Where to go next!

[khabibulin]

Hey guys I have had my bird for a couple months now and I kinda left him alone for 2-3 months and now I am starting let him out of his cage and all. He will come out of his cage, go back in when its time to go to sleep, I will set food down on the bed and he will run over and eat it. He will also jump on a stick and let me lift him down from the top of my bed. But the only thing he will NEVER let me do is touch him, lol. I will give him a sunflower seed out of my hand but whenever I tell him to get on my finger he bites it. I will get like 1 inch away from him and he will bite me. One time he got vicous and started shanking my finger trying to rip it apart. But see when I put a golve on and stick my hand in there he goes BALISTIC! So what should I do? I wanna be able to hold him and show him I am not gonna eat him, or somtin.

[michael]

Two months, Too soon! If I were two months old I'd probably bite you too. How dare you put your hands near me when I have no Idea what your going to do.........yet. A common occurance among bird lovers is to have to put up with some bites before you both learn your not going to kill each other, or try to. We should feel lucky their not amazons or any other larger species. Imagine having to practice with one of those living bolt cutters! Its hard to try to give answers that will work, because not all do. I'm a believer in non punishment with the exception of verbal discontent. Even when you tell them NO! its seems best not to push them away, but to keep them close so that eventually you'll gain his trust. You should find plenty of posts here in regards to biters not so anonymous as well as biting sometimes anomalous. Have patience, read whatever you can here, and love your very young birdee because he depends on you even though he bites. After all his beak is probably his no. 1 learning device as I've never had a bird kick me yet...... Michael N' Gooooofy

[Ilovelovies]

Iv'e only had my lovies for about 3 weeks, they will sit on my shoulder, preen my hair(it needs all the help it can get!) and sit in my lap but they still will not let me pick them up or sit on my finger. Yeah their little finger biters too but iv'e found that if i offer them my closed hand they will hop right on!! Come to think of it i never liked anybody pointing at me either:lol .
Sharon

[Tango's_Mom]

Not to put you off or anything, but it took six months of interacting with Tango everyday, before I was "allowed" to touch him, he would come to me on his own terms and step onto a stick, but hands were absolutely off limits, unless they had food and even then, if he had to touch the hand to get the food, well, he'd just as well not take it, it took six long months of not trying to do anything with him with my hands before he realized they were not going to hurt him, and yes I got bitten, and I bled a couple times, but I just learned to avoid being bitten by not forcing my hands on him. Now he steps up, loves to be petted and scratched and will let me hold him in my hands, but acceptance of hands has to be on the birds terms.

My advice is to avoid using your hands to handle the bird, continue with stick training, and once the bird is comfortable with you, watch him and the way he reacts to your hands when you go about normal activities, and once he seems less threatened and more curious, then try and introduce things like stepping onto your hand, or beak rubs and scritches.

[sdgilley]

But see when I put a golve on and stick my hand in there he goes BALISTIC! So what should I do?
I wouldn't use a glove if I were you.
I agree with Michael's post. He's young and you should take it slow. Let him come out of his cage to you, don't put your hands in to get him. You need to build trust in him, and that takes plenty of time and patience. Putting your hand in to grab him out violates trust in his little eyes, because that is his home.
Try standing by his cage talking softly to him to get used to your closeness. Later (not all at once, he's a baby!) when he's more used to you, take him in his cage to a small room that's slightly dark. If you use a bathroom, please remember to close the toilet and cover the mirror. Let him come out in the quiet with you and continue talking to him. After a while he'll want to explore you.

He may nibble or bite. BUT like Michael points out - his beak is his chief learning tool. He doesn't have hands, and probably won't kick you ;) .

I hope this helps. It won't happen all in one day. Take it one small step at a time.

[salderm1]

Hi, I've had Link since Christmas and got some bad advice about putting my hand in his cage "to get him used to me". Since being on this website I've learned the cage is their "sanctuary" do not invade it unless cleaning!!! My Link loves me but bites the **** out of me when I try to pet him! He sits on my shoulder forever. He will now let me rub his beek occasionaly before he tries to take a finger off! My point is is that search the links and take the advice! I have come SO far with Link, that I know eventually he will "probably" try not to take my finger, neck, nose, whatever off of me!!!

[Ducky]

Maybe I'm the minority here, but I don't think that two months is too soon to be trying to at least pick up a lovie. Call me whatever, but I've said it before, short of a rescue I would not be able to spend a year trying to touch my lovie like some people have here. They have waaaay more patience than me. I was picking my little guy up within the week, and the only time he bit me was when I had to clip his wings. Even if you're scary, lovies need interaction and two months with nobody to play with seems more depressing to me from the lovie POV.

