Socializing Your Baby Grey.

[lovemyGreys]

One of the most important questions you can ask a breeder when considering purchasing a baby from them is"Are your birds well socialized " Ask them how much time they actually spend with the babies. This is very important in the early development of a baby parrot.

 

 

 

Socialization should start from the time your baby is pulled from the nest box . A good bird breeder will spend a lot of time holding, cuddling and playing with the babies.They need to develop trust in human companions,have interaction, and learn to play with toys from an early age.To begin teaching socialization, young baby birds should be gently handled and if possible handfed by more than one person. This process will teach them that humans can be relied on as a food source, and get them used to being in close proximity to different people.While it's common for birds to take a special liking to one particular person as they get older, they should be taught to accept handling from others too.

 

Once you bring your baby home it is down to you to continue the socialzing process.Making sure that your parrot gets plenty of interaction at an early age will make a world of difference and eliminate a lot of behavioral problems for the future.Hear are three methods of interaction to share & teach your baby.

 

 

Shared attention is exactly as it implies, the bird is sharing your attention with someone or something else. Watching television while holding your bird on your lap, scratching the bird with one hand while you hold the telephone with the other, or letting the bird share your shower are all examples of shared attention. This is also the most common form of attention.Older babies should be passed to another human using the "Step Up" and "Step Down" commands.

 

 

Ambient attention focuses on allowing the bird to be close to everyday "activites" by placing him in a strategic position,usually out of his cage and on a gym or T-stand, close to the center of activity. He is not receiving direct attention, but can easily hear and see what is going on around him.

 

Direct attention, "one on one " Your total, undivided attention is centered on the bird, and is accompanied by verbalizations, cuddling, petting, scratching, and direct eye contact. If your bird is not well socialized and currently doesn't tolerate handling, simply physically standing next to the cage or wherever the bird is located and focusing your attention entirely on the bird is perfectly acceptable.

 

Birds should also spend an adequate amount of time alone each day. Handling your bird constantly for the first few weeks or months may in time become expected behavior, and only serve in developing possible behavior problems later when the initial excitement of having a new bird wears off and you spend less time giving your bird direct attention. Teach your bird how to amuse himself, and how to play with his toys. Providing simple but interesting "toys" can keep a bird occupied for hours.

 

 

 

A bird's psychological needs must be met in order for him to remain happy and totally healthy, and adequate socialization is a wonderful start to meeting those needs.<br><br>Post edited by: lovemyGreys, at: 2008/04/14 21:02

[judygram]

Well if we had any doubt about LovemyGrey's being appointed moderator of the nursery we don't now, wow, another excellent thread for the baby room, this is an important subject and you have covered it well. Thanks Tracy:)

[danmcq]

This is a great article on socialization Tracy, Thanks!!

[casper]

Tracy, Charlie is 10 months old and is social to the point that he will sit on his stand with the rest of the family in the room and not be bothered, but has only been handled by myself. I would love for my husband to be able to do this. Charlie will sit on the same chair as him and gives him a nudge if he pays no attention lol, lets him put his food in his cage etc, do you think its to late to start this with them both? Any suggestions?

[lovemyGreys]

It's never to late Caroline & Charlie is still only a baby.Pick a time in the day when you know charlie may be more active & of course Dave is home.Let them have some quality time alone,say only 10 minutes to begin with, you & the kids need to leave the room.Let Dave give Charlie his full attention, feed him his favorite treat,chat to him,play a game & of course if Dave can get charlie to step up that would be a bonus, but that will come in time.Dave must do this consistently every night & if he has time at the weekends perhaps twice a day.The more they interact together the more confidence Charlie will build up in Dave

[Lovelylew]

Tracy, the information you posted is very helpful, thanks so much.

