Help, My Parrot Is Screaming, And I Don’t Know What To Do??? (long article)

[2horse]

Are we talking about incessant screaming here or is this also about the normal shout 2 - 3 times a day. I dont see this as any problem and expecting a parrot type bird to always be quiet is unfair. My birds have 3 times to call, "wake up"
"food is here" and "go to bed". This is normal parrot behaviour, even if it is of short duration. Whispering to the bird on my shoulder is what quiets the one who is striving to burst an eardrum. I have no experience with incessant screamers although I do know they exist

[lindylous101]

Hi there
Not sure if this is right forum, but i had to write. We are owned by Tommy (African) who was a normal bird growing up. Had him since 3 months old, and he was hand reared. Sexed as male, but that is debatable! He was a normal bird until we took him to vets to be microchipped. We were with him the whole time, but once home, he would not have anything to do with myself, favouring my partner, and daughter. Things have gone downhill ever since, he is now a very quiet little boy who just sits in cage and watches me, all the time. Very rarely shouts or talks, even though he can talk, and has moments when he will say words. We have had him checked by vet, who says he is healthy, but assured us Tommy would not be anything but quiet at a vets! But he is quiet at home which is why we took him. He eats and drinks somethings, but refuses all fruit and veggies, preferring just his mixed complete diet of seeds, etc. He gets quite nippy if i go near him, and is visibly scared of me. Unfortunately when he was microchipped I was the one volunteering to hold him. I wish I had known better. Tommy is just two years old now, and is very very quiet indeed. With no signs of illness etc. At xmas I bought a Galah Cockatoo, who is a boy, He is very noisy indeed and always on the go, whilst Tommy just sits and watches Alfie. Tommy gets the same and more attention but anyone else who has any advice of his behaviour I would be so very grateful for all information received. All I can find is people with the problem of noisy birds, but I have the total opposite with Tommy he is so very quiet indeed.
Many thanks Linda

[whaleyrn]

Maybe this would be counter-productive in other varieties, but I used to have a "scream-time" with my cockatiel. I had a recording of wild-birds that he just loved (chick-a-dees, cat-birds, etc.) Whenever he was being naughty we would have a sing-a-long. I would play the recording and he would squawk his brains out and make a complete racket along with the other birds for about 15 minutes. He was always very happy afterward like he got all his frustration out or something. Sometimes he would get mad at at me if his cage wasn't perfect (not clean enough or lacking his favorite treat) and he would bite me - which made it hard to solve the problem since I couldn't get my hand in the cage - the little booger. Once he gave me the hint I would play his recording and he would let me do my job while he happily had his squawk fest.

[Razzle]

Originally Posted by whaleyrn

Maybe this would be counter-productive in other varieties, but I used to have a "scream-time" with my cockatiel. I had a recording of wild-birds that he just loved (chick-a-dees, cat-birds, etc.) Whenever he was being naughty we would have a sing-a-long. I would play the recording and he would squawk his brains out and make a complete racket along with the other birds for about 15 minutes. He was always very happy afterward like he got all his frustration out or something. Sometimes he would get mad at at me if his cage wasn't perfect (not clean enough or lacking his favorite treat) and he would bite me - which made it hard to solve the problem since I couldn't get my hand in the cage - the little booger. Once he gave me the hint I would play his recording and he would let me do my job while he happily had his squawk fest.

That sounds like how my parents raised me and my sister. We turned out really well! ;)

[Monica]

This is a post I made for someone else.... shorter, but same concept...


Did the screaming start before or after the move? Before or after the loss of the other bird?

You can try punishment, such as using a squirt bottle, however I don't recommend doing this. This method works for some, however, it can also make the bird afraid, which is counterproductive.

You could try negative reinforcement, although I can't think of any sort of negative reinforcement that may work other than covering their cage for 5-15 minutes. This usually results in the birds being quiet *while* being covered but continue making noise when uncovered.

Using "extinction" may work, only if the behavior is being ignored. That is, they scream, there's no reaction from any humans, so they may learn that screaming gets them nothing.

There's also training an incompatible behavior, such as talking or whispering. Praise them highly for when they are quiet and that being quiet gets them attention. You can also give them a bath before they start up so they'll be busy preening (hopefully) rather than screaming.

Perhaps even putting the behavior on cue... such as devoting 5-15 minutes, once or twice a day, to an all out scream-fest. Turn some music on (or not) and let everyone have a blast just screaming and yelling. Any time that is not "scream time" should not be rewarded in any way.

Shaping the absence of screaming can be quite handy with extinction, since you reward everything that does not include screaming.

And of course there's changing the motivation... make sure they get exercise each day, you can always try clicker training, making sure they have enough toys to destroy, ways to forage, perhaps even taking them outside for a bit in their cage, a smaller cage, or even using harnesses.


