Got a Femal TAG, is constantly growling

[Raghuveer]

Hello,

 

I have got a TAG for the first time in my life, the breeder told me she is about 11 months old. She wasn't kept in a very conducive or affectionate environment but neither was she abused.

 

Now I have placed her in a 2"x24"24" cage on top of a 7 feet cupboard, as I have got some doggies which are quite boisterous. Its been a week. When anybody gets close to the cage she starts growling and clings to the farthest side. If I continue talking to her or whistling gently she stops growling. I am scared to replenish her food and water, what if she bites. She surely seems nervous. She was with a male earlier. Now she is alone. The dogs barking, different environment, I understand.

1.)But HOW do I get her to feel safe with me.

2.)How do I get her growling to gradually stop?

3.) Is she already too old to be domesticated? Her eyes are very light grey.

 

I am desperately looking out of guideance.

Thanks.

[Char]

#1. She needs a bigger cage.

#2. I would keep the dogs away until she if feeling more secure.

#3. A week is not long enough for he to adjust. Give her time. Give her as peaceful an environment as you can until she has adjusted. Right now just the move has really stressed her. It is going to take a lot of patience on your part to make her feel safe.

 

Put the dogs in another room when you are trying to work with her. Open up the cage door and speak to her softly. Just spend some time sitting near her. She will let you know when she is ready.

 

Changind the food and water is not an option and would not be a problem with a proper size cage.

[judygram]

First things first, the cage is too small for a grey, you need something bigger and not to be placed on top of a cupboard, she needs to be down lower.

 

A week is not long enough for her to get used to you and being in a new home, she needs more time to settle in and having those boisterous dogs around all the time won't help things much. Can you pen the dogs up for a while every day so you can have her out of the cage, she needs some one on one attention from you.

 

Why did you get a grey for if you are afraid she will bite you, that is just part of grey ownership, we get bitten from time to time but she needs her food and water replenished every day or you will starve her to death.

 

She is growling because she is scared and new to her environment, give her time to calm down and continue to talk softly to her and offer her treats. She won't feel completely safe with you until she learns to trust you and you have to earn that.

 

She is still a baby at 11 months of age and it might take a little longer but I think you can work out a reasonable arrangement if you put your all into it.

[Raghuveer]

Sorry, I meant the size: 24"x24"x24"

If this is still small, what do you recommend?

I lock the doggies in another room and talk to her.

But I don't open the cage door as she really gets scared and growls. I am not going to touch her or get near her until she stops growling. I see the size of that beak and I do go intimidated, it could deliver a finger-breaking bite!

 

I am quite curious, what is the "ideal" age for getting a Grey? Even though she is a baby at 11 months, is it a bit late?

 

She is not at all scared of the dogs, she sees them fighting and barking at each other and is totally undisturbed and keeps playing with her toys and roams around in the cage. Its only when any human approaches, she gets scared.

 

Of course I do feed her. I have this ladel in which I scoop up the food and slowly put it in her bowl. I fill up the water from outside the cage.

 

I am ready to give all my time, patience and love. But I do hope that she will be fine and happy soon. Getting her out the cage, this I will seek guidance on when I reach that stage

 

Thank you for all your tips.

[Luvparrots]

Raghuveer, you have already received some good advice. You do need to keep your dogs away from your new grey, what is her name? She is growling because she is afraid and if you are nervous around her she can sense it and become more unsure of her surroundings. So calm down. If she were in a larger cage, one with openings to remove and replace the food and water bowls you wouldn't have to worry about being bitten. You must change her water and food every day or she will get sick. Bring her cage lower so she can see you and talk quietly to her. With the dogs out of the room she will be able to relax and your calming attitude will do wonders for her. She is still a baby looking to you for guidance. You are her flock now. If you are patient and loving you will have a wonderful forever companion. It just takes time and patience.

[Char]

A cage like this is minimum in my opinion.

 

http://www.bird-supplies.net/grey-palace.htm

 

We have a section on cages. Why don't you check out the ones their.

