need help with monty

[Alibluemoon]

My ekkie is such a puffball and I don't usually have trouble with him...although sometimes he does perform the "staring" trick.

However, my Pionus is a different bag of tricks. He's small, but I have several nasty scars from trying to put him back on his cage after he'd flown off. Keep in mind, he was my mother's bird and I grew up with him...so the scars have come over 17 years. He was my mother's darling...never hurt her. But me, I've been fair game. So I started using a birdie ladder. He still won't step up on my hand too often unless he's really scared, but if he sees that ladder, he'll come running. Usually the ladder means he gets to go somewhere fun...like his bouncy or the kitchen or the bath.

So, birdie ladder is my suggestion. After he gets used to that, just try meandering in with the arm. Ekkies are fairly laid back, so maybe the transition will work?

Good luck. Everyone else has had some good suggestions too. It'd be worth it to try several...one may work better than another for you and your Monty.

[Vega]

Gypsy does the same thing to me. She'll go into "full attack mode" for no reason. She also growls and lunges when I put her back in her cage. I think part of it is a test of my will. I've learned the more I back down, the worse she gets. So now I get something for her to bite instead of my arm. A popcicle stick, pen barrel (with ink part removed), chunk of wood...anything. My dad also made me a T perch with a long arm in case she gets to an area I can't reach. She attacks the crap out of it before stepping up...but better it than me!