That being said, is your lovie parent raised or hand fed? Parent raised, they're right, this will take some time. Hand fed, you ought to be able to interact with him. Take it slowly, and try looking up taming the larger parrots. Techniques for them may work here as well?

[sdgilley]

Hi Ducky,
Maybe I wasn't clear, sorry. It's not too young to pick up a lovie at two months. My hen has been handled from day one. The issue was reaching inside the cage to grab the lovie, I thought...:blush:

When I got my first lovie I was under the impression, like salderm, that I should get him used to me. So I grabbed him out every day! He learned to bite me very hard, VERY. If I'd had taken it slow and approached him outside of his cage, it might have been easier. Today he's a dedicated hand biter. I don't know if he'd have been that way anyway. I just think it's more ideal to let the lovie come out and then begin training (whether using a dowel or hand).

Good luck, hope I didn't confuse the matter.

[khabibulin]

Hey guys thanks for all the replies.

Well after reading over this and thinking about it again I must be doing pretty good. I got his wings clipped today.

Well overall right now he will
-come out of his cage and go back in on his own
-I will set food next to him and he will pick it up and eat it
-And finally today he let me rub him on his back while he just sat there and looked. At first he was a little hesitant and wanted to bite but then trusted me
-And I also give him sunflower seeds out of my hand but he picks them up and drops them, I think he thinks its funny having me have to pick them up everytime.

So how do you guys think I am doing? I was starting to think this was gonna be impossible, but I guessed wrong. Some of you guys have probablly handled your bird longer in 1 month then I have in a 5 months and I seem to be a little ahead if not where those people are with there birds. So I guess I should start spending 2+ hours a day with him.

Thanks Alot

[Ilovelovies]

I for one, think you are doing just fine. obviously the more time you can spend with your bird(does it have a name!) the more it will be used to you. I have had mine for about a month now and they were not tame when i got them. I still cannot touch them with my hand, but when i let them out for playtime they are always happy to come see me and sit on my shoulder! I am tickledto death they trust me enough to do that and in time i believe, when they are ready, they will let me touch them. Im not going to force them, but let them decide, and if they don't, that's fine. Some birds will never like to snuggle and be handled and i respect that. I just feel honored that they allow me to be a small part of their birdy world:lol . Continue to spend time with your bird every day and build trust. It may take time ( i call it taking birdy steps;) ) but every little bit of progress is worth celebration!!.
Sharon

[khabibulin]

I sadly dont have a name for him yet... : (
I think he would be happy if he had a name lol, any ideas

[Ilovelovies]

Here's a link to a site that has all kind of ideas for a name:)
good luck, and let us know what you choose!
Sharon

http://www.birdbytes.com/names.html

[mjm8321]

I sadly dont have a name for him yet... : (
I think he would be happy if he had a name lol, any ideas

Well, I wouldn't step up for you either if I had no name. :lol

Do you have pictures of your little one? Much easier to suggest a name if you know what someone looks like. :wink:

[Ducky]

Hi Ducky,
Maybe I wasn't clear, sorry. It's not too young to pick up a lovie at two months. My hen has been handled from day one. The issue was reaching inside the cage to grab the lovie, I thought...:blush:

When I got my first lovie I was under the impression, like salderm, that I should get him used to me. So I grabbed him out every day! He learned to bite me very hard, VERY. If I'd had taken it slow and approached him outside of his cage, it might have been easier. Today he's a dedicated hand biter. I don't know if he'd have been that way anyway. I just think it's more ideal to let the lovie come out and then begin training (whether using a dowel or hand).

Good luck, hope I didn't confuse the matter.

I was reading back through my last post and realized that it sounded a bit short. :blush: I'm sorry! Yes, most lovies do not appreciate being just grabbed. Course mine I sometimes have to grab just to get him back in his cage! :rolleyes: I't like a leech!

He needs a name! I picked mine from Harry Potter, so he's Pigwidgeon. I call him Widgie for short though because most people don't get the reference or laugh at me! :p Try picking a name from a book or a movie you like. It keeps from having the same name as everyone else. I dunno how many lovebirds I've heard of named Greeny, Peaches, Nibbles, etc. Not that those are bad names, I just like to be unique! :D

Course some people say I'm too unique....

[Janie]

Hi and welcome!