Perhaps even trying several methods and incorporating a few of them. Although it would also help to know why they are screaming. Sometimes a difference in cage setup or even room setup may bother birds, or perhaps there's something outside that could be setting them off. Maybe it's some person or perhaps another pet. My cherry headed conure is afraid of cats and will scream if she sees one or some other small animal. My mitred dislikes dogs, so when he hears them he starts screaming. He's actually gotten a lot better, and used to scream when he saw them as well.

There's a lot of reasons why a bird may be screaming besides for attention. Sometimes we accidently teach behaviors that we don't want just by allowing the birds to see us. You may need to look into more toys, perches, distractions, etc.


TRICK TRAINING AND ITS BENEFITS
Clicking with your bird
Karen Pryor Clickertraining
Clicking with Birds
BirdClick Yahoo Group
Good Bird Inc - Books & DVD's
Bird DVDs
Bird Training Books & Videos
Bird Behavior & Training Books
The bird school: Clicker training for parrots and other birds
Clicking With Birds
The New Parrot Training Handbook
The Pleasures of Their Company


(BirdBoard Thread - Freeflight Training)


Every morning, usually right around when we get up, they squak loud and uncontrollably.
Birds often vocalize first thing in the morning, perhaps a few times during the day, and in the evening. It may be a good idea in the morning, rather than trying to keep them quiet, devote this time to an all out scream-fest. It's probably a great way to wake up! [BigGrin] lol Once the scream fest is over, and if they settle down, it's breakfast time.

Their cage is in my computer room, so I don't think it is an attention issue, because when I am in there, they do it just as much, if not more.
It's usually recommended to keep birds in a family room where people congregate (such as the livingroom), or a room where a person most frequents. If it's possible, perhaps moving them to another room where they could be with the entire family for a while before boing brought back to the computer room to be with you?

When they scream, what do you do? If they are alone in the computer room, do you reward them by going and visiting them? Or do you ignore them? When you are in the same room and they are screaming, what do you do?

They get plenty of food and water, and we try to give them fresh fruits.
My guys get dry food once a day. That is, I try not to feed them more than what they need to eat within one day, but not too little that they go hungry. On top of this they get fresh foods, given once or twice a day. Fresh foods varies depending on what I get and what I make, but I try to include grains, pulses, veggies, some fruit (not a lot), perhaps some sprouted seeds, etc. You may be interested in taking a look at this thread...

Bird Safe Fresh Foods & Toxic Food Lists + Sprouts

And below are some articles that may be of interest to you...
Bird Behavior - Constant Bird Screaming
Seasonal Behavior
Stop The Squawk
Tips To Quiet Screaming Parrots
Meyer’s Parrot Screaming

[Umm Noodle]

Hi,
I'm on this "scream/plucking" thread looking for advice on plucking. Please direct this if I'm in the wrong place.

I've aquired a B&G Macaw (which I would like to know how to est the age of too please) which was feather plucking in a very poor enviroment. When he/she was picked up, the feather plucking really stopped - no feathers in the cage floor and heaps of improvement in the fearful / depressed behaviour. Now there are heaps of new feathers coming through BUT its pulling them out too. The chest is worst but it has also plucked the shoulders and some over the back. It appears to irritated (a bit sore even) by the new feather growth (it is plucking the new feathers but tends to leave the full ones) which of course leads to increased grooming which can become plucking which means more new feathers, more irritation....
The bird is very afraid of showers (but I'm trying). The skin does look normal.

Now - before you all say "go to the vet" - I live where there are none. We also don't have access to prepared pellet diets, dietary supplies etc etc. so I cook mash and provide whole foods, fruit veges etc.
I am medically trained so I would be able to examin him/her if I knew what else I should be checking for. Any advice please?

[Monica]

Without a vet exam, none of us could tell you that perhaps this could be a medical problem. Do you have any regular vets who may be willing to due a blood panel and then to ask an avian vet about the results? All you would need to do is either have the results forwarded to an avian vet, or at least have the vet speak to an avian vet over the phone.
Find Your Local Avian Vet Here!

You may also want to check out the Feeding Feathers yahoo group for the "plucking" diet.

As for bathes, how do you bathe him? Have you tried in the shower? Have you tried dancing him into the shower? Have you tried the shower with water coming down? Or a few inches at the bottom of a tub? Have you tried misting him? Leaving out some water in a container and running a vacuum? Have you tried ice in a container? Foot toys in a container?

Does he have ways to forage? And a variety of toys?
Foraging toys can be bought
Forage Toys for Parrots

Articles on foraging...
HolisticBird and HolisticBirds
Foraging for Parrots
Parrot Enrichment
Foraging Ahead
Easy Foraging Ideas
Kibibi's InfoSuperFlyway - Top Ten Favorite Parrot Foraging Toys

Below are some ideas for toys and toy making supplies!
PEAB / PEAB
PEAB2 / PEAB2
Cheep Parrot Toys N Tips
Bird Toy Outlet
Birdy Boredom Busters
Birds Just Wanna Have Fun
Twin Leather Company
For the Love of Birds - For Birds Sake Toys
Nalani Toys
Parrotdise Perch
Talon Treasures
California Bird Nerds--Simple Joys and Safer Bird Toys