Tash13 Posted December 2, 2007 Share Posted December 2, 2007 My husband and I recently adopted a Temneh AG. We're not completely sure of the age but the last owner got him about 10 years ago. He was a work pet and only had men around let him do what he wanted to do whenever he was out. He's ok with step up (we're getting past the random biting when he doesn't want to) and he's getting better about even walking around on finger (usually he flies off your hand or flies off when you try to get him to step up). My only problem is that anytime you go to pet him in anyway he flies away. He hasn't had his wings clipped with the other owner and we're going through a bit of a dominance struggle. Is he just not going to be a cuddly bird or is it simply that he doesn't know what it's like to be cuddled since they never tried? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted December 2, 2007 Share Posted December 2, 2007 Tash don't take this the wrong way, but you must not have researched greys much before adopting this Tag, for greys are not known to be cuddly, a few will but most are not. Some are more cuddly when they are babies but when they mature they become more independent. You said you recently adopted him but it takes time to gain the trust of a mature grey that has lived it's life with someone else. Why don't you introduce yourself in the welcome room and tell us a little more about yourself and this grey of yours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest briansmum Posted December 2, 2007 Share Posted December 2, 2007 judy is right, greys generally aren't cuddly. thats not to say don't try when you've built up a good strong bond. and given the age of the bird and it having had a previous owner it could take a while to build that bond. you sound like you are doing well so far, take it one day at a time, sometimes a little ignorance is bliss when it comes to pysical contact with greys. at the end of the day no one can say whether your grey will like a cuddle or not, except your grey. when you feel confident enough try being a bit more physical (stroking the back, holding the bird close to you etc), your bird will let you know if this is acceptable to him or not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danmcq Posted December 2, 2007 Share Posted December 2, 2007 Welcome Tash!! As, Briansmum and Judy have stated, only time and patience will bring the bonding between you. Have you tried saying "Scratches" and seeing if he puts his head down for some? I don't know if his previous owners gave him scratches or not, but that may be as close to cuddling you will get. It's great to have you here and we'll look forward to hearing more from you. :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ziggy Posted December 3, 2007 Share Posted December 3, 2007 Hello Tash, First of all welcome to the family. Greys are not the type of bird that you can cuddle with( on a whole there are exceptions). He is 10 years ols at least you think. First he is set in his ways. Before you got him he was comfy in his home. Now you take him to your home he is like where is my home. You may want to be friendly and loving toward him which is excellant but he cant until he trusts you and becomes a companion to you. This will come in time and in time only. Be patient and he will come around. Like Judy said you should have done your homework if you were looking for a cuddly bird. A cockatoo would have been a better choice if thats what you realy want Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tash13 Posted December 3, 2007 Author Share Posted December 3, 2007 I knew going in that grey's were not known for being the most affectionate but, as i keep reading everybody else's posts, I keep hearing about others that enjoy a scratch or two. I'm still learning all of his body language so I don't know if that's something that he'd like or not. I'll just keep at it with everything else and see how he does. He's been adapting unbelievably so I guess I shouldn't push it just because I'm impatient Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted December 3, 2007 Share Posted December 3, 2007 Yes Tasha, impatience could be your downfall, since this is an older bird and set in his ways, it will take lots of time to build that trust that is necessary for him to be able to accept much of any affection from you. But most do enjoy neck scratches so you might try asking him if he wants his neck scratched and see if there is any response to that. This is going to take time with him being in a new home when before the only home he knew was a motorcycle shop, so go easy and slow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ziggy Posted December 3, 2007 Share Posted December 3, 2007 One question for you is he fluffing up like a turkey when you go near his neck? If so he could be doing 1 of 3 things. 1) He is showing you how much he likes that. 2) He is trying to say Im watching every move you make. 3) He is just trying to test you to see how much he can trust you. This is common with birds. One day they love it and the next they will try to take your finger off. They are very social animals but they also have the same mate for life. They need to trust you fully before they will be reseptive to your every move. Some greys are very warm while some are very distant and kind of cold. I see more cold then warm they are just not very cuddley. The nature of the beast. Cockatoos are known for there closeness to humans and are one of the best family type birds because of their behavior patterns.( again not all but the most are that way) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmycoop2005 Posted December 3, 2007 Share Posted December 3, 2007 As everyone said trust=neck scratches. My CAG is still a baby, right now when he is out he will not let me scratch his neck or head. However, in his safe zone (his cage) he trusts me fully. Maybe you should try talking to him in his cage and slowly trying to pet his neck and head while he is in there. If he allows you to, give him a little treat and praise him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danmcq Posted December 3, 2007 Share Posted December 3, 2007 Ziggy Wrote:"This is common with birds. One day they love it and the next they will try to take your finger off." One day hell, one minute thy want a scratch, 10 minutes later they are busy just sitting and taking in the view and do not want a scratch right at that time. A key point, I think we all need to respect, is that they are individuals, just as we are. Sometimes we want to cuddle, hug, smooch and other things ;-) BUT, there's a time for love, a time for work, a time to reflect, a time to just relax etc. Grey's are no different. What I have seen is, if they want a scratch, most will place the head down so you can scratch their neck. If you start to try and scratch their neck and they are just standing erect and starting pulling their head back or start fluffing a little, leave them be. Scratches and cuddling, both have their times. Dayo loves to cuddle at night with his Mommy, not me. Dayo likes scratches through out the day, but only when he wants them. Dayo does not like to receive scratches through the Cage bars, he will back off and look at you with the body language saying " You want some lovin? Then let me out of here, Butt Head!" :-) Anyway, as all have said it takes time to become accepted at that level AND there is a time when THEY want it. :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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