Parrot owners...

[fussoverthis]

Ok, I know there are some bird people here, so I thought I'd bring up an issue that I'm having with my senegals. Any words of advise would be much appreciated!

I have a pair that I believe are both female. They have never been sexed because I really don't care whether they are boys or girls. They are bonded and have been together since they were very young. Now they are eight year olds.

My problem is the noise factor. Generally senegals are quiet birds, however these were raised around conures and therefore mimic conure sounds (loud!). I try covering them when they are unbearable which quiets them down for the amount of time they are covered. Then they start in as soon as they are uncovered. I'm not sure what else to try. I have read the Guide to a Well Behaved Parrot book and have raised birds for several years but have no other ideas about what to try.

They will not be separated. That is not something I am willing to do to get this behavior to stop. They have been together too long and are totally bonded, so separating them is out of the question.

I will also not fry 'em up, so some of you loungers just shudup!

[BigSkyBart]

Originally posted by fussoverthis
I will also not fry 'em up, so some of you loungers just shudup!

I suppose the smoker, bbq & crockpot are also out of the question

[PoukieBear]

When / Why are they screeching? most of the time it's to get your attention. Do they do it when you leave the room? Or when they don't know where you are? Or if it's silent in the house?

They could be doing contact calls, just to see where you are. Whistle back at them and let them know that you haven't gone far. Or leave a radio on for them.

I know how loud and frustrating a screaming bird is. I have a Conure myself, and a screaming cockatoo to deal with too.

[JokerGirl]

There are many reasons as to why birds scream. Most people don't realize that birds are naturally noisy and that there is a BIG difference between their normal calls and screaming.

In the wild, they HAVE to be loud in order to be heard by their flock. Their calls need to be heard from several miles away. This is what a lot of parrot owners get confused about as to what is screaming.

Screaming in parrots is usually because they are missing something in their lives. This can be either mental or physical. I don't know their situation, but the more popular reasons for screaming are attention, lack of toys, something in the environment disturbs them, nutrition, and lack of sleep.

I've found in parrots that have EVERYTHING, but still scream, that the most common cause is usually lack of sleep. Parrots, realistically, need around 12 hours of uninterrupted sleep a night. Depending on where their cage is located, it very well may be a sleep issue.

Now.. that being said. Try the sleep thing, if that doesn't work, then you are going to need to be committed to using some positive reinforcement on them. When they scream, don't give them ANY attention (whether negative or positive attention) because this will reinforce their behaviour. Only give them attention when they are being quiet. You can also use treat or clicker training while doing this process. I've found with birds that verbal reinforcement usually isn't enough to get something to sink in.

If they are screaming, don't cover them, don't look at them, don't do anything. Leave the room until they quiet down. If they start screaming again when you enter the room, immediately leave again. You want to slowly increase the amount of time that they are quiet. Start with 5 minutes, then 10, then 15 and so forth. Eventually they will realize that in order to get attention they need to pipe down.

[JokerGirl]

Oh, and one more thing... I good place to go for advise is http://www.theperch.net

They have some pretty knowledgeable people on their forums and also have some dedicated blogs for people to start to help log the progress of their birds' behavioural issues.

Unfortunately, at the moment, they are doing a server transfer and have been down for several days. Hopefully they will be back up soon.

[fussoverthis]

Originally posted by BigSkyBart
I suppose the smoker, bbq & crockpot are also out of the question

LOL - I think they might be a little chewy and therefore not make a good meal. Thanks for the suggestions, though!

[fussoverthis]

Joker and Poukie,
Thanks for the advice. Usually they are making the most noise when I'm in the room - not 5 feet from them - on the computer. I know parrots are normally loud animals and that they call, but sheesh. Sometimes they are just ridiculous. They call a lot at dusk and in the mornings after I uncover them. That's fairly normal and doesn't bother me.

They really enjoy it when I put them outside to call to the wild birds on nice sunny days.

I hadn't thought about the sleep issue, but you could be right. They were demoted to a more active room from my bedroom because of morning noise. The caveat with that is they will now be around activity for more of the day which means they may not be getting the sleep they need.

I'll have to look into the site you mentioned! Thanks!

Is the parrot in your avatar a white fronted amazon? Beautiful!

