IndianRingNeck.com

Hi all.
Hoping you guys can help me. I've had my ringneck for almost a year and we've come a long way in regards to bonding. He doesnt mind being touched, rests on my shoulder no problem and comes out of the cage willingly. However he gets really scared when i try to bring him down to ground level. I understand they're a prey animal and this kind of feeling is natural but how do you overcome it? Also when I go to sit down on the couch he flaps his wings, starts panting a lot and tries to get away. He only settles down when I have him in a quiet room. He is most content being in his cage. I want to do stuff with him, but I need to overcome this fear he has of being out of his cage. Please help.
Thanks,
Nicole.

He doesn't seem to be afraid of being out of his cage, if that were the case, he would refuse to leave it. I think this fear of being near or on the ground is quite natural, a primeval fear as you say, of predators, i.e cats etc, only time will teach him he is in a safe environment, having said that, Sanjay Never does floors, he won't even go near the floor of his cage, out of interest, Why is it so important for your bird to go against his natural reluctance?, does it really matter?, personally I am laid back with Sanjay, he doesn't have to do anything he doesn't want to do.

Hi Nicole,

Ringnecks are mostly arboreal, but will come lower if they think it is safe and attractive. Both of mine have always been flighted, so it is kind of easier to train them... if I want them to go somewhere lower than they perch for preference, I can eat apple slices in that area and they fly down to have some too (as the most basic approach to training)... Neither of my birds hang out on the ground for no reason. They have to have strong motivation to bother to even go there, and they can easily leave at any moment. This is important to them.

I'm guessing by your post that your bird is clipped, so your challenge is to design a system of perches that allows him to climb down to join you on the couch and retreat easily when he wants to. Then you can make sitting on the couch the most attractive prospect (with food and toys). Reward him for climbing towards you, even one step. Eventually he should feel confident enough to climb all the way to the couch.

Another really effective training method is to "target train" your bird. I use target training to get my birds to approach new objects. It is still very important to give the bird the choice of how quickly/slowly he wants to go and give him room to retreat.