Needy parrot

[AnimalAffinity]

I got a 5 month old a few weeks ago and I am trying to let him out of the cage a lot but, he has to be on me all the time, he won't do his own thing. I spend time with him but I know he needs to be out more than that so I need to find a way for him to play outside the cage on his own without following me around.

[Wolf]

You should truly feel blessed that he wants to be with you. This is a very needy species of parrot and believe it or not but following you about and wanting to be on and with you is him doing his own thing. Also he is still a baby and babies need their moms and pops. If I remember correctly you were advised that IRN's are very high maintenance birds and that you would have to spend a lot of time with them. You now have five birds, I think and you are finding that the IRN is as needy as the other four combined and this is a normal trait for them. Please enjoy this time with this bird while you can as once he goes into puberty this could all change and then you may find that he is just as needy and demanding of your time but instead of it being him following you for love it may very well be that you need the time with him to keep him tamed and loving.

[liz]

You are blessed. Others want the physical contact that you have.

I have 4 new cockatiels and I am really working hard for that contact. I posted in RAMBO &MYRTLE
my progress. I was so excited when Maggie decided I was safe enough to perch on.

[AnimalAffinity]

I guess I should feel blessed, it's just that he has to be locked up or on me. He almost seems to panic when I leave him alone, his wings are clipped but he flys to the ground and will literally climb my legs to get to me. I can't have him climbing me 24/7 .

[Wolf]

I really do understand what you are experiencing as I have four birds that as soon as their cages are opened, three of them make a mad rush to me. Try to keep peace between three birds of different sizes when they all decide that enough is enough and the other birds need to leave because they don't want to share their human (me).
Your IRN is a baby and they need the closeness of their parent (you) and after they become adults they need the same closeness to their mate. If I remember correctly all of this was explained to you when you were asking about getting an IRN. Don't lock the bird up because you are having problems due to your choice to get him. If it is going to be too much then find a good loving home for him and give him to them, he deserves at least that much respect and he is not doing anything wrong or being bad. Pick him up and put him on your shoulder, put him in his cage while you are cooking, so that he can't get hurt. If you cook after dark then you don't even need to do that as he will be asleep.

[AnimalAffinity]

I love him and spend time with him, I can handle his problems. I was just asking if there is any tips you can give me to enable more playtime. I think being so bonded to me could cause him stress, more independence could help relax him when I'm not there.

[Pajarita]

No, it's actually the opposite. Babies should never be alone because that's scary and VERY stressful for them and that's one of the reasons why it should be illegal to sell young birds UNLESS the prospective owner does not leave the house or has other parrots of the same species. There are studies that show that birds that are stressed out when young, remain high-strung and nervous the rest of their lives and I am convinced that is one of the reason birds end up having behavioral issues later in life so, if I were you, I would spend every waking moment with him.

[Wolf]

I love him and spend time with him, I can handle his problems. I was just asking if there is any tips you can give me to enable more playtime. I think being so bonded to me could cause him stress, more independence could help relax him when I'm not there.

Believe it or not, but that is exactly what we are trying to give you. The difficulty that you are having with our tips though is that they are in favor of more time spent with you instead of less. But, you need to understand that this is due to the birds own nature. This is a bird site and we are here for the bird's benefit not the humans benefit, which is how it should be.

[AnimalAffinity]

Okay, i will give him as much time as possible, one more question, could him and my Tiel be in an aviary together I'm planning on building one this spring.

[Wolf]

I really can't say as it depends on how well they get along with each other. The ringneck could really hurt or kill the cockatiel and there is no way that the cockatiel could defend itself from the ringneck.
You also have budgies and the cockatiel and the budgies are much more likely to get along together in an aviary.