Senegal and Favorite Person / Behaviors?

[strick1226]

Hi, Everyone,

My wife and I purchased a baby Senegal back in April 2010. He was pretty terrified of us both at first, staying in his wooden shipping box for the first several hours after we picked him up from the airport (he was from a breeder in San Diego and we're in NC).

Over time he became a bit more sociable, but remains far too nippy for my wife's taste. I'm able to get him to step up, lay on his back in my hand (he also lets me preen him with the hard-to-reach pinfeathers around his head etc.), but I'm wondering if he's simply tolerating me.

I ask this as, on the few occasions my wife has allowed him to perch on her arm or shoulder, he seems to become very relaxed, not making much noise, but doesn't look freaked out. He pretty much just "settles in" and hangs out.

In contrast, when I have him perched on one of my hands, he doesn't stay there for very long if I'm not scratching his head--he's *constantly* moving. Crawling up and down my shirt, around my neck, down my back, hanging off the side of my pants with a single foot attached (freaks me out--sometimes he seems to sense this and makes me "catch" him)... but rarely does he settle down. If she's in the room he tends to look her way while on my shoulder but, having clipped wings, is left to find a foot path to her rather than simply fly to her outright.

I've always spent more time with him, always clean his cage out daily, and prepare his food and feed him 4-5 days out of the week. He seems to be excited to see me, and runs over to the gate of his cage in the morning to see me, but I'm wondering if he's not more interested in being around my wife, and that he's really only tolerating me.

I guess what I'm trying to figure out is whether or not he prefers my wife to me--and if so, not a problem. If that's the case, she might be up for spending more time with him, one-on-one. I think her initial "beaky" interactions with him when we first got him upset her a bit and, truth be told, he does get freaked out by some things and will occasionally take a quick nip of the person holding him (I've heard it called transferred aggression or something along those lines).

He occasionally goes into the whole "courtship" mode where he gets really low, holds out his wings and starts trying to regurgitate etc. -- although this really only seems to be with me and, generally only in the mornings.
Then again, he never really seems to ever vocalize anything unless it's with my wife.

We have a pretty good-sized cage for him, feed him a 70/30 blend of Kaytee Exact Rainbow pellets and Fiesta Seed Mix, and supplement with some hand-cut arbol chiles, fresh shredded carrots, and various other veggies (but he doesn't seem to care for anything beyond lettuce, really). We've also tried to keep his cage uncovered for a regular number of hours a day, usually letting him have a chance at 9-10 hours of sleep each night. He receives indirect sunlight as he's near a (non-drafty) window at the front of the house.

He'll regularly Step Up for me directly off the perches in his cage, but only does so for my wife if he first climbs outside it to the top.

So I'm more than a bit confused as to whether or not he's happy with me trying to spend a good hour or so a day with him on my shoulder, doing things about the house, or if I'm only torturing the poor guy if he really only wants to be near my wife. I understand that, parrots being parrots, simply being the one that spends the most time with them does not guarantee you will be their Favorite Person. But, if he really does prefer my wife, I don't think she's ready for the occasional potential bite or lunge (she's never dealt with birds at all before this).

Any ideas or suggestions? I'd like Mr. Skittles to be as happy as he can be!

Thanks in advance for your thoughts,


Steve

 

[weco]

Hello Steve, welcome to the forum.....

You know it's moving into winter in his native Africa, so I'm not sure, but don't think he's showing any mating tendencies...as to preference for you or your wife, does he freely go to you or her more? The stepping up for you right out of the cage may be that your wife has shown him some nervousness about sticking her hand in the cage or his stepping on to her hand sometime in the past.....they do pick up on it if you're nervous & if you let them, some birds will use that to their advantage.....

Does your wife do any out of cage interaction with him when you're not around? If not, that could help strengthen their relationship.....

On the nippiness, does he have limits, or was he just a good little guy & you never had to set any? If that's the case, it may be that you either need to set some limits or refresh those already established.....

From the sound of it, I don't so much think it's a case of just tolerating you as I think your wife shows a bit of nervousness that he picks up on.....that's something she's going to have to work on, especially in her body language toward him, because parrots can read that like a book.....

 

[strick1226]

Hi, weco,

Thanks for your reply!

That's an interesting question, on the out-of-cage interaction... I have him hop up on my hand after First Poop and scratch his head a bit, as he requests with tilting his head forward and holding it in one hand (think Rodin's The Thinker) and then place him on a separate playstand in the dining area while I get his food and water bowls from the cage. I scrub everything down with a little 20:1 GSE mix in a spray bottle we keep for this very purpose, and then get everything ready in his cage for him before I retrieve him from the playstand and place him back in the cage.
In contrast, on the days where my wife has to feed him (when I'm out of town, that sort of thing), she usually lifts up some of the blanket we have covering the cage, and then gets the bowls--basically keeping it pretty dark inside his cage and not interacting with him at all that early in the morning (she removes the cover entirely once his bowls are all secured in the cage). She's had him attack her a few times, for no apparent reason, so that's usually her method.

