Encouraging toy use

[Aidenb]

I finally brought home my little senegal. She hatched January 12, 2014 and I've had the benefit of knowing and handling her since may 1, 2014 and brought her home 5 days ago. She's a very loving bird and already pretty strongly bonded to me but we're working on her with my partner and family. The issue that I'm having is that since coming home, she doesn't want to play with her toys (she has 6 of varying sized and components from wood to plastic to rope etc...). She just seems to only want to come out and just sit with me and watch tv or whatever other activity I'm doing. Any tips on getting her to use her toys for when I'm not home? I've tried showing her what to do with various toys but she doesn't want to, she just sits on her favorite perch until I'm home.

 

[weco]

Hello Aiden, welcome to the forums, hope you enjoy your stay.....unlike puppies & kittens that will often find their own play things.....with our feathered friends they usually have to be shown how to play with a toy & that's where you as their teaching flock member comes in...if it's a noise maker, show her how to make it make noise, or if it's a chew toy, playing drag around or tease often get's a bird interested, if it's a chew toy, you'll have to figure that one out, but when you're in this new learning/teaching mode, you want to be vocal and animated about it...make it fun & they usually get interested quickly, but some things we humans might consider fun toys, your discerning parrot might think it below their interest level.....good luck.....

 

[Aidenb]

Seems I posted this too soon. While I was gone for a few hours this morning she discovered her toys and there's tons of chunks missing out of all the wood pieces in the toys.

 

[weco]

Seems I posted this too soon. While I was gone for a few hours this morning she discovered her toys and there's tons of chunks missing out of all the wood pieces in the toys.

Even after having some chunks missing, if she doesn't play with all the others, watching you play with them will still help.....

 

[Aidenb]

Yup will do.