Update with buddy

[champmr2]

So I got Buddy a week ago as of right now he has open up by singing most of the day. His still abit frighten when i come up to him. I haven't tried holding since probably the first day i got him ,but everytime i clean his cage. he goes crazy. Any tips on how to work on that?

[NickyBeth]

I've had my bird going on 3 years now and he still goes crazy when I go inside his cage for anything else but food or treats for him.

I kind of think it's a space thing. After all, you are invading his space. How would you like it if a big gigantic hand came into your bedroom at night to grab at something and take it away?? I think the birdies feel that they are afraid we are going to take something away from them when we invade their space. I just talk to my little guy and tell him that I have new stuff for him. Normally, he chills out when I talk to him and he comes over to see me, which distracts him from the fact that I am rearranging his cage!

[Pips mom]

It's funny how they are....all of my birds warmed up pretty quick to me doing things inside their cages.....even Rudy who's still pretty timid. What's funny with Rudy is that whenever I change his water, he'll sit right there by the water dish and have to be right near it to watch me closely while I put it back!

[champmr2]

Buddy will come out of his cage and just hang out on top. It's when ever i come close is when he starts to freak out. :(

[Chickobee]

When we are cleaning cages, except for removing the bottom tray or grate to clean them, we take the birds out of the cage. They can go play on the playgyms or one of the other cages or we put them into a different cage while we work on theirs. That way they aren't upset by what is happening.

They always check everything out when they go back in and immediately notice anything different. This doesn't seem to stress them out. The food dishes and water generally remain in the same locations but we will move the perches, toys, and even cages around. Of course this is partly because I want them to have different toys that are new to them, and partly because I can't remember who had what. :confused:

I like to keep changing things around so they don't get so set in their ways that they will freak out at any little thing that is different in their environment. If they are used to changes, and even having their cage moved to other locations, they are much more flexible and don't get upset whenever something is new.

They always check out new toys immediately instead of treating them as if they are scarey monsters. For them change is normal.

[Z28Taxman]

It's funny how they are....all of my birds warmed up pretty quick to me doing things inside their cages.....even Rudy who's still pretty timid. What's funny with Rudy is that whenever I change his water, he'll sit right there by the water dish and have to be right near it to watch me closely while I put it back!

Ditto has to go wherever his food and water dishes go. Usually while I'm filling the food dishes he'll sit on my shoulder and supervise.

The water is a different story. He has to sit right there on my hand and watch the water go in. As soon as it fills up enough that he can get a drink, he'll take 2 sips and fly back to my shoulder. Unless he decides it's bath time.

[champmr2]

how did you guys start to tame your lovebirds? i want to teach mine how to step up and things lilke that, but everytime i try he goes crazy and he'll start flying all over the cage.

[michael]

how did you guys start to tame your lovebirds?.........

Funny thing about parrots, is some will immediately accept human advances, yet others may remain apprehensive for quite some time to come. ... Main objective, is to always treat your bird as a unique individual. One who just might need a little bit more time to settle in than the neighbors bird next door. ... With my Goofy lovebird, I basically started out by letting him get used to his cage. Aside from changing out his food/water bowls, and sticking treats through his cage bars, I made sure not to get him too excited over much of anything else. ..If I noticed he was trying to avoid me, i'd back off and allow him plenty of space. .. Once he started to come closer to me, I occasionally would let him out to explore his new environment. ..All in all, he really warmed up to me rather quickly. .... With "step ups", this was a gradual process. And very important. ..Whenever I experienced difficulties in retrieving him (which most of us do :rolleyes:), i'd offer an elbow as opposed to my hand. .Often i'd stick a spritz of millet between my fingers, just for good measure.

Really, there was nothing special about the way we started out. .. It was just a matter of slowly getting to know each other, while at the same time, learning about instincts and building trust. .. After about a year or so, it really amazed me to look back on where it all began. ..............:)

[Z28Taxman]

I can't help you either. Ditto came to me as a 1 year old velcro birdy. From what I'm told he was velcro right out of the egg, but he was hand raised from a hatchling.

Just give you little guy some time. Sit near the cage and read to him and let him come to you.

[Pips mom]

My lovebird Rudy has been very slow going with taming. I just let him have his time though and let him out and do what he wants. Eventually he will warm up and start being interested in you. Rudy comes right up close to me now.....he tries to land on me, but then always changes his mind at the last minute....this alone took over a year with Rudy, but he lets me do things in his cage and will even fly right over to me when he's in his cage and I walk nearby. He's gotten braver with me, but not quite all the way there yet. I love how he gets all excited when I come in from work at night....he'll flap his wings like crazy and chirp to me. He's a very timind and uptight bird and not as relaxed as Pip is, or as confident. When Pip gets a wing clip, he's right out there testing his flight limits! When Rudy gets clipped, he gets scared to fly for a little while....each lovie is so different! People are always in a hurry to have a tame bird, but the reality is that you can't hurry taming. Your bird is the one who decides when he/she is ready and you can't force a bird, or anyone else for that matter, to trust you....it's something that's earned and takes time.....unless you get a bird that is very tame to begin with.

[champmr2]

Thanks everybody for the great advice. what do you guys have included in your lovies cages? Toys? any tips on setting up a nice cage..

[Pips mom]

Anything that looks fun to you.....lovies love to play and have fun! Mine seem to like swings and bouncy boings, things to chew up, and a birdie bath is nice too!

[michael]

Much depends on the size of the cage. ..At first, we were experiencing some major house construction, so our new starter cage was rather small. ..Believe me, cage size does matter when it comes to filling it with lovebird essentials! ... Top promo's here, were a swing, bird safe bell, various sized perches, sleeping quarters (cozy, birdbuddie), and a suitable array of food/water and treat cups. .. To promote foraging when i'm not home, among other things, I twist up treats in small paper bags (like the kind hardware stores use for small nuts and bolts), then shove the twisted end between the cage bars. .. Although shreddables to some extent may not be suitable for nesty female lovebirds, males especially (who tend to resort to feather abuse more so the hens), need to remain occupied as much as possible. .... Toys are a whole new ball game. .. Out of the thousands i've purchased over the years :rolleyes:, most were rejected for the so called chinsy stuff like, balled up paper, unwaxed paper cups, stainless steel flatware, popsickle sticks, marbles, wooden blocks, etc. .. Exception for Goofy lovebird was a forager called "the barrel of fun", which was really meant for medium sized to larger parrots. May have been its green colour? .. He has since lost interest. ... At any rate, toys, foragers and whatnot, come in a multitude of varieties. Difficult, is what your Buddy might actually like. .. One things for sure, if your on a budget like me, you may wan't to consider creating a few toys of your own. .... Unless you like donating them. .... Which is good too. .........Playgym?.........:)

[whereswalid]

my lovebird comes from the breeder on Wednesday and i cant wait!!! i wish my lovie turns out a velcro bird! it would be rlly nice to finally have a Velcro bird instead of my brothers bird who only wants head scratches 24/7 i think she learned if she cuddles near me ill scratch her head for her lmao and u have to give a bird time... some might take months and others might take just 1 day