Huge Taming help needed!!!

leopard · Post by **leopard** » Sat May 24, 2008 1:27 am

I bought an IRN at about Jan. and it was not hand tamed and it was parent fed...when I got it it was about 5 months old which makes it about 9-10 months old... IT HE TOO OLD TO HANDTAME NOW? I would love to know because I love this bird so much but all he does is lunge towards me or run away...if you try to get him to step up he runs away or bites... it is really hard to get people to understand my situation so I really hope you can help me. If you aren't completely sure on one part, please ask me and I will tell the complete truth about what ever part you aren't sure of.

Thank you,
Bridget

bec · Post by **bec** » Sat May 24, 2008 2:42 am

he is definitly NOT too old to tame just be patient let him set the pace
use lots of food rewards and try not to react when he bites there are lots of post on here about this and lots of great advise & tricks to use
keep us updated & if you can post picks

pinkdevil · Post by **pinkdevil** » Sat May 24, 2008 4:32 am

Just like Bec said, never too late to tame down.

Let him gain your trust first before trying too much at once. If you start with food he will come around eventually. Ringies, I have found, can't resist a tasty morsel

If you find something he really, really loves and only give him that when you are there, will help in the bonding process.
Maybe try feeding through the cage to start with until he takes it from you. As he is an aviary bred bird, just do things slow and talk to him in a soothing voice to reasure him that you are not going to hurt him.

Some people clip the birds flight feathers on each wing so the bird becomes more dependent on you and can't fly away easily. (I prefer not to clip but it is a personal choice

)

I think if you just take everything slow and not rush, he will come around in the end.

bec · Post by **bec** » Sat May 24, 2008 5:45 am

ive found all my irns just cant resist brocolli they love it
even my 3 yearold who was an avery bird till i got him 3 months ago will take that from my hand

Bella · Post by **Bella** » Sat May 24, 2008 8:17 am

i got my ringneck when he was over 2 and he was wild. I hardly ever get bitten he will come sit with me i can kiss him touch his beak sometimes and he will step up onto my arm or hand. i dont think it is ever too late to tame a bird

leopard · Post by **leopard** » Sat May 24, 2008 2:55 pm

If I do manage to tame him, will he be more likely to still be quite shy and only bonded to me or do they get really friendly and love others too. SOrry for all my questions, it is just i have had a IRN before, I have had budgies cockatiels(bred) rosellas and now this. Thanks for all of your information so far because lots of people how been going on to me about how that make terrible pets, but I want to prove them wrong because even if he doesn't get tame I will still love him!

Bella · Post by **Bella** » Sat May 24, 2008 3:12 pm

leopard wrote:If I do manage to tame him, will he be more likely to still be quite shy and only bonded to me or do they get really friendly and love others too. SOrry for all my questions, it is just i have had a IRN before, I have had budgies cockatiels(bred) rosellas and now this. Thanks for all of your information so far because lots of people how been going on to me about how that make terrible pets, but I want to prove them wrong because even if he doesn't get tame I will still love him!

Billy was wild and scared when i first had him now he is very bonded to me but he will go to other people he finds then all interesting altho they cant put their hands near him he will give everyone kisses so there is definatley hope for your irn :lol:

leopard · Post by **leopard** » Sat May 24, 2008 3:14 pm

Thanks Bella, you have been sooooo helpful.

Bella · Post by **Bella** » Sat May 24, 2008 3:24 pm

leopard wrote:Thanks Bella, you have been sooooo helpful.

Your more than welcome

glad i could help :wink:

leopard · Post by **leopard** » Sat May 24, 2008 5:48 pm

I find that when I try to give him food/treats through the bars of the cage, he actually comes close but doesn't take the treats and instead he lunges at me. What should I do about this because it is hard to give him treats because he tries to bite me(I kind of just repeated myself but oh well) and I need some suggestions please to stop this behaviour because once he grabs hold of your hand, he honestly, does not let go... :lol:

Donna · Post by **Donna** » Sat May 24, 2008 6:55 pm

You can try to just stop put the treat in his bowl and walk away. Don't say anything to him. After a few times of him seeing you do this he will then get used to you coming close to his cage and putting your hand in their.
Peanuts work well for this.

