My African Grey's Phobia- Pls Help

[Imran Ahmed]

Hello Everyone,
Im facing extreme difficulties in introducing my Grey parrot to new objects (he's 4 months old). He expands his feathers and makes angry noises warning me to get the "new" object out of his presence or else..........
On the other hand i've been reading online specifically about grey's that from child age we need to introduce them to new objects and new toys so that they can play and blend in with things around them. That we need to teach and educate them. Now ive got this hanging rope toy for him and when he gets on it he just pisses off whereas new objects are just getting him mad as well. So much for education.
NOW WHAT SHOULD I DO HERE???????? becuse all the topics i read are sounding really FAKE.

[Michael]

Take things slow. Let him watch. Let him see the objects from afar. Show him how you play with the objects. Bring them closer. Move them back away. Play some more. Let him see them up close. Let him touch them on his own curiosity. If he's scared, let him just fly away himself. Show him something else. Keep it interesting and fun.

[Imran Ahmed]

so you're saying he needs time? alright i'll be patient once more. This can turn out to be a big problem in future if he can't adjust with different objects esp decoration pieces. Im worried he'd bite or get angry at new people he meets just like he gets angry from coming close to something new. Should i offer him treat for letting a bird toy come close to him ? Maybe he'll be happy that way

[Michael]

Honestly it just sounds like he was raised by someone incompetent. Cause most properly hand raised parrots aren't fearful at that age and just curious about everything. Their mind is like a sponge taking everything in. The phobias don't set in till later so youth is the best opportunity for demonstrating stuff to them. While with adult birds I may recommend training/treats for approaching new objects, this shouldn't be necessary with a baby.

[Imran Ahmed]

Well i imported him from South Africa so im not sure who raised him and how did they handle him for the first three months. Now he's almost 4 and half months old and im curious why is he acting weird and all. But anyways thanx for the help and tip. Im gona start introducing him to some animal toys and balls so he can play with them as he likes. Oh and is it okay if i left him with a new object in the cage???

[ginger]

I have a Grey that I've had since he was four months old. He will be five later this year. From my experience Greys need time to be babies. Don't push him to "grow up" too fast. You might just end up with a very phobic Grey. Take your time. You need to have lots of patience with Greys. Even when they get older it requires patience. You can't rush things with Greys, especially not a baby. Enjoy him while he's young and give him safe boundaries. Don't treat him like an adult bird just because of his size. He needs to be able to communicate with you using his body language, and you need to understand it! He isn't growling because he's ready to bite. He's growling because he's very fearful. If you keep pushing him he will continue to be fearful. Use his curiosity to help him overcome his fear. Play with the toy yourself in front of him. Show him how much fun it is. Talk to him about it. He might not understand what you say, but the tone of your voice and the excitement you show him will go a long way in encouraging him to accept something new. Work with him and build your relationship with him based on understanding and not fear.

Think of things from his point of view. Here is this big person shoving a foreign object at him and he doesn't know why. He certainly doesn't know what to do with it. All he can do is show fear by retreating and when that doesn't work and the object still comes toward him, then he fluffs up his feathers and growls in the hope that it will go away. It is pretty scary from his point of view, right?

[Imran Ahmed]

Well thanks so much guys, I've slowed down the process and i've started playing with the objects infront of my grey so he understands that he doesn't need to be afraid of the new objects just like im not scared of them. Infact im using this duck toy while talking to "Sufee" my as if the duck was socializing with him. He's adjusting much better and not fluffing up like before

[liz]

Do you let him out of his cage? Put new object where he can go to them and check them out. The more new things he accepts the easier the next on will be.

He is a baby. If a baby cries when it hears a rattle you take it away. You know that when that baby starts motivating on it's own it will crawl to and try out the rattle.

[naomi]

hi imran,
i have grey too,and i face the same problem like you before.
my apartement is only 1 bedroom so i put momo in the living room.but he need to sleep around 9 pm and we still active at that time.i dont have another choice except to move him to my big wardrobe(we have small room as a wardrobe).at first he really mad,growl,scream,and very very scared like wanna die.i ignored it,i talk to him softly and i put him sleep.for 1 week he still doing that but slowly(now i have him 2 months) he will whistle to ask me to put him in the wardrobe because he wants to sleep.
but in that first week,i realize his poop change.the vet said is because of stress.i think i push him too far.the other night i put him 1 hour earlier to the wardrobe so he can slowly see the room and he sure there is nothing to be scare of.slowly his poop change to normal again.
and the same like yours,momo scared of new object.now not anymore.i hold the object in front of him alot,play with him and just talk to him about this object.if u frequently move new object near him,sudenly he will understand that changing and new things are okay.now i can move momo to any place i want(even to my mother in law house),car,bathroom,bedroom without any problem.he become more flexible day by day.
but remember to not push him too far,surely u know him for how much he can tolerated the new object.do it slowly,confident,and..little bit force.u can change him,be sure
hope this will help you!!