# First Bird Jitters [Am I doing it right?]



## Ablepsy (Jun 21, 2009)

Hello all!
I think I'll start with a little bit about myself. I am a very worrisome person, every little thing makes me worry like the dickens. I thrive on reassurance, etc., etc.

Well, yesterday afternoon, I got an absolutely adorable Normal Grey whom I named "Sophie". [I highly suspect she's female because of tail barring and a predominately grey face] She was hand-reared by a breeder, and then given to a pet store for selling. They say she's about 3-4 months old.
Now, she is my first bird ever, and I'm quite nervous and want to make sure I'm doing everything right!
I feed her pellets with a bit of seed and fruit like the store did, same brand and everything. She discovered it today and ate some, I believe. She has fresh water, as well.
She's not in the main room of the house because we have a cat and dog as well, but I'm in the room where her cage is often and every day, and everyone else pops in to say "Hi" every so often.
I'm not going to try to take her out for a few more days, until she trusts me more or seems like she wants to. I'll offer her treats through the bars on a few occasions, but she tends to leave it alone. I talk to her for a few minutes at least every hour or so in a semi-quiet and calm voice.
She will go around her cage sometimes, but when she's not 'exploring', she's sitting in one spot, watching me or sleeping or something of the sort.
She hasn't played with her toys [much?] yet to my knowledge and doesn't 'explore' all that often, only once or twice since I've had her.
She doesn't scream or chirp or anything at all, maybe once or twice this morning. She has climbed the walls of her cage a bit, as well.

I'm sure that was a very long post, and I'm sorry, but I'm just so worried that I'm going to do something wrong and she'll hate me. I don't know anyone personally with birds, so I'm not sure who to turn to for advice or guidance.

Please help me tell, am I doing this right? Will she warm up and want to come out and play or interact with me at all?

*Added Edit:* She will pace back and forth and climb all around her cage and chirp/squawk. When I open the cage she continues climbing around and when I reach my hand in for her to step up on, she shies away. Is she just enjoying playing around, or what? And when she's done, she'll go into the top-back corner and preen and scratch. Is that okay, too?

*Edit 2:* When my mom got home, we decided to take the plunge and get her out of her cage! We used a dowel for her to step up on (She shied away from out fingers) and brought her out before she could protest. She sat there for a few minutes, accepting a bit of cornflake from us, and we offered our fingers and she stepped up! She fluttered away from our hands twice, but not far or high or onto anything dangerous, just my bed and the floor. I did the step up ladder a bit and then offered my finger for scritches. She nibbled at me for a second, but I got some in. After a little while of more step up ladder, I offered my fingers and said "Scritches" and she bowed her head for them!  She hardly wanted to go back to her cage! I'm overjoyed!

Thank you.


----------



## Bea (Jul 26, 2007)

If she's handreared and only 3-4 months old i'd say you can start interacting with her right away.  Try slowly opening the door and moving your hand towards her so she can step onto it if she wants to. If she gets scared and tries to move away then leave her so she doesn't stress (and you don't worry about scaring her). Chances are with such a young bird that you won't have any problems making friends with her at all. 

Also, at 3-4 months old, males and females look the same. So you could have a male there.


----------



## xxxSpikexxx (Jul 30, 2007)

It sounds like you have a good start  I would try giving her a variety of veggies as well  You can even read near her cage, so she sees you just being harmless around her cage. Here is a neat video that may help as well http://www.birdchannel.com/bird-magazines/bird-talk/2009-june/taming-of-tiel.aspx And welcome to the form


----------



## Ablepsy (Jun 21, 2009)

Bea, thank you for the quick response!
I will try to start interacting with her in the morning ^_^

And thank you for the information on the early coloring, I'll keep an eye out to see if she's actually a he! 

Spike, thank you as well for the reassurance! I'll make sure to sit around her cage being harmless so she gets used to me. Maybe I'll cut up some nice looking veggies tomorrow and see how she likes them, as well! And thanks for the link, I'm checking it out right now~


----------



## Lovin_the_tiels (Jun 10, 2009)

And dont forget the ''what-nots''to feed her/him,(avacodos,highly toxic!!),,,like xxspikexx said,veggies,broccoli seems to be a fave here,and also scrambled eggs,just never leave them in a cage longer than a hour(eggs)Millet is a awesome treat for warming up to a bird too,,And i also buy organic spinach leaves for some popeye strength,haha..I would also get a mister bottle for spritzing/bathing,its hilarious to see the bird fluff up ,and do wild antics getting wet and wild.Most of all,,enjoy your new bird,and read the forums here,youll get lots of tips and tricks!


----------

