New owner, advice needed

Hello I just got my first bird (3 months old) and I've heard some conflicting opinions on when I should attempt to handle it.
The breeder I purchased it from told me I should give the bird a month to settle into his new environment before attempting to handle it however I have seen conflicting advice online.

I am also concerned about handling the bird and being bitten, I guess I am bit anxious as this is my first bird. Would leather gloves be a good idea when I handle him to begin with?
Or would this just train it to believe I have a greater tollerance to it's bites than I really do due to the gloves protecting me.

Yipes - no gloves of any kind - they scare the crap out of birds.

And yes, you will get bitten - every parrot bites at some point. Approach the cage and sit as close as you can without the parrot freaking out. If he does, move a little bit away. Read to him, in nice soothing voice. Start to feed him treats from your had thru the cage bars. A month is a long time to settle in, some do need that but most need a few days, and some are ready to make friends right away. Always go at your parrots pace, not yours. Good luck!

wrench13 said:

Yipes - no gloves of any kind - they scare the crap out of birds.

And yes, you will get bitten - every parrot bites at some point. Approach the cage and sit as close as you can without the parrot freaking out. If he does, move a little bit away. Read to him, in nice soothing voice. Start to feed him treats from your had thru the cage bars. A month is a long time to settle in, some do need that but most need a few days, and some are ready to make friends right away. Always go at your parrots pace, not yours. Good luck!

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Thank you for the advice. How powerful are their bites is there any pain similar to it that I could use as a reference?

I've had it for 2 days now and it seems a bit less jumpy around me because I sit next to it's cage most of the day although it's still not exactly calm, I'm guessing this is normal?

I'm not entirely sure how tame it is because someone picked the bird up for me so I didn't really get to speak to the breeder myself.

Ringnecks are finicky things.
For every bird we've brought into our home, the cage door has been open from day one. (even for those in quarantine...seperate rooms). That way, they can come out and explore at their own pace. They've always gone back when they're hungry, and we can read their behaviour if they're reaching out to us. it's easier for us to offer a hand/arm and them to decline politely if they don't feel pressured/cornered.

No gloves. Totally with Wrench. Fear.

Do a forum search and read up on bite pressure training My IRN's are good warning biters - you really have to piss them off good and proper to get anything decent and so if you do, it's your fault. My 6 & 8 yr old human children can read this behaviour, it's generally not so subtle and as you get to know your bird you will get to read him. My youngest IRN is a rescue and has a true fear of hands after being grabbed and towelled - his only handling. After a few months of work he'll now get on our shoulders no worries, but he is a bit nippy when he gets a fright, and it takes a lot less to frighten him. His bites are more of a strong pinch, it's a few seconds of pain, no bruise etc.
I'm not sure I'll ever get him used to hands, but then, we weren't sure we'd ever get him used to humans and he's only been here since the end of April.

IRN's can be funny about fingers. When you do decide he's shown interest in you, maybe offer him a wrist instead, or a closed ball fist. He might be more willing.

You need to get over your fear A confident hand will show him there is nothing to be afraid of. Respect the bird and his behaviours, and it's far less likely you'll get a serious injury.

Would love to hear how you get on, you've chosen a cracker species!

Nah, don't use gloves, scary and it can teach them to bite.

having suffered a full on fight for their life bite/attack where they latched on they can hurt, not drastically though. I'm weird about pain though so take that with a pinch. There are far worse pains you can sustain. Really it's like a very strong pinch from someone with nails. Removing them if they latch on was the worst for me as it involved having to tear a bit of skin off my finger so as not to hurt the bird.

Going at their pace is the way to do things, they're gonna set the rules around the house so may as well start off with them setting those rules haha

Just be aware you will be bitten at some point, you'll do something entirely natural to you and it will piss them off and they'll let you know.

No gloves. Parrots tend to be afraid of new things. For example, if you bring home a new toy, don't just hang it in the cage. Let the bird see it. Some birds are fine,mthey love toys and investigate at once, and some need to see it sitting nearby for a while or they won't go near it. Gloves don't stay around long so they stay strange and scary.

We had an Amazon who stepped up to fingers, and he signaled when he was willing to step up and when he was not, and if he refused I would just stand there and look at him...he would usually reconsider then lift up a foot and come along. I learned that he was a being with his own personal rights, so I asked and didn't force.

Now, Gus is a blue front macaw and has bitten me hard enough that I have permanent dark marks on one arm. He's made a few cuts that bleed, and some remarkable bruises. He's bitten J hard enough to create temporary nerve damage. I got to where I was afraid to pick up Gus so I made a leather shield to wear under long sleeves. People say ace bandages also work. I can't say how your bird will do, just what my experience has been. Don't be afraid of the bite, they aren't that bad, little sharp beaks can break the skin but it's only a flesh wound.

