My african grey congo hates me...please help!

[nikhilesh]

Hello Everyone,

I got myself and African Grey and named him Pzero. He is one hell of a bird and a good company as I stay alone.

 

I want to be honest and explain the history of his presence with me. I got him around 2 months back and he should be around 3-5 years old which I am yet to find out. When i got him, he was not that loud and didn't scream at me much. He was not kept in the best of surroundings at the pet store. When he came over he was very inquisitive about the place and in 2 - 3 weeks into staying with me, he started coming down from his cage and walking around a bit. If i am correct, he must have done it not more than 4 - 5 times in 3 - 4 weeks. One of his excellent character is that he does not bite at all. The person at the pet store told me that he had 'trained' him not to do so, and he has learned well.

 

Eventually, i became assertive and honestly a bit pushy about having him step up and interact with me, like any other rookie. In time he started screaming much more and did not enjoy me touching him at all. He was also a bit comfortable about me touching/caressing his chest. If i approach him he just grabs my finger with his beak and moves it away. Well, now he also screams at me and clings on to the corner of the cage and hangs from the outside.

 

He doesn't sit inside his cage at all either. Only when he wants to eat or drink, he goes down, eats/drinks from his bowl and comes back on the top and perches on. He even sleeps on top of the cage.

 

Another fact is that his cage is in the corner of the house where he can see everything thats happening around. Just so you know, i stay in a studio flat where the kitchen, living room and my bed is completely open and adjacent. The cage sits next to a window and he keeps looking out every now and then. He doesn't talk yet, but when he looks out the window he makes hooting noises like an owl! Else he is quiet as stone. One more thing is that the cage is not at a considerable height and his perch reaches approximately my waist. Would i be right in understanding that this makes him scared and subdued since he doesn't reach my eye level?

 

Even with toys, he doesnt respond too well. I tried putting a set of wooden blocks tied onto the top of his cage and he feels scared and does not touch it at all. Instead he dodges it in order to reach his water and food. He clings onto the inside of his cage instead of perching on to the rods placed in front of his food bowl to eat. So i have removed his toy as well to avoid any discomfort towards him.

 

I know i have taken a wrong turn initially but i would like to correct this now. I have taken a back step and always give him a lot of personal space and do no touch him AT ALL. But he still screams when i approach too close. I definitely do not intend to give up and would highly appreciate your expertise and help.

 

Thanks guys!

Nik

Edited September 16, 2011 by nikhilesh

[katana600]

I applaud your effort to keep trying. Have you considered or tried to move his cage away from the window? He may have too much stimulation there and is conditioned to consider you a threat. Two months is not long in the process of taking in an older parrot. Also, I am a bit new to my rehomed parrot. I have had him for six months and there are times he does not want me near him either, so don't be too hard on yourself. You are right in realizing you went too quickly for him. Talk gently, spend time far across the room at first and move a tiny bit closer each time as you talk to him and maybe offer him food tidbits you drop in his dish and give him time to associate you with good things. What kind of food do you feed him? We lived in Dubai for a time and there were no pet shops and such but I have heard there is an avian vet there or nearby now. Maybe there you could find an ally to help you get back into a patient time of getting acquainted with Pzero. Being that he did come around and start exploring a bit, he may have gotten scared and stressed and now you could use a helping hand from someone new to come in and help you find toys that he will accept to help keep his mind busy and to entertain him. Read up in the forum about the body language of greys so you can tell if your approach to him is too much and just try to help him to understand you have learned not to invade his space too much until he is ready for you. I understand how hard it is to hold back when you are excited to have him in your life and for him to see that you want to be his friend. It will come very slowly and you may have set yourself back a little bit, but I do have hope for you because you are determined and you do have his best interests in your heart.

[Kaldi0143]

I'm new with my boy too and there are plenty of times where he's rather psycho acting... But then there are those moments, usually either in the early morning or in the evening, where he'll let me handle him. He usually ends up on my leg with his beak down and eyes closed while I scratch and pet him all over. He's even gotten to where I can mess with his wings and tail feathers sometimes. Huge improvement from when I first got him.

Those little moments are soooo worth the patience. I am constantly readjusting how I approach him. Toys come and go. One day he's cool with them, and some days he's terrified of them. Last night the rubber band on my desk was going to eat him, and today he was playing with it.

 

I think Katana has a good idea, as far as moving the cage. Maybe just a change of perspective will break the cycle for him...

 

My boy also stays on top of his cage... When I let him go back to his cage I think it is because he's been locked up for the past two years at least, maybe longer, and I've offered him the freedom of seeing life outside of the bars. He rarely goes in there anymore. I have different types of perches in every room of the house, and once I get him off the cage (which is a job at times), I take him with me everywhere I go. Once he's off the cage, he's fine. He steps up and is polite, for the most part; but when I let him fly back to the cage, or perch him there, he instantly turns into insane bird that wants to rip off fingers. It usually takes a while of me talking to him and little gentle rubs to his beak, despite him wanting to chomp down. Once he realizes I'm not going to flinch or pull away from him trying to bite me, his whole attitude changes and he'll lift a foot to step up.

 

Do you play a radio around him? My boy seems to calm down a little when I play music instead of having the TV on. Worth a try. It's little things.

 

Good luck! I'm in the same boat sometimes, and it's a constant learning process for both parrot and parent

[braveheartdogs]

I also just adopted a grey. Mine is 4 years old and just got here on Sunday. I think it is really critical with new birds that you completely allow them to set the pace. Pushing or pressuring can really cause set backs. Go back to square one and allow him to set the pace. Audition different treats so that you can find out what he really likes and use those to build a positive association. One thing that i think is really good for Ivan has been comfort feedings. I offer him baby food mixed with oatmeal warm out of a spoon. Many people believe that this helps to build a bond, I think it is really good for Ivan. He always wants to snuggle and get scritches after.