Lovebird taming

[tonyo]

Hi Guys!My name is Anthony .I'm new to the forum. I just have a question. I live in Australia and I have a Lovebird that was parent raised and I believe I am doing really well with the taming process. My Question is , If a lovebird is parent raised will they normally bond with you or has anyone ever tamed a parent raised lovebird and bonded really well with them? As I said I am doing well with the taming side of things. In fact he/ she eats of my hand. That's the only time he comes to me, otherwise he doesn't really like being handled. I don't force him though I take my time. I just want to know if they will get close enough to you?

[linda040899]

Hi Anthony and welcome to Lovebirds Plus Community!!

Parent raised babies can make wonderful pets! It's just a matter of being patient and earning your lovebird's trust. It may not happen overnight and your lovebird may never like being held/cuddled. Even some hand fed birds can be like that.

Sounds like you are making progress. Just keep up the same consistent effort and you will probably find yourself with a little velcro birdie!

[tonyo]

Thank you very much for the quick reply. Yes I am doing very well. My little buddy is very cute. You can check him out on my youtube channel.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DcQPTg7N4jg .Thanks again. I will be taking your advice.

[linda040899]

What a cute lovebird! Young, too, roughly 3.5 months old. He sure does like that broccoli!!!

If his cage is outside in an area that is not screened-in, please make sure you secure the bottom of the cage to the top part and you put clips on food dish doors, as well as the main door. Lovebirds can be expert escape artists. Mine are inside and I have escapees from time to time!

[tonyo]

He actually lives inside the house. I just put him outside specially when it is a beautiful day. A few weeks ago he still had black coloration on his beak. It's all gone now. I did have a lovebird about two years back she got a bit nasty so I gave her away. I now have Buddy. He/she seems a lot more gentle and calm. I guess I lost my patience with the last lovebird. I am a lot more determined now that learn from the mistakes I made. I'm really loving my new lovebird. Thank you again for the help linda !

[bookworm0550]

he is adorable!!!!! wow, i wish mine liked veggies that much.

[LauraO]

I have had great results over the years taming parent raised lovebirds, and have found them to be better pets and more well adjusted than a lot of the handfed lovies in my life and experience. They take as much work bonding as a handfed lovie who has not been socialized or a lovie who has been ignored and reverted to being wild. A lot also depends on individual personality and your committment. I would just keep on like your going and remember patience, love, and consistency are the only way to bond with a birdy.

BTW, I wanted to add to Linda's post about touching lovies. Most lovies, handfed, socialized, parent raised, tamed, wild, etc. don't like to be touched and grabbed a lot. For them, preening and touching are functional and there is a time, place, and purpose to it. If you listen to them and their body language, they will let you know what they want and need and when. I have also found that lovies with mates like to be scratched less than those who don't. My thought is a lovie beak knows how to preen better than my stumpy fingers. So they don't need me to scratch them. It doesn't mean they don't love me, it just means we spend time doing other things.

Keep us updated on your bonding:)

[Pips mom]

My lovie Pip was parent raised and he does not like hands......however, he's really become quite bonded to me now.....even though he has birdie friends and is in love with my larger bird, he always makes time to hang out with me.....he flies to me sometimes now when I call him! Last night he flew out to me, sat on my arm and got all cuddly and took a snooze with me....head all turned around, all fluffy.....they are indeed one of the cutest little creatures. Pip loves to spend time with me now.....I can get so much closer to him now. I've gotten alot of bites along the way though! Remember too, that lovies go through a bitey stage and can be nippy sometimes. I think Pip has outgrown that age now as he never really bites anymore....a few little nips here and there that don't hurt and that's it.
It looks as if you are well on your way to having a great relationship with your lovie! He'll be your buddy in no time! I love how confident, social, and brave Pip is, and I'm thinking he got alot of good personality traits from being raised the way he was meant to....by his parents!

[tonyo]

Thank You for all the advice. I'm really excited now. I will be posting some more on my youtube channel soon . He was feeding of my hand.
@bookworn0550 try Asian veggies . My lovebird love all green leafy veggies, kang kong and Bak choy. Btw I was trying to get into your blog but is seems to be by invitation only. Id really love to read it.
Thanks again everyone !!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IxwCLZ7tQ8A

[Enko_chan]

I have had a mix of parent raised and handfed lovebirds over the years and I think they are equally capable of becoming excellent companion parrots.

Presently, I have two lovebirds, Frey and Odinn. Frey was handfed from the first day of life and consistently socialized with human beings as well as other lovebirds through to this day, and Odinn was parent raised and never handled until he came to live with me when he was ten months old. They have lived with me for a year and almost three months now, and if someone who knew nothing about them was asked to observe them being handed and guess which one was which- they'd probably have a tough time figuring it out.

It has a lot to do with how you socialize with your bird.

I have also had a handfed male who came to live with my family as a baby, that had a major personality change when he reached adulthood and became difficult to handle, and a hen who was handfed but her personality was not well suited to being a human being's companion and she and her mate ended up living with my family after being returned to the pet shop she was bought from. So, sometimes, even being hand raised and socialized isn't enough to temper the wildness in a parrot, and other times a parrot can be raised by his parents and grow up as a bird would, and being well socialized is enough.

It seems like you are doing very well so far, and you've come to the right place for support and information, and to share stories, videos and photos! Welcome!