Donna

leopard · Post by **leopard** » Sun May 25, 2008 2:27 am

SHould I just keep trying and not make a fuss of it even when he savages my hand while I put the treats in his cage??? Are there any good random things/tips I should have for this process?

leo · Post by **leo** » Sun May 25, 2008 5:18 am

wing clipping and t stand help alot...

ryelle · Post by **ryelle** » Sun May 25, 2008 7:00 am

leopard wrote:SHould I just keep trying and not make a fuss of it even when he savages my hand while I put the treats in his cage??? Are there any good random things/tips I should have for this process?

sorry, but im crying with laughter. the way you wrote that was excellent. and it reminds me so much of my fid hahahaa. he wouldnt take a damned thing off us when we first got him. we sat for about half an hour every day with the same treat holding it between the bars and trying to coax him over. at first he used to flip out and flap around frantic if we went close to the cage and then hed start trying to bite us. he still does it now, looks like hes going for the treat then he'll very slying move his beak a milimeter or two and nip our finger tips.

persistance and patience helps. for getting him (i dont know if its a him or her so i apologise if im wrong) to eat a treat from your hand through the bars i think you should find something he LOVES! like cant ever get enough of loves, and put it in his bowl for a while so he gets the taste of it. then stop giving him it in the bowl, and try give little bits through the bars. dont move away if he tries to bite, just say no. talk to him real calm though, like say that its ok, and "mmm isnt this food tasty" and eat a bit or pretend to eat it, just to reassure him. i think it took us about two weeks minimum before our fid even considered coming close

leopard · Post by **leopard** » Sun May 25, 2008 9:34 pm

It did sound abit funny now that I read over it. It sound like you had the same situation as me...was your bird handtamed or what? We aren't completely sure if his gender but I suspect he is a he because he is beginning to get a slight ring now.

leopard · Post by **leopard** » Sun May 25, 2008 9:35 pm

And by the way...is it all right if I did that treat thing with cornflakes because he seems to love them sooooo much but when I try to put the treats in he attacks/lunges at me, should I just put them in even if he bites me whiile I do it and ignore him?

greeny · Post by **greeny** » Mon May 26, 2008 8:28 am

leopard wrote:And by the way...is it all right if I did that treat thing with cornflakes because he seems to love them sooooo much but when I try to put the treats in he attacks/lunges at me, should I just put them in even if he bites me whiile I do it and ignore him?

If you can ignore his biting, then it is a good thing as he will learn that biting does not do anything. I would suggest eating those corn flakes in front of him. Hold them one at a time in your hand and eat them so he can relate to you. Then offer him one after a while.

He will see your hands when you are eating the food and realize they are not weapons.

I think wing clipping is a good idea. Plus some birds are more defensive inside their cages and more gentle outside, so perhaps once his wings are clipped you can put him out of the cage and try the "eating in front of him" technique.

ryelle · Post by **ryelle** » Mon May 26, 2008 10:43 am

leopard wrote:It did sound abit funny now that I read over it. It sound like you had the same situation as me...was your bird handtamed or what? We aren't completely sure if his gender but I suspect he is a he because he is beginning to get a slight ring now.

i havent got a clue wether our fid had any close contact with people before we got him, i dont think he did. we got him when he was a year old so either something bad happened or he was in an aviary. he didnt like us 1 bit though, but now he doesnt mind too much... if we watch what we are doing lol. still not a big fan of hands unless your holding food lol. And Cornflakes are good. Does he lunge to get the food real fast? Spit does that sometimes and i think hes going for me. its usually its when hes in a bad mood or doesnt want us too close that day. still trying to resolve that. As for the ring, Spit hasnt got his totally yet, but where the ring should be the feathers are a slight red/browny colour, and three or four tiny black feathers under his beak. Hes scratching it a lot atm so i hope its coming through

leopard · Post by **leopard** » Tue May 27, 2008 8:48 pm

I have to admit, but I have not figured out whether he is lunging to get the food fast or whether he is trying to bite me because I am abit worried that it could be to try and bite me and when this bird gets hold of your finger, he does not let go!

Lila_ · Post by **Lila_** » Wed May 28, 2008 12:41 am

hey leopard!

where in NZ are you?
yeah biting when youre trying to give him food is really mean isnt it. i handraised dodo myself from 5 weeks but she still tries to bite me if i try to touch her food dishes inher cage. even if im putting food in them! the IRN i raised her with used to bully her away from the food you see, now she's not sharing! shes ok outside the cage. when your IRN is tamer you will probably find the same thing.

