My parrot hates the cage. Please help!

[andreeabx]

Hello!
I have a 5 months old Indian Ring Neck.
I have bought him when he was 3 months old, so I have him for 2 months now.
I kept him in the cage a week and a few days before letting him out of the cage, so he can get used to the environment and room.
When he finally got out of the cage, he didn't wanted to go back at all.
I had to catch him a few days so he can get in. Later, I made him go back in the cage using one of his favorite food, but now he doesn't want to go back for nothing in the world.
He was out for a month without even going back for 5 minutes in the cage. Not even for his favorite food... (Corn)
Luckily I'm home all day long, so I could watch him.

Now I'm at my parents house for a week now, and I'm afraid to let him out. There are a lot of plants around, and there are days when I need to leave home, and I'm afraid to let him out alone without anyone to watch him.... And I'm gonna stay here a few months. I can't keep him inside that much...

I want to let him out, because I pity him, and I also know he needs to exercise.
What can I do make him get used to the cage, get inside, and like the cage?
Is the cage too small? 24 x 16 x 35,5 ( L x W x H )?
He has toys in it, food, and everything he loves and likes.

Please help!

[GlassOnion]

First of all... that cage is WAY too small for a Ringneck. My Budgie lives in a 32Lx24W.

I would put his food/his treats where it's visible in the cage and see if he eventually goes in for them. Honestly the only way that he'll go in is if the cage is a 'good' place.

But I do think that if he had a much larger cage, he would be more willing to go in.

[Michael]

You have to realize that a parrot is not a domesticated animal so all of its tameness and good behavior depends on training. It's a methodology and a lifestyle. It's about shifting the reinforcers in a way that the parrot wants what you need from it. Food management, out of cage time management are just as important as formal training if not more so. This article is the place to begin:

http://TrainedParrot.com/Taming

[andreeabx]

Thank you both for the reply.

I am going to buy a larger cage.
When I bought the cage, the PetShop seller recommended the cage to me.
I thought it might be smaller, but the seller told me a larger cage will make him feel less secure.
So I bought it.
I have a cockatiel, which is now almost 20 years old. My parents have trained her, so I practically grew up with her. I remember a few methods, but I guess they don't work. The little Rink Neck is so different.

I bought many books and CDs about taming&training, before and after I bought my little baby;
But none mentions how[i][/i] to actually put the bird back in the cage.
He doesn't know how to step up yet, even though I have managed to make him come on my hand for his favorite food. Now he is a bit mad one me, or mad on the fact that he is in the cage.
He still takes food out of my hand or mouth trough the bars of the cage, and sometimes when i open up the door of the cage; but now if I put my hand inside of the cage he gets quite mad, and sometimes he wants to bite and nothing else.

I have the advantage of being home most of the time, so he got used with me faster, I think.
I just need to fix this cage thing, so I can leave home knowing my bird is safe in the cage...

[Michael]

I don't know why people waste money on all that training junk that doesn't even tell you the most important things... and even more surprising is when there is a free resource that answers exactly these questions, people are too lazy to read it...

Putting Parrot Away in Cage

[andreeabx]

I don't know why people waste money on all that training junk that doesn't even tell you the most important things... and even more surprising is when there is a free resource that answers exactly these questions, people are too lazy to read it...

Putting Parrot Away in Cage

Michael, I guess I just wanted to make sure I know anything I can about my IRN...

I like your article, but I think I made a mistake in the past. I used food to shot the door of the cage and lock him inside. He used to get hungry by night, so anytime he went to eat, I have closed him in.
Now he knows that food inside the cage will lock him up...