Angry older grey, am I at the point of no return?

[BarbaraJean]

Hi, I'm very conserned about my African Grey, Billy. My family has had him for at least 7 years, maybe more. He never has really been the type of bird to get out of his cage and play. His whole life has been in the cage and no affection shown to him. It's very sad. I'm in care of the bird now and I was wondering if there is any way to reverse his anger issues. I have tried bonding with him recently but he tends to try biting when I am just outside the cage. I am not sure how to train a bird I can't hold. I want him to be able to get out of the cage and be a happy bird. Help please!<br><br>Post edited by: BarbaraJean, at: 2008/12/01 10:35

[casper]

Hi BarbaraJean and welcome to the forum.

 

So this grey has been in the family for 7 years? How old is he and have your family been the only owners of Billy?

 

This is going to take a long time to build Billys trust, is there a reason why he has been cage bound for so long?

 

You are going to have to take things very slowly with Billy to gain any trust from him. Dont expect too much too soon!

 

When you say you are his carer now has he moved to a different home as well?

 

Start by just talking to Billy, you can do this from a distance he is comfortable with, just sit and read to him, talk to him in general about your day, speak to him in a nice soft voice eventually he will hopefully feel at ease with you.

 

Can he be handled at all? Or has he not had much human contact with being in the cage?.

 

Maybe a bit more information on his background will help us to give you better advice.

 

I look forward to hearing more about you both.

 

Caroline.

[judygram]

Caroline has given you some excellent advice and this will take time but the rewards are well worth it.

 

In the meantime why don't you introduce yourself in the welcome room and tell us a little more about you and Billy so we can come to know you better.

[she]

Hi. It is going to take a lot of time and patiance to turn the attitude Of Billy around. He has been cage bound for a long time and to him it is the safest place to be.You dont say if Billy has moved house as well as having a new carer.If he has this will only add to his fear and agression. I appreciate that you wish Billy to have a better life but it wont happen anytime soon. Caroline has given good advise. Just keep talking to him and when he is ok with that get closer to the cage untill he is actually showing an interest in you. Then you can offer treats by hand In the meantime you have to be patiant and continue caring for him, food, water ect. At the moment the way to his heart will be food.

[danmcq]

Hello and welcome BarbaraJean!!

 

It does sound like you have taken a task that will take some time, perhaps months to get that Grey to the point of interacting with humans.

 

How long have you had him at your home? What size cage is he in?

 

Does he allow you to feed and water without trying to bite?

 

Can you offer treats through the bars to him without him trying to bite?

 

Is he flighted or has he been clipped?

 

The others have given great advice to start with. :-)

[BaxtersMom]

Hi, you have gotten some great advice from the others above. It is going to take time to gain his trust. Go slow with him. I would start by leaving the cage door open so he can come out of his cage when he wants to. It might take awhile but it will eventually happen. It sounds like he ended up in a better place with you and you sound very concerned about Billy's happiness. It is so nice of you to take him in and hopefully give him a better and happier life. Keep asking questions. There is someone always here to help. I see they have already asked you a few questions in return. The more we know about him the more we can help;)

[Tycos_mom]

I know just how you feel I'm going throught the same thing with a Macaw right now although I don't think my Macaw will take asa long as your Grey will. The reason I say this is because 14 months ago I adopted a 5 yr old Grey in basisly the same condition as Billy I would sit and eat my meals with her read childrens story's to her play with her toys sing and dance you name it I did everything to show her that I loved her and that she didn't have to be afraid of me. Finally after about 7 or 8 months of her doing nothing except try to bite me I was putting her to bed one nite and she looked at me very strangely and she put her head down as if to say here you go touch my head so I did I touch her head and it was only for a second but it was something she had never allowed before. I was on clou 29. after that every night before bed she would put her head down and the scritches becamelonger and longer thats how thing got started now she will step up for me and she cuddle and kisses. I've had her scine Oct9. 2007 so not very long but when your waiting patiently for her to give you a sign it seems like a lifetime. Another thing that I did was to never look at her straight on I always tryed to look at her with one eye or with my head down. This was to show her that I was not a preditor and that I would not do anything to hurt her. when I approched her cage I always came in from an angle never striaght on. these thing really helped allot. So give it a try I also foud eating my meals with her was what got her coming out of her cage she wanted some of wha I was haveing and the only way she couuld do that was to come to the side of my dish where I put some of my food for her.

[she]

Grat tip about eye contact Pat. They do see direct eye contact as a threat.