All birds are different and as Sharon said, some will eventually be snuggle birdies and some never will be. I do think that having a bird for a few months and not spending time with it was time wasted and you'll probably need to slowly start the taming process now....and it sounds like you are. :) With lots of time, patience and love, you will get there! :D

And I second the others....give that baby a name! :D

[butterfly1061]

He needs a name! I picked mine from Harry Potter, so he's Pigwidgeon. I call him Widgie for short though because most people don't get the reference or laugh at me! :p That's what I thought your avatar meant! OMG!! I LOVE HP!! People think I'm nuts (office ladies :rolleyes: ) but their kids think I'm cool! :lol I can't wait until 7/21 to go party with the kids at the local bookstore :happy: Since I have 3 new babies and they should all be males, maybe I should name them Harry, Ron, Neville :clap:

[khabibulin]

Heres a picture of my birdy.
Oh yeah one more thing. I have started to let him out in my family room where the TV and everyone is. I open his door up and he likes to walk out and look around then climbs to the top of the cage. I have 2 big, 140+ lb black labs and on of there beds is right below his cage and he just stairs at the bird while he walking around ontop of the cage. Im sure my dogs would never eat my bird so its all good. Oh course I am in the area watching him and the dogs. And he goes back in is cage on his own.

http://pic4.picturetrail.com/VOL722/3869965/15884571/242207024.jpg

[khabibulin]

Hey guys, could you give me a link or somthing to what my loveirds cage should look like? Right now I have a staright perch a little branch perch a wooden swing hanging from rope and these link connector things that hang from his cage. I also have a little tent, happy hut thing. But he is scared of it. Any ideas to get him to go in it? He seems to be scrared of new things. His happy hut was in there for 1 month and he wouldnt go near it.

[Ducky]

I have 2 big, 140+ lb black labs and on of there beds is right below his cage and he just stairs at the bird while he walking around ontop of the cage. Im sure my dogs would never eat my bird so its all good. Oh course I am in the area watching him and the dogs. And he goes back in is cage on his own.
http://pic4.picturetrail.com/VOL722/3869965/15884571/242207024.jpg

Just be careful with those labs. They've been bred to be birding dogs, even if you've never trained them to be so. I had a lab cross who was the SWEETEST dog with people and other dogs and animals. Like, he would never hurt a fly on purpose. But I had chickens and we could not let them alone unsupervised. He knew that he could not go near them when we were around, but if we left... well he never ATE them. He broke their necks and left the rest of them alone like a good birding dog. Not trying to be pessimistic, just be cautious is all. :)

I don't have any pics of cages but there should be several perches of different shapes and sizes to give them proper excercise, both feet and climbing. They also need different types of toys. Chewers (wood, leather), shredders (paper, wicker), pulls, pushers, things that clang, plastic, etc. Try looking on Drs. Foster and Smith (http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/Shop.cfm?N=2003). They have all sorts of stuff at reasonable prices, if you order enough so shipping isn't that big a deal. Otherwise Petsmart and Petco have a lot of the same stuff, though not quite the variety.

[Ducky]

That's what I thought your avatar meant! OMG!! I LOVE HP!! People think I'm nuts (office ladies :rolleyes: ) but their kids think I'm cool! :lol I can't wait until 7/21 to go party with the kids at the local bookstore :happy: Since I have 3 new babies and they should all be males, maybe I should name them Harry, Ron, Neville :clap:

Ya I like it and it's staying until the 21st!!. I also like the name ideas. Course eventually I'm going to get a birdie and name it Snape, cause he's one of my fav characters regardless!

[Tango's_Mom]

Please, PLEASE reconsider your decision to let the lovie out around your dogs, it only takes a second for even the friendliest dog to be startled by a small, fast moving bird and snap at it, these birds are small and fragile, and all it would take is a little nip to kill the bird, also, dogs (and humans) have bacteria in their mouths that can prove fatal to birds, so any contact with their saliva could result in death, also, the fact that you say the dogs bed is quite close to the birdcage also concerns me, because it tells me that the dog has alot of unsupervised access to the birdcage, it only takes a second for an over excited, large dog to knock over or break open a bird cage.

The rule I have for my dog (who is sweet and gentle and has never shown aggression), is that he is not allowed in the room when the bird is out of the cage, or when I'm not there to supervise, the only time I allow him in the same room as the bird is when Tango is safely in the cage and I'm in the room to supervise. I have an even more strict rule with the dog that lives in the house I share at school, he is not allowed in my room, at all. He is a sweet, gentle dog who is a gigantic suck, but I've invited him into my room twice, and both times I had ALOT of trouble getting his attention away from the birdcage, so he's not allowed to visit anymore, dogs and birds is not something that I am willing to fool around with, I would never forgive myself if I allowed my bird to be killed by a dog, because I thought that they were "fine" together.

