Help me bond with my Green Cheek conure it doesn't love me.

[hyugjin7]

I adopted a green cheek conure Last month on July 30th. I managed to bond with him somehow, He really liked me for the first week but at the start of the second week I think my brother tried to put a harness on him and after that, he got a little bit aggressive. He would bite often and wouldn't fly to me to get a treat anymore. It used to really like getting scratched on his cheek but he didn't like it as much after that. Whenever I tried to rub his cheek he would start walking away slowly. He used to come closer to my hand and liked it but not anymore. Since then I taught it multiple tricks like spinning, waving, hand shaking, fistbumps, and putting his head through my finger. Although teaching it many tricks was cool I really want my bird to like me again any advice?

 

[onamom]

I’m sorry you are going through this with your Conure. This is unfortunately a good example of why I believe it is important to not force a harness on a bird but to instead harness train with positive reinforcement, slowly. For now, please make sure not to bring the harness near your bird and do not allow anyone to try putting it on him. It sounds like some trust was broken here and needs to be regained.

Since you’ve had your bird such a short amount of time, I recommend starting at ground zero again. Don’t try to force interactions, petting, or handling before he is ready. Instead spend time near his cage talking to him softly and offering him treats through the cage. Let him get used to your presence again. Do you know what his favorite treats are? Most Conures love millet spray, safflower seeds, or sunflower seeds as a treat.

I would offer him a favorite treat while he is on the cage to see how he reacts. Depending on how he is feeling, he may not be willing to approach you at first. Be patient and keep trying in short intervals but don’t force it. Keep this up until he will come to you on his own. Don’t try to move toward him with a treat, let it be his choice to come to you. If he will walk up to you to take the treat that is a good sign and the start of rebuilding some trust. Once he will come up to you on his own you can start working on getting him to step up onto your finger. I would still continue to take things slow and don’t force any cheek scritches or anything like that until he will consistently come to you and step up for you.

 

[hyugjin7]

So, I did get him to be comftorable with me. He steps up. However, whenever I open the cage he doesn’t want to come to me and just go to the top of his cage. So I get a treat and make him step up take him to my room and train him. I guess instead of this I should just sit next to the cage and let him be there until he wants to come to me right? How can I stop him from getting to the top of the cage and actually coming to me and like me

 

[Featherii_Fids]

So, I did get him to be comftorable with me. He steps up. However, whenever I open the cage he doesn’t want to come to me and just go to the top of his cage. So I get a treat and make him step up take him to my room and train him. I guess instead of this I should just sit next to the cage and let him be there until he wants to come to me right?

Sit next to him and soothingly talk to him. Say some words that he's familiar with is a sweet voice, baby talk to him. Do this until He's comfortable or is relaxed as you talk to him. Then move onto hand, place it near the cage. He may just be mad at you for leaving him, so Give him treats to apologize! this will work, the same thing happened with my hand raised Lovebird.

 

[Featherii_Fids]

So, I did get him to be comftorable with me. He steps up. However, whenever I open the cage he doesn’t want to come to me and just go to the top of his cage. So I get a treat and make him step up take him to my room and train him. I guess instead of this I should just sit next to the cage and let him be there until he wants to come to me right? How can I stop him from getting to the top of the cage and actually coming to me and like me

To do this, You must Spend time with him and talk soothingly. To get a bird to like you, you must have patience. He gets on top of the cage as either an act of ignorance or dislike, So to get him to like you, Or trust you, You can simply put him in a room where you often are, as this builds trust and He knows you are the Human he Loved before. Approach him often, talk to him often, and He should eventually recongize. But the key thing to do is to talk to him and take him out often, give him treats and spend time. Simply changing his food, water or Waste tray can also build trust. I am not sure if He'll come to like you quickly, it should take atleast 3-4 days until he loves you again. And if you ever travel away from the country, Talk to him through a video call. And make some phrases you often can say to him that he can recognize. such as ' Hey there my lil birb! ' ' I luv you! ' ' Aww, my little bird. ' and all. Good luck! I hope this helps.

 

[Featherii_Fids]

So, I did get him to be comftorable with me. He steps up. However, whenever I open the cage he doesn’t want to come to me and just go to the top of his cage. So I get a treat and make him step up take him to my room and train him. I guess instead of this I should just sit next to the cage and let him be there until he wants to come to me right? How can I stop him from getting to the top of the cage and actually coming to me and like me

and as @onamom said , Put a treat against the cage and repeat this until he comes to you.

 

[Guest46745]

I'm concerned you said, "I think my brother tried to put a harness on him." Well did he or not? Is your brother a child? Maybe your brother should not be around the bird? Birds are not dogs, which can be mistreated and don't care. Out in nature, birds are what everything else eats. Their instincts are to not trust. They are timid, scared, and remember threats. If you try to force them to do something, they will remember it, forever. He probably now thinks he is in a scary place with scary people. He doesn't get to go outside and find somewhere new. He doesn't get to run. You are his entire world. His cage is his entire home. Protect him and make him feel safe and comfortable.