New Brown Headed Parrot owner from Ontario

[JulieH]

Hi everyone
I just wanted to introduce myself - my name is Julie and I am the owner of a 6 year old Brown Headed Parrot. I've had him for 10 days now and he is just lovely - friendly, tame and adjusting nicely to life with us! I was concerned he might reject my daughter and I in favour of my husband, as he apparently didn't like the woman in his last home - but so far, we all handle him daily and he likes us all.
One small question I have... he doesn't seem to want to play much. I thought long and hard before getting a parrot. I wanted to make sure I had enough time to give the bird a good life. I work from home a lot, so I figured it would be OK. In fact... Joey doesn't want to play enough! He doesn't seem to know how to forage, shows no interest in toys, and spends lots of time just sitting. Is this normal for a Brown Head at 6 years old? I wonder if he spent a lot of time in his cage at is last home. Does anyone have any suggestions for how I can encourage his curiosity?
I'm also realizing Brown Heads are not all that common. I'd love to know if there are any other owners in Southern Ontario... or anywhere, really!

[Harpmaker]

Welcome to the forum, JulieH!

Your parrot is still adjusting to your house. When he has been there for a month or so he might be settled in, and then you can think about worrying if he is not playing. Some parrots take much longer.

The best way to get a bird interested in toys is to play with them in front of him. Parrots are curious birds and want to know what you are playing with. Some parrots are frightened of new toys and need to become acclimated before they play with it. Mine seems to have seasonal favorites, so things she loves in the spring she may ignore in the fall. One of her toys oscillates from being a minor annoyance to a "mortal enemy that must be destroyed."

Always remember that your new friend is an individual. He might not ever be interested in toys, but only in you. Or he may not care about any toys you have shown him and be holding out for something amazing. Keep trying, and remember that the best toys are the ones he destroys on sight.

[Pajarita]

Welcome to the forum, Julie and Joey! I don't have a Brown Headed but I have other pois (Senegal, Redbellied and Jardine) and, in my personal experience, they are not that interested in toys, at least mine aren't but they do like to boxes and to chew soft things like cardboard so try that.

Now, a word of caution, what you see now is NOT the bird you will end up with. You are in the honeymoon stage and this is the best and easiest time because they are ALWAYS in their best behavior at this time but they all change once they start feeling comfortable in their new home. If you are very, very lucky, the change will be minimal and that has been my experience with the pois so you might luck out like I did

[Tsubakie]

Hello!

I agree with the poster that mentioned playing with the toy in front of your bird. If they see you playing with it and see it won't hurt them, they'll be more inclined to see what your doing. If you have a toy with holes in it, or semi-hidden spots, place his favorite treat or various treats (if you're not yet sure what that favorite treat is) in the crevices or if possible, in plain view (maybe on top?) Make sure he watches you put those treats in! Try placing the toy on a table or flat surface with your bird, stocked with treats and start playing with it

[codyf]

Hey,

A bit late replying here, I'm located in Burlington, Ontario and have two lovely brown headed ladies. There's a few of us in Southern Ontario with the little green devils.

Neither of mine like playing with toys. Their "playing" with toys is throwing them off the side of the cage and chirping at me until I pick them up, then repeating the process

What they do like is chewing everything they can. Twice as much if it's wood. Three times as much if it's important to me in some way. Or maybe I'm just describing a creature known as a "parrot".

Seriously though, wooden things they can chew are their #1 amusement. They lose interest pretty quickly in anything they can't outright destroy. They also seem to like leather and soft rope.

My two are still very young, but they do do a lot of nothing. Triss often just sits on top of the cage looking around watching what I'm doing. Falka will sometimes come find me if she's bored, but a lot of the time they just keep to themselves.

Unless there's not enough wood splinters on the floor for me to step on.