I recently rescued a little lovebird who is terrified of everything. do you still have your other birds? internet resources said he might take up to 2 years to tame but hes made HUGE progress because when I take him out the cage to pat him i have my cockatiel on my shoulder. seeing her there enjoying my company makes him calm down immensely, plus hes curious about her. maybe you cant take your baby outside the cage but if you could take your tame bird and give it a good scratch right in front of him then he might start to get the picture. oh, and feed your bird his favourite things from your hands in front of him. that works really well.

go for wingclipping - helps a Lot.

also dont be offended if he IS trying to bite you. that happens. even if he loved you he would bite you. your patience will be rewarded

leopard · Post by **leopard** » Wed May 28, 2008 2:23 am

I am in Christchurch... we are getting a cockatiel soon(a handtamed one)... i seem to have quite bad luck with birds, my old cockatiels had to be put to sleep, my budgie..er...bled to death, my rosella was completely untame so we donated him to a really good friend at our localsanctuary thing...

ryelle · Post by **ryelle** » Wed May 28, 2008 5:59 am

your fid sounds EXACTLY like mine. its crazy! Spit doesnt let go either when he grabs hold of ya. little imps they are. i gota clip more of his wings today -.- even though i dont want to, which is gunna do down SO well *sarcasm* but ive decided afterwards i am cracking down totally on his training. ive decided my bedroom might be a good place to train him because theres nothing interesting in there (everythings still in boxes lol) and theres no sounds to distract him.. no t.v. Gunna have to stock up on apples and lemons i thinks (he likes bitter stuff a lot).

Has your fid got any better at all with taking food through the bars since you started this post? I was playing with one of Spits moulted head feathers yesterday (tiny tiny) and he came over (outside of the cage!!) and took it very gently from hand. surprised me a hell of a lot lol. Curiosity always takes over

also, let me know how it works with another tame bird in the house, we were also considering getting a tame bird to see if Spit would understand that we arent so scary a bit more... but i dunno if hed get too jelous because he sometimes screams when we hold the rats o.O

DEEDEE · Post by **DEEDEE** » Wed May 28, 2008 2:08 pm

I have a Female (1 year) and a Male (2 year), I have had them 1.5 years the Female will go on my hand no problem, if I go out on the garden I take her with me. Now he is different not so trusting outside he will go on my hand and nither bite in anger. But he will have nothing to do with me indoors. When I got them they would have nothing to do with me, they even took chunks out of me for fun, but as I have said now I seem to be winning the battle, Time + Patience

leopard · Post by **leopard** » Wed May 28, 2008 9:20 pm

We have two rats! I am really hoping that the tame cockatiel might do something when we get it...

bec · Post by **bec** » Thu May 29, 2008 3:23 pm

leopard wrote:I find that when I try to give him food/treats through the bars of the cage, he actually comes close but doesn't take the treats and instead he lunges at me. What should I do about this because it is hard to give him treats because he tries to bite me(I kind of just repeated myself but oh well) and I need some suggestions please to stop this behaviour because once he grabs hold of your hand, he honestly, does not let go...

kieron looks like hes lunging at me every time i give him a food treat from my hands its not actually that hes trying to bite me hes just trying to get the food before the "scary hands" get him try not to flinch or react & see what happens

leopard · Post by **leopard** » Tue Jun 10, 2008 1:19 am

YES!!! Turns out that now he will take the food from my hands...after a few seconds of checking it out I mean...what next???

leopard · Post by **leopard** » Tue Jun 24, 2008 12:34 am

Is there anyone that can please give me a tip on what to do next?

Chooky · Post by **Chooky** » Fri Jun 27, 2008 6:15 am

leopard wrote:YES!!! Turns out that now he will take the food from my hands...after a few seconds of checking it out I mean...what next???

How is he going now, leopard?? Is he still eating from your hands (great work by the way....your patience was rewarded!!). If he is have you tried giving him a scratch....my irn loves a scratch all over the head...and not a light scratch but deep within the feathers so that I'm touching the skin....scratching seems to bring me and Tricky closer

Have you got some chewy toys for your friend??? That might help his chewing problem. He is with you all day, yes??? He likes classical music.....he has class. Does he sit with you while you work??? Are his wings clipped (or one wing clipped)? What about his diet - does he eat fruit and vegetables as well as seeds and pellets??

Cheers - it does sound as if you are going forward with him!!!

leopard · Post by **leopard** » Fri Jun 27, 2008 3:39 pm

He still eats from my hands... he bites me if I try to scratch him..

