senegal parrot help

[hster]

hi there looking for a little advice,

Tomorrow I will possibly be collecting a Senegal parrot that's 26 weeks old and that according to the lady has been very tame etc.
She has to re-home him due to her son now having allergies to the bird, hes coming from a very hectic household to a rather not quite but myself and my partner and budgies in the house rather than children etc..
I have had African grey in the past and a large cockatoo also, these were rescue animals with issues and were a lot to deal with my African grey hated women especially hahah take about biting the hand that feeds them.
Anyway looking for a little advice as how to introduce him and when best to try and handle him and just how painful are there bites lol
Any advice would be so appreciated
Heather, thanks in advance

[mtaylor1021]

I used to have a Senegal, I got bit and scratched a few times, usually didn't draw blood, but they can. Probably not as bad a bite as from an African Grey. I would bring your new bird home and leave it in the cage for a couple days to get used to its new surrounding. Make sure he's eating normally and then see if he wants to come out.

[hster]

weirdly when she brought him round to my house the lady i bought him from, there was nothing in his cage the poor mite one plastic toy and hardly any food was handed over at all, and the stench of smoke and something else god knows what from him and the cage was so overpowering it was nasty. I used to be a smoker years ago but this was truly unreal.

When she left i got him out and he came straight onto my shoulder no problem at all. This then gave me a chance to clean his cage give him veg, fresh fruit and new food and fresh water and loads of toys etc..
Well when i put him back in god you would think it was his birthday, he has since been here for 5 days and is showing no signs of being bothered the opposite really. He took a strong nip at me the other day and i said no no and just calmly dealt with it as best as i could and walked away not giving more attention to encourage it, hope that was the right thing to do.

He seems to be settling in as i have a very calm home as its only me and my partner and no children so no frantic atmosphere if you know what i mean, hope that's a good thing.

I have had him out the back door in the shade enjoying the fresh air as i bought him a cage for when hes out in the garden as i say in the shade of course.

He seems to have no issues going to anyone as my step mother was in the other day as i was cleaning his cage and he shot to her right away and tried to put his beak in her mouth and give kisses. I gave her a lecture and warned her not to encourage that again as well i was scared on the mouth badly from my African grey and i know damage any bird can cause there.

Are these birds the Senegal good birds to have or do they become overly aggressive the longer you have them, have i made the wrong choice in rescuing an expensive bird here ???

any advice would be greatly appreciated oh and is it ok to have them in the fresh air outside as long as its safe and in the shade??
Feedback on how i said its been would be good also
cheers
Heather

[Rokisha]

I'm new to having a senegal myself and as far as outside goes, I've read on here and elsewhere that a harness is strongly recommended. I plan to get one myself for my own senegal when she grows her flight feathers back. She was clipped when we got her but she's been pretty sweet. From my experience so far I would say they are great to have and sure they may be a bit nippy, some more then others I suppose, but they are well worth the time and effort to care for. There is alot of useful information on here as well as what you can get from a vet. To me, any animal is worth saving and thumbs up to you for doing so.

[Wayne361]

I'm not good at posting links but if you cruise this forum there are many articles in regards to Senegals (agression issues, taming etc) that have been a big help to me. I have had my Senegal since Deember and have learned the basics on this and other forums. Do as much reading/research as possible and you, and your new parrot, will be better off for it. To answer part of your question, Senegals have a very quick flight or fight response and will often bite if startled. When offering your hand for step-up make sure you do a direct and slow approach while saying "step-up" if you make a quick movement towards the bird or come from the side etc a bite can be expected. IMO you did the correct thing by saying no and walking away. Again....read, read and read some more will help and answer most of your questions. Also Sennies dont get more agressive the longer you own one UNLESS he/she is conditioned to be.

Wayne

[Michael]

Some tips for finding useful articles quickly:

Go to the bottom of forum and click "Articles Index." That has links to some of the more prominent articles. Also the Training Step Up and Parrot Blog links have tons of info. Lastly you can use the search feature on the trainedparrot blog to search the forum and blog together.

[hster]

Aw thanks guys he's doin grand had a vet check today and wee dude was even friendly with the vet lol he's doin well knows I reckon he's in a better home now and livin the life of Riley teehe
All ur advice means so much cheers indeed xxx