You've recently adopted an unwanted Eclectus or you're considering this.
You may or may not know the full history of the bird & even if you know or keep in touch with the previous owner, never presume you know everything you need to know about the bird. 99% of the time, know matter how trusting or how well you know the previous owner, you won't know everything.
You may or may not know the full history of the bird & even if you know or keep in touch with the previous owner, never presume you know everything you need to know about the bird. 99% of the time, know matter how trusting or how well you know the previous owner, you won't know everything.
Re homed Eclectus Parrots unfortunately is very common. Many of them are misunderstood by their owners. The owners become frustrated & disappointed at not getting what they expected out of an ekkie so give the bird up. Most of the time the bird is said to be too aloof or too aggressive & re homed as a result. Aggression in the Eclectus is a learned behaviour from humans.
If you do your research you will get a much better understanding of your Eclectus parrot to start with. This will make it easier for both you & your bird to get through all of this. You will be a lot less frustrated since you will be able to understand your Eclectus more.
Most Eclectus parrots come across as being aloof when they arrive in their new homes. This is not uncommon but unfortunately if the research on them isn't done owners find themselves left very disappointed. Forcing them to come out of their new cage in a new environment can cause them to withdraw & become very timid or aggressive towards you. Eclectus Parrots are very well known to sit & observe all surroundings quietly before making any decisions & it's up to you to allow them the time they need to do this. Some Eclectus Parrots welcome a new home & settle into it immediately, but this doesn't mean all will do this.
If you do your research you will get a much better understanding of your Eclectus parrot to start with. This will make it easier for both you & your bird to get through all of this. You will be a lot less frustrated since you will be able to understand your Eclectus more.
Most Eclectus parrots come across as being aloof when they arrive in their new homes. This is not uncommon but unfortunately if the research on them isn't done owners find themselves left very disappointed. Forcing them to come out of their new cage in a new environment can cause them to withdraw & become very timid or aggressive towards you. Eclectus Parrots are very well known to sit & observe all surroundings quietly before making any decisions & it's up to you to allow them the time they need to do this. Some Eclectus Parrots welcome a new home & settle into it immediately, but this doesn't mean all will do this.
There are always things you can do to help your Eclectus feel a little more welcome & feel forced to have to please you
Place your bird in an area where he can see everything you do throughout the day & allow him to get used to everything going on in the home. If he becomes too frightened you can cover a side or corner so he can retreat if he feels the need to. Make the area a busy family area but not too busy that it will frighten the bird.
Slowly move around his cage while you're working around the home. Continually talk to to him sweetly, offer a treat through bars. Almonds are often Eclectus parrots favourite nut.
Have a small variety of toys handy. Play with them from outside his cage & see if he takes an interest in what you're doing. If an Eclectus has not been raised to play with toys he will not know how to play with them & may be quite fearful of them. So start with neutral colours & don't shove them in his cage expecting him to know what to do. Make sure you know if he's OK with toys first.
Use various colour toys, various sizes & noises & observe his reactions to them. If there is a particular toy he's taken more of an interest in then work with this toy for a while.
If there is a particular toy he appears to be more fearful of or is aggressive towards then put this toy away for a while & try somehting else. All Eclectus parrots have their own individual taste when it comes to like & dislikes. My Eclectus' most feared colour is red. His favourite toys all have large white eyes. He loves eye contact his & favourite colours are yellow & lime green.
Slowly move around his cage while you're working around the home. Continually talk to to him sweetly, offer a treat through bars. Almonds are often Eclectus parrots favourite nut.
Have a small variety of toys handy. Play with them from outside his cage & see if he takes an interest in what you're doing. If an Eclectus has not been raised to play with toys he will not know how to play with them & may be quite fearful of them. So start with neutral colours & don't shove them in his cage expecting him to know what to do. Make sure you know if he's OK with toys first.
Use various colour toys, various sizes & noises & observe his reactions to them. If there is a particular toy he's taken more of an interest in then work with this toy for a while.
If there is a particular toy he appears to be more fearful of or is aggressive towards then put this toy away for a while & try somehting else. All Eclectus parrots have their own individual taste when it comes to like & dislikes. My Eclectus' most feared colour is red. His favourite toys all have large white eyes. He loves eye contact his & favourite colours are yellow & lime green.
If your eclectus is reacting badly to everything then you may want to try toys that don't make noise & have neutral colours.
For an Eclectus parrot that has never been taught to play, this can be a very long process, weeks, months, even a year to get him to play with one or two toys. Be patient & very persistent with this. Make toy playing look really exciting & make it look like your Eclectus is missing out on something.
For an Eclectus parrot that has never been taught to play, this can be a very long process, weeks, months, even a year to get him to play with one or two toys. Be patient & very persistent with this. Make toy playing look really exciting & make it look like your Eclectus is missing out on something.
