Is this normal behavior?

[Katrina38]

I have a few questions and would love to hear your experiences and thoughts! To give some background, I’ve had quakers and budgies before, but this is my first time with a Rosy Bourke.

We got a Rosy Bourke for my daughter at a bird fair 10 days ago. He’s 8 months old and hasn’t been handled since he was hand-fed 8 months ago. We really wanted a hand-fed one, but finding a young, hand-fed Bourke in IL was tough (I searched for weeks!). So now that he’s home, he’s displaying some interesting behavior, and I’m trying to figure out if this is Bourke-related or something from his previous environment.

Here are my questions:

1. He doesn’t move. When I say he doesn’t move, I mean he stays on one perch all day unless he’s eating. He hasn’t explored any other perches in the cage (except when I’m cleaning, and he freaks out). It’s been 10 days, and I’m worried about his feet and overall health. Could this just be him adjusting, or is it possible that he’s not used to moving around because he was in a small cage before? He does chirp sweetly when my daughter reads to him, but he doesn’t move (there's only poop in one spot in his cage every day).
2. Should I force him to come out for exercise? Is there a way to gently encourage him to be more active?
3. How do we encourage him to bathe, move, or play? I know hand-taming will take time, but I’m concerned about his overall well-being in the meantime. Any tips on helping him feel more comfortable and active would be great.
4. Anyone with Bourkes I can connect with? I’d love to hear more about your experiences or even connect directly!

Thanks so much for any advice!

 

[wrench13]

Patience, patience and then some more patience. Some parrots take weeks and weeks to feel comfy and start to open up. Bird fair birds in particular, poor thing may have been shuffled around for a long time. Offer toys, treats and lots of chatting nicely next to the cage. Use natural wood perches, throw the dowel sticks away.

 

[Katrina38]

Patience, patience and then some more patience. Some parrots take weeks and weeks to feel comfy and start to open up. Bird fair birds in particular, poor thing may have been shuffled around for a long time. Offer toys, treats and lots of chatting nicely next to the cage. Use natural wood perches, throw the dowel sticks away.

Thank you for your response. Why was my post moved out of behavior? I have a lot of behavioral questions-- not just bird specific.

 

[LaManuka]

Thank you for your response. Why was my post moved out of behavior? I have a lot of behavioral questions-- not just bird specific.

@Katrina38, I moved your post because I thought perhaps it may help attract more attention from our Bourke's parronts - I did send notification but perhaps it didn't come through? But I will happily move it back to "Behavioural" if that's your preference