by Pajarita » Fri Oct 28, 2016 1:55 pm
Welcome to the forum! I am sorry you find yourself in a predicament but I guess that by now you realized that clipping him was the wrong thing to do. I don't know if you are aware of this, if you are, just skip over it but I feel I should mention it because I have found that most people are not aware of the fact that avian vets don't study parrot nutrition or behavior so asking them advice on these two subjects is pretty useless unless they have had multiple birds for years and have learned from their own hands-on experience. This is a beef I have against some AVs, namely, giving advice on things they know nothing about and which can backfire as it did to you.
Liz is correct, he feels terribly vulnerable without the ability to get away from danger and no longer trusts you because he is blaming you for it. Unfortunately, it's not a matter of training because there is nothing to teach him, he already knows how to step up, he is simply choosing not to do it. The only thing you can do now is wait him out and comfort him as much as you can as well as not insisting on his stepping up - ask him once and, if he doesn't do it, wait 5 minutes and ask again, if he still doesn't do it, don't ask him again until much, much later (I am talking hours and hours) BUT, if he does, praise him profusely and give him a reward. You could also try putting a ladder (a thick rope with knots in measured intervals will work) going from his cage to the floor so he can climb up and down as he pleases - that will give him a measure of control over his movements (something you took away when you clipped him).
Sorry I can't be of more help to you. I realize that now his adoption prospects have been derailed as it will be kind of hard to adopt out an abused bird which doesn't want to step up and screams like a maniac... I would have loved to be of more help to you but, like I said before, this is not fixed with training, he just needs to regain his trust in humans and confidence in himself so the prescription is a long-termed one: love, patience, super consistency in the routines (this also comforts them and gives them a measure of control over their own lives) and hope he can overcome still one more hurdle.
PS I just finished reading your reply to Liz and have to disagree with you on the 'danger to himself' been flighted. The only times a bird flies into a wall is when he freaks out, knowing or not the environment has nothing to do with it because they can see the obstacle better than us as they have a 'shortcut' between the eyes and the brain allowing them to 'figure out' what the eyes see much faster than mammals - and this is an adaptation nature gave them precisely because their mode of transportation is flying and their reflexes have to be immediate so as to avoid crashing!). They can fly into windows but this is also easily avoided by putting something in front or on them (like curtains, shades, decals, etc).