Am I doing this right?

[TheFlock]

Hello,
As I mentioned in my introduction post, I have recently added a handfed IRN hen(dna sexed) to my small flock. Her name is Indie(lol, creative name, right? =D) She is my first IRN, and I couldn't be more happy that she is in the family. She has been weaned for around a week now, and judging by her sudden change in attitude, I'm most certain she is going through the whole bluffing stage.
Question #1, I've done research, but I guess my first big question that I hadn't found an answer to yet is how long most IRNs go through their bluffing stage? I'm sure it varies from bird to bird. I'm just curious what the average length of time it typically lasts.

Question #2, in attempt to bond with her more, I have her out of her cage very frequently. I usually lay a towell on my lap with a few foot toys, and occasionally fome fresh fruits or veggies, and just let her do whatever she pleases while I talk to her. I have found that she does not like to be scritched or anything of the like. She strikes at me if she sees my hand go toward her. During this time, should I go ahead and try to pet her to get her used to it? or should I just leave her alone?

Question #3, I have heard that when she bites, I am supposed to just ignore it. I do just that, though she will still attempt to strike at me when I go to pet her, as mentioned above, or when I get her to step up. I've heard some people distract their IRNs with interesting toys to deter them from biting. I attempt to distract Indie with some toys, but once she finds something to bite, nothing seems to distract her from it. Are there any other ways to try to distract her from biting?

Those are the only three questions I can think of right now, but if I think of anymore, I'll add them. Indie hasn't bit hard enough to break skin, but she has bit hard enough to make indents of her beak in my finger that stayed for quite a few minutes. It doesn't bother me that much, since I've had my Quaker go through a rebelious stage a long while back, but I look forward to working with Indie enough to get her to a point where she enjoys me just as I already enjoy having her around.

Thanks, in advance, for any help! I look forward to your replies.

[Donna]

Hi! Welcome

The bluffing stage can last 6 months to a year depending on the bird. The bluffing is just a ploy to get you to stop what your doing to her or trying to protect her cage and toys. Call her bluff if she doesn't get a reaction from you then you won that battle.

Some birds like to be petted others don't. It's up to her. I'd keep trying she might like it once she figures out your not going to hurt her.

Some people use toys others use food as a distraction. Again it's up to you and the bird. You have a Quaker and you lived through the rebellious stage so this one shouldn't be handled any different.



Good luck Keep us posted


Donna

[kyria]

Donna has covered these well.

I just want to add, with the petting thing, it is an unusual action for a bird to be petted by a human, especially an IRN. If you back away and cease doing it she will expect no petting. With my Jordan and pickle i just kept grabbing them, hugging them and pating them even if they seemed to struggle to get away, eventually they relaxed and began to enjoy it and now they even expect it. I find they naturally enjoy it most though when they are fluffed up on my knee resting, I gently move their feathers across their heads from back to beak and they seem to really enjoy it at this time the most.

With the biting and bluffing thing, I would do things like,

If they were on my hand and went to bite, I would give them a sudden but careful jerk up and down to make them lose their balance, put their wings out and let go, saying "NO" in an anger growly voice. (now they know "NO" even when I yell it from across the room).

If they are on my knee and they go to bite I grab their beak or push their head down onto the ground and say "NO".

If they persist, I pluck them up and put them into their cage for time out.

This all seemed to work very well for me.

[Hestia]

My IRN is named Indie as well. LOL
anywoo... the bluffing and biting will pass. There was plenty of times when I was just about to give up, cause my fingers were pretty soar. But I just kept pushing past it. It was very hard to push past the biting, but I did it.

I never found that I can distract Indie with something else to avoid the bite. In fact I think when I do try to distract him it makes him upset and I am more likely to get bite, cause he can't tell the difference between my finger or the toy. (Just my thoughts)

As far as the petting goes, my Indie isn't too fond of it, but I insist on it. He doesn't like it on his head, and it took me a while to pet him on his back. I was actually able to start out by petting him on the chest. I think I was to do start there first cause he could see where my fingers were going.

Even now that I have past the bluffing stage we still have our moments, but I just tell him "no, be nice" and whats funny is he usually listens.

Just move slow and keep trying. best of luck

[TheFlock]

Thanks so much, guys!
It sounds like I should basically raise her just as I did my quaker. I'll try various things you all suggested and see what works best for Indie.
I'll continue to pet and cuddle her for awhile, but if I find she truely doesn't enjoy it in the long run, then I'll cut back on it. Afterall, my quaker isn't too fond of petting(he tolerates it on occasion), but we still play around and have fun together.
Again, thanks alot; I'll keep you all updated.

[julie]

I also have an indie. I find if you tell them what you are doing it helps eg I say to indie scratch scratch and he knows im going to scratch his head and when I say step up he jumps onto my hand or arm. Now when I say scratch scratch he puts his head down for me to scratch him.