wild ringneck !

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chrisada
Posts: 12
Joined: Sat Aug 17, 2013 12:16 am

wild ringneck !

Post by chrisada »

Hello i bought 2 days ago a ringneck from a pet store, she/he was afraid there without water and food... i instantly bought him to give him a new home because i feared for the worst if he remained there at the pet shop...

So he's Really scared (when i get close to 1meter he curls in the corner ready to fly off) So i quess he wasn't hand tamed at all.. :( :(

I'm Not sure how to proceed from now on, i mean my cockatiel was untamed too but was way easier to tame even withing a few days...

Thanks in advance :)
MissK
Posts: 3011
Joined: Sun Jul 22, 2012 3:46 pm
Location: Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.A.

Re: wild ringneck !

Post by MissK »

Hi!

Your new pet, if it gets decent care, will live a long time. You have certainly come to the right place for learning how people handle these birds! There are a number of threads on taming and getting to know a new IRN. I have contributed to some of them, so I know the information is there.

I suggest you figure out how close you can be to the bird's cage without upsetting it, and place it that same distance from your computer. Give the bird some food and get yourself a little snack, and then sit down at that computer and read taming threads here. You'll be able to learn about the bird and at the same time, the bird will get to learn that you are not scary, just sitting there ignoring it. You can make some quiet, gentle conversation with the bird, too.

If you don't know how to use the SEARCH function, please see the next post from me, which is about how to use Search! :D
You can read about taming all day if you like!

-MissK
-MissK
chrisada
Posts: 12
Joined: Sat Aug 17, 2013 12:16 am

Re: wild ringneck !

Post by chrisada »

good afternoon, im sorry for not replying for so long but my internet connection broke down....

So Pitsi (my female ringneck as i call her) is doing good, i mean she's still scarred but right now when i get close to her she just looks me with little fear in her eyes (if i get my hand close of course she is frightened but not so much anymore)

the other day i left her an apple slice on my desk near me and she flew near me grapped it and flew away to her cage again.. i think she's getting used to living with me!!!

Another thing is i ordered from a breeder a hand raised and fed Male indian ringneck 5 months old!!! Someone told me to put him near her cage with his cage for 1-2 weeks so they can get to know each other and after that if i see they got used to and dont fight i can slowly start to put them in the same cage!!!

Fiy if i bring my female one out (after he gets quarantined for 1 month of course) and she tries to step on his cage should i allow it or will it break their bond cause of fear?

something else, somewhere i found a guide how to tame the ringneck with a clicker cue tactic, is it viable or just myths and lies? Thanks in advance! i Already learnt alot from other posts to how to bond with her!!! i love this community already!
MissK
Posts: 3011
Joined: Sun Jul 22, 2012 3:46 pm
Location: Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.A.

Re: wild ringneck !

Post by MissK »

Hi and congratulations on moving along with your bird. It must have felt fantastic when she came for that bit of apple! :D

I cannot advise you on where to put the cages of the two birds or how to combine them. Others are more experienced here. I can say that the danger of letting them climb on the other's cage is that the resident my come to bite the intruder. This means toes and feet can be damaged or lost altogether! I would advise against it unless there is no question of the safety - you would have to be carefully watching and right there to intervene. Recently I watched even my Budgie bite the foot of my Ringneck as he stuck it in her cage. When the Budgies land on the Ringneck's cage, he double-times it over to where they are. I will not allow them to remain long enough for him to reach them, due to the danger. This does not mean that the two birds (or a Ringneck and a Budgie, for that matter) cannot be happily and safely together, rather that there is inherent risk and it must be carefully managed, with the understanding that it may not be possible to combine them.

I would caution against caging a male and female together (and even more against caging two females together). In addition to any cage/territory/possessiveness issues, there are the twin issues of preventing breeding and promoting tameness. Your wild female is not likely to tame down to humans without a good bit of attention from you. However much attention you give, you cannot compete with another bird right there with her 24/7. The strong likelihood is that she will prefer the other bird. If you are unlucky, he could prefer her over you as well. Hand fed and hand raised does not really equal totally tamed.

