IndianRingNeck.com

Big Hi to Everyone,

My name is Sujith and I am new to this forum. I just bought a 6 month old Indian Ring Neck from a local breeder.I read the story of Alex, the African grey parrot and its death a week back and got really moved. I have never owned a parrot before because I wasn't aware how good companions parrots are !

About my parrot, he is a Male Indian Ringneck and we have named him Mike. We have put him in his cage which is big enough for him with two or more perches in it. We provide him just seeds at the moment as its just 3 days since he moved in to our house. But what my concern is, the bird is really scared of me as in whenever I get near the cage to talk with him, he moves to the other end and hides his face.I talk with him at a very cheerful voice. Is that okay or should I reduce the pitch of the voice still ? He is very much afraid of me I guess. Is this all normal since he moved into the new place ?

I spend around 60 to 90 mins with him outside the cage, making him to feel comfortable. But he seems to be least bothered. If I have to put him back in the cage( which he never likes i guess), I have to pick him with my hands.The wings are clipped but still I am in a bit of hesitation mode as I am worried whether I would injure my bird by holding him too tigh ?When i should start hand-feeding him ? At the moment, I have a long stick with which I feed him when he is out of the cage. He seems to enjoy it.

Can someone here help me to give some tips for beginners like me to tame the IRN ? And if you could share some of your experiences, that will really get me closer to Mike !

Hello,
First of all, let me start out and welcome you to our forum. Our forum is moderated by several moderators throughout the world. I myself am from the US and I am obsessed with these birds. It also seems, all the other members here are just as obsessed. ;o)

Anyway, I want to commend you for spending a lot of time with your new little buddy. The good news is he's only six months old and is still very impressionable. The first year is such a crucial stage in any ringneck's mental development. For this reason, he should not be that difficult to tame. This does not mean that it's going to be a walk in the park, as it is going to take work on your part, but it will be well worth the effort.

It seems from your post that you are already handling him on a perch. So, I'm going to go with that notion. Because he is so young it is important you start a positive reinforcement program. You can reward him for the behaviors you want and ignore any behaviors you do not want. You also should incorporate him into your daily schedule throughout the day as well. For example, when you are eating you can place him on the table or when you are showering, place them on a perch near you. I have stands throughout my house or places I've put my birds on when I am working. You should incorporate this as well as the more the bird is around you the more he will come to accept you as his flock family. If this is done day over day, the pattern will set in, and he will be a friendly bird.

Also, you had mentioned, or seems from your post, that your bird does not like returning to his cage. This is typical as many parrots enjoy being outside their cage and find being placed back depressing. They always want to be around their owners. For this reason, you should find some sort of treat that he really likes that should only be given to him when he's being placed in his cage. Over time this can be phased out, but for now this tactic should be used until he's used to coming in and out.

I know that you had also mentioned you are fearful that you're holding him to tight. If this is the case, here is a rule of thumb you should practice. If it hurts you it's going to hurt Mike. But take caution as their bodies are fragile and tiny compared to ours. Just use common sense and you should be fine.

So, I know you wanted tips about taming your parrot. But here's the secret, treat your bird with respect and kindness and your incorporate him into your daily life you will have one amazing little companion. All my birds are very friendly to me and enjoy everything around me because I exposed them to so much. Keep cage time to a minimum if possible.

I hope this helps my friend. Please browse through our forums as we have all sorts of information over the years.

Best wishes,

IMRAN-C