Bonded ringnecks
Posted: Wed Dec 29, 2010 9:46 am
Hello everyone, hope you are all well!
I'm suffering from a little bit of quandary over my two lovely Indian ringnecks, and I’m hoping that somewhere, someone might be able to help me! I’ve tried searching across the internet, but everything out there seems so vague. I’m hoping there you guys might be able to help.
Here’s a little synopsis of my ringnecks lives so far:
Back in May, after the death of my mothers much loved Cockatiel (who was very tame), she decided that she would like some Indian Ringnecks. So for an early birthday present I brought her two lovely ringnecks from a local pet shop (6 months old at the time). Unfortunately I never really thought to find out about how they were reared (though I wouldn’t change them for the world!), and although they appeared calm enough in the shop, in reality they were anything but! I think that instead of being hand reared, that they might in fact have been raised in an aviary, though I might be wrong.
In addition to the fact that they were relatively un-tame when they came to us, I think that my mum’s method of handling them (she’s very “gung-ho” so to speak) kind of frightened them even more. Although the Cockatiel was happy to put up with it, I think the ringnecks are understandably less tolerant. By her handling I mean putting her hand in the cage to grab them etc. Not only that when they were let out of the cage they went wild. It came to a point when they ruled the room they were in – stripping wallpaper (credit to them- they were very ingenious when they were doing it!), chewing holes through blinds and curtains, pooing everywhere – you name it, they done it! At night it was impossible to get them into the cage. My mum was in a habit to chasing them around the room with a stick and shouting at them (which I think made things ten times worse) until finally they would go in. Though I have to say, I can’t blame them for not going in – they’re cage wasn’t in the best of places. All in all, they were actually very unhappy birds.
Finally my mum went away about three months ago for a long holiday and I took over. The first thing that happened to me was I got attacked as soon as I walked into the room. Screeching, claws out, wings flapping the lot! After a week of this I decided enough was enough. I wanted to move them into the living room where I’d be sitting, but couldn’t do that with the way they were – I liked them having freedom to leave the cage, but couldn’t have them destroying the living room too! So I took the decision to clip them. For a day or two after clipping them, I left them in the room where they were as to not unsettle them. The only time I let them out was when I was in the room and all they would do is jump onto the bed and climb back to the cage again (repeatedly!).
Although they had plenty of toys, I decided they needed a “play stand” so I went out got lots of bits of wood, a base and made them a stand that they could sit and chew on all day (and it’s a pretty awesome stand if I do say so myself!)!
So, now they’ve been in the living room for over 2 month and it’s a massive change from how they were. They play on their stand and have the occasional flutter around the room to see the other birds (they have most of their flight back). But they always go back to the stand or the cage when asked. Bed time is so easy – a few word of “night night” or “bed time” along with a rounding up arm gesture and they’re away. And best of all – they’re happy!
The only thing we would love now is if they would let us get anywhere near them to give them a stroke!
They still flap about (though only slightly) when you go to change their food and water. Anytime you some within a few feet of them they panic and run away. I’ve been gradually moving their cage and play stand closer to me and they’re getting more and more comfortable, but I’ve still got a long way to go. I can’t even tempt them with any treats and I’ve been trying for months.
But ultimately I think I might have a problem with getting them to bond with me (or my mum) – because I think they’ve started bonding with each other. Although we can’t be sure yet, as they’re only about a year old, I think they might be a male and female (brother and sister). The smaller one has been doing a lot of displaying, chirping and head bobbing recently to the very uninterested larger one! Again, though I can’t be sure since they’re both still very young.
So….after all that, my question is – should I try to separate them slightly in order to get them to bond to me? I’ve been thinking about taking each one away individually for 10-15mins sessions a few times a day to spend a bit of time with them separately, but I’m not sure if this will be any use if afterwards they just go back to each other? Someone suggested that I give one away, but I would loathe to do that and would rather keep them both as they are (bonded with each other), than give one away.
Is there a way I could tame them both? I would like to hope that there’s some way of doing it, and if there is I would really appreciate some guidance on how to go about it.
Thanks in advance for reading, and my apologies for the rather long-winded story! Any help would be much appreciated.
