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Post by Adele on Oct 16, 2005 19:54:17 GMT -7
My CAG is now 16 weeks old. He was always so friendly and me and my husband thought that we have one of the few extrovert AGs. Unfortunately, yesterday my friend came over and when Manzi saw her, he straightlined for her to attack. She ducked and he crashed into the wall behind her, but then he started screaming at her and tried to attack her again. I grabbed him and put him back in his cage though. Since then, a neighbor came over and Manzi has always liked when we visit her, but as soon as he was out of his cage he tried to attack her also by flying over he head and grabbing her hair with his feet while continue flying. I don't know what to do about this. He has always been so nice until the last few days. He has begun to puff up at people for a couple of weeks though, but he never attacked anyone. He is just as sweet as ever with my husband and me though.
Is there anything I can do to make him be nice towards others?
It seems that it has something to do with territory.
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Post by lidiam on Oct 17, 2005 0:49:23 GMT -7
I have never seen this sort of aggressive behaviour in Joshua, so I cannot comment, but there is usually a reason for a grey's behaviour.
Has something changed in his environment recently? Is he feeling insecure for some reason?
He is very young and perhaps because he has bonded to you he is reacting jealously with anyone who competes with him for your attention?
Perhaps you could pay more attention to him when you have people over, so that he gets over this phase.
Lidia
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Post by Africanewbie on Oct 17, 2005 20:23:29 GMT -7
Great "guard dog"!!!
It can be territorial or jealousy. Depending on everyone's reactions when it first happened, it may have caused him to become even more aggressive with the excitement.
Try to have your friends socialise with him. You may have to cage him when they visit but have the cage close to where they sit and have them offer him food.
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Post by Adele on Oct 28, 2005 15:08:51 GMT -7
The problem is getting worse very quickly. I had my friend who has visited Manzi at least once a week since I got him give him food next time she came over. He took the food out of her hand but still puffed up at her. Yesterday someone else came over. I kept Manzi in his cage. His cage is in the dinning room. When the guest was over, I had her give Manzi food so that he'll like her, but he stayed puffed up. I thought that he would be alright so I took him out of the cage and set him on the table where we were playing cards. He ran over to her and growled and then launched himself at her face. She blocked him and he circled around and tried to attack ehr again, but luckily I was able to grab him midair and put him in his cage. As soon as she left he went back to his cute, noisy, lovable self. My friend was scared. She grew up with an amazon who she said was friendly to everyone.
I have tried to give him more attention when other people are around and having guests give him food, but he is becoming more and more aggressive towards them. I don't know what else to try. I hope that he will get over this because he used to be very friendly.
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Post by lidiam on Oct 29, 2005 5:30:17 GMT -7
I don't know what anyone else is going to suggest, but I have only two suggestions, and they are polar opposites:
1. Keep Manzi in the cage when you have people over, eventually he will get used to people being around you and will realise he is not always at the centre of your attention.
2. Swamp Manzi with visitors for a while until he gets used to not being the centre of your attention at all times. This option could result in injuries though, so think hard about it.
After my last post, I did remember one aggressive period in Joshua's life when he was a baby (around about a year old, I think). I had someone staying with me for a few months and he really didn't like her, and this manifested in his chasing her feet! He would literally thunder after her feet trying to get at her toes and on the odd occasion when he did, he bit hard, drawing blood. Unfortunately for my friend, I did not take this seriously, because he wasn't like this with me and I knew NOTHING about greys. I was lucky in that he never reacted like this to anyone else. In fact now I have a friend living in the flat next door to mine and he insists on hopping on her shoulder and her taking him for a tour of her flat so he can see where everything is! I would say he's well socialised now. I am sure that one way or another Manzi will grow out of it.
Lidia
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Preston
Super Talker
NEED HELP? WE WILL ANSWER AS FAST AS WE CAN (Note: Preston passed away in 2012. We hold his memories dearly, he was a great person and super moderator.)
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Post by Preston on Oct 29, 2005 23:55:08 GMT -7
This may seem harsh or even crass, but clipping a few feathers will humble him. I think that as long as this has been happening, He has turned it into a game. If he can't mount a direct attack for lack of free flight, he will walk over to greet your visitor looking for a new angle of "fun with visitors"Remenber that your still dealing with a 2 year old.
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Post by spookyhurst on Oct 30, 2005 20:57:32 GMT -7
The parrot class I took had an idea for parrots that "stalk" people they don't like. The instructor has a pair of amazons who try to attack her husband. He now carries a big, bright colored towel on his shoulder, which they know he will use to towel them if they attack. As long as he has it with him, they leave him alone. The instructor said this should be a totally different towel than the one used for towelling a bird for things like veterinary or grooming procedures.
