IndianRingNeck.com

Hi you guys,

My name is George and I live in Athens, Greece. I'm the proud owner of an 8 yo male (?) handfed Jardine's Parrot, a 9yo female parent raised Alexandrine Parakeet, and I'm about to get a parent raised male IRN, no idea about his age. The reason why I'm here is basically the IRN. My Alexandrine is not all that tame, but we're currently working on clicker training and she's getting better. My concern is the IRN that I'm about to adopt. I met him today, he seems a nice bird, a bit uptight though, I wouldn't blame him cause his current owners, well meaning people, who've had him for 2 years would let him fly out of the cage and then chase him until he landed on the floor and towel him when they had to put him back in his cage. So I take it this bird has experienced captivity quite a number of times taking account of this scenario. They told me they would do that to let him exercise, but since there was no way to get him back in his cage, they had to practice what I've just described. My querry is this, do you guys think I stand a chance of turning this bird into a sociable creature. I would really appreciate all the information I could get from any of you who've kept and tamed either wild caught or parent raised (not handfed) ringnecks.

Thanx,

Absolutely... through time and patience. He simply needs the time to learn to trust you. These birds have the mentality of a 5 yr old. He will not confuse you with these bad captures or associate you as being the bad guy. He will remember his old home for awhile but after alot of handling, love, wing clippings will work wonders, he will be Ok.

FIRST thing you need to do BEFORE bringing him home is to have his flight taken away, thereby making him depend on you. This establishes trust. Secondly, never let him even SEE you with a dreaded towel. Lastly but more importantly, have a daily routine in mind and follow it to the "T" for a few weeks. He needs to know what is expected from the very beginning or he will actually, unknowingly, train YOU to be like his former owner because that is what he is use to. Take the bites and dont take them personally. Think of it as a small child you adopted from a bad home. That child would conduct him or herself more comfortably IF he or she knew the bounderies and expectations. This is fair to both you and your new friend.

Please save that birdie from those idiots. Good luck and let us know how he progresses. Remember to talk softly when approaching the cage at first and to offer treats in your hand. Also, glance at his eyes, not stare into them, as I made this mistake as a new mom and didnt realize I was scaring my baby (intimidation). As far as treats and getting use to your hands, to my knowledge NO Irn can resist spray millet. Make sure your new friend knows your hands are used to feed and protect him, not to hurt him.

Again... CLIP HIS WINGS IMMEDIATELY or you can hang up the idea of taming him/her. He has to learn to depend on you. After a few times of getting on the floor and not being able to fly up, he will learn you always come to the rescue and those hands are so bad after all.