Abaddon

Thank you again. I've tried to apply that but he wouldn't step up on my hand. If I offer a sunflower seed and he wants it, he will go for it without hesitation and take it from my fingers, so I tried to give one to him with my other hand between him and the seed so he would have to step up to get it but he didn't and he even got away; I think he was scared of my hand that was close to him. I also tried to put it closer so he would have to put just one feet on my hand but same story; and also I've tried to put it in the center of the palm of my hand so he would at least reach out above it, but also no This is a trust issue, isn't it? I imagine this is what I should work on for the next while more than anything. Maybe that's why he doesn't respond to treats too, right? I'll try to work on that the most. If anyone can offer tips or just explain how to do it efficiently, it would be very welcomed. And P.S. another update: I managed to play with him today, yay! (he basically chased my hand with his beak )

Thank you all so so much! you've already helped me so much. Things have already been going way better since I realized it's a trust thing and already on the day I posted the OP he came over to me and asked me to pet him quite a bit, which is just amazing! And Devin, I love the thread you made. You made a point to take him everywhere I go and I would love that but how should I do that? like, how would I carry him? and how can I desensitize the experience for him because he is very scared when he goes out of my room (as things stand he's actually in my room with me all day, I work, and he's on the top of his cage which is just a meter away.. although recently he's been explorative and going over to my bed and nightstand). I would really love to keep him actually on me by the way, and I tried that a lot when he was younger, but he keeps trying to get on the desk and to chew on cables (there's also him taking a crap but that's okay.. kind of ). He wouldn't just chill with me, unfortunately for me. I would really love to be able to do those kind of stuff with him; before I even got him this is exactly what I had planned for, but I'm not sure how to make this happen. Any thoughts? P.S. I'd love to train him to get up on my hand/arm, and just stay and relax when he's with me but as I mentioned, he doesn't respond to treats (maybe it's because of his age? does that make sense?).

Thank you! will do! Nope, I never use any or anything like that. Thank you. According to the breeder I reckoned trust would be pretty much established from hand-feeding, is it not the case? well, to be honest maybe my OP is the answer to that is it okay at the very least to put him in his cage? he really doesn't like it and he's usually screaming for the first second. If not then I need a way to do it because I do it out of necessity (not punishment e.g. when I can't supervise he won't get himself in danger, which is only when I leave the house or go to sleep). I really wished I could use a treat to lure him but as I mentioned, he couldn't care less. And on top of that I'm just wondering, what can I do to build trust with him when I can't really have interactions with him? (no petting, no feeding, no playing..)

Hey everyone! new here. New to having a parrot as well actually. I got an African Grey not too long ago, just a couple of months or so, when he was a couple of months old or so as well (and had the joy of hand-feeding ). So, he's about 4 months old now, and before I got him I read up a lot about Greys, and then it turned out that.. well, not much is immediately practical. I read about making a reward system like clicker-training and so on, about behavior, playing, and so on, but it doesn't really work; I assume because of his age (the breeder who offers support mentioned something along those lines as well). He doesn't really respond. But if as he grows up, I'll do a poor job because I'm really not certain about what to do. I'm even concerned because as it stands, he doesn't do much all day long, just hangs out on the roof and inside his cage, chirps every now and then, climbs around every now and then, and I'm not sure what kind of mental stimulation to offer him. Little did I know, every single toy I got him was a chewing toy . I would be really excited to do some training with him but he doesn't really respond to treats (I tried a lot): he wouldn't take anything directly from me, I'd have to put it in his bowl and he might eat it then or later. The only exception is sunflower seeds (which I know not to give him much of) but I don't think that's much of a reward to him, sometimes he wouldn't move just a bit to get it. The thing that's hard on me the most is that he avoids my touch. If I try to pet him even for a tiny bit he'll do everything to move away. Every now and then he might let me pet him for a few seconds but then move away again (and then scratch; he almost always scratches after I pet him at the place I did ._. maybe I'm doing it wrong? although I kept experimenting, I'm really not sure). Does any of this sound normal at all? this kind of information is so surprisingly scarce (even online). I would really appreciate help! Thank you! Cheers.