greentea
07-02-2012, 10:27 PM
I've had my lovebird for about 4 months, and s/he is about 6 months old by now, I believe. When I first got him, he bit me pretty hard(which I became used to) and allowed me to poke his body with my nose, jumped onto my hand whenever I got him to come out of his cage, etc.
The only problem is that he wouldn't let me pet/rub him(which is absolutely adorable so I totally wanna do it). I wouldn't mind if he was one of those birds who absolutely would never love being petted/rubbed, but he's only 6 months old, so I'm not sure if it's because of his personality or because he is still afraid of my fingers.
I tried to get him used to my fingers by slowly approaching his beak with my index and thumb together, but he always runs up and immediately bites them, usually pretty hard. :cry:
So today, I tried to take a few treats, put them near his face but not close enough to where he could get them himself, and slowly approach the top of his head with my fingers, and if he doesn't bite, then I'd lightly pet his head 2 or 3 times(:happy:), and give him the treat. Though by the 7th time, he just squeaked at me and run away from that area because he knew that I was gonna try to pet him.
So, three questions:
1) If I were to keep doing this, would he eventually become used to me petting him? ):
2) About him running away at the 7th time, is it because he was afraid of my hands, or was he just pooped from how many times I asked him to do it? ):
3) Are there any other ways to do this? ):
I've looked this up a lot, but I don't seem to come up with a lot of results. Sorry if this question has been asked before, and if it has, please direct me to the thread/website.
Many thanks appreciated. :)
The only problem is that he wouldn't let me pet/rub him(which is absolutely adorable so I totally wanna do it). I wouldn't mind if he was one of those birds who absolutely would never love being petted/rubbed, but he's only 6 months old, so I'm not sure if it's because of his personality or because he is still afraid of my fingers.
I tried to get him used to my fingers by slowly approaching his beak with my index and thumb together, but he always runs up and immediately bites them, usually pretty hard. :cry:
So today, I tried to take a few treats, put them near his face but not close enough to where he could get them himself, and slowly approach the top of his head with my fingers, and if he doesn't bite, then I'd lightly pet his head 2 or 3 times(:happy:), and give him the treat. Though by the 7th time, he just squeaked at me and run away from that area because he knew that I was gonna try to pet him.
So, three questions:
1) If I were to keep doing this, would he eventually become used to me petting him? ):
2) About him running away at the 7th time, is it because he was afraid of my hands, or was he just pooped from how many times I asked him to do it? ):
3) Are there any other ways to do this? ):
I've looked this up a lot, but I don't seem to come up with a lot of results. Sorry if this question has been asked before, and if it has, please direct me to the thread/website.
Many thanks appreciated. :)