Budgie doesn't do anything

[Carp5699]

So, I've had my budgie Cloudy for maybe 2-3 months now, but he barely ever touched any of his toys. The thing I saw him interact most with was a plastic ring hanging from the top of his cage, but it was only a few nibbles. A couple days ago he nibbled on a piece of colored paper (don't know what exactly it is), and I don't remember much else. I recently bought him enough shredding/foraging toys to fill his cage with, and yet he is only interested in the shredding paper when I tear a piece off and show it to him directly. I even stuffed a bunch of pieces of millet into it, but I don't know if he even notices it. I also bought him new perches, which he hopped on and off of a few times, but still, he remains on the same one he usually is on. Most of the time he is either sitting on that one perch or eating, and occasionally will chatter or scream. He is just usually inactive, unless I come up to the cage with millet for training or trust building. What do I do? How do I get him interested in his toys, or anything in his cage other than the same perch and his food bowl?

 

[Carp5699]

* You can see a bit of the plastic ring in my profile picture

 

[Ripshod]

I'm wondering how quiet it is in his environment. In the wild quiet is danger, and this is hard wired into their instincts. What happens when you have music or the TV playing? What about budgie sounds (YouTube is great for this)?
Have you ever thought about getting him a friend?

 

[Carp5699]

Huh I didn't know about the "quiet is danger" part. It is usually quiet in my room, but I've noticed that whenever my sister plays music (for example last night) he would start chattering (and I think I might've saw a little head bob). And he does start getting loud when multiple people are talking.
I played budgie sounds for him multiple times, he would look at my screen, but I don't remember him calling back much.
I was thinking a lot about getting another budgie for him today, still haven't decided though. I want the chance to bond a little more with him before I get another bird in case the other bird would be a major distraction later on, and I wouldn't get that chance anymore.

 

[cnyguy]

Parrots don't instinctively know how to play with bird toys and they may need to be shown how. It often helps if you play with the toys while your budgie (or any other type of parrot) watches. Act like you're having the most fun ever-- be enthusiastic. Your budgie may soon decide to join in the fun. Cloudy may be more active if you spend extra time sitting with him talking and singing to him in a cheerful voice. I've found that works with my two parrots when they're being "perch potatoes."

 

[Sparkles99]

Maybe your budgie leans towards different toy preferences. I'd try bells & things with plastic beads, in addition to shredding toys.

 

[Carp5699]

He has shredding toys, twine balls, loofa material toys, woven grass toys, bird kabob, plastic rings, plastic beads, wooden toys, bells on almost every toy. He doesn't play with any of it :<

 

[FeatheredM]

My male budgie doesn't play with toys as much as my female. One thing that gets them both playing with toys is foraging. You want to start with easy find treats and slowly make it harder. Have you tried sola? It is very soft.

 

[Carp5699]

I have not tried sola, and I already tried making the treats very visible but he either doesn't notice or doesn't care

 

[Shezbug]

Is the main perch he always uses the highest perch in the cage?

I have found with my little guy the he really loves plastic- shiny pony beads and little shiny bells are loved more than anything else I offer.
He does not ever go looking for things to chew up so I offer him a balsa wood perch or two as many birds love chewing their perches, I get a square length of balsa wood and just jam it between the bars and he works his way through it till it falls in half and I put it back up as two smaller perches then the chewing starts all over again.
He just has so little interest in many of the budgie toys I have previously bought for him but he really loves natural perches with the bark stull on to chew and the odd bit of balsa whether it is a perch or just a chunk hanging in the way of a perch.

 

[Carp5699]

Is the main perch he always uses the highest perch in the cage?

It used to be, but since I got new perches I have put them up higher and the old perch lower, he still chooses to sit on it and doesn't show much interest in the new ones

 

[Sparkles99]

Maybe a picture of the set up would help people offer suggestions or float ideas.

 

[Carp5699]

Will do

 

[Carp5699]

Here it is

 

[Wally&Eva]

Here it is

Woah, I can see that you are really trying! I’m sure the experts here will guide you in the right direction, hope something works for you! I’m hoping my little guys get interested in something to preoccupy them when I can’t be there.

 

[Carp5699]

Changed/added some things, he was finally kinda interacting with the toys because he saw millet

 

[Lady Jane]

Birds do best in a room where there is activity going on. Is your room quiet?

 

[Carp5699]

My room is often quiet, the loudest part of the house is usually the kitchen but I don't want to keep his cage there because my mom uses non stick pans sometimes and my brother likes to hit the cage and sometimes chases Cloudy with his hand. It's much easier to keep an eye on him when he's in my room since I'm always there

 

[FeatheredM]

Have tried leaving, laptop, computer, radio ect. In there with music on?

 

[Carp5699]

Last night I turned on some music mixed with bird sounds, he didn't have a reaction to it