An Eclectus parrot that been on a poor diet can come across aggressive. Usually a simple change in their diet can fix this. An Eclectus that's been raised on a limited diet is usually a very fussy eater & can be very hard to convert, but never think it's impossible & give up. You can reserve a plate for your Eclectus, a baby plate with pictures on it. Use this plate at all times when trying to offer new foods. Sit at his cage & eat some of the food. Make it sound really yummy, keep offering him some. You may want to consider offering treats like sunflower seeds, nuts etc. More than likely he is familiar with these sort of treats & will be more willing to take them than anything else. Although these are considered unhealthy foods & junk foods, they're a very good food to offer the fussy eater when trying to convert them or get them to trust you & it won't be a permanent thing.
Eclectus Parrots are a very curious, jovial bird. They love to entertain & be entertained. If they get the chance to get into something that interests them, they'll do anything to get there!! They're a mischievous bird & full of life. You will never have a dull moment in your home if your Eclectus is happy in his home. Many re homed Eclectus parrots are not like this because they've either had a rough past life or not been taught to play & be social. Bringing an Eclectus parrot out of it's shell & into it's natural form can be a very slow process but is always worth it to see the end result. It's important to give the bird all the time he needs, even if it takes a year.
Having a re homed Eclectus is not something you shouldn't consider lightly. Like all re homed parrots, it's a long term commitment & can bare many nasty scares, physical & emotional throughout & even after the rehabilitation. Always remember an Eclectus parrot in this situation has possibly lost all trust in humans & you as the new owner & human should expect to do a lot of 'sucking up' to convince the bird you're not a bad person at all.
Forget about trying to dominate your bird. It will be the very last thing your bird is thinking about & dominance is a whole new subject. Eclectus parrots & all other parrot species are family orientated birds. They love & need to get into the thick of things in their family home. You are their family, not a hierarchy of them. They don't care about that. All they like is a little love, understanding & respect for who they are & how they may be feeling.
Having a re homed Eclectus is not something you shouldn't consider lightly. Like all re homed parrots, it's a long term commitment & can bare many nasty scares, physical & emotional throughout & even after the rehabilitation. Always remember an Eclectus parrot in this situation has possibly lost all trust in humans & you as the new owner & human should expect to do a lot of 'sucking up' to convince the bird you're not a bad person at all.
Forget about trying to dominate your bird. It will be the very last thing your bird is thinking about & dominance is a whole new subject. Eclectus parrots & all other parrot species are family orientated birds. They love & need to get into the thick of things in their family home. You are their family, not a hierarchy of them. They don't care about that. All they like is a little love, understanding & respect for who they are & how they may be feeling.
Eclectus parrots as a species generally enjoy eating soft foods such as fruit & veg so continue to offer these daily & try & keep the variety large. You may also like to experiment with these foods by cutting them thicker, thinner, grating them, mashing, placing them onto skewers etc. If your Eclectus shreds the skewer it's a very good start!! Again all of this requires patients & persistence. Never expect miracles to happen.
Don't remove the foods your Eclectus is used to eating. A diet conversion should be a slow process. Sudden changes in diets can cause some problems. Also removing a food they're familiar with & replacing it with a food they're not familiar with can cause them to starve. Never presume your Eclectus will eat just because it's really hungry. If the food is unrecognizable to them they may not touch it at all.
Don't remove the foods your Eclectus is used to eating. A diet conversion should be a slow process. Sudden changes in diets can cause some problems. Also removing a food they're familiar with & replacing it with a food they're not familiar with can cause them to starve. Never presume your Eclectus will eat just because it's really hungry. If the food is unrecognizable to them they may not touch it at all.
When you see your Eclectus eat, then sit with him & eat too. Make it a family thing. Eclectus parrots like to be involved in all family activities including eating meals together. When they see you eat a meal, they like to go to their food bowl & eat too or they like to join you at the table & insist in eating off the same plate! Make him feel part of the family by eating with him when he eats.
It's time to come out!
Basil a 4 year old adopted & feather picker
Erik
Eddie
When you see your Eclectus becoming a little more at ease & curious about you & your home you can open up his cage & just sit by him with the cage door open. Encourage him to come out but don't expect it. Make sure the house is quiet. Is he clipped? Clipping is your choice but for this stage it's a good idea to clip him for his own safety. A new frightened Eclectus can take flight suddenly & hit wall, doors, windows or escape. If you're a strong believer in not clipping, their wings will grow back.
Open his cage every day & sit there for a little while. When he's ready he will venture out. Some may be more eager than others to get out & investigate you more closely or your home. Others may only prefer to come out & sit at the top of their cage & observe, while others will prefer to stay in their cage just a little longer. Don't force them out but do encourage them by offering treats.
Open his cage every day & sit there for a little while. When he's ready he will venture out. Some may be more eager than others to get out & investigate you more closely or your home. Others may only prefer to come out & sit at the top of their cage & observe, while others will prefer to stay in their cage just a little longer. Don't force them out but do encourage them by offering treats.
