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A little help?

NandayLover

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So I have a very nice, very cuddly Nanday Conure. She's my little 12 year old angel that I've known all 12 years of her life. She has NEVER liked another bird. Ever. Even the Green Cheek that she grew up with she dislikes.
I recently rescued a Jenday Conure, by recently I mean February 28th if this year. He wasn't even a year when I got him. From the same home I got Merlin (Jenday) from I got a Dusky-Headed Conure (Aria). Their owner abused and they only had each other so naturally they got very attached to each other. Aria since has made a full recovery and lives in a separate cage than Merlin. Merlin now lives with Saphira, the Nanday mentioned earlier. Saphira LOVES him. They preen and play. I can't seperate because 1. This is the first bird Saphira has ever liked and
2. I don't have another cage
Merlin hates people. He is extremely bonded to birds not people. Whatever his last owner did must've been terrible because after 10 months with me he is still scared. His last owner only had him for a couple months. I am extremely patient. I spent a year taming my Green Cheek. So other than time and patience which I know is implied what steps can I take to make this bird be more comfortable around people?
 

expressmailtome

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Every time that you walk past his cage, drop a small treat in his food cup, and then keep walking. It could be a broken piece of a sunflower, or safflower, seed, or a small piece of millet. As long as it is a food that he truly enjoys eating, it will work. Also, try to not yell or speak loudly around him. A soft, calm tone is much less frightening to him than a loud, or angry, voice. It will take time, but he will likely become less afraid of you, although he may never enjoy being held.
 

Hankmacaw

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Like Matthew says, find out what his very favorite treat is and you only give it to him - no one else. Make sure you says a few soft words to him when you give the treat to him. Will take a long time, but bribery works.
 

Calpurnia

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The other commenters have good advice on where to start with Merlin. If he is at the point where you can't even get close to him without him running away then you'll need to work on that first. But if he is willing to sit and watch while you approach you could have some success using a hand-off method of training and a "target".

And example is using a long chopstick for the target and feeding treats with a long spoon (or you can just drop them in a nearby treat bowl). Let him touch the end of the stick then immediately click and treat. He should pick up on the idea very quickly. Then from there you can work on small tricks or commands. Another idea is teaching Saphira how to target and letting Merlin watch. Once he sees that nothing is going to hurt him, and that training is playtime/means tasty treats, he might be more willing to give it a go.
 

BirdGuy21

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I can testify to the efficacy of target training, as @Calpurnia mentiomes above. We just rescued a Senegal who is very skittish of hands near him. He is at the point now where I can hold my hand close to him as he targets the stick, and is ok with it. He will take treats from my hand and ask for head scritches.

Find out what his favorite treat is. Count out different types of treats and put them in a bowl. After a little while take it out and see which treat he are the most of.

What @Calpurnia described is known as model-rival training. If you are familiar with Dr. Irene Pepperberg's work with African Grey Parrots, that is the technique she used to test the intelligence of Alex, her CAG.
 

NandayLover

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His fear isn't so great that he runs from people. I do know his favorite treat, millet. He comes out of his cage by himself sometimes. He will step onto a hand if asked. Just a couple weeks ago we started target training and he is great at it, he loves to do tricks. I.e. spin and wave. But he only does tricks when Saphira is around and is very uncomfortable on a human. Without the presence of another Conure he freaks. He crouches down and flaps his wings, which I know as a sign of discomfort and wanting to leave. He rarely takes a treat if Saphira isn't in sight. When he steps up onto a hand all his feathers are flat against him and he stands very tall as if trying not to touch my hand. He will quickly approach any hand for a piece of millet. Saphira also does all the tricks he does
 

Calpurnia

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If he freaks out so much without Saphira being nearby I'd just keep training him near her. It's better that he enjoy himself, so you don't ruin your progress by making him feel anxious. He'll only learn to associate these negative feelings with your presence. You never know, maybe he just needs a little time to learn how to be confident without another bird around.
 

Monica

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Most parrots have flock mentality. This includes safety in numbers. When he's alone, he feels vulnerable. I agree with expressmailtome and Calpurnia.

It's better to train him when he feels comfortable and relaxed. :)
 
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