Friendship problems

[DarkSide]

Hi everybody,

A month ago I bought a Lovebird in marketplace as did not have this species in zoo shop. But the disappointment was upon receiving, he's was bold on chest and scared of people a lot.
My problem is that I do not know how to make him belive that I will not harm him and just want only the best. Play, give treats, etc.
This is not my first parrot, previously I had budgie 4 years ago, he completely got used to hands, was my best friend, slept on hot laptop in winter and sometimes was even hard to make him play on his own while I was working. Unfortunately had to give him to my friend because of life situation.
So, I do know how to behave with them. But this one, each time I'm changing his food or cleaning cage he's getting to the farthest corner and screaming. From day to day I have a small success feeding him favorite food (apple), sitting near hand like all is OK, but only in evening when he's a bit tired. The next day like nothing happened, as soon as I get close to the cage he's getting on wall/in corner like I'm going to beat him.
The cage is big, he has toys, enough food and bath, minerals and eating fresh fruits. I think his very old and upset that he can never get used to me.
Does anybody has any suggestions? I have plenty of time to spend with him, work from home and live with girlfriend, she also trying to get friendship with him with same zero success.
Thank you in advance!

 

[corkscr.ew]

Hi everybody,

A month ago I bought a Lovebird in marketplace as did not have this species in zoo shop. But the disappointment was upon receiving, he's was bold on chest and scared of people a lot.
My problem is that I do not know how to make him belive that I will not harm him and just want only the best. Play, give treats, etc.
This is not my first parrot, previously I had budgie 4 years ago, he completely got used to hands, was my best friend, slept on hot laptop in winter and sometimes was even hard to make him play on his own while I was working. Unfortunately had to give him to my friend because of life situation.
So, I do know how to behave with them. But this one, each time I'm changing his food or cleaning cage he's getting to the farthest corner and screaming. From day to day I have a small success feeding him favorite food (apple), sitting near hand like all is OK, but only in evening when he's a bit tired. The next day like nothing happened, as soon as I get close to the cage he's getting on wall/in corner like I'm going to beat him.
The cage is big, he has toys, enough food and bath, minerals and eating fresh fruits. I think his very old and upset that he can never get used to me.
Does anybody has any suggestions? I have plenty of time to spend with him, work from home and live with girlfriend, she also trying to get friendship with him with same zero success.
Thank you in advance!

Sit next to him and talk in a soothing voice. When he learns to tolerate your presence, you can offer treats from the hand and eventually move your hand far enough that he has to step up.

An alternative method is target training, which is one of the best things you can do with your bird. It builds a lot of trust and speeds up the bonding process by a substantial amount (in my experience).

A couple guidelines:
-Make every interaction positive. Don’t let the bird associate you with fear.
-Don’t rush the process. Almost every bird is tame-able with time and patience.
-Be consistent. Let him expect you at certain times during the day. I’ve found that birds tend to be more accepting of people when you’re interacting with them on a rough schedule.
-Move slowly and talk soothingly.
-Avoid overstepping his boundaries.
-Don’t try to force anything that he isn’t comfortable with. Instead, take a break and start with something he’s more willing to do.

Hope this was helpful + your little bird is absolutely adorable

 

[Sophieskitchen]

Birdtricks.com has a video series on how to bond with a new bird. You could check those out. Talk to him often and be patient with him. He is super cute!