I don't wanna be a ringneck's chewtoy! D:

[purnin]

If you didn't see my first post on these forums, my grandmother found a female ringneck parrot and we haven't been able to find its owner, so I've adopted her and named her Bailey.

She settled in marvelously - during the short car trip from my Grandmother's to my home she sat in the corner of the cage and cuddled up to my hands through the cage cover. Once she was put in a larger cage (with only one bite but hey, you're a parrot in a brand new situation away from your owners, you'd bite too) she immediately began exploring, eating fruit and a bit of seed and playing with the toys I bought.

She's perfectly happy to take fruit from my hands through the cage wire, and even when she's out of the cage. She has only been out of the cage twice so far. The first time, she was a complete angel - she immediately climbed out, got some apple from my hand and flew onto the top of her cage to eat. She got lots of attention and treats from my brother and myself, only bit very lightly as she was exploring. She sat on my head a fair bit and played with my hair. She sat on us of her own accord which I was really happy with. Bailey is a good birdy!

Today, I let her out of the cage by herself, and it was like she was the devil incarnate. She came out of her cage straight away, had a treat, then flew onto my head and started biting my face. I did my best to ignore it (though a few REALLY hard bites made me cry out but I tried not to give Bailey any attention for biting, though it was really hard). I've found out that she does not like to step up onto hands, or perch on people unless she thinks of the idea.

Now, she has been through a lot, so I am of course not expecting any miracles. Since she has only been out of the cage here twice, I know I have only just begun. I know I'll have to persevere with taming her but I just want some advice on a few things.

1. When she bites, is ignoring the best thing to do?
2. Her favourite perch in my room seems to be my head. Which is cute, but I am wondering if it is a sign she is trying to assert herself as my boss? Should I let her do this, and if not, what can I do about it?
3. How would I go about getting her to "step up"? I would like her to be happy to sit on my hands.
4. How would I go about luring Bailey back into her cage? I want to keep the initial out-of-cage sessions relatively short so I can minimise stress. But picking her up seems like a bad idea until she gets used to my hands, as then she'll associate hands with end-of-playtime.

Also, would anybody be able to point me in the direction of some useful resources on this kind of thing? I want to do this right, and hopefully become good friends with Bailey. Words of encouragement would also be good

PS: I'm also looking for an online store that sells pellets for her to eat. I'm in Australia, so I'll need an Aussie site as I doubt customs would let the pellets through.

 

[parrotqueen]

1. When she bites, is ignoring the best thing to do?

Arguably... some people think that it is best to ignore it while other people give the parrot a nudge when it bites. Every bird is different.

2. Her favourite perch in my room seems to be my head. Which is cute, but I am wondering if it is a sign she is trying to assert herself as my boss? Should I let her do this, and if not, what can I do about it?

I'm not exactly sure about how to fix this. Pineapple had a similar problem (he wanted on the top of his cage, he was cage aggressive/possessive), and I dealt with it by immediately removing him from the cage and putting him elsewhere. He eventually understood.

3. How would I go about getting her to "step up"? I would like her to be happy to sit on my hands.

There is a lot to explain as to fixing this problem, I suggest going to Birdtricks.com and watching some of Chet Womach's videos on youtube--he has an entire stream of helpful videos.

4. How would I go about luring Bailey back into her cage? I want to keep the initial out-of-cage sessions relatively short so I can minimise stress. But picking her up seems like a bad idea until she gets used to my hands, as then she'll associate hands with end-of-playtime.

Agreed, getting her used to your hands first will work best. In the meantime, I'm not exactly sure. Someone else will probably help with that.

 

[antoinette]

Hi there, I recall your post, I guess no luck with the owner's contacting you.
Always lots of question, when becoming a guardian.
Go into a post called "gaining a birds trust", such great advise, and tips given.
Sure many of your questions, will be answered.
Anything further, ask and we will try and assist you.
Good luck with Bailey.

 

[purnin]

Thanks a lot, both of you!

I'll check out that thread right now.

 

[Spiritbird]

I usually suggest to forum members with many questions to get the book Parrots for Dummies (not suggesting you are). It has a huge amt. of information. Instead of your hands you can try step up on perches when you are wanting to put her back in the cage. Do you have a parrot stand to use for her when she flies on your head? You could always wear a hat that would confuse her. The other suggestion is a check up with an avain vet may be in order if you have not done this already. I guess you already have lots of toys for her to play with and tear. How about foraging? Please google the site Parrot Enrichment to get lost of ideas. We need to remember our parrots are not pets - they are still wild critters and need for us to provide for the missing link (nature) as best we can.

 

[platinumbid]

I also recently (about a month ago) took in a lost bird. We named her Rain, and she's a Plumheaded Parakeet, a smaller bird in the ringneck family.

1. When she bites, is ignoring the best thing to do?

It's what we did, and her bites have become much less frequent. For a couple days, we'd be holding her and all of a sudden she'd bite, pretty much out of no where. We ignored it, and it stopped.
2. Her favourite perch in my room seems to be my head. Which is cute, but I am wondering if it is a sign she is trying to assert herself as my boss? Should I let her do this, and if not, what can I do about it?

Rain does exactly the same thing. With her, it seems to be less about dominance (this is the only time she tries to get "higher" than me) and more about playing in my hair. I usually don't allow it anyways.
3. How would I go about getting her to "step up"? I would like her to be happy to sit on my hands.

Rain stepped up okay from the first day, so I don't have any advice.
4. How would I go about luring Bailey back into her cage? I want to keep the initial out-of-cage sessions relatively short so I can minimise stress. But picking her up seems like a bad idea until she gets used to my hands, as then she'll associate hands with end-of-playtime.

Rain never wants to go back. Does Bailey have a favourite treat? We've found if we show her a sunflower seed, then put it in the cage, she hops right in.

 

[purnin]

I bought her a playgym and am trying to teach her that playgym perch = good. She is currently alternating between her playgym treat bowl and my head, so that's a start.

I've found out that she seems to understand "up". So that is really good. Currently using the sleeve of my hoodie as protection, and I plan on slowly showing my hands. We are making progress slowly. She is still biting, but I mean, it has only been a little while.

My friend thinks that her squawks sound an awful lot like lorikeets, rather than ringnecks. I wouldn't be surprised if she was kept with them, as there are some wild lorikeets around in the neighbourhood, and she is VERY interested in the sounds they are making.

Bailey is currently happily eating from her treat bowl and NOT attacking me, so that is a good sign. She was startled by a crow just as I was writing this, flew around the room and landed on my head, but was happy to be led back to the playgym. I am feeling more optimistic today.

I found an interesting website that has an AMAZING selection of parrrot toys and accessories, so I am going to be ordering some foraging toys on pay day. I got some parrot toys from the petshop and she seems to love all of them actually, though I don't think they will survive her shredding beak. For now she gets lots of newspaper and peanuts and stuff like that to keep her busy.

 

[antoinette]

All it takes is time and patience, great progress is being made.
Most birds love the playpen, I guess it's much like a kid's jungle gym.
Keep up the great work, you are doing a wonderful job with Bailey.
Keep us updated with the progress.

 

[Spiritbird]

Good job Purnin. By the way the toys are supposed to be shredded. After learning the type of toys my bird likes I now make most of them. It is fun too. Save the bought ones to recycle into new toys.

 

[HRH Di]

Definitely start making your own toys. They're sooooo expesive if they're premade, but the "ingredients" are relatively cheap. My birds have recently discovered those hollow plastic Easter eggs that you can put things in. It's a treasure hunt for them and they love the foraging toys.