He tends to be rather protective of his cage, especially in the morning, but I've noticed that it mainly only applies if you approach him from any other direction than the main cage door. Still, I've had him suddenly give my ear a good bite for no reason I could determine when I've had him on my shoulder while cleaning his bowls and getting the food ready. It's mainly due to a couple of those shocking ear bites (with *no* discernible warning signs, visual or audible) that I don't let him sit on my shoulder in the early mornings. Seems to be OK.

Later in the day she will sometimes ask if he wants to come out and, if he indicates yes, she'll ask him to step up and he usually does pretty quickly. She doesn't feel comfortable enough holding him on his back or trying to preen him--so I think you're right that there's some fear involved there, and he may well be picking up on it. (Hey, sometimes the little guy freaks me out, too!) That said, I can't help but notice that, so long as she's not wearing a necklace or earrings, if placed on her shoulder, he tends to stay right there. He shifts his weight a little bit, sitting lower, and looks rather relaxed.

If we're both on the same couch and I bring him over with me it's only a matter of a minute or two until he climbs off me over to her. When he finds a place he likes--arm, chest, shoulder, etc.--he just hunkers down.
He doesn't flip out when I have him step up from there, however--no biting or anything--so that's good. She's able to have him step up just fine, too. But he does seem to fancy her (and so do I--the bird has excellent taste! )

We haven't really done any official training, so maybe that's where we should start. I've heard some good things about the DVD's from Barbara Heidenreich and the Birdtricks stuff, so perhaps we should start there. He's basically been a good little guy, for the most part, and he's really added a wonderful ambiance and cheerful activity to our living room.

I have to admit, I really find birds fascinating. I realize they are very complex creatures, and not as easily cared for or trained as a dog, but also can be incredibly rewarding companions. I don't even mind the mess

 

[Parrotdise]

It sounds to me like he has not really chosen who he likes best yet. I would try to make sure you both spend equal time with him that he remains a two person bird.

 

[Karigan]

Indeed. When a person is a favourite, there is no question. Mating dances, regurgitation, calling for the person, they're pretty clear. I'm not the favourite, but she still loves me as a strong #2. Other people are off and on, though she prefers men to women.

 

[weco]

Well Strick, from your 2nd post, I'm going to go out on a limb and vote against the other two who have also posted & say that Mr. Skittles likes your wife pretty well, but that he's read your wife's hesitations and he's not real sure about all that because other times she does interact with him.....my suggestion would be for you wife to work on her bird confidence & see how that works.....even to playing games with him in a family setting, maybe with a little ball and/or other foot toys.....most birds like games...interaction with flock members is a priority with parrots.....now I could be way off base on this, but if you go back & look at your posts, I'm pretty sure that he's trying to meet your wife half way.....

You could also take him to your vet & have his beak blunted a bit.....maybe that would help your wife's confidence.....doesn't hurt him, but some people feel a whole lot better if they're not facing a sharp beak.....

Good luck.....



Dogs may be smart, but parrots are much smarter.....in fact the origin of "bird Brained" was originally a compliment, until those with less credible grey matter turned it around ! ! !

 

[Parrotdise]

I agree with Weco, that your bird probably will choose you, but i still don't think he has made his mind up. Birds naturally gravitate to who is comfortable with them. The reason why i thought to keep the time as spent with him equally divided is because my bird is a one person bird. He was around a year old when he decided he really didn't like anyone as much. I think he could have been a little more excepting than he is. A Senegal that i had was more social, every birdie is different though. The problem with Sam being such a one person bird is that no one can hardly do anything for him. If am sick or on a vacation he gets angry with my Husband or my Mother, (whom ever takes care of him) he can be aggressive, and often will not eat. He will throw his food out. I have also had some instances where he escaped out of his cage, and i had to leave work to come put him back, no one can touch Sam. If someone gets too close to me when he is out, he sometimes warns with a snapping noise. I had him flight trained but had to clip him because he will fly at people if he doesn't want someone near. He once flew and bit my Mom under the eye. That is the worst of Sam. He is really a good bird, but he expects to have a certain amount of space when he is with me, as long as that is respected he is fine with others. He likes to talk with my Mom & Husband but not really to share me. It worries me to think that no one could really care for him and keep Sam happy if something should happen to me. Socializing really is important with Pio. Another thing you might try for your wife is to have her wear a long sleeved shirt and pull it down over her hand to help with the nipping. Overtime pull the sleeve back until it doesn't need to be used.