[khabibulin]

Yeah I think I am going to be a little more cautious. Even though my dogs dont care at all about the bird, I am still gonna be careful.My dad was even encouragig my dogs to go over and eat him, they didnt care.
Well I am getting some more progress with my birdy. Today he learned not to jump on the ground, on the dog bed. He kept trying to jump back up in the air to his cage, but couldnt make it. So he finally started squaking at me and I came over with a perch and he hopped on and I put him back up on his cage. And he usually doesnt do that.

So any name ideas?

[Ducky]

I actually read in a parrot book that "rescuing" them will make you a lot more attractive all of a sudden. :D :rolleyes: That doesn't mean that you should purposefuly endanger them. But there's no harm in taking advantage of a situation, as you did! :whistle:

[nmce612]

Names are hard....it took me a couple of days to pick some names out for my birds...their names are Mimi and Mango. I always liked Mango. I know its not terribly original but I have green masked lovies and Mango has a little bit of red on his head. Does kind of remind me of a little mango, and since I am from Florida/Puerto Rico I couldn't resist giving him a tropical name. Mimi was harder to come by....they were so cute I would always (and still do) make baby sounds to them and I noticed I used one "word" more than others...and thats how Mimi got her name. Its kind of silly and corny I do admit, but now I can't picture them having different names. Once you get the right name, you'll know....do you have any names that you are thinking about or deciding between?

I liked your picture...you bird is toooo pretty to not have a name :) And I am bit partial to masked lovies...your bird looks like he could me Mimi and Mango's cousin. LOL

[khabibulin]

I was thinking of naming him kiwi, because of his green head and other feathers. Not sure yet. I got one more step further today. I usually will put a sunflower seed in my fingers and give it to him and he will take it and eat it. Well now he will run over to the edge of the cage and come get it from my hand. I am VERY suprised how fast this hole tamming and trust thing is going. Is it ok to give him like 10-15 seeds a day? He just keeps wantin them. And can I buy unsalted sunflower seeds at the store?
And my last question, What other treats would you recomend feeding him? And when to give them to him? I have heard you guys talking about "millet", I have no clue what it is or where to get it. And where should I go next? Try and get him to get on a perch with a treat?

Thanks alot for the help guys!

[khabibulin]

One other thing I would like to say is... You guys always talk about your birds chewing on everything. :confused:
I have never seen my bird chew on a single thing. Is that normal?

[Janie]

Hi,

I'm not sure if you've mentioned this before but where do you live? I ask because you said you've never seen millet. Do you have pet stores? The big chain stores like PetSmart and Petco, etc. all sell millet. I buy mine at a bird specialty store but I've seen it in all the big chain stores, too. You can also order it from pet companies like Dr's. Foster & Smith at this link: http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/Shop.cfm?N=2003 but if you are out of the US, that might not work for you. You can also look at toys at that website.

Do watch the dogs, every single second. Your bird would only have to take one tiny hit from a dog(s) that size to kill it. Even if the dogs were only curious or showing playful interest in the bird, they could so easily kill him and that would not be the fault of the dogs. My dog is very bird friendly but she is always by my side so I know where my birds are and where my dog is at all times.

[khabibulin]

I live in Colorado Springs, Colorado

[Ducky]

Hey I know where that is!!! :p You should be able to find plenty of stuff there. As was stated before, Petco or Petsmart is right there. My bird will do anything for millet. His eyes do this :omg: if he sees it.

Also, I'm not sure why exactly, but the general concensus is that sunflower seeds aren't that good for birdies. Safflower is supposed to be ok though. Does anybody know why?:confused:

[mjm8321]

Hey I know where that is!!! :p You should be able to find plenty of stuff there. As was stated before, Petco or Petsmart is right there. My bird will do anything for millet. His eyes do this :omg: if he sees it.

Also, I'm not sure why exactly, but the general concensus is that sunflower seeds aren't that good for birdies. Safflower is supposed to be ok though. Does anybody know why?:confused:

Sunflower seeds can contribute to Fatty Liver disease; however that is generally in other species of parrots or in a bird that does not get enough exercise. With that said, all of my birds, have access to sunflowers; the tiels, Senegal, Conure, Quakers, Macaw and of course, the lovebirds. Lovebirds are very active and sunflowers aren't a big issue for them; especially if you are using them as a reward treat. The best way of using a particular item as a reward treat is to use it only for that and at no other time in their diet.