If you are able to begin treating by hand, this would be the best thing you can do. Approach the bird however the bird accepts best, and offer a bit of treat. Frequently this will be done with the bird in the cage, you offering a treat from a little distance sideways down the cage. The bird gets to decide how close it comes to you. Initially you may have to "prime the pump" by wedging the food in the bars after an unsuccessful attempt and leaving. Don't overdo that, or the bird will have little incentive to come to you. However, you probably will need to introduce the concept of going there for that thing, so a little to start is fine, even needed. If flying off with apple was exciting for you, just wait till that bird takes some apple from your hand. You'll be over the moon.
-MissK
chrisada
Posts: 12
Joined: Sat Aug 17, 2013 12:16 am

Re: wild ringneck !

Post by chrisada »

Hello again, i paid my breeder for dna testing and he sent me the clinic results, its a boy alright :D
chrisada
Posts: 12
Joined: Sat Aug 17, 2013 12:16 am

Re: wild ringneck !

Post by chrisada »

so i found some green chili peppers and gave her some. nothing yet but i will wait and see how it goes! thanks for the tips!!!
MissK
Posts: 3011
Joined: Sun Jul 22, 2012 3:46 pm
Location: Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.A.

Re: wild ringneck !

Post by MissK »

Rocky doesn't care about those but he loves red bell peppers. And nuts of many kinds. and lots of other stuff. :lol:
-MissK
ellieelectrons
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Joined: Mon Jul 19, 2010 1:17 am
Location: Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia

Re: wild ringneck !

Post by ellieelectrons »

Hi Chrisada

Regarding the tameness of your female - it is possible that your female seeing you interact with your male and how positive the interactions are could help your female settle down.... or not. It's hard to say. With my guys I started with having them in separate rooms and gradually moved their cages together. I had some supervised out of cage play time with them together for a bit. My goal was to have my birds cohabitate in the same cage and eventually we got there. They told me when it was time. Unfortunately, though, cohabitating will accelerate the forming of a pair bond and this can lead to nesting instincts and aggression being bought into play.

Keep up the good work. Sounds like you are doing well.

Ellie.
chrisada
Posts: 12
Joined: Sat Aug 17, 2013 12:16 am

Re: wild ringneck !

Post by chrisada »

thank you all for the tips!!

Right now i feel like i went 1 step forward and 2 backwards about my relationship with my irn...

she's way more afraid than she was when i first got her..

the problem now is she won't eat.. i mean nothing!! fresh fruits mixed seeds nothing!

she's always at the top of her cage when i open her the door otherwise sitting on the perch right under the door...

when she gets down she looks at her food get near it but if i move a muscle or not she will take a seed and climb up again...

when she's out she won't go back to her cage to eat and just stand ontop of it...

i'm really getting worried about it
chrisada
Posts: 12
Joined: Sat Aug 17, 2013 12:16 am

Re: wild ringneck !

Post by chrisada »

im thinking about letting her in her cage for a few days or more even though se wants to come out all the time...
i think it's the best solution for now
Skyes_crew
Posts: 1946
Joined: Thu Feb 28, 2013 12:49 pm
Location: Hawaii

Re: wild ringneck !

Post by Skyes_crew »

Hello chrisada,

I think maybe it would be best to take a step back for a few days and look at the situation. Your IRN being in the cage while you figure out your next approach is not going to hurt her. I have a rescued IRN that was very fearful when I got him two weeks ago. He is just calming down now where he will let me service his cage without getting frightened. I still have not let him out yet. He is learning the ropes and the routines of my house. I make sure to handle my other birds in front of him so he sees that I have no intention if hurting him. I was very close yesterday to him taking a peanut from me. He will get there. Everything with taming takes time and patience. You must relax yourself too. If you are stressed, your bird will know it. Go back to the beginning basics and sit near your birds cage and read to him or talk to him and get him used to you again. You will get there :D
I am owned by my birds...and I wouldn't have it any other way :D

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Doodlebug
Posts: 319
Joined: Tue Jul 16, 2013 7:14 am
Location: Suffolk, UK

Re: wild ringneck !