Thanks
Dila
I'm suffering from a little bit of quandary over my two lovely Indian ringnecks, and I’m hoping that somewhere, someone might be able to help me! I’ve tried searching across the internet, but everything out there seems so vague. I’m hoping there you guys might be able to help.
Here’s a little synopsis of my ringnecks lives so far:
Back in May, after the death of my mothers much loved Cockatiel (who was very tame), she decided that she would like some Indian Ringnecks. So for an early birthday present I brought her two lovely ringnecks from a local pet shop (6 months old at the time). Unfortunately I never really thought to find out about how they were reared (though I wouldn’t change them for the world!), and although they appeared calm enough in the shop, in reality they were anything but! I think that instead of being hand reared, that they might in fact have been raised in an aviary, though I might be wrong.
In addition to the fact that they were relatively un-tame when they came to us, I think that my mum’s method of handling them (she’s very “gung-ho” so to speak) kind of frightened them even more. Although the Cockatiel was happy to put up with it, I think the ringnecks are understandably less tolerant. By her handling I mean putting her hand in the cage to grab them etc. Not only that when they were let out of the cage they went wild. It came to a point when they ruled the room they were in – stripping wallpaper (credit to them- they were very ingenious when they were doing it!), chewing holes through blinds and curtains, pooing everywhere – you name it, they done it! At night it was impossible to get them into the cage. My mum was in a habit to chasing them around the room with a stick and shouting at them (which I think made things ten times worse) until finally they would go in. Though I have to say, I can’t blame them for not going in – they’re cage wasn’t in the best of places. All in all, they were actually very unhappy birds.
Finally my mum went away about three months ago for a long holiday and I took over. The first thing that happened to me was I got attacked as soon as I walked into the room. Screeching, claws out, wings flapping the lot! After a week of this I decided enough was enough. I wanted to move them into the living room where I’d be sitting, but couldn’t do that with the way they were – I liked them having freedom to leave the cage, but couldn’t have them destroying the living room too! So I took the decision to clip them. For a day or two after clipping them, I left them in the room where they were as to not unsettle them. The only time I let them out was when I was in the room and all they would do is jump onto the bed and climb back to the cage again (repeatedly!).
Although they had plenty of toys, I decided they needed a “play stand” so I went out got lots of bits of wood, a base and made them a stand that they could sit and chew on all day (and it’s a pretty awesome stand if I do say so myself!)!
So, now they’ve been in the living room for over 2 month and it’s a massive change from how they were. They play on their stand and have the occasional flutter around the room to see the other birds (they have most of their flight back). But they always go back to the stand or the cage when asked. Bed time is so easy – a few word of “night night” or “bed time” along with a rounding up arm gesture and they’re away. And best of all – they’re happy!
The only thing we would love now is if they would let us get anywhere near them to give them a stroke!
They still flap about (though only slightly) when you go to change their food and water. Anytime you some within a few feet of them they panic and run away. I’ve been gradually moving their cage and play stand closer to me and they’re getting more and more comfortable, but I’ve still got a long way to go. I can’t even tempt them with any treats and I’ve been trying for months.
But ultimately I think I might have a problem with getting them to bond with me (or my mum) – because I think they’ve started bonding with each other. Although we can’t be sure yet, as they’re only about a year old, I think they might be a male and female (brother and sister). The smaller one has been doing a lot of displaying, chirping and head bobbing recently to the very uninterested larger one! Again, though I can’t be sure since they’re both still very young.
So….after all that, my question is – should I try to separate them slightly in order to get them to bond to me? I’ve been thinking about taking each one away individually for 10-15mins sessions a few times a day to spend a bit of time with them separately, but I’m not sure if this will be any use if afterwards they just go back to each other? Someone suggested that I give one away, but I would loathe to do that and would rather keep them both as they are (bonded with each other), than give one away.
Is there a way I could tame them both? I would like to hope that there’s some way of doing it, and if there is I would really appreciate some guidance on how to go about it.
Thanks in advance for reading, and my apologies for the rather long-winded story! Any help would be much appreciated.
Thanks
Dila
