Advice? New Green Cheek Conure

[nattyd]

I got my 3-5 month old green cheek conure 3 days ago and am not sure how to proceed with his taming - He seems pretty happy in his cage, he's eating (loves grapes), playing (destroying) with his toys and hopping around any time i play music - I think this is pretty good considering I only got him 3 days ago but he still seems a little cautious of people, i can get close to his cage, sometimes he hides and others he simply continues doing what he was doing.

I've realised he's not fond of hands and gets a little bit nervous if i get too close, this includes hand feeding!

Would be great if I could get some tips on how to tame him and get him to trust me. Also when should i let him explore outside of his cage? His feathers aren't clipped, I'm scared he'll hurt himself.

 

[RemiBird]

It seems like he is settling in pretty good so far.
Let him be for a while. Eventually he will get bored of playing all by himself and will start showing interest in what you are doing. Then it's time for offering treats like millet and such.
Let him learn that you are someone who brings good stuff to him (food, toys, attention etc) You can't rush a relationship with a bird.

 

[Allee]

Sounds like your little guy is doing fine. Three days is not long at all for a young bird to adjust to brand new surroundings and new people. All parrots are individuals, some need more time than others to transition. If your GCC has never been clipped and he’s 3 to 5 months old he is physically capable of flight, it may be that he just hasn’t had the opportunity to fly enough to get good at it. It’s also possible he wasn’t allowed to fledge, that could cause a delay but at his age it shouldn’t keep him from flying now. Take precautions before allowing him to practice his flight skills, cover all windows, make sure fans are turned off, doors are closed, it’s better to keep your kitchen off limits, if you have a tile or hardwood floor you may want to use towels, a blanket or comforter as a landing pad.

I always let new birds come out of their comfort zones of their own free will, open the cage door, provide a combination of perches from the inside of the cage to the outside, stay in the room but give your bird extra personal space so he feels comfortable enough to come out and explore. Talk to him, parrots love an invitation to interact.

Here’s a link to a great article on bonding:

http://www.parrotforums.com/general-parrot-information/49144-tips-bonding-building-trust.html

Have fun and the details with us, we love photos.

 

[GaleriaGila]

Welcome.

Good for you, for caring and reaching out!

I look forward to following your journey with... oh! What's the name?

 

[ChocolateChipCookiez]

He's still new to your home so give him sometime to settle in. Maybe about a week or so. And maybe read a book near him or just talk to him. Then he might be a little less nervous around you.

And kind of "parrot-proof" (remove things that may harm him, remove anything poisonous for parrots,etc..) the room before letting him out. Make sure to have treats nearby, just in case.

I wish you luck with your GCC.

 

[EllenD]

As already mentioned, this process is just going to take time and patience, especially if he wasn't a hand-raised baby or he was but he stopped getting any human-interaction after he fully-weaned, which is quite common, especially if you bought him at a pet store like Petco. They sell "Hand-Fed" Green Cheeks and Sun Conures that were actually Hand-Fed, but they unfortunately stop getting any handling or human-interaction at all after they wean, and depending on the individual store they may or may not get attention from employess on a regular basis...So it's all about time, patience, and giving him as much time and attention as you can each day by simply being in the room with him, sitting next to his cage and reading to him, talking to him, etc.

As Allee mentioned, it would be great if you started to let him out of his cage every day by simply opening up the door to his cage after putting it in a room that is safe and secure, and then just waiting and allowing him to come out in his own time. He may not want to come out and fly around right away, or he might come right out, you don't know, but you never want to try to force him to do anything...Make sure you have his cage in a room with a door that latches, carpeting on the floor is best, cover all of the windows up (as well as mirrors), and then just let him come out in his own time. Start doing this each day so that he not only gets better at flying, but also so that he's getting some exercise each day, and this should also aide in you bonding with him gradually over time.

Also, it's very important that you have his cage located in the "main roon' of your house (except for when you're allowing him to have out-of-cage-time each day in a safe, secure room)...The "main room" of your home is the room where you and anyone else who lives in yoru home (his "Flock") spend most of your time whenever you're at home. Usually this is the Living Room, TV Room, Family Room, etc. For birds who are not used to human-interaction or birds who were originally hand-raised but then were not given any human attention after they weaned, it's extremely important that they are simply around and among their "Flock" as much as possible. So whenever you and other who live with you are watching TV, playing Video Games/other Games, Reading, Talking, Eating Meals, on the Computer, etc., and where visitors spend time when they come over;, just having him in the same room with everyone is going to help tremendously with getting him more and more comfortable being with people...Plus, whenever people put their bird's cage in a back room of the home, or a bedroom away from where the action is and where people spend their time, it tends to also cause a lot of screaming and results in the bird not wanting to entertain themselves inside of their cages with their toys because they can hear that people are home, but they can't see them and they want to be with them (they are "Flock Animals", so they need to be among their Flock)...

3 days is like 5 seconds in "new-bird time", so it's just going to be a gradual process. But just keep doing what you're doing, try to include him in everything you can, and give him the opportunity to come out of his cage every day in a safe room for exercise and bonding time...

 

[nattyd]

Welcome.

Good for you, for caring and reaching out!

I look forward to following your journey with... oh! What's the name?

Thank you! Haven't been able to decide between pancho or yoshi haha

 

[Laurasea]

Safflower seeds are a great bribe and irresistible to most GCC
Not sure if you are new to parrots in general but Teflon abd nonstick coating and many other things are deadly to parrots so read up! I read up now and then myself as nrw deadly stuff I was unaware of turns up sometime like irons a d ironing boards that have a coating that kills Birds
Also start offering veggies if you haven't yet. Welcome you and your new baby