tame first, train later :)

[LekBrodeth]

so i got my IRN a couple of weeks ago. he's about to be a year old, parent raised and spent most of his life on an aviary. i gave him the whole week to adjust to his new home, making sure not to disturb him. i already have a routine for him: i bring him food every morning, change his water, sloooooowly coming up to him and talking to him, giving him the idea that im not going to hurt him or anything. unfortunately he still hasnt budged. he's still afraid of me, of people. it feels as if i havnt made any progress at all. any more ideas on what to do? he's my 2nd bird, i have a hand-fed black capped lory so im really new at taming (new at everything-bird actually ) but im doing my very best.

 

[Echo]

It's going to take more than a week, more like months but he will know to depend on you for food etc, and will warm up to you in time.....Patience is key.

 

[MikeyTN]

It can take months especially for a bird that spent most of his time in a Aviary. It's not that it can't be done, but it's a long process. Some birds are just really hard to get them used to people period. Since he's the single bird, it's easier to work on him, when they're in a pair situation, it's harder. Persistence and patience is the key! Don't give up even though it doesn't seem to be working.

 

[Featheredsamurai]

I agree with everyone else, it can take a while.

Do you know of touch training? I tamed a cockatiel within a week using this technique and find it useful for all parronts. Touch training is when you have your bird touch the end of a stick for a food reward. With the cockatiel I used millet spray, and training was the only time he got it. I used a clicker.

 

[LekBrodeth]

thanx for the encouragement everyone!! really appreciate it. i figured it would take time, just wanted to know if im doing things right ill keep up with what im doing now, slowly but surely. ill surely let u guys know if i'm successful, hopefully in the near future

 

[LekBrodeth]

additional thought:
º ive heard that wing clipping makes the bird more dependent to his owner, is this true?
º since he's used to flying in the aviary before i think he wouldnt hesitate to fly away as soon as he's given the chance. and that would make the taming process slower, right?
º if wing clipping is a good idea, should i do it now or later when he's fully tamed? (i think that suddenly not being able to fly would stress him and IF im making progress could lead to him to not to trust me anymore and i'll be starting all over again)

 

[MikeyTN]

Yes it can!

Most likely so.

It's best to clip now before the taming process. Each individual bird is different, it all depends on the bird. But it is a lot easier to tame a wild bird when they're not flighted. It's hard to tame a bird that kept flying away every time you get close. It's also harder to catch them to put them back into the cage. I had to tame two very wild Cockatiel once, they were very wild! I clipped both of them and trained them to step up onto a perch. That alleviated the stress of catching with a towel to put them back into the cage. I used two perches to rotate of the step up process over and over. Eventually they would both step up onto my fingers without issue. But that took a very long time. I was able to hold them and they weren't afraid of me anymore. But they didn't want to be petted or anything like that and I respect them to not do so. But at least I was able to get them to come out of their cage onto my finger so I can place them onto the play stand. And put them back when I needed to without a fuss.

 

[LekBrodeth]

thank you very very much for the reply! it somehow gave me a new sense of hope