After the honeymoon

[Jumpingtadpoles]

As a new parrot owner, I hear all the time "the honeymoon period"
What in wondering is what everyone else experienced?
During the honeymoon what was your parrot like?
What about after the honeymoon ended? What made you realize it was over, and how did you deal with that? Especially the first situation?

 

[Kiwibird]

I think comparing a new parrot (whether hand reared or adopted) to a new baby is a better comparison. It's love at first sight paired with all the hopes and dreams for the future. You are nervous about EVERYTHING, scared of doing something wrong and and (probably) driving the AV nuts. After a few days-weeks, you realize your feathery bundle of joy is loud, messy, sometimes bites you. After a few months of this, now your starting to worry about them hitting the right milestones- stepping up, coming out of the cage willingly, are they grunting or trying to say "hello"?, potty training ext.... After a few years, the newness has worn off, and they've settled into a routine. They are now like a toddler....a toddler with a big beak and wings who will never grow up and will always be a little "naughty". Still, even after you've found them chewing up the baseboards, used your finger as a chew toy or they've flung food 10' away from their cage, you still love them UNCONDITIONALLY, because really, who couldn't love that feathery face

 

[Girl4Jesus83]

Very well put kiwibird

 

[MonicaMc]

Wait, you mean there's a honeymoon period???? Ô.o


Seriously though, I don't think there is truly a "honeymoon" period, and it shouldn't be called as such. When birds arrive in a new environment they may be too terrified to do anything, so it may appear like a honeymoon, but once they start feeling safe, they start coming out of a "daze" and communicating. When people fail to respond accordingly to the birds physical communications, they get bit.


When I adopted all three conures I've had, I can't say I went through any kind of honeymoon like phase with them. My first conure wanted nothing to do with me, my second conure didn't want to leave my side even though several hours earlier in the day he wanted nothing to do with me, and my third conure was in the middle. She wanted to be with me but was too terrified to be with me.

Although my first conure never really was a hands on kind of bird, we did develop a special kind of understanding of each other. I knew what he liked and disliked and even though he couldn't stand being with me for more than a few moments, he'd still come running to me when I asked him to step up.

My second conure.... well, he's still pretty much stuck to me like glue! He doesn't have to be on me *all* the time, but he doesn't warm up to new people very well unless they take time with him frequently to earn his trust, and not many people will.

Third conure? Glue #2!!!! More so than second conure! LOL She had some insecurities to get over, but now she follows me around a lot and wont go off exploring very far from me! If I get up to move, she'll fly to me!



Most of my little birds that I've taken in haven't been tame so they mostly didn't want anything to do with me, either!