Hand-raised birds - false!!!

[Kinny]

Why is it that so many people sell 'hand-raised' birds, and the birds have awful vices! Isn't it the point of hand-raising to tame it down and begin teaching do's and don'ts from an early age? (amongst many other things).

I distinctly remember when I bought a male Jenday Conure a few years ago (I named him Kozue). I paid $400 for him because he was 'hand-raised'. When I went to check him out he seemed quite well-behaved, so I left with him.

The next couple of months were so frustrating! After a few days at home after Kozue had settled in, he began biting us and HARD! He slit my husbands thumb open in fact.. however his biting wasn't aggressive.. it was like as if he thought it was a perfectly ok thing to do, just normal. He had a lovely docile nature, but he just kept biting. Then I told him to step up (which he must have just done as a fluke at his breeders home), and he gave me this odd look... he tried nibbling at my finger, when i said "No, step up." he tried something else. He tried many different things and then put one foot on my finger to inspect it, so i said "Good boy!!! Step up." and he got this bright "OH MY GOSH I DID IT!?" look in his eyes. When he finally stepped up with both feet he got such a praise he was so happy and proud of himself. He stepped up perfectly after that.

I talked to his breeder/hand-raiser, quite dissappointed that he hadn't been taught ANYTHING. She told me he was like her own son, so she let him do anything he wanted, whenever he wanted. She never made him do ANYTHING... >.< Well. Found out ALL she did was hand-feed him, then let him roam as he pleased through her entire house doing what he wanted. If he bit, she just patted him.. so obviously rewarding that behaviour.

I feel so sorry for birds who do bad behaviours thinking it's a 'good and rewarding' behaviour.. Poor Kozue couldn't understand why he was being told off for badly biting people. And he snapped one of our birds necks in half... completely unprovoked... I asked his breeder a series of questions as to why he acted this way, if something had happened when he was younger that he was allowed to get away with... but she avoided my questions and then ignored me.

I just couldn't believe it.. since when I hand-raise i make sure to teach my birds that biting is a no no, screaming is a no no (there are other ways to get attention/what they want), to step up, to have good manners (because when they behave well they get praised and treats... they love it!) and most of all, not to be fearful of people especially hands, and to explore things. I try to teach them that TV remotes and phones are NOT for eating, but that doesn't always work out lol.

Has anyone else noticed this 'trend' of 'hand-raising'? I've checked out many hand-raised birds recently and so many aren't taught ANYTHING! It's not raising at all..just feeding and setting the bird up for a disappointing and confusing start to a new home. I personally find it a minor form of cruelty...

 

[Kinny]

And just so you know,yes, Kozue and the bird he killed had been slowly introduced and been together a long time in the same cage. They got along well and quite enjoyed each others company. My husband was just walking past one day when he noticed Kozue edging upwards so he was slightly above the other bird, then suddenly went straight in for the neck and snapped it.

I've had Jendays before so this behaviour was very strange to me.. :/

 

[DallyTsuka]

see, it is the socialization that matters, not the act of handfeeding itself. that right there is where the problem comes up.


i have 2 handfed birds, one handraised from 14 days and one handraised from birth. the one at 14 days was socialized properly and is a well balanced happy friendly bird to everyone. the one from birth was only fed--not socialized. and it took a long time to earn her trust. she wasnt afraid of hands but she was aggressive towards them as well. birds that are fed but improperly socialized are among the hardest birds to deal with, in my opinion. even more so than untame parent raised or aviary birds. the unsocialized handfed bird has their own set of complications and they can be very difficult to handle and resocialize. thats why i believe a good breeder will properly socialize their babies.

 

[Featheredsamurai]

Hand raised isn't the same thing as a well raised/socialized bird. So sad when they aren't raised right, it makes life hard for them if they aren't in the right home. I can imagine a badly raised bird going from home to home until they finally end up with someone who is parrot savvy and knows how to work with them.

 

[MikeyTN]

Socialization Socialization Socialization!!!! It is absolutely the key, not just in hand feeding itself! Hand fed doesn't mean it's tame, proper socialization does.

 

[Bourkes]

Socialization Socialization Socialization!!!! It is absolutely the key, not just in hand feeding itself! Hand fed doesn't mean it's tame, proper socialization does.

Hand feeding makes the bird unafraid of people.
That can be a BIG problem if the bird is not well socialized.
The most dangerous animals are those that are not afraid of people but not trained.

 

[MikeyTN]

Bourkes,

Some do some don't! Sometimes they're still afraid of the hands depending on each individual bird.

 

[Abigal7]

Why is it that so many people sell 'hand-raised' birds, and the birds have awful vices! Isn't it the point of hand-raising to tame it down and begin teaching do's and don'ts from an early age? (amongst many other things).

I distinctly remember when I bought a male Jenday Conure a few years ago (I named him Kozue). I paid $400 for him because he was 'hand-raised'. When I went to check him out he seemed quite well-behaved, so I left with him.

