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Post by sassafrastea on May 27, 2015 22:39:51 GMT -5
I recently brought home a rescue who was never taken out of her cage for over 2 years. "She's mean" is all the background information I got from these people. She chatters and talks a lot when she's in her cage, and when I open the door she willingly comes out... But when I go near her she cowers in fear and if I make any type of sudden movements she flinches. She tries to bite sometimes, but never hard, and immediately afterwards, she flinches or runs.
I've been working with her for weeks on end, but I don't know what else to do. I've tried bribery, I've tried using perches (but she cowers at the sight of something coming towards her), and all the while I show her how I'm not going to hurt her by interacting with my other Quaker.
Does anyone have any advice whatsoever???
I want to develop a great lifetime relationship with her, and find a way to let her know there's no way I would ever hurt her!
Thanks in advance!
-Ashley
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Post by easttex on May 28, 2015 6:38:10 GMT -5
Hi Ashley, and welcome to the board.  I adopted a quaker about a year ago. He was cage bound and had not been handled for years. He loved company as long as he remained inside his cage. The best advice I can give you is to continue to be patient. It was seven months before I was able to take Peppy out without getting a good bite. That your bird was written off as mean indicates her previous owners were probably very ignorant about birds, and perhaps mean themselves, even if unintentionally. Since she will come out on her own, reinforce that with treats or praise, whatever works for her. Also, try gradually de-sensitizing her to your approach. Sit for a while in a place just shy of what makes her uncomfortable, and read, talk or sing softly, or do something else that is unthreatening to her. If she remains calm, leave a treat where she can get it, and then back off. Do this a few times for a few minutes. Next time, see if you can move a bit closer and do the same routine. She should gradually start to take your presence for granted. Then maybe you can start interacting with her more directly, using the same same slow approach. It it will probably take some time for her to learn to trust you, but don't give up. |
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Post by Sharyn and Mr P on May 28, 2015 8:57:43 GMT -5
I foster for a local rescue. Sometimes it takes MONTHS to make any progress at all. Be patient. 2 years a long time for a bird not to have been handled.
One thing you can do is start leaving treats on her cage top or wherever she comes out, even if you have to drop them in a dish. Matter of fact, what I sometimes do with my fosters is I attach a treat dish to the OUTSIDE of their cage. Everytime I walk by the cage, I drop a treat in the dish, then I leave the bird to retrieve it on their own. She will start to look forward to you coming near her cage, at first because you always give her treat, eventually because she trusts you, but this could take time.
Good luck!
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Post by siobhan on May 28, 2015 9:22:24 GMT -5
Not to discourage you, but we've had Jade since January of 2005 and she still will not step up or allow handling without nasty chomps. At this point, she wants to preen my hair (from her perch); she wants "kisses" (which means she offers her beak and I touch it with the tip of my finger and make a kiss noise) and she LOVES for me to sit by her cage and talk to her, but that's about it. A few days ago, she was feeling very affectionate and let me kiss her (really kiss her) but I had to keep my hands out of sight. Once she flew into the hallway and got confused and ended up on the floor and let me pick her up but then she flew back to her cage as soon as she saw it. Some birds are so emotionally damaged that you might never get to the point of total trust, and for them, like Jade, you have to accept what they're willing to give and be happy with that. I rejoice in every itty bitty millimeter of progress, like the kisses the other day, or if she comes over to sit nearby while I'm playing with the others. She talks and laughs and is quite the personality, but she just isn't into being touched or sitting on me. Keep trying. Don't give up. But realize that you might have a very, very long road ahead of you and you might have to accept her boundaries.
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Post by easttex on May 28, 2015 9:27:38 GMT -5
One other thought: take a look at "Good read for rescues" on The Quaker Parrot Talk board, posted by Sharyn, about 1/3 of the way down the first page. It kind of puts it all into some perspective that you might find helpful.
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Post by aaron on May 28, 2015 13:28:50 GMT -5
Welcome to the board! I don't have any experience with rescues, and the others have certainly given better advice than I could possibly give. All I can say is that patience is the name of the game with these birds, rescue or not. Repetition is how they learn, and also how they unlearn, and given that, unlearning takes much longer than learning. When we're talking about unlearning the product of many years of potentially traumatic experiences... it is, as Siobhan said, potentially a very very long road. Never lose sight of the goal, try not to get discouraged. Your little one might surprise you |
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Post by Jan and Shah on May 28, 2015 16:28:09 GMT -5
Welcome to the forum. You have been given great advice by other members of this forum, however, make sure you are not tense or stressed when you are dealing with your bird. Animals pick up on how we are feeling and react accordingly. While I have had my quaker since he was 5 months old the only example I can offer is my pony. She was left to run on a property for 5 years - never had a human near her in this time (and absolutely hated them). It took me over a year before she would allow me to approach her without running off and me having to follow her around until I could catch her. Now she walks up to me. One thing I did notice is that if I approached her with a lack of confidence, she would run off. If I approached her with confidence and the thought in my mind that I am going to put the halter on her, she would stand still. What seems like small steps to us with our animals, can be major leaps of faith for them. Follow the advice given on this thread and you will experience something truly remarkable as your bird starts to come out of its shell. It will be a wonderful journey for both of you.
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Post by siobhan on May 28, 2015 17:23:27 GMT -5
Treats help, too. Jade won't let me pet her and chomps as often as not, but if I give her a treat, she takes it very gently and says "thank you," even if it's something she doesn't like and she ends up tossing it on the floor. LOL
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Post by cnyguy on May 28, 2015 20:08:14 GMT -5
Welcome! As you can see, there are people here who have plenty of experience with situations like yours, and lots of good advice to offer. Be patient and take things at whatever pace your parrot sets. There's always a good chance that progress will be made, but it may come slowly and in small steps. |
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Post by sassafrastea on May 29, 2015 23:01:16 GMT -5
Thank you all so much for your replies! I got lots of different treats to try with her today and she seems to like the dehydrated mango the best. Bribery seems to be the way to go!
She really is a sweet little baby, and with patience and TIME, I hope she will come out of her shell.
Regardless, I will still love her, and she is definitely in her forever home with us now!
Thank you over and over -
Ashley
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Post by easttex on May 30, 2015 8:05:01 GMT -5
Bribery seems to be the way to go! Sounds less mercenary when you call it positive reinforcement.  I think you have the right attitude about her. As Jan said, our birds sense more about us than we want to convey sometimes, so a relaxed, confident attitude is helpful. Good luck with her! |
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Post by aaron on May 30, 2015 21:57:17 GMT -5
I agree with easttex, it sounds like you're on the right track. It's really great that you're giving this little lady a good home that she can count on. Thanks for doing that.
Good luck, please keep us posted on how things progress and let us know if you have any other questions!
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