jdeviese
Meeting neighbors
So, Maria has been with me now for almost two weeks. In that time, she's eating a healthier diet, taking treats from my hand, begging for food from my plate, and letting me stroke her head through the bars of the cage. The vet advised me to wait a couple of months before transitioning her to a larger cage--her current abode is FAR too small (only 24"x18"), but is (to my knowledge) all she's ever known. She's extremely territorial, and she gets very defensive of me getting into her cage for any reason (adjusting a perch, offering a treat, etc.). She consistently runs from me or postures to bite if my hand is in the cage. In all my research I understand about slowly acclimating a bird to the presence of your hands in their cage, and I'm working on that. I do worry that keeping here in this same cage will hamper my efforts to gain her trust and train her, because she won't allow me to have any contact with her (even giving her treats) except from the other side of the bars.
So, my question is this...should I go ahead and put her in a new cage and let her adjust with the idea that it's a place where we both can be, or should I stick it out for a couple more months and just try my best to gradually make her current cage as adequate an abode as possible? Any guidance--especially from those of you who have rescued older birds with territory issues--would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!
So, my question is this...should I go ahead and put her in a new cage and let her adjust with the idea that it's a place where we both can be, or should I stick it out for a couple more months and just try my best to gradually make her current cage as adequate an abode as possible? Any guidance--especially from those of you who have rescued older birds with territory issues--would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!