Parrots are very intelligent birds. Parrots also are known as psittacines. Parrots tend to have a pantropical distribution with numerous species that inhabit temperature regions located in the Southern Hemisphere. In Australasia and South America, the greatest diversity of parrots dwell. There are parrots that are vividly colored, and there are some multi-colored parrots.
Good to Know Facts About Parrots
Most parrots nowadays exhibit zero or little sexual dimorphism, forming different sizes and lengths of parrot birds. Most parrots’ diets are nuts, fruit, seeds, buds, and other plant material. Pet parrots tend to be implausible and demanding friends, but for those who are more used to fluffy mammalian companions, parrots present unexpected challenges.
Parrots are intelligent, highly social, and long-lived birds that need lots of attention. Otherwise, a parrot can pick up bad habits, finding themselves stressed and bored, plucking their own feathers.
How to Proper Handle a Parrot
1. Be Gentle
Sometimes, it is necessary to hold a parrot forcefully like when trimming his nails or clipping his wings. However, you should be careful, do not squeeze your parrot. Birds have very delicate skeletons. Don’t put too much pressure on any part of your parrot’s body.
2. Teach Them “Tricks”
Teaching your parrot how to strengthen is one of the best techniques to handle a parrot for birds safely. Instead of you using a towel to hold your parrot, teach your parrot to step up onto your finger so he will come out of his cage.
3. Never Let Them Touch Down On Your Shoulder
Parrots are often portrayed sitting on their owner’s shoulders. This is not recommended. Even a not wild and friendly bird can bite if they are stupefied. Hold your pet parrot at a safe distance, away from your face.
4. Clip Their Wings
Clipping your bird’s flying wings goes a long way towards keeping your pet safe. When they are not capable of flight, they will be less likely to take flight when being held.
5. Take Off Jewelry
Remove any jewelry or accessories before handling a parrot. Parrots love to bite at these objects. This can be causing pain to your body and dangerous to your pet. Placing your arm on the bird cage’s top is recommended in front of the parrot.
Do not move your arm, instead just let your parrot lie there. Make sure to do this procedure until your parrot becomes familiar with your arm being seen in his space. Next, you can offer his very favorite treat using your other hand, requiring him to lean backward on your arm.
Handling a New Pet Parrot
Your pet parrot should be considered a part of your family. In this way, you can spend some one-on-one time with your parrot every day, but that does not necessarily mean holding and caressing him. Some pet birds do not like human hands on them. They love hanging out and playing with people, but not physically touching them always.
On the other hand, parrots might view humans as a potential mate, so it’s important to have a boundary when physically interacting, most especially on the hormonal season. Some parrots want nothing more than sitting and being scratched on their heads for hours.
Here are some tips when handling new pet birds:
- When you first bring a parrot in your home, never handle him stable to avoid setting up an inappropriate expectation for your bird, leading to behavior issues.
- Try to handle your new parrot for about six months from the time you first have gotten him. For instance, you can spend an hour a day to talk to him personally from the start to the end. Consistency in handling your pet will keep him loved and secured. On the other hand, you’ll also save yourself being perceived as a potential mate or bird, which can cause trust and jealousy issues.
- To help your parrot build a healthy bond with both you and other people, keep gentle and petting only to the head or feet only, and ask others to do the same. The reason for this is that the sexual organs of bird parrots are located under their wings. If you offer your parrot some full-body strokes, you’re just promoting the production and release of the bird’s sex hormones. If it is pet down under the wings or the back, it can lead to a sexually discomfit bird, or a bird who perceives you as a mate instead of a companion. A mated bonded bird becomes possessive or jealous of you
- Also, it’s okay to handle your parrot’s feet because if he’s already accustomed to you handling his toes, you’ll be able to clip his nails easily.
How to Teach Your Pet Parrot to Step Up
The best way to pick up and hold your parrot is to offer your hand or arm and say, “Step up.” Perfecting the act of stepping up is fulfilling, and it can be a fun activity for the bird. Always provide his favorite play or treats whenever your bird steps up perfectly. Forcing your pet parrot to step up onto your arm may break trust and cause stress, ruining your relationship.
Here’s the proper way on how to train your parrot to step up:
1. Use a Washcloth or Towel
Because some birds are scared of human hands, you should teach your parrot to step up on a washcloth or a towel. Provide your positive support, such as games or some treats, to help him relate positive things with the act of stepping up.
2. Proper Timing to Step Up
It’s quite challenging to get your pet parrot to step up from your shoulder if it is not interested in doing it. Your parrot can be moved around to your back, wherein you cannot reach your pet. All birds that comply and immediately step up must be allowed on your shoulder. In short, your pet parrot should earn shoulder privileges.
3. Avoid Wearing Accessories Like Jewelry
Parrots are generally attracted to shiny or bright things. Don’t wear any jewelry, most especially for parrots that are not trained yet because you can expect them to get attracted and play with it, which may damage your jewelry. Of course, you don’t want your gold earrings to get damaged, too, or being forcibly removed that can terribly hurt your ears.
It is important to know your bird, and only wear a piece of jewelry if you know that he is not interested in forcibly grabbing it. So keep your precious jewelry until your pet parrot has learned to ignore such things after the step-up training.
Conclusion
It’s important to take your time as you work through these important training steps with your bird. Don’t rush these steps to avoid damaging the trust you’re building. Holding a parrot requires a lot of knowledge and skills. You should be able to assess your parrot’s body language and know if he’s ready. Now you’re more confident of holding and training your pet parrot to step up and even introduce him to caging. It’s easy to handle and hold a pet parrot by keeping the tips mentioned above.