Post by Doodlebug »

Hi chrisada. How long has your birdie not eaten for? Did anything happen that you know of that might've scared it?

Is it out of its all the time? Sorry for all the questions, just trying to help and need some more info.

Loo :)
Loo :)
chrisada
Posts: 12
Joined: Sat Aug 17, 2013 12:16 am

Re: wild ringneck !

Post by chrisada »

ok then i will do that!


she ate 10minutes ago! she went in her cage and i closed the door behind her...

she's full but acts hysteric going forth and back under the door so i will open it up for her...

i don't think i scared her somehow... perhaps only when i change her water and food everyday opening up the side door to do it


to be honest i thought about it.. i mean she's here with me for 1 month only and i opened the cage door the second week... it was way too fast for her.. i don't think she feels quite home in there because of that
Doodlebug
Posts: 319
Joined: Tue Jul 16, 2013 7:14 am
Location: Suffolk, UK

Re: wild ringneck !

Post by Doodlebug »

I think you are right yes, I accidentally let mine out quite early when I was changing his food etc and he panicked and think if I let it continue he wouldntve known what was his safe place and what wasnt.

Has your bird got plenty to do in the cage? Make it as fun in there as possible :) It will start to feel like 'home' and settle down. Then maybe start target and clicker training til it's comfortable enough and you feel the time is right to let it out again.

Don't panic, as with children IRNs don't come with instruction manuals and it can be difficult to know what to do. That's when the forum comes in handy, everyone here are always here with advice and suggestions.

You're doing your best, remember one step at a time and you'll be fine.

Keep us posted, loo :)
Loo :)
chrisada
Posts: 12
Joined: Sat Aug 17, 2013 12:16 am

Re: wild ringneck !

Post by chrisada »

thanks for your reply! i'll make my heart stone and see her going hysteric inside the cage without letting her out :'(

about toys... funny thing she won't play anything that is bought but only the DIY ones i made

i created some foraging ones and the moment i put them there she started chewing and fighting to get the millets out!!!(literally happened 10minutes ago)

do you have any good links about diy toys? im kinda out of fresh ideas :D
Doodlebug
Posts: 319
Joined: Tue Jul 16, 2013 7:14 am
Location: Suffolk, UK

Re: wild ringneck !

Post by Doodlebug »

As someone quite rightly said to me here recently, you can still spend time with your bird when it's still in its cage :)

Foraging things I have used are the inside cardboard tubes from toilet rolls stuffed with shredded paper and whatever food takes their fancy, small cardboard boxes filled the same and f it's too easy a box within a box. I baked some pine cones, they love to chew them as they are or you can insert seeds and nuts and other bits of food inbetween the rows. Food scrunched up in paper etc, my bird is very much into destroying anything wooden at the moment so clothes pegs and lolly sticks are great.

I was very highly strung and panicked about the smallest thing when I first got doodlebug. I'm afraid I almost camped with him every second of every day and probably harassed the life out of him. MissK was very kind and pointed out that sometimes you can fuss around them too much, the bird will benefit from a break just as much as you, and nothing bad will happen if you do other things for awhile :)
Loo :)
chrisada
Posts: 12
Joined: Sat Aug 17, 2013 12:16 am

Re: wild ringneck !

Post by chrisada »

i created some foraging toys with paper toilet rolls... she didn't go there yet because it's a " no no place" for her... (near her food where she goes harshly to eat some before getting up her cage again)
so time will tell...
i left her in her cage the whole day.. at first she was going up and down but now she's calm eating apples and seeds... time will tell :D

ps: thanks for your tips about the toys! im gonna fill her cage with them

there won't be enough space for her in the end! just kiddding :P

ps2: my male ringneck will arrive on wednesday! can't wait!!
Doodlebug
Posts: 319
Joined: Tue Jul 16, 2013 7:14 am
Location: Suffolk, UK

Re: wild ringneck !