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Post by Adele on Oct 31, 2005 10:45:37 GMT -7
I think that I am going to clip his wings a bit. I think that he might be to dominant. Yesterday after some guests left, he was aggressive towards my husband and me for a half an hour. I think that he was jealous and upset that I keep him in his cage while guests are over so he was angry with us. After being aggressive he would fly around the house screaming, which to me looked like he was showing off his power. I will take off a couple of flight feathers on each side over the next couple of days. I keep everyone posted on whether or not this works. I hope that he does grow out of this because before I always wanted people to come over to visit Manzi, and he loved the attention and now I don't want people over so often because they think I keep a beserker in a cage.
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Post by Adele on Oct 31, 2005 10:46:28 GMT -7
By the way, thanks Preston for adding the picture of Manzi.
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Post by Adele on Nov 4, 2005 14:07:18 GMT -7
I clipped 3 feathers off each wing, and boy has Manzi changed. He can still fly, and in fact, he can fly upwards, it is just much harder for him. Manzi flies much less though because it is harder. He suddenly has returned to his loving self. He is nice to my husband again. We haven't had visitors over since the cut, but to us, he is 100 times better. Thanks for the suggestion.
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Post by jozi on Nov 4, 2005 16:19:45 GMT -7
Im glad the light clipping worked..that would have been my suggestion as well.
It sounds like Manzi is looking for a reaction that is "fun" and using his new-found flight to get it. My BoBo lunges and screams when he is engaged in intense play (usually against his o-so-evil blue plastic rings) and he does it with me when we shower together. He gets SO excited and SO energetic that he just...can't...hold...it...in!!!!! Ahhhh...but what a beautiful sound. In my personal CAG experience an angry Grey will growl and grumble...possibly display or puff and then bite. However, claw play, beak play and screaming (in Grey's) have most often been signs of normal African Grey play.
My BoBo is also a moody little guy...he may tolerate a "non-flock" member one day but then try to kill them the next time with his evil eyes and what I call the "half-wing flap" display (watch those displays carefully...a grey that is happy to see you will do the half flap but the same bird will also do it if they feel threated right before they go in for the bite...if you are not sensitive to their moods you may end up with a nasty, NASTY bite).
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Post by Adele on Dec 16, 2005 13:28:41 GMT -7
Manziis definetly showing aggression to other people. He hisses, puffs up, grumbles and lunges at them. He is on and off with my husband. He still hates other people. I was thinking that it might be because I let him go on my shoulder. Maybe he feels dominant because of that and he has to protect me since he is dominant and due to that, he attacks everyone who visits? I don't think he acts dominant towards me. I never let him get away with doing something that I don't like. I always put him in his cage if he is being bad or not listening, and he always steps up when I ask him to. I am not sure, but does everyone else let their ag perch on their shoulder while doing household chores?
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Post by jozi on Dec 16, 2005 14:35:18 GMT -7
Here's a thought... It's mating season for our greys. If Manzii thinks of you as his mate and you spend a lot of time together throughout your home (outside of his cage and with you a lot) it may just be him running any intruder out of what he considers to be his nest. In the wild greys spend all of their time with their mates. He's just loving you like a good man should!
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Post by jozi on Dec 16, 2005 14:39:35 GMT -7
Oohhhh....on second thought...I just re-read the thread a little closer...I didn't realize that he was under a year old. Makes me think that behaviour modification might be needed before it gets out of control. You are the parent...you must teach Manzi right from wrong in a language he understands. www.robirda.com/flock16.html
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Preston
Super Talker
NEED HELP? WE WILL ANSWER AS FAST AS WE CAN (Note: Preston passed away in 2012. We hold his memories dearly, he was a great person and super moderator.)
Sisika and Pete
Joined: January 2005
Posts: 5,912
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Post by Preston on Dec 16, 2005 19:52:24 GMT -7
I was almost sure it was a game because Pete does it, but only nips at your toes for a reaction. He loved guests as they gave a larger reaction; we called it a "toe job" and laughed, and so would he. The other posts have some good advice about the other things it could be. I have to close with the same comment as Lidia - no comment due to lack of experience with that much aggression. I will add that I consider 5 feathers a full clip, so I don't know how many you took off. I have found this allows approx. 4 feet distance with a soft landing. I he can still fly to any lenght, perhaps he has overcome the humblenesss achieved with the first clip, but that's a personal decission. This may reduce his percieved territory.
P.S. I missed the additions to this thread so your very welcome for the picture, ENJOY ;D
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