[Misled]

Ok, this is from Bubba's dad. As has been said, birds are not quiet animals. Senegals may be quieter than other birds, but they make noises too. That being said one of the reasons a pair of females will make noises, well consider human females. They will communicate with each other, you, another bird that flies by,(if they can see out the window), or like mine anything he hears he feels he has to repeate. If there's a mirror in the cage take it out. Nothing like another idiot to stir the pot, (did I say I hate when people put mirrors in their birds cages. )

The question I have is how much time is spent with the birds. I stuck with one because I know how this bird thinks. When he wants his head scrached, (seems like every waking moment sometimes but it's really not that bad), he will let me know. He has a room of his own and will only come out when either me or my wife let's him know it's ok. He will call out, if he hears one of us say come here Bubba, he'll fly out and land on me. Notice I said me. My wife only gets him if I'm not home, and he will look for me before going to her.

When he's alone he will repeate all the crap he's learned over and over again. He even has the police sirens down pat. He has a tv in his room and a stereo system. He enjoys different things but always likes a good hockey game.

One last thought is you "have two senegals that have bonded". They will usually only bond to one other thing be it another bird, you, your other, or the perch he sits on. What happens when you guys seperate them?

Oh, this is Bubba!!!He's the one on my shoulder!

[JokerGirl]

Yes, that is my 4-yr old devil (Lesser WFA) Sam.

Try the sleep issue, I could almost guarantee that that might be the problem.

[PoukieBear]

Awww, What a cutie !!



The bird is kind of pretty too Jesse..

[Misled]

Thank you Poukie, another pic just for you!!!

[fussoverthis]

Jesse - Thanks for the advice! There are no mirrors in the cage. I'm with you on that one.

They are absolutely bonded to each other, not to me. I am fine with that and appreciate that they are together all the time when I cannot be there (at work, etc.). I do understand that birds make noise and are messy. I guess I'm just more concerned with the amount and volume of noise they make. If I can't figure out a way to curb it just a little, no harm in trying. I think it would make our living situation slightly more pleasant.

Great photos! Bubba sounds like a great pet. One of my senegals has the orange breast like Bubba and the other is yellow. They are named Kiwi and Mango. I didn't name them as they used to belong to a friend of mine several years ago. Kiwi knows her name and says it quite often to remind me.

[Jerry W]

I bought a parrot from an elderly lady who was moving to a nursing home. She assured me the bird was an excellent mimic and would talk up a storm. I brought the thing home and all it did was swear. Everytime I talked it would utter a string of profanities. If I was on the phone or had guests, it would scream vulgar words and phrases like there was no tomorow. I would scold the bird, squirt it with water and cover the cage, and it simply swore even more. After three weeks I reached my boiling point and one night when I was trying to rest, having listened to the bird curse for over an hour I grabbed it and put it in the freezer. The darn thing let loose with a litany of cuss words for over three minutes and then it got quiet.
I opened the freezer and the parrot was just sitting there shivering. I took it out and held it in my hand. It looked up at me and said "I'm sorry for all of the trouble I've caused you. You've been nothing but good to me and I've behaved terribly. I humbly apologize and hope you'll give me another chance to be the kind of pet you thought I'd be."
Being the animal lover I am, my heart softened and I placed the parrot back in his cage, asking him if he had anything else to say.
He replied "might I ask what the turkey did?"

[Misled]

[Misled]

Hey fuss, I have something for you to try. You say they make noise when you are in the room. At this time are they closed in the cage? If they are, try opening the cage. If it has a playtop all the better. Give them something to do but try to get you to leave. If Bubba's in a room with us he either wants to be on one of us or up on a curtian rod. When we go in his room, if he's in his cage, he comes out and climbs to the top of the cage. When we leave he goes back in. They may be trying to show you who the boss is!!!

[JokerGirl]

That's good advice Misled, but I would strongly advise against opening the cage door when they are screaming as this is a form of negative reinforcement.

[Misled]

Originally posted by JokerGirl
I would strongly advise against opening the cage door when they are screaming as this is a form of negative reinforcement.

I agree with that. What I notice about Senegals is they react to things fairly slowly. When I go in Bubba's room, he doesn't start comming out right away, (his cage is always open). About 20 to 30 seconds later he'll start slowly comming out. If I leave he just goes back in but he'll give me a couple clucks to make sure I know he's there. If I stay he'll climb up on top the cage. What I meant to say is when you go in the room ( I'm guessing to be on the computer), open the cage when you enter the room. Then sit down and go about your business. See what they do. Let me know what happens too. I really want to know.