[nmce612]

Mango a couple of weeks ago decided it was okay to take seeds from my hand....I love it and I am tempted to treat him all the time but I only give it to him during treat time. I only give him a couple, because I have also read that sunflower seeds can make them fat. Mimi won't take them from me at all so I will give her some millet....if I use a really long one she will eat it with no problem. As much as she wants nothing to do with me she will put up with my hand in the cage if I have millet in my hand :) Mango also won't resist the millet....last night he even go really close to my had and touched my finger twice with his beak....I hope that means he is getting more comfortable. Anyway, my birdie food comes with sunflower seeds in it but I just remove them from the their food dish so they don't get a double dose of sunflower seeds. I have tried to get them to eat other treats, but the millet and the seeds are the only things they will take from my hands....they like other treats as long as I leave them in a bowl. Interestingly a couple of days ago I was so close to getting Mango to eat a piece of cantoloupe.

Kiwi sounds like a really nice name....it definately will suit the little guy with all his bright and beautiful colors!

[khabibulin]

WOW! looking at the picture of your lovie in your avatar, I could swear thats mine. lol

Well today I went and got some millet. AND WOW HE LOVES THIS STUFF! And I have gotten a little further with him, he usually sits on top of is cage on a lego perch I made. And what I do to teach him not to bite is, show him the millet and I then take my other hand and put it next to his nose.(about 1 cm) then when he bites I ligthly shake the perch and after 30 minutes he wouldnt bite and when he doesnt nip my finger for more than, say 15 seconds I give him a piece. I then do it again. I can now rub his beak and he doesnt mind. I really recomend doing this, it worked really good for me.
And about the millet, I found out it works really good if you take the little section that the 10 seeds are on and pull that off and give it to him that way. just hold it in your fingers.
I cant believe how fast this is all going. just the other day I couldnt even touch him without freaking out. That was before I got his wings clipped.

[Janie]

Well today I went and got some millet. AND WOW HE LOVES THIS STUFF!

You're in Colorado Springs! :D You'll have no problem finding millet, toys and any and everything else there. You might check to see if you have a privately owned bird specialty store there, too. While PetSmart and Petco are fine, I do my shopping at a specialty store here that only caters to parrots and fish. The sales people are all bird knowledgeable, something you won't often find at a retail chain store. Also, check to see if you have bird fairs in your area. Another good place to find seed, toys, etc. at a better price than a retail store.

[Ducky]

I dunno if Colorado Springs has a bird specialty store, but Denver does. I know that because I keep meaning to go check it out. The problem is when I go to Denver it's usually with people who are not as obsessed as me! :D

[Tootsie's Mom]

I'm really not sure how old my Tootsie was when I first got her, but after a couple weeks or so, we were perfectly bonded. I would softly sing to her next to her cage every day and get her used to me by putting millet in my palm and letting her eat it from my hands. Slowly she got used to me and every morning she would come to the front of her cage to hear her morning tunes. I would talk to her and repeatedly call out her name. Soon I would open her cage door to sing to her, sometimes she would even come out of the cage and perch on my bed next to me to hear me sing. Soon she would understand how to open her cage door. So every day, she'd be perched on the tip of my pillow for her songs when i woke up.
GOOD LUCK!

[nmce612]

Thats really nice that your lovie is taking to you so quickly...only two months...that is excellent progress. Its been about 5 months since i have had my lovies and only Mango will eat sunflower seeds from my hand...and I only touched his belly once through the cage...he looked confused and a little shocked so I haven't tried to touch him since. Mimi wants nothing to do with me although I am trying to get on her good side by giving her some millet. I have read that when you have two lovies they may never interact with you, so I am really happy with the progress I have made so far.

Lovies can live for a long time so if yours is warming up to you this quickly, imagine how wonderful of a relationship you can have with him a year from now!!

Out of curiosity, is your lovie's name Kiwi now, or are you still thinking about names??

[khabibulin]

Well! I keep gettin further and further. Today I took him out with golves, witch he hates. But then I layed on the couch and I let him out. He just walked on my chest and then **** on me. lol and he stayed there for about 10 minutes. Then he jumped on my shoulder and I walked around the house with him. He just sat up there and chilled.
lol, and I got this toy for him it comes with a chewable nesting mterial and on the inside is popical sticks. And it right next to his cage door. And whenver its open he will go and grab 1 and shake it and throw it off his cage, and he does that with everyone till there gone.

One more thing, can you guys look at the picture for me and tell he if he is black masked or green. Sorry I am colorblind, so its kinda hard for me to tell.
Thanks.