Don't put your hands in his cage unless you're prepared to have a nice chunk taken off! Through these stages his cage should be treated as his castle & more importantly his security. He needs to feel safe & comfortable in his cage, not have invading hands make him feel more insecure.
You can coax him out of his cage by placing a favourite treat in your hand & placing your hand on the outside, end of his cage door so if he wants the treats he needs to go to you to get it. If he takes a few steps toward your hand but no further, give him the treat for going this far. Continue to do this until he has the courage to step up on your hand. Once he's stepped up onto your hand you can either place him on top of his cage to observe everything for a while or you can take him for a walk through the house to show him around. Be very observant. If he's still very nervous he may feel a little more comfortable being placed on top of his cage first & once he's gotten used to being just out you can then take him for a walk around the home.
Introduce him to everything & everyone in the home. Offer him a treat for everything he does that's desirable like moving towards you, stepping up on your hand, coming out of the cage, going back into the cage, walking around with you. If you're offering him seed or nut treats start to offer fruit & veg or healthier treats as well & give him a good variety.
You can coax him out of his cage by placing a favourite treat in your hand & placing your hand on the outside, end of his cage door so if he wants the treats he needs to go to you to get it. If he takes a few steps toward your hand but no further, give him the treat for going this far. Continue to do this until he has the courage to step up on your hand. Once he's stepped up onto your hand you can either place him on top of his cage to observe everything for a while or you can take him for a walk through the house to show him around. Be very observant. If he's still very nervous he may feel a little more comfortable being placed on top of his cage first & once he's gotten used to being just out you can then take him for a walk around the home.
Introduce him to everything & everyone in the home. Offer him a treat for everything he does that's desirable like moving towards you, stepping up on your hand, coming out of the cage, going back into the cage, walking around with you. If you're offering him seed or nut treats start to offer fruit & veg or healthier treats as well & give him a good variety.
Don't attempt to physically handle him unless you're sure he's ready for this.
Unless an Eclectus has been raised to enjoy cuddles & physical touching you shouldn't attempt to cuddle or pat him. Eclectus parrots by nature love your closeness & company but don't enjoy being touched. You may lose a finger if you try. Most Eclectus parrots are content to sit on you or near your face. They love close contact & eye & face contact, but for most that's as far as it goes. If you're not able to trust your adopted Eclectus enough to give him close eye & face contact then don't do this.
Learn your birds body language & eyes. I have found the Eclectus parrot very easy to read when it comes to their eyes. Their eyes say it all! From content to anger, fear, mischief. Their eye & body language is the only way they're able to communicate with you & learning this can help you to avoid being bitten. An Eclctus parrot is very good at giving their feelings away.
Eddie
Other things you can do to help an adopted Eclectus
Buy a new or larger cage
Some Eclectus parrots go to their new home in a very small cage so save up & buy a larger one. A new cage can give the bird a feeling of a new life.
Redecorate the old cage
If the cage is a suitable size you might like to think about redecorating it instead. This should be a gradual change as most parrots take some time to accept change. Change just a couple of small things, let your Eclectus get used to this before making more changes. If your Eclectus isn't accepting of the changes then you may like to wait until he is settled into his new home first before making changes.
Toy Boxes
keep one or two toy boxes handy. Gradually fill them up but don't place them into your Eclectus parrots cage unless he has a very large cage or is confident with the toys & the toy box. If he isn't confident in these you can place the toy box outside of his cage but in his view. Most Eclectus parrots like to acquaint themselves with new things in their life. They don't always accept something new if it's been trust upon them suddenly, so let him see his new things without having to be in contact with them.
Change his name
A change in name can often mean new name, new life.....It is OK to change a parrots name. They do learn their new names & a name change can often help speed up the process of adapting in their new home.
Some Eclectus parrots go to their new home in a very small cage so save up & buy a larger one. A new cage can give the bird a feeling of a new life.
Redecorate the old cage
If the cage is a suitable size you might like to think about redecorating it instead. This should be a gradual change as most parrots take some time to accept change. Change just a couple of small things, let your Eclectus get used to this before making more changes. If your Eclectus isn't accepting of the changes then you may like to wait until he is settled into his new home first before making changes.
Toy Boxes
keep one or two toy boxes handy. Gradually fill them up but don't place them into your Eclectus parrots cage unless he has a very large cage or is confident with the toys & the toy box. If he isn't confident in these you can place the toy box outside of his cage but in his view. Most Eclectus parrots like to acquaint themselves with new things in their life. They don't always accept something new if it's been trust upon them suddenly, so let him see his new things without having to be in contact with them.
Change his name
A change in name can often mean new name, new life.....It is OK to change a parrots name. They do learn their new names & a name change can often help speed up the process of adapting in their new home.
Archie & Chilli