 

My Obi (CAG) is 4 months old. He's been with us almost three weeks now. He's stepping up nicely, loves to be on the top of his cage, and I'm trying to get him used to touch now. The past two days, I have been able to touch his beak with a slight pet. He will use his tongue to touch my finger. Of course, too much touching, he gets nippy and I tell him very sternly "no" "no bite."

 

He seems to like it best on the top of his cage, and that is where he would rather be than on my finger; however, I'm starting to walk a little bit around the kitchen/living room with him on my finger each morning, but not for very long.

 

Are there any suggestions you can make so that he will get used to touch, petting, etc.? Basically, what I'm asking is where do you go with training after mastering the step up command? I don't want to push myself on him, but I do want to work with him and want to be able to train him.

 

I realize he's still in the "getting comfortable" stage, although he seems very well adjusted, plays with his toys, etc. Very quiet, though, not much sound. His cage is in our kitchen, which is large, along with two cockatiels (of course caged separately). I'm the main caretaker, mamma, however, my husband wants to be able to interact with Obi as well. My husband is taking it very slow with him, though.

 

Thank you for any information. Have a great weekend!

[lovemyGreys]

Hi loveylew,

 

Getting your bird to accept being petted / touched is not training so much, as being in tune to their behavior and clues and working with the personality of the bird.Each bird is an individual & therefore will accept human touch accordingly.some birds like physical contact while others like their personal space, but most are more likely to accept contact from people they know & trust.

 

When approaching training your bird to accept petting, the first step is to read the cues your bird is giving you.

You can do a little bit of training to get your bird more comfortable with the idea of being petted. As with other forms of training, practice in short frequent sessions and stick to small steps at first.

 

Choose a quiet time when your bird is relaxed.

Keep your hand in full view of the bird.

Speak to your bird before petting him or her.

Try just lightly touching and petting the beak at first.

If your bird lets you touch his/her beak, try gradually moving your fingers to the skin on the face just behind the beak.

Use a very gentle touch.

Work your way around the side of the head.

Work with the natural orientation of the feathers -- petting the "wrong way" can be irritating. Pet either in the direction the feathers naturally lay down, or gently scratch side to side between the feathers.

Eventually, as the bird relaxes (a bird that is enjoying being petted will often ruffle its feathers and bow its head) you can work your way around to the back of the head and neck.

Don't try to force your bird to like petting.

Don't expect your bird to accept petting from strangers.

[Lovelylew]

Thanks for the tips, Tracy! I had Obi on my finger for about 3-5 minutes before, standing by the screen and letting her listen to the sounds of the birds outside. She listened so intently to each sound, and the bees on the deck were flying near the screen, so I just talked and reassured her that she can trust me. After that little while, I then put her on the top of her cage, her favorite place. I'm doing little by little and making progress.

 

I do want to train her to do tricks as well. How long does it usually take before you can work with them/have them respond? I realize that each animal is different, but a guestimate would be good.

 

I watched the little video where the trainer has the bird waving as he trains the bird with the clicker. I don't think Obi is quite there yet, maybe in time. She will take some food from me, but sometimes she'll just toss it.

 

Again, thanks for the tips/advice. I'm trying to learn everything I can learn about this magnificent CAG.

[Raposa]

Lovelylew, my Jenna is not all that excited about being touched either, so I am interested in the responses you got. Jenna will fly to me, wants to be ON me a lot, but does not particularly like to be petted. Every once in a while she'll let me give her a neck scritch. I want to harness train her, but since she does not like handling all that much I don't want to rush it. I sure hope she gets more relaxed about being handled as she gets more comfortable in her new home . . . BUT I did start "targeting" with Jenna over the weekend, and she's catching on! She's a smart little girl ~beams~

[parrotlady]

I've found with both the training and the petting bribery can and does go a long way.

 

Find out what is your birds favourite treat, I personnaly use pine nuts as they are small and can be eaten quickly so the birds attention is straight back on you.

