Senegal Behavior Modification

[ceruleansilver]

I have a parrot named Tengu, which I have talked about on here before. I will be working on a project to study parrot behavior and ultimately attempt to modify Tengu's behavior. I have some preliminary observations that I would like to share with all of you; maybe some of them will prove useful.

1. I have observed a very strong "cold shoulder" signal in my bird. This appears to be a social distance INCREASING signal, a.k.a. "back off!" I have some aggression issues between Tengu and my boyfriend, and Tengu has undesirable mating behaviors. I have observed that giving this "cold shoulder" signal to my bird stops mating behaviors. I do this by turning my face away from him and saying nothing, just like he does when he's upset. I'm hoping that discouraging mating behavior towards me will decrease his aggression towards other males.

2. I have noticed for myself, personally, that I get attacked due to poor conflict resolution. Tengu is somewhere I don't want him to be, and I respond by stressing him out and ramping up his excitement level. I use a blanket, which he viciously attacks, to move him away from the area. At this point, if I do not immediately put him away, he bites me. Tengu is flighted, so there's very little I can to do to get away from said flying terror. By removing him forcefully by an item he really dislikes I also reinforce his phobia of the object. Phobias also add to the stress of his day to day life which is detrimental to me and my bird. Added stress ends in aggression, so I need to destress this situation. So far, I have done this by luring him away with treats. If I can get him to step up, on his own, AWAY FROM ANY CORNERS [ow, corned birds hurt!], then the situation is resolved in a much more peaceful manner and he does not bite.