Help!! Nervous Sennie

Hello friends. I recently adopted a 7 y.o male sennie and have had him for a little over a month now. He is VERY quiet and does not talk or make any sounds. Although he does make a squeak noise when he poops...LOL! I have been told I am his 3rd home, but other than that I don't know any history on him. He eats good and has nice feathers. He will play with only one particular toy and that's only to shred it up. He is ok with stepping up and riding on your shoulder every now and then, but for the most part he is very independent and likes to just hang out. When I ask him to step up, he gets nervous and flys off his cage. He will do this a few times before actually stepping up. He will stay on my finger for a minute, but is very anxious to fly back to his cage. Sometimes, I wrap him up in a blanket and pet his head and rub around his eyes and ears and he some what likes it, but there again very nervous in the process. He does not like sudden movements and loud noises. I don't know if his behaviour is from being misused in the past, but I wondered if this would be the behaviour of a semi-tamed bird or even a recent breeder? I talk to him everyday, but I will admit I don't handle him everyday because of his nervousness. He was a flighted bird but did trim his wings just a bit, but he can still fly just not get height.
I am very sad at times because I don't know his history, but I am trying to work with him and I am open to your opinion on what you think is going on with him and how to approach this situation in a positive way.

That sounds like a perfectly normal sennie to me. They are naturally a little on the nervous side. If I were you I'd start over with just talking to him and letting him come to you. When he does come to you start giving him treats. Then move to resting your hand on the cage while you're talking and giving treats. When he steps up on his own accord just let him stand there as long as he wants and then the next time maybe move a little from the cage.

My male is like that, very nervous and the above worked for me. I always let it be on his terms and when he starts acting nervous I take him back.

sound like a typical sennie to me too, just like Karen mentioned.
congratulations on your new addition mr.zeeko.
where abouts are you in toronto?....mississauga, scarborough etc...

I have to agree... He sounds normal for a Sennie. Just give him some time to warm up to you. But don't force it. I wouldn't towel him especially if you want him to develop trust in you and want to be with you. So don't force him. Rather, the more you talk to him the more he will open up and make more noises and become more animated. Ask him to step up, but watch his body language very carefully. If he backs away, back off and try again later. Respect his space, and always praise him when you like his behavior. Ignore the bad, and praise the good. One thing I have always done with both of my birds is, if they want to come out of their cage they have to step up. So maybe you can start with something like that. Very short training, and then treating him when he complies. If you can get a basic T-stand, nothing fancy. Then you can take him with you all around the house.

When I got Rio 10 months ago, I thought she was the quietest bird in the world, even compared to my very quiet parrotlet, both are a year old. But then one day about 6 weeks in, she made this noise. My husband and I both laughed. She'd never done that before! Hahaha, it wasn't too long before she was whistling, popping, and screeching. And now she has to know my every move. She says "what are you doing." It doesn't matter what it is . If she can hear me but not see me, that's what she says every time. One time I told her "I'm making Margaritas, you want one?" :09:

She is very nervous around my husband and my daughter. They are both too intense around her. And she will flinch if I move too fast. So use slow hand movement and soft speech with your guy. Welcome to the forum.

Thanks everyone for your replies. And to answer your question Crimson, I am in West Etobicoke. Where in Ontario are you? So are senegals typically a nervous bird? Since moving into an apartment, I went for the smaller quiet type and this is the first time for me to have a smaller parrot since used to having CAG. I do miss having the bigger birds tho!!
I just want to understand my fella and make sure I am doing the right things to create a bond hopefully.

All of the poicephalus are known for being a bit nervous. For that matter, CAGs are known for being nervous as well. It does get better though. Sydney (my male) now runs to me to be picked up, but I still have to move slowly. Then Sammie (my female) completely freaks out if I wear a ball cap around her or if I wear a jacket.

Mr.Zeeko said:

Thanks everyone for your replies. And to answer your question Crimson, I am in West Etobicoke. Where in Ontario are you? So are senegals typically a nervous bird? Since moving into an apartment, I went for the smaller quiet type and this is the first time for me to have a smaller parrot since used to having CAG. I do miss having the bigger birds tho!!
I just want to understand my fella and make sure I am doing the right things to create a bond hopefully.

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ha ha, small world...I grew up in west Etobicoke. I'm just north of Newmarket, about 45 minutes from you

thekarens said:

All of the poicephalus are known for being a bit nervous. For that matter, CAGs are known for being nervous as well. It does get better though. Sydney (my male) now runs to me to be picked up, but I still have to move slowly. Then Sammie (my female) completely freaks out if I wear a ball cap around her or if I wear a jacket.

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OMG! My daughter has this yellow "despicable me" shirt. It's all yellow with these big ol eyes on the front. She can not wear it around Rio. Rio totally freaks out. I'd never seen her do that before. Usually she is running as my daughter to bite her. But if she wears this shirt, forget it Rio goes in the opposite direction.

Another thing I was wondering about is don't I have to continue to handle my sennie daily so that he stays tame?? This is the part where he usually flys off his cage when I ask him to step up

Yes and no! If he is flying away he is not yet ready to step up, respect his space and spend time with him. Just hanging out with him is a very important part of socializing him. You don't always want to be touched and neither does he. You are still building trust by just being with him and you will find that he will come to you all by himself when he is ready.

SoCalWendy said:

thekarens said:

All of the poicephalus are known for being a bit nervous. For that matter, CAGs are known for being nervous as well. It does get better though. Sydney (my male) now runs to me to be picked up, but I still have to move slowly. Then Sammie (my female) completely freaks out if I wear a ball cap around her or if I wear a jacket.

Click to expand...

OMG! My daughter has this yellow "despicable me" shirt. It's all yellow with these big ol eyes on the front. She can not wear it around Rio. Rio totally freaks out. I'd never seen her do that before. Usually she is running as my daughter to bite her. But if she wears this shirt, forget it Rio goes in the opposite direction.

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Nice to read this. I have a shirt and wen I wear it, Otto is scared and bites me and don't want to come out of his cage. So then that behaviour is a Senegal thing. Good to know Luckely for me there is only one shirt that I can't wear.

I think it helps to go on the birds terms and not to force interaction with them. You don't have to gain their trust by forcing them to be with you - rather, you can gain trust by trying to make everything positive for the bird. Just because an experience is positive for you doesn't mean it is so for the bird.

It can take weeks, if not months, for some frightened/scared birds to come around.

Working with Fearful Parrots: A Study in Videos | Learning Parrots