Help me please with my Canary Winged Parakeet

[MrBird]

I would like information about canary winged parakeets. I got one about two weeks ago. S/He. Seems very afraid of me. S/he climbs up on top of his cage. When I approach him he flies to the floor. Wings were clipped. I try to get him to step up on my hand but he wont. I have to scoop him up. He will stay and step up to the other hand a couple of times. But then flutters away. He doesn't bite. He eats and drinks good but doesn't play at all. What have I done wrong?

 

[noodles123]

Re: Help me please, my Canary-Winged Bebe is going crazy.

I would like information about canary winged parakeets. I got one about two weeks ago. S/He. Seems very afraid of me. S/he climbs up on top of his cage. When I approach him he flies to the floor. Wings were clipped. I try to get him to step up on my hand but he wont. I have to scoop him up. He will stay and step up to the other hand a couple of times. But then flutters away. He doesn't bite. He eats and drinks good but doesn't play at all. What have I done wrong?

Mr. Bird, you have not had your bird long enough and you haven't built trust. Follow the bird's lead- don't scare it (even if you don't think you are "scary", if your bird is moving away of trying to fly away, then you are). You need to take it slow and establish trust. Birds are nothing like dogs or cats in terms of behavior or time-line. Get acquainted with the body language so that you can better read your bird. When you scare then, you destroy trust. It isn't too late or anything, but don't assume that a few weeks is anywhere close to enough to to have established a bond. Parrots are very smart and sensitive-- you are new, as is your house and its cage...Imagine if you adopted a traumatized 4 year old and you will get the idea.

 

[fiddlejen]

Here is a short cute video about gaining a parakeet's trust.

The bird in the video is a budgie, but really, this would certainly apply to your bird as well.

Recently a local petstore near me had a couple of canary-winged. They both seemed exceedingly timid; one moreso than the other. And someone else on this forum acquired a canary-wing not so long before that, which was also somewhat fearful. I wonder if perhaps they are all from the same breeder, perhaps with a rather timid parent? (Just speculation of course.)

Anyway budgies are notoriously timid, so the steps in this video will definitely apply and should be helpful:

[ame="https://youtu.be/ty0xbiPduYg"]https://youtu.be/ty0xbiPduYg[/ame]

 

[wrench13]

Hi Mr Bird, welcome and be welcomed.

You have a Brotogeris chiriri, aka Yellow chevroned parrot or parakeet. I had one, Max 7 years ago. THey are great little parrots. They are one of the few parrots in the wild that will actually seek out human companions and are a favorite pet in their native range. THey are small but think they are the size of macaws, intensely curious and absolutely fearless. Give your little guy time. With parrots ( and he is all parrot), yo have to proceed at his pace and not at the pace of your expectations. One key s bribery with their favorite treats. Please let us know his daily diet, so a treat can be recommended. I use very small pieces of pine nuts for training my small amazon parrot Salty, you might try those ( they are not in the usual parrot or parakeet seed mixes) and most parrot love them. You want to drop a treat every time you pass his cage, so he learns that good things come from humans. You want to build trust, so anything that might break that is to be highly avoided.

FYI Canary winged parrots and their cousin used to be the #1 parrot imported into the US a long time ago, but have dropped in their popularity in recent decades. They really are a great parrot companion. They can learn to whistle even better than cockatiels and even say a few words, tho thats rare. They love to play with toys. Collect colored plastic bottle caps and put a handful in his cage, he will love them.

Now that you know the correct name, you;ll be able to search stuff on line for his species.

My Max was a tiny mush ball, loved getting scratches and cuddling. He would fall asleep in my hand often. If you can , have his cage near or at the family dinner table and have meals with him, they love that and it enforces that he is part of your flock now.!

 

[wrench13]

Broto, Pocket Parrot, BeeBee Parrot, Tovi Parakeet - these are but a few of the names given to the charming family of birds otherwise known as Brotogeris Parakeets or Brotos for short.

Brotogeris parakeets make excellent companion birds. They are intelligent and curious, playful and clownish, affectionate and charming. Smaller than a Cockatiel, they are about 7-9" from head to tail, with predominantly green feathers. Depending on the species, they also have varying markings of yellow, white, blue, orange, and grey on their wings and head.

The most commonly recognized member of the Brotogeris genus are the Grey-cheeked parakeets. Grey-cheeked parakeets have been the most common of the Broto species kept as pets. They were imported by the thousands until the late 1980's. Because they were so plentiful and inexpensive, very few were set up to breed. As serious Broto breeders have discovered in the past 5-10 years, Grey-cheeks are inconsistent and problematic breeders, and very few young are being produced - not nearly enough to replace the older imported birds who are now dying at an increasing rate. Sadly, owners who were devoted to their now-deceased Grey-cheeks are finding it difficult, if not impossible, to find another one.

