How can I get my grey to not do the mating dance and weird noises? And more?

[Chadstick]

We have had our grey for just over 5 years now. He is very tame and walks around the house but we try keep him in the kitchen by his cage and close the kitchen doors because when he roams around he can be quite destructive, and he also doesn't get all the attention I think a bird should get. He has grown extremely fond of me and will walk to my room and even knock on my door with his beak any chance he gets. My mom can also handle him etc but he has bitten her before more than once, even though she raised him, but he has never bitten me and seems to always want to be with me.

 

Now when I do pick him up, he makes weird puffing noises and starts to kinda open his wings at the back, then bobs his head like he's bringing up food. I've read that this is a bonding thing, they do it with babies and with mating or something like that lol. It's just kinda weird and it gets bothersome when he constantly does it while on my shoulder. I don't pick him up often for this reason. Also I've been told its not good to have them on the shoulder? My question is basically will he eventually stop those hissing type noises if I pick him up more frequently? I think he just gets really excited and happy when he's on me, or at least that's what it looks like lol, but it's very weird and I dont know how to respond to it when he makes those weird noises and does the feeding thing. I'm also afraid if he gets too attached to me, when I leave the house and move or go work overseas again, what then? I mean what happens to the bird? Do they get depressed or something? I study and I can get very busy at times so I dont always have time to give him all the attention I know he wants. Giving him away is not an option because my mom loves that bird and so do I.

 

I want to start being more active with him because I know he gets very frustrated in the kitchen all the time, he gets bored very quickly and starts to want to walk around. He even started biting the kitchen floor tiles to try dig under the door, and that shows frustration. My mom usually takes him to the bathroom in the mornings when she showers though and he walks around a bit then.

 

Any advice on how to go about this would be appreciated. Also, how are those portable parrot stands? Are they a good idea to have? I've been thinking of getting him one so we can move him around and he will be comfortable. Everything else I put him on he starts climbing down and wants to get up on me, and I can't always have him on me when busy, but also don't want to keep him in the kitchen all the time.

 

Thanks!

[Greytness]

If you aren't handling him because you find his natural behaviors 'weird', then yes, I believe you aren't giving him enough attention. Try ignoring his bobbing behavior, but then follow up by giving him attention when he's not eliciting this behavior is one idea that could help.

 

I'm not of the belief that a parrot shouldn't be allowed on your shoulder. All 9 of mine are allowed to hang there, and not one of them to date has taken a piece out of me. My parrots love being there!

 

Greys need to be an integral member of his flock, which is you and your mom. To deny him that right could deprive him of what greys innately need to be happy in captivity: you! From what you're describing in your post, I believe that your Grey is thirsty for your affection. See what you can do to bump it up a notch or two. Hope this helps!

[SRSeedBurners]

From reading your post it sounds like you have a flightless Grey who is also an only bird? You might try using hanging boings/orbits that can be moved from room to room with you. We got rid of all of our stands as they are a pain to move and clean and we found that having hooks in various places as well as using natural hanging points (central air ventilation vents) are a lot easier to deal with. I move thier orbits/boings/ropes from their bird room to the kitchen, living and bed rooms. Also into their outdoor aviary. I can't imagine keeping a Grey in the house by themselves without finding a way to keep them with me. We also hang toys inside the orbits which keep them busy. Rio likes little cutout blocks of wood and beads to chew, Greycie loves her plastic chain with bells and Toby likes to have a bell hanging in the center that he can wear like a hat (he's a weird one).