Thanks for the help everyone.

I consider myself to have a pretty good pain tollerance because I'm clumsy and get hurt quite frequently lol, it's more the anticipation of the bite that scares me but I guess I'll have to deal with it and it probably won't be as bad once it's bitten me once.

Can I get some advice regarding wing clipping, Is this generally considered a good idea?
I've read that they can hurt themselves if they are let out of their cages before having their wings clipped because they can fly into windows and other objects. Should I consider wing clipping before attempting to handle it and what type of price could I expect to pay to get this done?

I don't really trust myself to do it.

I've also noticed that it likes to eat millet a lot more than any other food, it will eat that as soon as I give it some but will often ignore fruit and seeds.

EDIT: Oh and I would also like to know if I need to bird proof my room at all? Obviously windows shut at all times but should I be worried about it biting electrical wires and doing other dangerous things?

IRN's are smart birds.

Millet is a sweet, or lolly. If he's going to try the millet, make him work for it. thread it through a ball with some holes in it, clip it in a difficult place to get to in his cage, wrap it in a brown paper bag....he can earn his millet.

Clipping is personal, you'll need to read up on that and make your own mind up. I've done both, situationally dependent. I've got to have a solid reason to clip the IRN's - I do think it makes them a little more skittish. Try mixing millet in the mashed veges - he ain't going to get seed without tasting his peas and carrots then!

Yup, any exposed wires etc need to be hidden as well as possible. any wee containers of odds and ends are being asked to be tipped out lol....have you got a gym or playstand? Sounds like you're pretty on to it

itchyfeet said:

IRN's are smart birds.

Millet is a sweet, or lolly. If he's going to try the millet, make him work for it. thread it through a ball with some holes in it, clip it in a difficult place to get to in his cage, wrap it in a brown paper bag....he can earn his millet.

Clipping is personal, you'll need to read up on that and make your own mind up. I've done both, situationally dependent. I've got to have a solid reason to clip the IRN's - I do think it makes them a little more skittish. Try mixing millet in the mashed veges - he ain't going to get seed without tasting his peas and carrots then!

Yup, any exposed wires etc need to be hidden as well as possible. any wee containers of odds and ends are being asked to be tipped out lol....have you got a gym or playstand? Sounds like you're pretty on to it

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Damn, there is a ton of wires in my room guess I'll need to figure something out there. At the moment it currently has a mirror and a swing like perch, it seems pretty interested in the mirror and will stare at it for ages.
All I've seen him use the swing for is as something to step on to get up to his higher perch.

Should I expect it to get used to me more quickly if i spend most of the day sat a few feet from it's cage?

Yup.
I'd ditch the mirror and find some other, more interactive toys

itchyfeet said:

Yup.
I'd ditch the mirror and find some other, more interactive toys

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I've been looking online for toys but there seem to be a lot of dodgy chinese products, one review even said their parrot almost strangled itself with the toy.

Am I safe to assume everything sold in local pet stores is safe? and is there a good site
I can use to order toys for my ring neck without worrying they are going to hurt it?
(I live in the UK btw)

I'm in New Zealand so not sure about online shops in the UK. I'd lean more to sites like Pinterest and start gathering non toxic craft materials. It'd be much cheaper to spend a couple of hours doing some D.I.Y!

itchyfeet said:

I'm in New Zealand so not sure about online shops in the UK. I'd lean more to sites like Pinterest and start gathering non toxic craft materials. It'd be much cheaper to spend a couple of hours doing some D.I.Y!

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I'm not too experienced with DIY but I'll take it into consideration.

Are there any childrens toys that are compatible with IRNs? I figure those
would be easier to find and would often be cheaper.

I get plastic baby rattles and chuck them through the diswasher, solid plastic feeding spoons and hang those, cable tie straws to the side of the cage.... each new toy will feel like change so you'll need to take it slow and watch for his reaction

Haha another brit!

Scarletts Parrot Essentials - Toys, Cages, Stands and More!

Parrot Supplies | Parrot Shop | Parrot Accessories – Northern Parrots

Those 2 are the only ones you'll ever need. Pets at home sell a couple bits but it's not the greatest stuff. Good if you harness train them so they can come and pick out a toy themselves, you'll also be the center of attention!

Northern parrots are really good with their items, all tested and all safe and they categorize them by the type of toy and what birds they're suitable for. Scarllet's is a smaller business but still as good as Northern Parrots. The owner is brilliant too, she was helping me on facebook messenger at 11PM to pick out a cage and toys so gives an idea of her dedication. She also sells bags of seed without sunflower seeds so it's easier to use those as a treat