cage bound for 24 years (B&G)

so i found out the other day from his previous owner that in the few months she had him out maybe 5 times at most. I found this out after asking her if she could come over to help me take him out for the first time since i was sure he loved being out with her and i didnt want him to be mad at me for not taking him out yet. her response? "Oh he wont get mad if you dont take him out, i hardly ever took him out and he was fine with it. Just open the cage door and lt him climb out on his own and leave him alone. when you want him to go back in just scare him in with crumpled paper or a stick" (THATS WHY HES SO MISTRUSTFUL,, SHE USED SCARE TACTICS TO MAKE HIM GO BACK IN!!!) (also, side note, when i was over at her house when she still had him i asked her if i could take him out and she said yeah. I opened the cage and instead of going right to the top like she said he did the 2 times before, he stop on top of the door. I held my arm up and he lunged at first so i pulled away a little and told him no thn put my arm back and he stepped up fine and even let me pet him a little. A few mins later iput him on the top of the cage so i could sit and talk with my friend. When she went to hae him step up so she could put him away he tried to bite her hand. So i tried and he stepped up first time and let me put him away no problem) and she also said that his owner before her who had him since he was a baby went years without ever taking him out. HE HAS BEEN CAGE BOUND FOR 24 YEARS!!!! When he came to my house he was fine. Let me put my hand on the bars, stood on my finger which i stuck through the cage and let me scritch his neck through the bars. A few days latr he even let me open the cage door and pet his back for a few mins. Then the next day, idk what happened, he lunged wenever i got too close to the cage. He lunges at me through the bars and i tell him no bite so he rings his bell but then lunges again. Im workin with mark right now on what i should start doing but does anyone else have advice? Please help

rowdy said:

"Oh he wont get mad if you dont take him out, i hardly ever took him out and he was fine with it. Just open the cage door and lt him climb out on his own and leave him alone. when you want him to go back in just scare him in with crumpled paper or a stick"

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OR YOUR COULD JUST TEACH HIM TO STEP UP NICE... AND BEHAVE HIMSELF.

You know, actually bother to train the bird?!

That's also an option. (Of course, that one requires a little bit of effort on your part.)

Birdman666 said:

rowdy said:

"Oh he wont get mad if you dont take him out, i hardly ever took him out and he was fine with it. Just open the cage door and lt him climb out on his own and leave him alone. when you want him to go back in just scare him in with crumpled paper or a stick"

Click to expand...

OR YOUR COULD JUST TEACH HIM TO STEP UP NICE... AND BEHAVE HIMSELF.

You know, actually bother to train the bird?!

That's also an option. (Of course, that one requires a little bit of effort on your part.)

Click to expand...

Train? Effort? Teach? Nice? I dont think she knows what those words mean when it comes to birds

Bottom line is he MUST come out of his cage in order for you 2 to make any progress.

Poor bub! I'm glad you're working with Mark!! :emoticonc

Thanks Wendy! Just not sure what my forts step should be

This is kind of a tight for me timewise. My daughter is preparing to move, and trying to get everything in order before she goes, and I am also preparing for a trial at work right now, so I don't have as much free time as usual.

Call me tonight at around 6:30 CST. We'll start going over what to do, and how to do it.

cant tonight, soccer starts in 2 hours and is 3 hrs long, message me when youre free, i have practice mon-thurs at those times

Birdman666 said:

This is kind of a tight for me timewise. My daughter is preparing to move, and trying to get everything in order before she goes, and I am also preparing for a trial at work right now, so I don't have as much free time as usual.

Call me tonight at around 6:30 CST. We'll start going over what to do, and how to do it.

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Oh Mark! I'm sorry to hear about your daughter's moving. It will be hard, I don't care WHAT you say. You will miss her terribly! (Again, don't even try to deny it....)

GOOD LUCK at your trial work!!

Yeah. I'll miss her. But she needs this time, and it will be good for both of us I think.

I've also been a single parent with ZERO downtime for the past fifteen years. I kinda need to rediscover who I am during this year down time... and start the rebuilding process of my life, which has pretty much been on hold since Rachel died.

So, this is a growth process for both of us.

Birdman666 said:

Yeah. I'll miss her. But she needs this time, and it will be good for both of us I think.