Chooky · Post by **Chooky** » Mon Jun 30, 2008 7:00 am

Oh leopard how heartbreaking for you. I can sense that you really love your birdy....maybe he just needs more time with you ? Maybe you could try holding a small mirror in your hand to entice him with.....irn's love looking at themselves (sometimes a little too much imo :lol:

). I hope it all works out for you and the little fellow comes around.

leopard · Post by **leopard** » Thu Jul 10, 2008 4:20 pm

He still take the food from me (peanuts and cornflakes) but now as he takes it he takes it quite aggressive like a snatch, any particular reason for the mood swing?

ryelle · Post by **ryelle** » Thu Jul 10, 2008 4:27 pm

oh my fid does the same. i try make sure he cant snatch it, and if i think hes going to i hold on to it longer. haha like a little tug of war. is probably the wrong thing to do but what the hell. shows he isnt going to get things if he snatches.

Mirrors are funny things. our fid is as tame as yours is, and he so loves his mirror. too much though. if we touch it we get a growl and a bite. and he runs frantically after it if you move it, like he has to protect his little love thing. feel sorry for the little bub

i still havent got a scratch or a touch off Spit yet either. he did sit on my shoulder for 15 mins the other day but that was only because he didnt want to go in the shower (pain in the ****). i dont really know what to do either. He's come over a few times and checked out my hand if i dont move it too much and i found out he likes to pull hairs out of arms -.- but thats it. im kinda thinking "what next" aswell haha...

leopard · Post by **leopard** » Fri Aug 01, 2008 9:56 pm

There must be something to do next that doesn't involve a complete attack.

Post by **Lauren** » Sun Aug 03, 2008 6:15 am

Lola has to 'snatch' food from my hand everytime too. But then she is very possessive of her food. I have no idea how to stop this. I seem to have just accepted it now. Yet I still say 'Dont snatch!' everytime I offer food. :roll:

I used to think she was going to bite me too, but it turns out she just 'snatches' the food. Which I can deal with.
Jibby on the other hand has a habit of not even taking the food off me, he is so lazy he makes me hold his food while he eats it! I mean hes 8 years old he knows how to hold it himself. Hes just lazy. :shock:

And whats worse I stand there and wait for him to finish it. lol.! He can fly, but hed rather me pick him up all the time too. :roll:

Post by **kyria** » Sun Aug 03, 2008 7:19 am

Trust doesn't really start for months, I mean months of persistance and patience. Kai took a good six months of work every day, taking one it like one step a week. The first thing we did do was clip him, then we just spent alot of quiet time with him, we would leave his cage door open and the cage out with us, curiosity eventually had him come to us. He simply eventually wanted to be part of the flock, and to be that he had to adapt to being with us.

IRN's have definate moods, even when totally tame, bad days, good days, happy days, angry days, horny days :roll:

just like any creature.

(those that know the add) "It may not happen over night, but it will happen" :wink:

Chooky · Post by **Chooky** » Mon Aug 04, 2008 5:48 am

Kyria I so love your reply, it is all about patience and letting our feathered friends learn to trust. In my case I was so lucky that Tricky was happy to come to me, he's an affectionate darling that just craves contact . He seeks me out ("he" is not known yet....he may be a she....doesn't matter in the least...this bird is part of me now.)I have my doubts about Tricky being handraised (as the pet shop owner told me).Tricky was three months old when he/she came to us...he/she is now nine months old and starting to talk!!

I so hope that your little one is is learning to love you and that he's mellowed. Please give us an update on how you're going with him

leopard · Post by **leopard** » Thu Aug 14, 2008 5:10 pm

The shop person told us he was handraised but he wasn't really...He has definitely got better (he never would come anywhere near me and flap everywhere) but now he is happy to take food from me, but onl y me, no one else which might be a bad thing but I don't really mind... i might try that idea of just staying in the room and having the door open so that his curious side can take over.

PinkBitz · Post by **PinkBitz** » Thu Aug 14, 2008 5:53 pm

Hi im new here i def believe he isnt too old at all to tame u will just need patience and lots of it as i found out when i was recently was given an IRN who is about 2yrs old and had been a lil neglected. He was originally tame and could speak, but when i got him he was quite afraid and nasty towards me. I have only had him 4 weeks and now he is starting to talk again and also comes and sits on my shoulder but thats with alot of work and attention to him. So if u have the time and patience i think u will have a great bird

leopard · Post by **leopard** » Fri Aug 15, 2008 6:36 pm

ok...i will update you soon on how Raj is going