[Dave007]

A breeder takes a much longer time to settle into a family life style. I don't what type of cage you have but the cage should have swing out doors where the bowls sit. This is imoportant because a breeder will bite very easily. If it was a breeder or was kept in a cage with another bird all the time, it'll take quite a while for her to wanna come out. It's only been a week so your bird really knows nothing about you, hubby, kids, surroundings, family habits. All of those things take quite a while for a bird to accept. The cage should be kept in an area where the whole family congregates and talks and does general things. The bird has to constantly see these things in order to accept them. If you have swing out doors, constantly give bird friendly items to him such as nuts, honey balls etc. have a separate bowl for parrot mix and a separate bowl for fruits veggies. See what he likes.Now is not the time to worry about giving the best diet. TAGs are very hardy. Your main concern ios to calm the bird down and make him less aggressive. I wanna tell you that you may be in for some bites because this bird was with another and I have no idea how strong that bond was with the other bird. The growling will eventually stop as you interact with thwe bird more and more. I can see that your bird doesn't trust you at all which is to be expected after only one week in your house.

Don't let the fact that the bird is much olderthan others. I deal with older birds all the time who are nasty and it takes time and patience and you need to comehere and ask questions instead of doing guesswork things.

 

Sory, I thought you said this bird was a past breeder--misunderstanding on my part<br><br>Post edited by: Dave007, at: 2009/07/22 20:07

[Tycos_mom]

24"d x32"wx24" is a minimum size cage for a Grey unless your Grey uses the cage you have strickly for a sleep cage and is out most of the time the cage you have is to small take a look a the cage room on this forum to get some idea's of the size you should have. Your Grey is a baby and you can't be afraid of her of she will sense this fear and be afraid herself if she does bite ignore it push into the bite and theres a very good chance she won't do ot again if your afraid of getting bit then you shouldn't have a Grey or any bird for that matter all birds bite you have to teach the bird that its not exceptable behavour. close your fist up as tight as you cah and offer her the back of your hand up to her beak she won't be able to get a good bite and it may help to break the ice between you and her. I had todo this allot with my Macaw he was cage bound for 5 years and would lunge and bite every chance he could but I won him over and now he's as sweet as can be don't be afraid just try.

[Raghuveer]

But isn't the bite a finger-splitting one? I hear that they can crush a walnut shell? Is that true?

I am generally a bit scared of birds particularly the ones with such beaks. I have had some nasty experience with hawks / falcons, they rip your flesh apart!

 

I will try replenishing her food with my bare hands for a start and not with the spoon!

 

Its late here. I will do it in the morning and post my experience, in case you don't hear from me, then assume that she has got one of my fingers or a part of it !

[judygram]

No their bites are not quite that bad, yes they can bring blood but I don't think they would split a finger open, they could crush an english walnut but that is only if they can get their beak around it but I doubt they could crush a black walnut as they are too hard, now your macaws are a different story altogether.

 

If you show fear she will pick up on that and then she will bite you for sure, you need to not be afraid and when the time comes to try to have her step up then you offer the back of your hand balled up into a fist, she won't be able to get a good hold on the skin because it will be tight. You may just have to suffer a few bites for her to learn you are not going away.

 

Please read and reread Dave007's post as he is very knowledgeable in greys and their behavior, if anyone here knows it is him, he won't steer you wrong.

 

BTW, what is her name?

[danmcq]

Everyone has gievn GreYt advice.

 

Tim, Patience and lots of love coupled with a cage almost 2x that size in all dimensions should bring you new young Grey along nicely. :-)

[Raghuveer]

Hi!

 

Success! With some self-convincing and the monumental support from your posts, I mustered the courage, pulled a chair, climbed on it, spoke to her softly, whistled to her. She was all growls, but I must say, they were a wee bit less deadlier. But the moment I opened the cage door they became a bit stronger and I confess I WAS scared while putting my hand inside getting the food container out. But the moment she saw me taking it out, her growling seemingly reduced. I put her food and placed it back, she only growled when I was positioning the food container around her perch (she had clung to the opposite side of the cage like a bat). Then I saw her seeing the food, I then went to take out her water container, she growled a bit. I washed it, added multivitamin drops and slowly put it back, again she gave short growls. Then I just stood there looking at her and talking to her. She must have been thirsty, she got on the perch had a few sips to slake her thirst but then again went back and clung on the cage. I think I will do this exercise every morning, at least she will associate me with pleasant things. BTW, I observed that the dogs' barking and growling doesn't affect her, she is normally calm whenever they are around.

I am thinking of a name, someone suggested Polly, am thinking Simona, suggestions most welcome. I happened to run in to this web site www.birdtricks.com, is that training worthwhile or just a quack?

 

I will change her cage only when I have formed some bond with her. But I am not going to touch her beak.

 

Should I spray-bathe her at this stage or would it intimidate her further?

Thanks

[ranaz]

Im glad you made some progress, keep it up and u will find improvement every day, just be patient and relax cos she will sence your feelings

Good Luck

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