New bird owner, several questions!

[Gorndt]

Hey guys. I just got my first bird, a 4-month-old African Gray yesterday. I have a few questions to make sure I'm taking good care of him. I hope you can help me!

 

1. First and foremost, I'm not sure that he's eating unless I feed him. I have yet to see him eat out of his bowl, though he will eat on his own as long as he gets the food out of my hand. This also, disturbingly, goes for drinking. I haven't seen him drink out of the bowl yet, but he's happy as a clam to drink off my finger after I dip it in water. At the pet store they said he was weaned. Any advice on how to get him started on bowls?

 

2. Any tips on training him to step up?

 

3. How should I bathe him at first? My girlfriend works in a lab with birds and there they just use a spraybottle and spray them, but most parrot owners I know of just sorta put them in the bath with a half inch of water.

 

4. Some people have told me that birds like to stand up high to assert dominance over their owners. My bird is constantly trying to get to the top of the cage. Should I be worried? Should I try to stop him?

 

I think that's all my questions for now. I hope you guys can help me (And Leto) out!

[judygram]

Leto is adorable, thanks for sharing a pic of him with us and others will be along shortly to help you with your questions so be patient and good things will come.

[Eckobird]

1.) Have you showed him where his food bowl and water is? What were they feeding him at the pet store? Are you feeding him the same thing? Have you tried giving him cooked veggies? You can also try to give him oatmeal as a comfort food. Some greys like oatmeal like my CAG but some don't like it at all.

 

2.) Before you pick him up put your finger out by his feet and say step up over and over again so he gets use to those words. Show him what you mean by putting his feet on your finger.

 

3.) You can bathe him however you want to, just make sure to bathe him atleast 3 times a week. You can mist him with a spray bottle, or put him in the bath tub, or put him under the shower. Aloe vera juice is a good thing to have to spray him after a shower. It helps with itchy skin and feathers. You can purchase it by the gallon at Walmart in the pharmacy section.

 

4.) You don't need to stop him going to the top of the cage, how else will he learn how to climb. He will eventually get good at it but for now I would be towels at the bottom of the cage to make it softer in case he does fall.

 

Good luck with Leto, he is a beautiful little grey, I love the picture. <br><br>Post edited by: caitb2007, at: 2009/08/04 17:41

[Gorndt]

Thank you very much! I'll definitely take all of your advice. Another thing I noticed is that he was super friendly the first day but today he's acting much more aloof and seems to want alone time. I assume this is probably normal.

[Dave007]

Your bird's new home should seem absolutely calming. It's a new beginning for your new older bird and, often, improved behavior is generated spontaneously.

I really don't know if your bird is clipped. A second-hand bird often benefits from allowing his wings to re grow. During the new days in your home, provide your bird hiding opportunities by covering part of his cage with a towel, usually the back of the cage and no more that 8 inches on the top. This provides a bird the ability to go into aan area that hhe can go into Be nurturing, supportive and consistent. Don't handle the bird until he shows interest in you and any other person there. Parrots are curious and eventually they get to that point, Give some food that most parrots can't resisit. Such as nuts, maybe some oatmeal ( flavored). Don't try step-ups from the cage unless your bird first enjoys step-ups in unfamiliar territory. He'll let you know. Again it's curiousity.

Newly-adopted parrot might eat nothing but seeds. This is similar to adopting

a kid who eats only French fries. Begin mixing a good-quality manufactured diet with what the bird has been eating, gradually replacing seeds with balanced nutrition but don't push it. He may not eat every good thing you feed him. Lots of birds do that and they're still alive and kicking

Eventually, offering warm veggies is an excellent bonding experience but on the other hand he may like cold stuff. Onlt time will tell. If your bird is aggressive but can be some what handled, hold him as much as possible in the first days -usually a hand-held perch. Repeat and reinforce any interactions that both you and your bird enjoy, preferably including step-ups. Be playful! Your bird's enjoyment is most important here. When he shows disinterest walk away.

Changing homes can be unsettling to a shy and also an aggressive bird. An extremely fearful bird can be the most significant behavioral challenge in parrot rehabilitation. Cover part of the cage for a while. Situate the cage at chest level or a bit higher., then raise it until your bird seems most at ease. Greys like high spots and the dominance talk is nonsense. Step-ups can help a shy parrot understand what is expected and increase confidence. Keep your bird in an area where he can see all that gioes on in the house. These are some things I can think of right now. The rest is using a variety of things until you see your bird's interest perks up.

 

My mistake--I thought you got an older bird--sorry<br><br>Post edited by: Dave007, at: 2009/08/04 17:55

[Gorndt]

The oatmeal was the perfect suggestion! He loved it and he ate it all up. I mised the remainder with his regular food and we'll see what he does with it.

 

Do you guys have suggestions for how to teach him where his food and water is? I finally got him to drink out of the bowl but I had to pretty much push his head into the bowl to show him it was there. After the first one he started doing it himself, but this was all outside of the cage.

[Eckobird]

Thats great that he liked the oatmeal! Do you have red palm oil? You can always put a couple of drops of that in there too, its good for them. When you put him in his cage put him right where the food bowl is. They don't starve themselves so he will eventually go looking for food when he gets hungry. He is settling in right now and is probably a little nervous in his new home. Give him some time and watch him to see if he eats. Keep showing him where it is.<br><br>Post edited by: caitb2007, at: 2009/08/04 18:29

[Dave007]

Again, I apologise. I thought you were referring to a pre owned bird. I must have been thinking of another post.It really doesn't matter were you put the food as long as he can get to it easily such as a bowl. I guarantee you that he'll find it. Greys and other parrots don't starve themselves. That includes water. What may happen is him showing no interest in certain foods but you'll see that eventually. A 4 mt old bird is extreme adaptable. You really shouldn't have major problems in any area of ownership. I'm glad he took to the oatmeal. Quaker Oats sells 10 pk boxes with all flavors andnone of these items are harmful. Certain stores actuallysell their own 10 pk and it's all the same, just less expensive.

[Jaguar]

Gorndt everyone here will give you great replys, but please search the forum for information too there is SO much here that can help. I was in the same place as you 1 yr ago. My grey is doing Fine and i'm sure its down to great advice from this forum and hard work. Just Enjoy your little freind i'm sure you will

[Gorndt]

How do you suggest teaching them where the food bowl is?

[Dave007]

I'm gonna assume that you have a regular sized cage that's basically all designed the same way. That means that food and water bowls are very easy to get to. A 4 MT old bird can climb all over the interior of the cage but if it's not there, you need a perch that goes across both food and water bowls. The perch can be 5 to 8 or 9 inches away from the bowl. The bird then climbs over to the perch and steps on the bowls and eats and drinks from the bowls.

 

[Jayd]

B) You can always count on Caitlin, it comes from her heart, like she knows what the babies want...Dave and everyone else here can really be counted on for a solid answer.....

[JohnNJ]

Gorndt wrote:

How do you suggest teaching them where the food bowl is?

 

The breeder suggested that I place the bird on the food bowl when I put him in the cage. That worked well.

 

I did the same for the water bowl but I had to play in the water with my fingers and drip some in to his mouth to let him "see" there was something in the bowl.

 

JohnNJ<br><br>Post edited by: JohnNJ, at: 2009/08/04 22:20

[Luvparrots]

Leto is a very fine looking CAG. When I got my TAG she was four months old. She found her food and water bowls without a problem. Leto needs to get use to things, just relax. You are going to be a great parront, enjoy!