I've also been a single parent with ZERO downtime for the past fifteen years. I kinda need to rediscover who I am during this year down time... and start the rebuilding process of my life, which has pretty much been on hold since Rachel died.

So, this is a growth process for both of us.

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Great way to look at it, Mark.

Best wishes on the journeys each of you is about to embark upon, then. I hope you both wind up the stronger, and wiser, for it.

Back to the task at hand.

First off, this bird should not be a shoulder bird just yet. Forearm only.

I would definitely do the towels wrapped around your arm trick (Wrap two small towels around your arm. Use an ace bandage to keep them in place. cover the whole thing in a long sleeved shirt so the bird doesn't know they are there.) This way, even if he does bite, it doesn't hurt... and doesn't break the skin.

Make your hand into a fist, and bend it at the wrist, so that there is no loose skin to grab onto. Now stick your forearm at foot level, and ask the bird to step up. If he does, praise and reward with a favorite treat.

Be prepared with the other arm to cut him off if he tries to charge up to your shoulder. Pick him up with the other hand. "Ladder" him until he gives up trying. If he becomes insistent and aggressive, just drop his little butt to the floor and tell him NO! in a firm voice. Then ask him to step up nice. He stays on the floor until he steps up nice with no biting.

Since you don't really have a playstand, YOU will be his human playstand. Walk him around the house on your arm. Show him the whole house. Get him out away from his cage, and used to everything. Then sit down with him on your lap.

Praise, treats, and maybe some wood to chew on, or a rope toy to play tug of war with, or a little towel or something to play peek e boo with. Then take him back to his cage, and give him praise, and a treat.

my friend gave me his large perch stand (a very thick wooden perch on a metal stand connected to a metal poop catcher on a stand). I have a dog, 4 cats, and a little brother...should i just stick them all in my parents room while i take him out? (Yes this is a silly fear but its one i have had) What if when he's on the floor he attacks my toes? How do i get him down if he decides to fly onto a high ledge in my house(i have 11 foot ceilings and in 2 rooms a foot from the ceiling the wall goes in to make like a long shelf thing). Now to find some old clothes to become my birdie outfit lol

I think that in the beginning, he may not even know how to fly. If you make the stand interesting enough he will want to stay there. as far as distractions, he has to get used to everyone, just try to keep everyone calm when the bird is out.

I'd say, initially, you should take him out in a smaller room. Like a bedroom, perhaps. This is always my advice when dealing with a flighted bird with whom you do not yet share a bond. That way, there aren't as many flight options for him if he freaks out a bit.

In that smaller room, you can work on target training and flight recall... as well as building some level of trust between you.

And yes, initially I'd also keep the dogs and cats separate as well. (Little brother probably wouldn't be an issue.)

As for the possibility of his attacking your toes, treat that situation the same way you would your hands. Reach down and control that beak! Or you can keep a towel handy to fend off any such bites.

Main thing is not to panic or overreact if he does lunge or bite. That beak is formidable, but it's nothing you can't manage. Put him on timeout so he can cool off and then try again.

I always preferred to use the bathroom for training. It's a confined space. They can't go anywhere...

My daughter is home during the day. I'll PM you her phone number. She can explain things to you. She's 18, but she's got more than a dozen years of large macaw experience, so she can help, since we keep missing each other.

Will do. I have a large 1 and a half bath right next to my room te only problem would be getting him from my room (where I keep him) to said bathroom. I'll call her tomorrow as I wanna work with him asap

rowdy said:

will do. I have a large 1 and a half bath right next to my room te only problem would be getting him from my room (where i keep him) to said bathroom. I'll call her tomorrow as i wanna work with him asap

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use the two towel thing i told you about.

And keep him perched on your arm. Don't let him get up on your shoulder.

And if he tries to.fly when he's out of the room? (I gave your daughter a call btw but no answer)

rowdy said:

And if he tries to.fly when he's out of the room? (I gave your daughter a call btw but no answer)

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I use a thumb over the foot, and if he reaches down with his beak to grab my finger, for grabbing his foot with my thumb, I am prepared to grab his beak with two fingers...

But first of all, have you given any thought to grooming? He might be easier to work with if he were clipped...

Exactly how long has it been since this bird was groomed, and how do his beak and nails look?

Another thought on the toes, shoes?