Advice Needed Please

Moderator: Mods

Post Reply
Donna2015
Posts: 4
Joined: Fri Aug 28, 2015 7:11 am

Advice Needed Please

Post by Donna2015 »

Hi I just brought a two year old Indian Ringneck, The Lady I brought him of thinks he was tame but she hadn't handled him much in the few months that she had him, I have brought him home in hope that I may be able to tame him again. What are my chances of taming him again? would he be better suited to an aviary? How long should I leave him in his new surrounds before I try to get him used to me? Is there a way to tame him that's less stressful to the bird? He is also very quiet is this Normal for them? Thanks in Advance for your help!!
MissK
Posts: 3011
Joined: Sun Jul 22, 2012 3:46 pm
Location: Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.A.

Re: Advice Needed Please

Post by MissK »

Hi. I think most of your questions, sadly, would be best answered by the bird himself. Without getting to know him I don't think anyone can say if he is better in the home or in the aviary. I do have some opinions, of course! :wink:

What are your chances of taming him again?
If he was tame before, and he is 2 years old, I'd think your chance is very good indeed. I think it would be more like just demonstrating how safe and reliable a human you are and how many great treats you have to share. Just how "untame" is he?

Would he be better in an aviary?
Right now only he knows. My guess - probably not.

How long do you leave him before you try to get him used to you?
As long as he needs. I was stunned at how quickly my (first) second hand bird got used to our house. My second took quite a bit longer, but he was also quite a bit more scared of the whole situation to start out. I'm not sure (and this is just my opinion) that you should *try* to get him used to you at all. He's really the one doing the work on this one.

Is there a way to tame him that's less stressful to the bird?
Yes. It's called "positive reinforcement".

Is it normal for him to be very quiet?
It depends. How quiet is he? IRNs are not known for being quiet, but they are not at it all day, either. If he never makes any noise, I would consider that quite odd and wonder if he is either terrified or unwell. If he never makes any LOUD noise, I would consider that odd but it wouldn't bother me. I'd wait until I thought he'd not be scared and then start making some loud and happy noise, to see if he'd join in - but start at low volume and work up so you don't startle him . I have a quietER bird, but he is always up for some very loud contact calls or playing with his companion. The loudest noise he seems to make though, is playing with foot toys in breeding season. What a racket!!!! :lol: It's also possible the environment is too quiet for his comfort. Try whistling loudly from a room or two away. A standard "wolf whistle" would probably suit him, and you could also try saying "Pretty Bird". It's astounding how many birds pick up "Pretty Bird".
-MissK
Donna2015
Posts: 4
Joined: Fri Aug 28, 2015 7:11 am

Re: Advice Needed Please

Post by Donna2015 »

Thanks so much for your reply, I feel a lot better now hearing from people who have these Birds, he is a beautiful bird and just don't want to stress him out, the noise factor so far has been almost non existent I am just waiting for it lol He seems to be eating ok so that's great, thanks again!
sanjays mummi
Posts: 2050
Joined: Fri Apr 27, 2012 12:07 pm
Location: Bedfordshire UK

Re: Advice Needed Please

Post by sanjays mummi »

The fact he is quiet, says to me, he is a bit scared of his new environment, it is, and you are, unfamiliar to him. Let him settle in for several days, he will let you know when he is feeling secure.
Wessel Gordon
Posts: 408
Joined: Wed Jul 13, 2011 12:02 pm
Location: South Africa
Contact:

Re: Advice Needed Please

Post by Wessel Gordon »

Donna,

Like MissK mentioned a wolf-whistle works well. I use it as a ''flock call'' for my 5 IRN's and my African Grey. It reassures them that while I might be out of sight for a while I'm still in touch with them...the African Grey uses it and various phrases and sounds to find out where I am in the house.

Something else you can try is to keep up a running conversation with it while you're around the cage and somewhere else in the house. What you say isn't necessarily as important as your tone of voice. A low calm voice works well for me.

Most of my birds seems to have some unique call or whistle through which I can identify them from a distance. Once your bird gets comfortable the odds are that it will start making a sound it's comfortable with..try and copy that sound back; that way he/she will know it's part of your ''flock''.

Wessel
Donna2015
Posts: 4
Joined: Fri Aug 28, 2015 7:11 am

Re: Advice Needed Please

Post by Donna2015 »

Hi, thanks again for your reply's :)
There is a couple more questions I have about this adorable ringneck.
His tail is not right not sure if he has been destroying it or if there were to many branches in his cage? and his Wings have been cut by previous owners, how long will they take to grow back? I also would like to know there favorite treat is? thanks again!
MissK
Posts: 3011
Joined: Sun Jul 22, 2012 3:46 pm
Location: Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.A.

Re: Advice Needed Please

Post by MissK »

My second bird came to me with an unbelievably ratty tail. He'd been kept in a finch-torturing size cage for at least a short time, who knows how long, and he had clearly been beating his tail against the walls as he climbed them. He still spreads his tail a lot when climbing walls, something my other bird never does. If he molted last year the same time as this year, it would stand to reason his tail was destroyed virtually as soon as it came in. Since he was in a reasonably sized cage when he molted this year, his tail is perfect and beautiful.

Any of the larger feathers can be damaged by enthusiastic play, other birds, contact with structures in a small or overly full cage, mishandling, or overpreening. I'm probably missing other ways, too.

Your bird should molt sometime in the next 12 months. If you post where you are, maybe someone who lives there can give you a projected time frame. Here in the USA, my birds molted in April and July, respectively, from what I recall. It does stretch out for weeks. I'm eager to see if they molt at the same time next year or not. When his next molt is done your bird should have normal wings.

If you feel he just recently molted and was clipped since then, there is a procedure for attaching donated feathers to the cut ones. Speak to your vet about "imping". I seem to think they would need to sedate the bird for that. On the one hand, I think a clipped bird is at a disadvantage in various ways, but on the other hand, I personally feel that for my own birds, they'd have to be in great need, indeed, before I would have them sedated. I'm just not personally comfortable with the idea of sedating them if there is another option.

Best treats - your bird will have the deciding vote here, but many like bits of fruit (grape, apple, pear, etc), nuts (mine prefer pecans), large seeds (sunflower, safflower), or spay millet, or none of these. InTheAir's bird loves juice! My Rocky loves his cat bell (& Mr Froggy, of course). Remember that an effective training treat is very small. If you're just handing out treats to be nice, you can afford to be more generous. If you treat a great deal, they say you might have to count those treats as part of the day's food. Me, when I'm throwing down a treat bonanza, I am not curtailing their food in their dish. Maybe I'm a bad keeper, but they don't get a treat bonanza every day.
-MissK
Donna2015
Posts: 4
Joined: Fri Aug 28, 2015 7:11 am

Re: Advice Needed Please

Post by Donna2015 »

Thanks, I am in Melbourne Australia and I really have no idea when they molt, I will get him some of those treats tomorrow, hopefully he enjoys them I have apples but doesn't seem that happy with them will try some grapes tomorrow.
Post Reply