plz help my grey

[vicki76]

i have a 6yr old male african grey called dennis, his a congo.ive had him for about 7 months. he takes food from any ones. but u try and touch him and he goes to bit you.which i have to say scares me sily. he also aint a good flier and flies in to walls,when his startalled.ive spoken to a pet shop owner who has a few of these birds and she said to clip his flight feathers,but i was told by someone else that thatwas cruel.i would love to be able to get him out and play with him, and so he can sit on his pearch which i bought him when he came. he doesnt mind me putting my hands in his cage as long as i dont try to touch him.the lady before me trainned him to kiss her lips, but im just to scared. can any one advice me. i just want to make his life happier,so he aint stuck in his cage all day every day.thanx for reading my post and look forward to hearing from you.

[judygram]

Even though you have had him for 7 months now he still does not trust you completely and the fact that you are afraid of being bitten is something he has picked up on. He knows that you are afraid of him and he is using it to his full advantage to keep you away. Another thing is since he had a previous owner due to his age, it may not have been a happy home for him, he could have been abused and does not like to be handled if he was mistreated there.

 

Open his cage door and allow him to come out on his own, talk to him and offer him treats and show him that you mean him no harm and that your hands are nothing to be afraid of. This will take a lot of time so be very patient with him.

 

The clipping of flight feathers is a debatable subject here, we have members who feel strongly either way, but it is an individual's choice to do or not.

 

Why don't you introduce yourself in the welcome room and tell us a little more about yourself and Dennis.

[KatB]

Hello, Vicki76. It sounds like Dennis just isn't ready to trust you yet. Is there anyone else that he seems to accept, or does he treat everyone this way? I found the key to gaining my bird's trust was simply to ask permission first. Sounds silly, I guess, but I'll ask if he wants to "be nice" -- which means a head scratch. If he does, he'll duck his head for my to scratch. If he doesn't, he won't. If he doesn't, I know I deserve the bite I get if I try to force him! Also, I'll ask him if he wants to step up before putting my hand too close to him. If he wants to step up, he'll lift his foot. If he doesn't, he won't. It sounds like Dennis was well trained before he came to you, so I'm sure he knows certain terms. He probably has a different term for head scratches, but if you pay attention to his body language and respect his space you'll avoid a lot of bites and he'll eventually come to trust you.

 

As for clipping his flight feathers, different folks have different opinions. Personally, I think the bird's safety is the deciding factor. On the other hand, if he's 6 years old and has always been allowed to fly, and if he just flies into walls when he's startled, maybe you could start by keeping him in an area where he isn't likely to be startled?

[lovemyGreys]

Unfortunately as yet it sounds as if Dennis has failed to bond with you.As Judy correctly said he has picked up on the fact that you show fear of him biting,you need to learn to be a little more confident with him, if you show confidence he may begin to pick up on that & grow in confidence himself.As for letting him out of the cage just leave the door open,a big tip for getting him to return is make his cage his only feeding place, he will soon return when hunger strikes.

As for clipping as the others have said,it is a personal decision,if he is crashing into things he risks injuring himself,perhaps discuss this with your avian vet.