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Post by MeliawenB on Oct 16, 2005 21:30:32 GMT -7
Chivalry has been acting very strange lately. Not only has he been cranky (which I have determined in caused by the heat in Colorado lately), but he has taken to hanging from the top of the inside of his cage and screaming like he is stuck. I have tried calmly telling him no, removing him (he only attacks my hands), "grounding" him (when he spends time in his cage, squirting him, and giving him new things to play with. He just turned 1 in July, so I'm not really sure if this is like a terrible twos thing or what! Please help! His screaming is driving us all bonkers.
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Post by lidiam on Oct 17, 2005 0:45:53 GMT -7
He sounds like he has found a game that entertains him, and gets a reaction from you! The more you react to the screaming, the more he will continue to do it.
Hanging upside down is normal behaviour, though, and should not be discouraged in itself. What do you mean by saying that you ground him by squirting him?
I would think that he is trying to get you to notice something or other and perhaps he should be spending more time outside the cage so that you can distract him from this behaviour more easily.
Lidia
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Meliawen
Weaned Todd
Joined: June 2005
Posts: 52
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Post by Meliawen on Oct 17, 2005 15:37:27 GMT -7
Chivalry actually spends most of his time outside of his cage except to sleep. The game he has come up with is when he goes into his cage voluntarily, and then hangs from the top and screams like he's caught or scared, but he's not. And the squirting and grounding are two separate things. :-p
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Post by Africanewbie on Oct 17, 2005 19:14:23 GMT -7
Chivalry may be bored or is looking for attention. You should diagnose the problem to see why he has started this behavior. Disciplinary re-action is will only cause him to persist because he now knows he is getting your attention. You must find a solution soon before it becomes habitual. Screaming is one of the most difficult issue to overcome once it becomes a routine.
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Post by Africanewbie on Oct 17, 2005 19:45:05 GMT -7
In a way you are right about the terrible two's. From my experience with birds, the first nine or ten months are the most enjoyable as with most young animals. The complications usually start between the first and fifth year, this is when the birds are maturing and developing their own character and is also the time during which their owners fall out of love with them. I must stress that it is important to set boundaries and routines from the time you get them right through their early years.
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Post by lidiam on Oct 18, 2005 5:11:17 GMT -7
Joshua very occasionally does a mad screeching thing while he is flying around the room, the first time I heard him do it I thought he had hurt himself. Now, I realise it is him at his most parroty and he is having the best time and amusing himself as he would in a real flock of parrots. I kind of enjoy it when he does it as it is occasional. He sounds like a huge macaw when he does it.
Lidia
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Post by louiesmom on Oct 18, 2005 10:08:49 GMT -7
Louie does something similar; she will hang upside-down from her toys, abuse them violently and make this noise that sounds like a velociraptor (JurassisPark). Do any of ya'lls babies do this? It's quite amusing, but the first time I heard it, I thought she had hurt herself, but I know now that she's just playing.
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Meliawen
Weaned Todd
Joined: June 2005
Posts: 52
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Post by Meliawen on Oct 18, 2005 16:29:49 GMT -7
That's the EXACT noise Chivalry makes! LOL! I couldn't think of a description! Raptors are good. :-p
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bingo
Weaned Todd
Bingo
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Post by bingo on Oct 20, 2005 9:30:59 GMT -7
If we are home, Bingo is out of her cage. When we first moved into this apartment she had a problem with screaming. She would just sit on top of her cage and scream until we came over to her or gave her a treat. Well, then we realized that we weren't helping it by giving her what she wanted. So, we slowly stopped reacting to her screaming, even though it was hard. Now she rarely screams. She has gotten use to living here now and seems to be extremely happy.
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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
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Post by Preston on Oct 21, 2005 1:03:50 GMT -7
The only thing I would like to add to the answers given is: Birds need to be spritzed with water with aloe to keep their skin from drying out and if you squirt him with a water bottle as a punnishment, you'll never get to give them the spritzing they need. The squirt bottle will allways be percieved as a punishment to your bird. I suggest you ignore bad behaviour and praise good things. you will be surprised at how well that works.
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Meliawen
Weaned Todd
Joined: June 2005
Posts: 52
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Post by Meliawen on Oct 21, 2005 6:32:10 GMT -7
The water HAS aloe in it, so even when I spritz him, he's getting what he needs.  He also gets a shower with aloe every day. (He's spoiled, believe me). And besides, how on earth is he supposed to learn what "no" means if I don't use it? |
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Post by lidiam on Oct 21, 2005 8:31:36 GMT -7
Meliawen,
Because if you squirt him when he is doing something you don't want him to do and you squirt him when you want him to bathe (and presumably to enjoy it) you will utterly confuse him! How is he supposed to know the different meanings of the things you do?
You can't punish a bird because they are not like dogs, they don't understand this behaviour. They will just feel brutalised and this will manifest itself in still worse behaviour. The ONLY way around this is to exercise consideration, patience and consistency.
Lidia
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Lisagail
Weaned Todd
Abby's #2 Mommy
Joined: January 2005
Posts: 51
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Post by Lisagail on Oct 21, 2005 10:48:39 GMT -7
Abby does the upside-down toy-abuse scream thing. She only does it when she's extremely content, meaning, everyone in the flock is home, and nearby.
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dawninstep
Weaned Todd
Joined: July 2005
Posts: 93
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Post by dawninstep on Oct 21, 2005 15:44:49 GMT -7
When Jack does this, I get the whole family involved......we just make a big ruckus right along with him. It really is just a big game.......and one Jack really loves!
dawn
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Post by spookyhurst on Oct 22, 2005 0:13:31 GMT -7
Like Lidia and Preston said, punishment is not a good idea. Positive reinforcement is supposed to be the best way to handle problems. You ignore the bad behavior (walk out of the room when your bird screams, and don't return until he's stopped), and praise them heavily when they are being good.
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He also gets a shower with aloe every day. (He's spoiled, believe me). And besides, how on earth is he supposed to learn what "no" means if I don't use it?