever met, it clambered immediately from my bf's shoulder onto mine, I calmly reached up and scritched it, and that was it... love & devotion! Also, FOOD! they all have a favourite treat, find out what it is, then abuse your knowledge! Hmm, also, remember that parrots use their tongues like we use fingers... so don't shy away when that beak opens!
HTH, good luck!

 

sorry, dbl post, mods please delete!

 

Yeah ours weak point is fruit juice. I can bribe him to do anything with some juice

 

Mine Looks like a Ringneck aswell................................................

 

wow thanks for all the advice guys, i think this bird did bond well with his previous owner, so i am an intruder for now, however, when i got him, he would gladly get onto my finger, last night HE REFUSED to get on my finger, if i gave it to him, he would step back like he is scared or he would snap and try to bite me, so i tried with a perch from his cage, he would not get on that either, he was biting it hectic, glad that was not my finger.

so i left him for like half an hour and then when it was bed time i tried getting him to get onmy finger again to put him into his cage to sleep, he would still not get on, just wanted to bite me, so i had to just leave him until he went into his cage himself and then locked it once he was in. i dont want to not even be able to handle my bird, but he is scaring me with these quick snapping movements, and just wanting to bite

 

dude, dont be scared of biting, hell my parrot is a congo african grey, and im not scared of her, sometimes she just refuses point blank to move.....even if i put my hand there for her she just wont budge. I think she is being stubborn, so i just bribe her with some treats and she comes right. Give it time dude, mine took several weeks to get used to me.

Also if you introduce new toys do it step by step. I put a new toy in her cage several weeks ago and she still goes bonkers if i leave it in there. Bought her a new cage 2 weeks ago, she had a fit, but she got used to it. Also remember they might only take to 1 person so you have to be patient with him and let him know you are the new boss, and let him trust you. If he becomes cheeky, then give him some treats to calm him down. Hand feed him, this way he will associate you with food, and therefore entrust in you.

 

HA, thats probably it then, spot on, thank you snail.
i bought the parrot from the lady with a small cage and a BIG cage, but the big cage was dirty as she did not have time to clean it before i got there,so i kept him in the small cage the first few days, yesterday when i got home, i went to him and he hopped on my finger happily, then i went to the garage and gave the BIG cage a good cleaning, then brought in the big cage and he jumped onto the big cage because i tempted him with a piece of apple, but after that, he seems to have hated me, so i put the small cage on top of the big cage and he stayed on the small cage, but i put the food and water in the big cage so eventually, he went to eat and i locked him in the big cage, so maybe its going to take time also to get use to the new cage.

Thank You all for the advice and help

 

hi Nadeem i have a senegal that belonged to my daughter before and she know me well and after 3 years she still get moody with me but when my daughter comes in the room she performs like an acrobat and ignores me totally they are very moody birds but a pleasure to have mine is in a cage with a conure the two love each other but the senegal even get the moer in with the conure some times for no reason at all hehehehe
enjoy your bird Leslie

 

Hi All,

Sorry but I want to hi-jack this thread for a second.

I see that there are quite a few members here that own birds...

Please go to our new site http://mypetbird.co.za/ and sign up. We are looking for people who do/don't have birds and have any questions or just love talking about birds or other pets in general.

Kind Regards
Kim

 

i have two cockatiels, aged 14 years and the younger being just 9 months old. i am busy training the 9 month old. i give both birds equal attention. i find that apart from just taking them out of their cages, physically feeding them goes a long way. yes they are on seeds and things, every once in a while, i will un-shell some seeds in their presence and feed them. this goes a long way , this serves as an aide when they are sick , i can quickly get them eating again. then there are treats, the age old rule, good behavior earns one a treat! birds learn to trust , once you earn their trust , they can run all over your bed early in the morning and gently tug at ones eyelash to get one up. my 14 yr old, knows not to step outside! he owns my house yet would never go near a window or door. all i can say is keep at it and do not fear a drop of blood or two from a bite. mine has snapped at me while playing around. its just cos their beaks are super sharp.