At what point...help

[doubletefarm]

Do I push my luck?

 

Sydney has been with me for over a month.. Probably two? Since my birthday ( April 30) or thereabouts.

When I first got him he was stepping up, I could move him out of his cage, etc. He would make a loud squawk sound, but do it nonetheless.

Now we did have a minor setback where his cage was open and I needed him back in, so I attempted to have him step up on a perch that he clearly wanted nothing to do with, and he got scared, etc. That took three days to get "over".

 

Now he gets his cage opened, and he comes out and plays on his cage. If he flops off (wings clipped still), he waits for me to come get him, and willing steps up so I can place him back on his desired location. He takes treats from me (whether he eats them or not depends on whether he wanted that particular treat).

 

He is two years old, and obviously had some issues at his last home.

 

 

But he seems to be regressing. In the beginning he would actually step up. Now if I mention it he makes aloud noise and backs away. I think this is cage territoriality. Because honestly he doesn't leave his cage.

 

Next time he flops off his cage, do I take that chance to move him into the bathroom and do some socializing? Do I towel him and move him into the bathroom? When I visited him at his prior owner, he was used to being toweled. I feel like his has totally regressed and become an unsocialized bird.

He is also just becoming very territorial I think because he never leaves his cage. He speaks quite frequently, makes tons of noises, and repeats my hello, good boy, and I love you. So he seems "comfortable" to a point, but his feathers still shake when I get too close, and when I was putting his food dish in the other day and he was on his cage door he did attack me. I wasn't bothered by it, but it seemed to freak him out because he flopped to the ground, and once he stepped up and I put him back in the cage he was squawking.

 

I'm just not sure where to go from here. I'm in it with him for the long haul, I just would LOVE to be able to get a play stand for him and have him actually use it. And would love to get a cage on my deck that I can actually put him in. I've found several I could go buy, but passed them up because frankly I can't get him moved out of the one he's in.

 

I adore my bird, and know that part of this is my inexperience, but I'm trying to figure out how to make it work with him. He's only 2, and I'd like him to live a great life. That doesn't seem to me confined to his cage or that general area.

I did get him some new toys from Nalani toys, and he loves them. I knew he would because pretty much all bright toys he accepts. He's not a "shy" bird from what I can tell. Anything bright intrigues him, and if it has a bell on it all the better!!!!

I hope that fills in a bit. I'm just not sure where to go. Whether to keep opening his cage and letting him decided or not. It isn't getting better- it seems he is getting worse and less willing to allow me near him. So that doesn't seem like the right route to me.

 

Help!

[Tycos_mom]

I got a Severe Macaw about 6 0r7months ago that was totally cage bound and had been for severel years at least 5 yrs his owner developed a severe alergy to him after her cance treatments and instead of rehoming him she locked him up inhis cage in a room all by himself his leg band says 01 so he is 8 yrs old and i'm pretty sure she didn;t have him long before she got cancer. Any way when I got him he was in terrible shape not sick but had not bean taken care of well total sead diet never bathed and no interaction with humans for a very long time. Its been a while since I've had him and he's gotten allot better but up until a couple of days ago he still would not step foot off his cage sometimes he would sit on top but he never leave it and if I asked him to step up he would run into his cage or try and bite me. So I decided I was going to take his cage away from him completely I bought him a playstand that is like a cage only with no bars. (i'll Post a pic) and put all his favorite toys on it. Then I put him on it which was no easy task let me tell you. but since then he steps up no problem. he comes looking for me when he wants some attention he loves for me to give him scritches he's molting and he just loves me to pinch all those pins coming in on his neck and head. the first 2 nights I let him sleep on the playstand the third night I moved him to the top of his cage which is in another room from the playstand but I locked the cage door so he could not go in. last night I opened his cage door and let him sleep inside and let me tell you this morning he couldn't step up fast enough for me to get him onto his play stand tonight I put him in his cage again for bed and he actually said to what are you doing I said its bed time he said why why you doing this he was upset to have to be put in his cage to sleep. He has become a totally different bird in less than a week its almost like someone switched birds on me in the middle of the night. don't know if this will work for a Grey It was just an experiment that I wanted to try because I hated see in me bird being in prison and afraid to leave it so I wanted to show him there was more to life than the way it was. This is a picture of the playstand I got for him its like a cage but it has no bars. Like I said this was just an experiment it worked really well for my bird better than I could have ever asked for but It may not work for yours but it might you never know.

 

Post edited by: Tycos_mom, at: 2009/06/25 07:32

 

Post edited by: Tycos_mom, at: 2009/06/25 07:37<br><br>Post edited by: Tycos_mom, at: 2009/06/25 07:57

[danmcq]

Pat has given a very good solution to dealing with cage aggression and possessiveness.

 

The only way you can deal with a bird at any close level is to get them away from their cage completely and I mean so they can no longer see it or they will still obsess on nothing but wanting to get back to that cage.

 

I am not certain toweling would be a good method move him, only because it is probably associated with very bad memories from his previous home.

 

The easiest way to get him to another room would be to wait until he goes to the floor and needs help getting back back. Use that opportunity to take him elsewhere.

 

The point is to gradually teach the bird that nothing bad happens when it is with you, despite it leaving the safety of its cage. Never force the issue of close interaction and always observe his body language for clues to your next step. If he begins to look frightened, immediately back off, allow him to relax, then begin again.

 

Ever so gently nudge at the envelope, but never push him too far or too fast. After all, you have years to enjoy together, so a few weeks either way will not matter in the end.

 

What does matter is that he learns that you respect his feelings and are willing to take the time to earn his trust.

[doubletefarm]

That sounds very reasonable. He made such awful squawking sounds in his prior home that he was clearly unhappy, and I really want him to be happy and trust me.

 

I'm thinking I'm going to buy a small playstand that I can move with me, wherever I go. So that in the opportunity of him flopping off his cage, I can move the playstand and take him with me. He trusts me enough now that he doesn't even make a squeak (he used to squawk like he did in his last home every time) when he comes toward me to step up from the floor. Not a peep, just total look of "oh good, you're right there".

[Tycos_mom]

you can do that but what happens at the end of the day. your going to lock him back in his cage. Then wait till he flops down on the floor again to put him on the little stand. I think its going to take him quite awhile before he understands if he's cagge aggresive. It will work allot faster if you can keep him out of that cage completelty for a few days mabie you could set up a sleeping perch somewhere in a corner of a room up a little higher some place where he can see the whole room but has the shelter of 2 walls around him and use it as a place for him to sleep. He will get over his cage aggretion allot faster this way. After a week or so you maybe able to use his cage as a sleep cage again but at first I would try to take that cage totally away from him.