Post by Doodlebug »

So two more days to wait for your male, so exciting :)

How's your female doing now? Sometimes they can be scared when you introduce new foraging toys so I keep it as near to the cage as possible for a few days so they can keep looking at it and her curious about it. I make sure I fill it with food in front of them so they can see there's a point to this weird looking thing!

Loo :)
Loo :)
komodo
Posts: 21
Joined: Thu Sep 26, 2013 11:05 pm
Location: Canton Beach Central Coast NSW Australia

Re: wild ringneck !

Post by komodo »

hello Chrisada
the method I have used with great success is with a clicker.
in the room with the bird in the cage and you standing on the opposite side of the room from the cage and the clicker in your hand.
with a understanding of parrots body language. start with the clicker in your hand approach the cage until the bird becomes scared: this is usually displayed by the bird standing tall and thin with it's feathers tight against the body and the eyes are pinned. stop approaching the cage and just stand there and wait until the bird relaxes. this can take two or more minutes but the bird will relax. when relaxed the bird sits lower and the feathers ruffle out around the head, neck and body and even stretching the wings and legs. when the bird relaxes, click the clicker once and once only then step back two to three steps. wait 30 seconds to a minute then approach the cage again until the bird becomes scared again but get a bit closer. then stop and wait until the bird relaxes, click the clicker once and once only, then step back two to three steps. wait 30 seconds to a minute. keep repeating until you reach the cage stand there for two to three minutes then leave the room. return 30 minutes to hour later and repeat the method until you can approach the cage without the bird becoming scared.
NOTE: don't speak to the bird during this process, this very important. Let the clicker speak for you.
TIP look up B F Skinner in relation to clickers.
MissK
Posts: 3011
Joined: Sun Jul 22, 2012 3:46 pm
Location: Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.A.

Re: wild ringneck !

Post by MissK »

You can Google Skinner to learn about the principles behind clicker training, or you can just Google Clicker Training, or check out one of Karen Pryor's fine books. Other sources, doubtless, abound.
-MissK
chrisada
Posts: 12
Joined: Sat Aug 17, 2013 12:16 am

Re: wild ringneck !

Post by chrisada »

hey everyone, thanks for your replies!

I heard about clicker training but never thought that it actually worked.... i will give it a try then! read some interesting guides and articles about target training and other stuff...

yesterday my new ringneck arrived... he's kinda stressed out, he won't eat or drink....he throws his food bowl down his cage and the water bowl too and will shred every toy inside his cage...
im kinda worried because he didn't eat anything(checked out the bottom of the cage for any leftovers but it was totally clean except some poops(that looked normal thank god).
he's really hand fed because he isn't afraid of me so much....well only afraid of my hands but i think that's normal... He is sitting near me in a distance of 10cm and wont scream or fly away from me!

i contacted the breeder and he told me that he has a normal diet of sunflowers and other seeds, aswell veggies and fruits...
Well nothing yet though...
MissK
Posts: 3011
Joined: Sun Jul 22, 2012 3:46 pm
Location: Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.A.

Re: wild ringneck !

Post by MissK »

Hi chrisada,

Just give him what he needs, continue to give food by hand to him, and check the water and feed often to make sure it has not been contaminated or dumped out under the grate so as to be inaccessible. If he's shredding stuff, keep it coming. Offer him some bath. Check the papers often so you can know how much he's pooping (and therefore eating and drinking) and possibly what he ate.

Sometimes I want to monitor poop and I use this sneaky trick. It might be offputting to some, but I stand by it. I use some plain paper without markings - drawing pad newsprint, art paper, plain white paper towels, copy paper, whatever. I check frequently and when the bird poops, I circle to poop with a pen and label it with the time/date as close as possible. It gives me a poop record so I don't have to guess. However, this only works when it's one bird per cage.
-MissK
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