 

Another good seed to use is the sunflower seed. African Grey's cannot have too many sunflower seeds as they are high in fat but they are excellent for training purposes. If your birds normal daily seed contains sunflower or pine or basically which ever is your birds favourite seed it is worth removing them from the dish and keeping them purely for training.

 

Begin by rewarding the bird with the favourite food as soon as they show the behaviour you are asking them for or if they allow you to touch them where you are trying to touch. In the beginning if your bird isn't very handable use the reward when he allows you to take a step closer. If the bird behaves in a way in which you don't like ignore it and don't offer the treat.

 

Provided you are using your birds most favoured treat, you keep the training sessions short and you follow the treat with a softly spoken word of praise you will be surprised how quickly your bird will learn.

 

The secret to success is to make sure that the favoured treat is only available to your bird through good behaviour, petting and training.

[Lovelylew]

I've recently been lowering my voice and speaking to Obi in a soft manner, trying to reassure her that she's safe and I'm safe. Today, I had some leadway in that she let me pet her head, scratch her neck, and pet her head and neck. YAY! I was really happy with the progress we're making. It's taking time, but we are moving forward. Thank you for the suggestions, parrotlady.

 

Raposa, I hope you make some progress too. I know when I look at videos on Youtube and see how some people handle their birds, flipping them over, etc., makes me wish Obi did those things now, but I guess that comes with time and patience.

[Raposa]

Thanks, Lovelylew. I am having to show a lot of restraint because my eclectus (who died suddenly just after christmas) was a VERY cuddly bird ~smiles~ Jenna is her own little self, with definite opinions and a strong will! :lol:

[lovemyGreys]

Well your both doing a good job, keep up the good work the pair of you

[Lovelylew]

Aw, Raposa, I'm sorry you lost your Eclectus. They are beautiful birds. How long did you have her? Hopefully, both Jenna and Obi will start becoming more social. I keep waiting and hoping.

 

I've been working with her each day several times a day, but I really don't know where to go from here. I try playing with her on the top of her cage, but she likes to play on her own. LOL I don't want to be too pushy, so after a while I stop bugging her.

[Raposa]

I had my eclectus for 15 years, Lovelylew. I got him when he was 2 months old and finished his handfeeding myself, and he went EVERYWHERE with me. He was a very friendly guy, would go to anybody to sit on their hand, and talked up a storm. His death was a terrible, unexpected blow.

 

But I DID end up with a beautiful new baby Jenna girl! Jenna likes to be around people, and will fly to me, which I love. She likes to land on my head rather than my arm, which I don't love, but at least she is coming to me! She's interested and cheerful and smart, but she does not want to be touched much. Maybe that will change as she gets more comfortable with me, after all she's only been home for a week and a half! And maybe the same will go for Obi with time and patience . . .

[Lovelylew]

Yes, hopefully Jenna and Obi will soon be settled in. We'll keep in touch!

[JungleDreamz]

Hi Lovemygreys, My little echo is 5 weeks old and 1 day , IS it too early to start handling him a lot yet? I mean I know you shouldnt too much like you said in your great post, since they will get use to it, But I was just wondering like what age I should start basically like I dunno, holding him and things, Cuz he still is a wobbily little guy (actually BIG, he seems like a big little guiy for only 5 weeks, he is 350 grams, Is he going to be a big boy? or is this average?) ANYWAY, I connected a couple of those infant "linkadoos" together and hung them in his brooder, and he was nibbling at them yesterday! I dunno if he was actually "playing" with them or just trying to feed off them, haha...Anyway, I know you can help me out, you defanitly know your stuff!

[fidsandfrats]

Hi LovemyGreys

 

I asked my breeder if she spends lots of time playing, cuddling and holding her babies as I am aware that socialization should start early on. Her response was that the babies are fed by her and her husband and they are handled every feeding which starts at 5 times a day.

 

Does this sound right to those that raise handfeed babies?<br><br>Post edited by: fidsandfrats, at: 2009/05/19 19:23