Parrots are skittish by nature. They usually prefer a hands-off approach when you’re trying to play with them or to get them back to the cage. Parrots also understand intentions when you want to pick them up. If you’re going to pick them up to put them back in their cage, they may not want to go.
Parrots run away from people when they feel scared or threatened. If you grab your parrot inappropriately, it may view you as a predator and try to get away. It is their natural instinct to avoid danger.
Some people take this to heart and think their parrot does not like them, which is not true. A parrot’s behavior toward you is not based on like or dislike. If you want your parrot to come to you, you need to gain its trust.
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Common Reasons Your Parrot Runs Away From You
A big reason most new parrot owners are not able to handle their birds is not training them to step up. It is not a good idea to pick your bird up by grabbing them. You should teach them to step up on your hands so that you can comfortably move them wherever you want to. Let’s discuss the common reasons for parrot running away from you:
Your Parrot Is Afraid Of You
There are many things around the house that your parrot may feel afraid of. If your parrot is new to the environment or you haven’t spent enough time bonding with it, it may even feel sacred of you.
Parrots can have a fear of hands in particular. This fear is based on their negative experiences and instinctively makes them want to avoid contact. If a parrot had been abused in the past, it may be even more reluctant to come near you.
You Parrot Does Not Like Being Touched
Many parrots do not like to be touched, especially if they’re not used to it. You obviously cannot pet a parrot that you do not know.
That is not to say that parrots are not cuddly. But if you want to pet a parrot, you have to first teach it to allow petting.
If you try to put your hand over your parrot’s head, that is just setting yourself up to get bitten. Also, if you approach your parrot from behind or touch its back, it can get startled and scurry off.
Your Parrots Does Not Want To Go Inside Its Cage
The only time parrots get to play with you is when they’re out of their cage. So you cannot blame them if they want to stay outside a little longer. Parrots know when you’re trying to put them back in the cage. Sometimes, they may just want to hang around for a while before going in. But if your parrot does not want to go inside its cage even to eat its food, it can be a problem.
It usually means that your parrot does not like its home. There can be a number of issues that may make your parrot hate its cage, including small space, no interactive toys, bad smell, or hygiene problems.
If you think that a bad cage setup might be the reason your parrot is avoiding going back, you need to make some improvements. A parrot’s cage should be like a comfortable home base with lots of toys, a variety of perches, enough space, and clean.
Your Parrot Is Being Playful
Sometimes your parrot runs away because it is in a playful mood. It is not so much running away from you than it is running around. Parrots only get a limited to be out of their cage, where they can really free their muscles and be energetic.
It’s often a result of being in their cage all the time as they have nowhere to expend their energy. However, you shouldn’t try to play a game of chase with your parrot as that might scare them.
How To Gain Your Parrot’s Trust
When a parrot runs away from you, it does not always mean that it does not like you. You just need to build more trust with them. It is not easy to gain a parrot’s trust and it certainly does not happen overnight. You need to be patient and show your parrot that you care. Let’s get into how you can build trust with your parrot:
Do Not Chase Them
If your parrot does not want to come to you at the most, just leave it be for a while. Do not chase them or try to pick them up against their will. If your parrot starts seeing you as a threat, it may ruin your relationship with your parrot forever.
Talk Softly
Parrots are more trusting of people who talk nicely to them. In order to befriend your parrot you need to understand their body language. It means, calming them when they feel scared or angry. It is important not to raise your voice on your parrot.
As you may know, parrots can oftentimes get very loud, which can be quite unpleasant. But you should handle their bad behaviors with understanding and care.
Train Them To Step Up
You never want to hold your bird with your hand. If you haven’t yet step-up trained your bird, you may have difficulty interacting with them. You cannot take them out of their cages or tell them where to go.
Step training is extremely important both in terms of interacting with your parrot and bonding with them. It also allows your parrot more freedom because you aren’t restraining it with your hands.
To step up train your parrot, hold out your hand in front of your parrot while offering them treats with the other. Encourage them to step onto your fingers and when they do, offer them the treat with the other hand.
However, this does not happen so quickly, especially with a parrot that is not trusting. But you should be patient and continue training them. You should also try other activities that don’t involve the bird getting close to you. This can help build that initial trust.