[JokerGirl]

I understand what you meant I just didn't want fuss to get the wrong idea and be reinforcing his parrot's negative behaviours. With Sam having been a rescue, I've already had to go through all of this behavioural therapy, and am still going through it. Sam starts screaming the second he sees my car pull in the driveway, but a lot of it is pure excitement that I'm home. I'll let him out, but he's usually way too excited to even handle, so he is left alone for about 30 minutes until he calms down. Oh the joys of owning an Amazon lol

[Misled]

Originally posted by JokerGirl
Oh the joys of owning an Amazon lol

Come on you know you love it. It's funny, Bubba was a rescue also. Was a real plucker when we invited him in. He was also only taught whistling which in the early years was quite annoying. He doesn't get into it much anymore, but it really hindered his talking ability. We talk to him just like we speak to a person. When I'm outside his door and he doesn't know it, you can hear him trying to put sentences together. Every once and awhile a real word comes out, but it's the changes in his inflections that's a howl. He really sounds like he's talking in another language.

[JokerGirl]

I love every minute of my little guy. He follows me around like a puppy dog, even with his wings being clipped. Be sitting in the kitchen, and all you hear is some squeaking and the clicking of his nails on the hardwood. Next you'll see him poke his head around the corner to see if you're in there, then come running up to you saying "Step up, Step up, Step up". Unfortunately though, he doesn't talk much anymore. I'm not really sure why because he was really coming along with his talking after I got him. Now he's the household master of sound effects. He coughs, sneezes like Matt, makes the sounds of running water, brushing of the teeth, my phone, kisses etc... I'm almost positive that he talks behind our backs too. Sometimes you can sneak up on him talking to himself. It's hard though since our floors creak so badly.

[BigSkyBart]

me with one of the residents of mom's avian zoo

it would take me a few minutes to remember what she has, about a dozen in all

[fussoverthis]

Hi, all! I have been meaning to reply for quite a while, but with Turkey Day, things have been hectic.

Negative reinforcement is what I want to avoid...that's one reason I posted this question to others out there who have had success with training. The friend of mine that used to have these two would leave the cage open all the time for them. I cannot do that in my home. There are two Great Danes and two open top aquariums. Those would surely spell disaster.

Giving them their own separate room would keep them safe from the dogs and tanks except that they would be away from the rest of the household. I want them to feel included, so keeping them in a closed cage in the house where they get to feel like they are part of the hustle and bustle of our daily life.

Kiwi is much more hand tame than Mango. I can handle Kiwi *most* of the time. She does not allow me to put my hand in the cage for her to step up, but once she is away from the cage she is fine. I can scratch her head and neck. She used to be so tame she would lay on her back in the palm of your hand, but I don't really handle them that much any more so we've regressed a bit with the tame stuff. I'm sure I could get her back to that point if I just worked at it and spent the time with her.

Mango is definitely prone to biting. Since she hit maturity she has been fairly aggressive. So I don't handle her as much. She will step up if she is away from the cage and decides that she will allow me to take her back to her cage, but it is definitely on her terms. I understand and accept that. She's the boss of me when she is out. She bites harder so she wins. I just don't let her out as much as Kiwi.

I thought I had some photos I could show you, but i can't find them right now. They are beauties and I really do enjoy them. I don't want you guys to think I hate them because they make noise.


Joker - I've always thought amazons were so fun! I saw a pair one time that would mimic giggling. It was contagious. Everyone that heard it would start laughing. I think they really got a kick out of making people laugh. They're such characters.

Bart - I love the macaw photo. They're neat birds and very beautiful.

Jesse - they have such gravelly voices, don't they? Mine both "talk" but I can't understand what they're saying the majority of the time. You can tell that they are really trying though. It's really interesting to listen to them. I know that they used to say some words that I haven't heard in quite a long time, but it's funny how they try to say stuff that you just have no idea what it is.

I had another friend who had a Grey named Baby. She would tell me things that that bird used to say. She had no idea how Baby picked up some of the things she said. I guess they are so smart that just having the TV or radio on they'll hear something one time and save it up for later.

I have one other pair of birds - American Singer Canaries. I was hoping that Kiwi and Mango would pick up the song at some point and try to mimic it. We'll see if that happens. They do listen to him sing!

[fussoverthis]

And one other question. Why do they ALWAYS poop in the food and water? Who does that?

[Misled]

With all the comfortable perches in his cage, mine sits on his water bowl with his but hanging over the water. Don't know why. When you go in the room he goes up to his perch. We put a bottle for him to use for drinking and removed the bowl once and a while till he drank from the bottle. Now the bowl is for bathing but he still sits on it.

[Aliie]

I had a Mexican Redhat that did the same thing Jesse. Never could figure out why. He was a screecher also every night when I cooked. Sit on his perch and just go at it then when dinner was done fly over and pick food off our plates. He was a bit spoiled to say the least but he was that way when I got him.

Nice pics Jesse & Bart.