baby grey suddenly fearful

[jim6881]

I have a 4 month old male grey congo from a large bird store in NJ. I've been visiting it everyweek. When I visited this week, it was very fearful of me and would cower from me and run away from my hand.

 

It flapped around alot last week and was starting to learn to fly. He didn't seem to be able to get any lift this week. I don't know how to tell but I suspect he may have been clipped by the breeder. Is this something that occurs frequently? Is this normal? And is this phobia something he will grow out of?

Edited September 5, 2010 by jim6881

[danmcq]

Welcome Jim6881, it's good having you here.

 

In an environment where there are perhaps many people around and interacting with the babies. It is possible your baby experienced something that frightened him. I would ask the breeder you mentioned or the store what may have occurred. But, even with the behavior you see. That is a baby and it he will come around easily with patience and calm environment in his new home surrounded by those who love him, instead of people poking and prodding at him.

 

Why don't you tell us a little more about your self and what you may have found out from the breeder or store.

[Luvparrots]

Hi Jim, is your baby grey out in the general public or in a quiet place? If I were you I would ask the store manager/owner about clipping and if it is not something you want done I would express that to the manager/owner. A lot of breeders and pet stores do clip and if you don't express you desires for an unclipped bird it could happen. If you have already purchased the bird than you have a right to not have your baby clipped. Please introduce yourself in our Welcome/Introduction Room so everyone can say welcome.

[Jayd]

Some grey't advice given here, and welcome...If I may ad, look at his flight feathers, at his age, they should be reaching near the end of his red tail, if there not then, more then likely they have been cut...Jayd

[Guest jamalbirdbiz]

He is probably having flashbacks to a past mishandling. u must be patient.

[Azzie]

When a baby bird is initially ready to fly, they won't get any lift. In my experience, it's always been a lot of clamping on with the feet to a perch, with some furious wing flapping that doesn't (yet) go anywhere. A lot of this is just practice, building up muscles and strength for the big event. It could also of course be flapping out of fright, as you mention he seems scares now.

 

I would do what Luvparrots said, if it's your baby bird, talk to the petstore and let them know your wishes regarding clipping, and sooner rather than later.

 

As for a bird growing out of a phobia, not really, in the sense that it might spontaneously remit. It can however be reversed with patience, gentle interaction and providing a safe environment, like Dan said.

 

Looking forward to hearing and seeing more of you and your baby!

[jim6881]

It is a really large bird store and I know they sell alot of parrots. The greys are kept in a room with 5 plexiglass cages with about 5 birds in each cage. They rotate the birds through the cages as they grow up and new babies come in. Whenever I visit my bird, all the other birds rush the cage and we have to herd them in to prevent them from flapping out. I'm guess he could have fell when another owner was trying to get their bird among other possibilities. So I assume other owners encounter the same phenomenon. There was alot of furious flapping on prior visits until yesterday...where he suddenly started to run away and hide on the ledge of the perch whenever I tried to come close. I'll ask the owner about whether they clip or not but I do know they have alot of happy customers. I'll tell them to not clip but I'm due to take the bird home in a month so I don't know if it will make a difference. I think the store generally has a policy of allowing customers to select a new bird if the bird isn't bonding when the buyer really has made the effort.

 

I'm inclined to take him home in a month if the behavior subsides. As sad as it will be to pick a new bird at the store after visiting so much for 3 months, I don't think I can take him home like this. My main question is...even if the behavior subsides, should I buy a different bird anyway? I'm just not sure how serious a problem this is. Is this type of baby behavior pathological and likely indicator of a trouble adult?

 

I imagine this type of behavior is unusual in clipped babies since none of the other bird have this problem. I'll keep everyone updated on my next visit. I'll take some videos with my phone if he is still exhibiting this behavior.

 

They host a really big bird conference every year. I know Irene Pepperberg and several other experts will be coming this year. Maybe I will buy a couple of their books and try to sneak in a psychological evaluation for my bird

Edited September 6, 2010 by jim6881

[Jayd]

Hi Jim, I'm sure your aware that not 2 minute's after you get a new baby, the same thing can happen. Also, bonding takes a long time, baby's that come to you at a breeders or pet store do so out of knowing these big creatures feed the, pet them etc, some are friendlier then others...Bonding comes with trust.....

[Birdnut]

I have seen a similar thing happen at the pet store where we trade, so I will share that story.

 

This was not a grey, but a citron crested cockatoo. Maybe it's fair to give this example, since cockatoos can also be a bit spooky. This baby was in an open pen, surrounded by plexiglass sides, along with some other baby birds. The babies' wings are trimmed after they have fledged (managed to fly out of the pen and around the store). In this shop, customers are allowed to handle the baby birds in the pens that are still available for sale.

 

The cockatoo was very friendly and always begging to be picked up, just like the other birds. Then one day, out of the blue, it started acting terrified of everyone. No one knew why or what had happened. Efforts to handle the bird to calm it were to no avail. When they put it in a cage with another cockatoo, it did calm down somewhat and seemed more relaxed, but still unwilling to be handled.

 

Quite a bit of time went by, and no one was interested in this cockatoo, because it was so unfriendly. Then a couple, who were regular customers and who were frequently in the store, decided to give this baby a chance. The first time they tried to handle the bird, it bit one of them badly. But they persisted, and the bird began to accept them. They took it home to join their flock of greys and cockatoos. We saw them in the store some time after that with the citron crested cockatoo, and the bird was beautiful and calm. They said it had become a very sweet bird for them.

 

I think this story illustrates that you can't really tell what a bird will be like with you until you get it home and spend time with it on a daily basis. Even then, the relationship will develop and evolve over time.

 

I don't think weekly visits are really enough to bond with a bird. When we got all our babies, we were in the store on a daily basis, at least once a day, to visit and handle them. That may not be possible for you, but I don't think you can make much of a judgment of how a bird may or may not bond with you based on weekly visits.

[Jayd]

Birdnut, thank you, you are correct, bonding takes time, not just a few minutes....

[jim6881]

Thanks for all the feedback. The consensus seems to be that this is type of phobic behavior in baby birds at the store is not a huge factor in determining the bird's adult behavior after we bring him home.

 

I want to make clear that this behavior was sudden and not a persistent issue of not-bonding. That is what concerned me the most and suggested there was some sort of trauma.

[Jayd]

I want to make clear that this behavior was sudden and not a persistent issue of not-bonding. That is what concerned me the most and suggested there was some sort of trauma.

With none of us actually being there, we can not guarantee what has or hasn't happened, There is never a guarantee of the outcome of any bird. You have to decide how much time you wish to invest into a bird. If you were in a cage 24/7, in the environment this Grey's in, the possibility's are endless... Jayd

[judygram]

The consensus seems to be that this is type of phobic behavior in baby birds at the store is not a huge factor in determining the bird's adult behavior after we bring him home.

 

 

You will have to work on building trust when you bring your baby home and that will have to happen whether the baby seemed scared of you when before it wasn't for bringing it into your home will be a completely new experience for your baby grey and you have to work at building trust and that comes with time, patience and consistency in spending time and caring for him/her.

We have all had to deal with this no matter whether our grey chose us or we chose them, trust has to be earned, it isn't just given at the drop of a hat. I think if you keep that in mind you will do fine.