Many of these former grey-cheek owners are now discovering the similarly charming and intelligent Canary-winged parakeet, another of the Brotogeris species. Canary-winged parakeets are similar in size to grey-cheeks, and share the same endearing qualities. Their feathers are a lighter and brighter lime green, with yellow wing feathers as their species-specific identifier. Another unique identifier Canary-wings possess are big, bright eyes. Canary-winged parakeets make wonderful pets, and some think that many individuals are better talkers and have a more analytical aspect to their intelligence than the Grey-cheeks.

 

[Ijistcantsayno]

I would like information about canary winged parakeets. I got one about two weeks ago. S/He. Seems very afraid of me. S/he climbs up on top of his cage. When I approach him he flies to the floor. Wings were clipped. I try to get him to step up on my hand but he wont. I have to scoop him up. He will stay and step up to the other hand a couple of times. But then flutters away. He doesn't bite. He eats and drinks good but doesn't play at all. What have I done wrong?

FINALLY! Someone that has the same species!

They are curious little birds. Give him time to settle in without trying to touch him. He needs to know that your not going to try to eat him before you start to work on stepping up. I personally prefer letting them teach themselves to step up. Sounds crazy right? I promise, it’s not. The end goal is usually a bird (or any pet really) that WANTS to be with you. How do you achieve that? By being a source of “good”. That means that unless it is a true emergency or safety issue don’t force anything. With the right treat, patience, and understanding from you he will come around eventually. But first he needs to feel safe and secure in his new home.

I have had Kiwi just over 6 weeks and he went from terrified to thinking I’m his jungle gym. Because I gave him the space and patience he needed. He went from timid to absolutely all about running crazy all over me. Once he started taking treats the rest just happened. I didn’t force him, I didn’t even do more than offer a perch for him to step on and hold a sunflower seed. He did the rest.


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[wrench13]

I would like information about canary winged parakeets. I got one about two weeks ago. S/He. Seems very afraid of me. S/he climbs up on top of his cage. When I approach him he flies to the floor. Wings were clipped. I try to get him to step up on my hand but he wont. I have to scoop him up. He will stay and step up to the other hand a couple of times. But then flutters away. He doesn't bite. He eats and drinks good but doesn't play at all. What have I done wrong?

FINALLY! Someone that has the same species!

They are curious little birds. Give him time to settle in without trying to touch him. He needs to know that your not going to try to eat him before you start to work on stepping up. I personally prefer letting them teach themselves to step up. Sounds crazy right? I promise, it’s not. The end goal is usually a bird (or any pet really) that WANTS to be with you. How do you achieve that? By being a source of “good”. That means that unless it is a true emergency or safety issue don’t force anything. With the right treat, patience, and understanding from you he will come around eventually. But first he needs to feel safe and secure in his new home.

I have had Kiwi just over 6 weeks and he went from terrified to thinking I’m his jungle gym. Because I gave him the space and patience he needed. He went from timid to absolutely all about running crazy all over me. Once he started taking treats the rest just happened. I didn’t force him, I didn’t even do more than offer a perch for him to step on and hold a sunflower seed. He did the rest.


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See- I told ya they are really fearless and curious. Glad that he is warming up to you!

 

[Ijistcantsayno]

I would like information about canary winged parakeets. I got one about two weeks ago. S/He. Seems very afraid of me. S/he climbs up on top of his cage. When I approach him he flies to the floor. Wings were clipped. I try to get him to step up on my hand but he wont. I have to scoop him up. He will stay and step up to the other hand a couple of times. But then flutters away. He doesn't bite. He eats and drinks good but doesn't play at all. What have I done wrong?

FINALLY! Someone that has the same species!

They are curious little birds. Give him time to settle in without trying to touch him. He needs to know that your not going to try to eat him before you start to work on stepping up. I personally prefer letting them teach themselves to step up. Sounds crazy right? I promise, it’s not. The end goal is usually a bird (or any pet really) that WANTS to be with you. How do you achieve that? By being a source of “good”. That means that unless it is a true emergency or safety issue don’t force anything. With the right treat, patience, and understanding from you he will come around eventually. But first he needs to feel safe and secure in his new home.

I have had Kiwi just over 6 weeks and he went from terrified to thinking I’m his jungle gym. Because I gave him the space and patience he needed. He went from timid to absolutely all about running crazy all over me. Once he started taking treats the rest just happened. I didn’t force him, I didn’t even do more than offer a perch for him to step on and hold a sunflower seed. He did the rest.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

See- I told ya they are really fearless and curious. Glad that he is warming up to you!

You were 100% spot on! It’s crazy how smart, curious, and observant these birds are! And if “warming up” you mean being treated as his own person play stand, then yes, he is definitely warming up to me. He seems to think my glasses (while I’m wearing them) are the best perch in the house.


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