The next couple of months were so frustrating! After a few days at home after Kozue had settled in, he began biting us and HARD! He slit my husbands thumb open in fact.. however his biting wasn't aggressive.. it was like as if he thought it was a perfectly ok thing to do, just normal. He had a lovely docile nature, but he just kept biting. Then I told him to step up (which he must have just done as a fluke at his breeders home), and he gave me this odd look... he tried nibbling at my finger, when i said "No, step up." he tried something else. He tried many different things and then put one foot on my finger to inspect it, so i said "Good boy!!! Step up." and he got this bright "OH MY GOSH I DID IT!?" look in his eyes. When he finally stepped up with both feet he got such a praise he was so happy and proud of himself. He stepped up perfectly after that.

I talked to his breeder/hand-raiser, quite dissappointed that he hadn't been taught ANYTHING. She told me he was like her own son, so she let him do anything he wanted, whenever he wanted. She never made him do ANYTHING... >.< Well. Found out ALL she did was hand-feed him, then let him roam as he pleased through her entire house doing what he wanted. If he bit, she just patted him.. so obviously rewarding that behaviour.

I feel so sorry for birds who do bad behaviours thinking it's a 'good and rewarding' behaviour.. Poor Kozue couldn't understand why he was being told off for badly biting people. And he snapped one of our birds necks in half... completely unprovoked... I asked his breeder a series of questions as to why he acted this way, if something had happened when he was younger that he was allowed to get away with... but she avoided my questions and then ignored me.

I just couldn't believe it.. since when I hand-raise i make sure to teach my birds that biting is a no no, screaming is a no no (there are other ways to get attention/what they want), to step up, to have good manners (because when they behave well they get praised and treats... they love it!) and most of all, not to be fearful of people especially hands, and to explore things. I try to teach them that TV remotes and phones are NOT for eating, but that doesn't always work out lol.

Has anyone else noticed this 'trend' of 'hand-raising'? I've checked out many hand-raised birds recently and so many aren't taught ANYTHING! It's not raising at all..just feeding and setting the bird up for a disappointing and confusing start to a new home. I personally find it a minor form of cruelty...

The green cheek conure Paulie (I had growing up) fitted the description you are describing. The only difference was he would bite anyone who was not me as hard as possible. He made my dad bleed a couple of times. While I loved him I have to admit the breeder I bought Captain Jack probably put more time into Captain Jack then the breeder mom bought Paulie from. Even my mom noticed this and has made a comment about how Captain Jack is more socialized. I have to agree there has to be socialization and not just hand feeding (weaning) the bird. That is not to say there are some birds with personalities that will make them different and more difficult then the average parrot in their species.

 

[Kinny]

Ah yes! The socialization! A bird without that is not a good pet at all.. :S (everyone has made such good point I don't know how to reply to each of you ^^)

So it is more common than I thought.. Poor birds.

 

[BirdyMomma]

Hi. It is my goal to raise happy, well adjusted parrots. If you all would, please offer me some examples of proper socialization techniques, or things I should be doing. Thank you.

 

[greenthii]

I sadly knew a friend who had a beautiful ringneck, but she didn't want it or knew how to raise it. The cage was so small, and dirty. She told me her family took the poor bird in because of their friends who has birds but the ringneck was too agressive to keep. I told her to just give it to someone that can raise it and she pretty much refused! :/ He was a beautiful creature and I bonded with him for like a week or so and he ended up plucking and died suffocated between two bars from the cage. (Thats what she told me </3) She didn't take care of it because she never asked for one, but her parents left him in that small cage and in a kitchen floor corner for the last couple months of his life. It's just disappointing! If the person who raised it in the first place actually raised it right, it wouldn't be left alone because of the agressiveness. :/

 

[MikeyTN]

Play with them! Have them sit with you and practice step up, teach them to play with toys, hold them and talk to them like the babies they are, hold them, pet them, kiss them, play cute games, everything.....

 

[riaria]

The ideal upbringing would be to let the babies stay with their parents and siblings until after weaning while you still spend time socialising them from an early age. That way, they'll know they're birds and act like birds, but they'll be used to humans and view humans as friends (but not potential mates).

 

[BirdyMomma]

Thank you MikeyTN!

I just wasn't sure if by socialization, maybe you guys meant with other people, or other birds or something.

They get all the snuggling, hugging and playing they can handle

 

[henpecked]

Hi. It is my goal to raise happy, well adjusted parrots. If you all would, please offer me some examples of proper socialization techniques, or things I should be doing. Thank you.

Carry them about ,do things with them, expose them to many different people,places and situations. That's why it takes much more time and effort than just pulling them from the brooder a couple of times a day to feed them.That's why you should always met the bird, handraised means little other than it was pulled from the parents and handfed. Parent raised babies who are properly socialized will make better pets than handfed babies who aren't socialized.

 

[95talongirl]

I would have to agree with this...

There's a huge difference in birds that are socialized and ones that are not. And like mentioned above, parent-raised, but socialized birds can make better pets than hand-raised, non socialized ones!