maggenpie
New member
It's just over two weeks now since I brought Gwynn home and he's progressing beautifully. Getting him to eat fresh food, introducing pellets and getting him interested in foraging has all been really easy.
My biggest problem was his flying attacks, and for about half a day I did think perhaps I'd got the demon bird from hell on my hands but nothing could be further from the truth.
I figured out fairly quickly that it was doing things to his cage while he was out that triggered his attacks. The solution was easy. I now do everything to his cage while he's in it. When I'm ready to let him out I put the food dishes in place and immediately open the door. He waits on the perch until I call him out, flies back and forth to me for titbits, but can't wait to go back in to see what I've given him. So I let him go in and out as he pleases. When I have to get on with other things and can't supervise him any longer, I wait for him to go in again, give him an almond and lots of praise, and shut the door. He doesn't object at all - and the information I got about his past is that he's never been good about going home, (and mishandling that issue is probably why it had turned into such a big problem) so I'm really pleased about that change.
I give large pieces of fresh food on a skewer, and on days when it's small things like peas and sweetcorn, I cover the dish with shedded paper and card so he has to 'find' it. His pellets I wrap into tiny parcels and hide in a box of foraging material. He has wood to destroy every day, it's his favourite thing. I bought cheap lolly sticks and found predrilled wood pieces in the small fluffy animal department and I put those on his skewer, and bought him a hollow log designed for hamsters to run through (trusting that if it's okay for hamsters to gnaw it's okay for birds - am I wrong? It looks like pine, others are perhaps birch). I was intending to stuff it with things to pull out and shred but he just likes destroying it. Trying to keep him amused as he's become more and more animated is quite a challenge and I'm always searching the forum for new ideas!
His dislike of men has turned out to be a temporary distrust due, I think, to his experience with one particular man.
He now asks for affection, rather than submitting to being petted. He lifts his wing to be stroked underneath and I take that as testament to his growing trust in me. I've not tried to get him to step up at all but, with his growing affection and trust, I think the moment will come when we both decide it's time.
Other than that, we have one issue. He doesn't take kindly to being told not to chew things that I say are mine...!
I want to say a big thank you to everyone who offered advice and insight when I needed it most, here and on the behaviour thread. All of it was worthwhile if not all of it fitted, and it all gave me food for thought and helped me to trust in my own intuition. It made the journey much easier, being able to share with people who truly understand. Thank you all, and no doubt I'll have more problems to ask about along the way.
My biggest problem was his flying attacks, and for about half a day I did think perhaps I'd got the demon bird from hell on my hands but nothing could be further from the truth.
I figured out fairly quickly that it was doing things to his cage while he was out that triggered his attacks. The solution was easy. I now do everything to his cage while he's in it. When I'm ready to let him out I put the food dishes in place and immediately open the door. He waits on the perch until I call him out, flies back and forth to me for titbits, but can't wait to go back in to see what I've given him. So I let him go in and out as he pleases. When I have to get on with other things and can't supervise him any longer, I wait for him to go in again, give him an almond and lots of praise, and shut the door. He doesn't object at all - and the information I got about his past is that he's never been good about going home, (and mishandling that issue is probably why it had turned into such a big problem) so I'm really pleased about that change.
I give large pieces of fresh food on a skewer, and on days when it's small things like peas and sweetcorn, I cover the dish with shedded paper and card so he has to 'find' it. His pellets I wrap into tiny parcels and hide in a box of foraging material. He has wood to destroy every day, it's his favourite thing. I bought cheap lolly sticks and found predrilled wood pieces in the small fluffy animal department and I put those on his skewer, and bought him a hollow log designed for hamsters to run through (trusting that if it's okay for hamsters to gnaw it's okay for birds - am I wrong? It looks like pine, others are perhaps birch). I was intending to stuff it with things to pull out and shred but he just likes destroying it. Trying to keep him amused as he's become more and more animated is quite a challenge and I'm always searching the forum for new ideas!
His dislike of men has turned out to be a temporary distrust due, I think, to his experience with one particular man.
He now asks for affection, rather than submitting to being petted. He lifts his wing to be stroked underneath and I take that as testament to his growing trust in me. I've not tried to get him to step up at all but, with his growing affection and trust, I think the moment will come when we both decide it's time.
Other than that, we have one issue. He doesn't take kindly to being told not to chew things that I say are mine...!
I want to say a big thank you to everyone who offered advice and insight when I needed it most, here and on the behaviour thread. All of it was worthwhile if not all of it fitted, and it all gave me food for thought and helped me to trust in my own intuition. It made the journey much easier, being able to share with people who truly understand. Thank you all, and no doubt I'll have more problems to ask about along the way.
