New Behavior with Toys?

[Nicole07]

I found a new behavior in my grey, Zoey. He was a rehome, a few decades old. He never had toys and doesn't know how to play with them. I've encouraged him and shown him, but he has no interest. He doesn't chew anything either.

I began noticing that he would run up to a toy, say 'woo' like his scared call, then bump it to get it swinging and run off. He would usually do it when I would sometimes approach the cage, like he was excited or anxious but didn't know how to express it. I'm his chosen person and he will run to me to be pet, so I'm guessing it's excitement.

Tonight he's begun swinging a little block toy, then he bows and tilts his head sideways, as if he's watching it swing to and fro right above his eye. When it would stop swinging, he would push it again and watch it swing over his eyeball, looking upward.

Does anyone else have a grey that does this? Is it just his way of playing or is it a displaced emotion I'm not picking up on? I've had him three months and this is the first I've seen it.

 

[cnyguy]

Scooter, the 12-year-old female CAG I adopted in April, will sometimes swing her hanging toys. Mostly, she swings one that has a big stainless steel bell at the bottom of it, then will bow her head as it swings, using the bell to get scritches.

 

[GaleriaGila]

This is kinda what I'm asking just now...
http://www.parrotforums.com/parrot-toys/63882-toy-terror-opinions-please.html

 

[Nicole07]

Cnyguy,

When he did it, he had his back to me. I couldn't tell if it was touching him and assumed he was looking upward. Now that you mention it, he may have been using it to pet the top of his head. I've seen him swing his abacus toy and then pet his own head after it brushes his head. He pets his own head to ask me to pet him. He came to me not willing to have human contact and not knowing what toys were so it seems out of place that he not only seeks contact with me, but his toys. Is it a sign of not being stimulated enough? Its hard to keep him busy because he's terrified of everything.

 

[AmyMyBlueFront]

Smokey my TAG wasen't a big toy fan,but she did however love her stainless steel mirror. She would bang it,swing it,kiss it lol...at times she actually slid it inbetween her body and arm and make clicking noises.
I think Zoeys actions is just typical behavior of a Grey.

You mention Zoey "woo's"..Smokes did that ALOT too..it different tones..Some times it was loud and sharp...like she was making a firm statement...other times it was soft and long..."wooooooo" like she was showing me she loved me...other times it seemed like it was her way of saying HI!
Actually...one of her many nicknames was WOO lol


Jim

 

[DRB]

Perjo does a lot with swingnig toys, gets them moving or hangs on them while they swing.

She even whistles a "whoa" type whistle when she has a close call with a swinging toy or flies off and has a rough landing.

She had to pick it up from me when she first came home and I said "whoa!" when she got lose a few times. It's almost like a "phew" she's expressing.

And once again it took me ten minutes to type out o so frsutrting that only this site locks up on me while typing, almost every times.

 

[Terry57]

Justice, my CAG, was terrified of toys when he first came to us. He eventually did exactly what your guy is doing, and simply pushed them, and now after 2 years he actively plays with and destroys them.

 

[cnyguy]

Once in a while, Scooter will start one of her toys swinging like a pendulum, and will just sit and watch it. She prefers having me scratch her head, but if I'm busy, the bell seems to be an acceptable substitute. She's wary of anything new too-- sometimes, she's really frightened of something new to her, sometimes, she just tries to pretend that the new thing isn't there. She'll turn her back to it, once in a while taking a quick look to see if it's still there. Two months ago, I bought a new perch for her cage, and haven't been able to put it in yet. As long as it's sitting on the cabinet near her cage, she's not bothered, but if I pick it up, she backs away and growls. I've hesitated at getting her any new toys because of that kind of reaction.

 

[Nicole07]

Amy,

Zoey is my first and only grey so I'm still learning the behaviors. They're very different from other birds. Zoey mostly woo's when uncomfortable but he does push his toys and woo. It's usually very soft. When he's upset it goes from woo to a high pitch whistle, very short and loud. I usually get the whistle when I break out the sweeper, lol. He also bobs his head up and down and goes woo woo woo.

 

[Nicole07]

Terry,

I hope Zoey starts playing with toys. I feel bad for him. He doesn't demolish them either. He only chews on his blanket that covers the back of his cage. I've tried paper in his bars as it's leads invasive and he wouldn't bother it.

 

[Nicole07]

Cnyguy,

I have the same problem with Zoey. He's had the same things in his cage for a lot of his life. I took out all of the unhealthy perches but a dowel perch. I would like to switch it out too but it's the only thing he'll perch on. I put in natural perches and he ignores them. If I move them to encourage him, he attacks them and refuses to eat or drink. I want to add rope perches (i think he has arthritis) but I'm afraid it will send him into more panic. Leaving it near his cage or on the outside of the cage has done no good. Even familiar things are worth attacking if they're moved. I want to add toys and perches and foraging incentives but he is resistant to everything