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Newbie here and need some help asap pls

Discuss the methods and techniques of clicker training, target training and bonding. These are usually the first steps in training a young parrot.

Newbie here and need some help asap pls

Postby nikki1975 » Thu Feb 11, 2010 12:39 pm

Hi my name is Nikki and I just joined today. Joey is my beautiful :cockatoo: I got him last March and for the first wk he was really timid but since then he has been very lovable to all of us until recently lol.

About a month ago or so Joey has started giving me kisses and nuzzling my neck and trying to groom me and pluck my moles off lol and I think started to hump my arm when I hold him.. He has always gotten along well with my husband there for awhile it was like he was more attacked to Kevin then me but this past wk for no reason at all Joey lunged at Kevin and bite him on the cheek and then this morning Joey was on top of his cage and all Kevin did was walk past him and joey started shrieking and lunged on him and bite him on the hand and I grab him and put him back on his cage and not even 5 minds later he heard Kevin in the living room and he flew out of the room and tried attacking him again so now he is in his cage and Kevin says that we may have to get rid of him cuz he will not have a pet that does that for no reason. Kevin has never yelled at Joey or anything like that so I am lost to as why he is doing this unless its cuz he is jealous and doesn't want Kevin by me..

Hoping someone can help me out. Oh yeah the guys that I got him from bought him from the breeder at a yr old and had him for 5 yrs and I have had him for almost a yr now so he going on 7yrs old and his 2 previous owners were males..

Thanks, Nikki and :cockatoo:
nikki1975
Parakeet
 
Gender: This parrot forum member is female
Posts: 5
Number of Birds Owned: 1
Types of Birds Owned: Goffin Cockatoo
Flight: Yes

Re: Newbie here and need some help asap pls

Postby windharper » Fri Feb 12, 2010 12:34 am

Well, it sounds like he has chosen you as his mate and that he is jealous of your husband as you suspect. :cockatoo: are oftentimes one person birds, so this isn't surprising. That he used to favor your husband and now favors you is also not unusual. Parrots can shift loyalties like that for no apparent reason.

I think Joey needs to get desensitized to your husband's pressence again. Michael has a good (YouTube) video on how he got his :senegal: to tolerate his wife.

Michael, how about a link?

If he doesn't see this soon enough, do a search on YouTube. It is worth watching.

Good luck & welcome to the forum,
Deb
windharper
Cockatiel
 
Gender: This parrot forum member is female
Posts: 63
Number of Birds Owned: 2
Types of Birds Owned: Senegal, Cockatiel
Flight: Yes

Re: Newbie here and need some help asap pls

Postby cherylcat54 » Fri Feb 12, 2010 2:22 pm

Congratulations! You have a parrot (I assume Cockatoo) in sexual maturation :) It is breeding season, and our parrots go a little nutz this time of year: Increased signs of aggression, favoring one family member over another, calling, backing into any thing that doesn't move, panting, crabbiness, etc can make you wonder, "Where in the world has my sweet bird gone? " Maturation can bring shift in your relationship with your bird, but think about raising kids: We raise helpless little babies who grow into dependent, loving little cling-ons who wish to spend every moment close to us ~ then come the teen years (maturation) - hormones kick in and it feels like there's an alien in the house!

Parrots mature and "grow up" too. And while the relationship between you may change, remember it is still GOOD ... just different. There are some practical things you can do during breeding season to reduce your stress and the Too's:

"Bonding" favoritism is instinctual. Pick a mate, mate the mate, protect the mate. For now (through March approximately). Your DH (darling husband) should handle the Too away from you. With our M-2 rescue HE bonded to DH during breeding season. We had to allow my DH to take out Keiki out of the cage, return him to the cage, and clean the cage ONLY ~ withOUT handling the bird. I got to do all the fun stuff - hold, feed, train and play with, and Keiki wasn't thrilled with the change initially, but being 'the good guy' it reduced aggression towards me during season. Once breeding surge had passed we went back to business as usual.

Going through the motions:
For now Joey may have to do without cuddling with you - no shoulder, hair privileges, and excessive petting translates into excessive stimulation. Right now your bird (are you sure it's a boy?) is one big erogenous zone, so keep petting to the crest/neck region.

Sleep: Parrots follow circadian rythms (the natural cycle of light and dark) Spring brings longer days/shorter nights. Make sure Joey is well covered, in a quiet place, and shoot of a minimum of 12 hours DARK for sleep. This can help with the hormonal surges.

Behavior modification: Can't stop what birdie is doin' naturally. No scolding, tossing, etc. Simply modifying handling will help a lot. When Romeo gets too amorous, transfer him to a perch, provide new toys to play with for distraction. Eliminate cardboard boxes or ANYTHING like newspaper to shred for play - these things stimulate natural nest building instincts regardless of sex. Cockatoo mates participate in every stage, including building, brooding and protection of nests and offspring.

Lastly, preservere! This only lasts 4-6 weeks and comes around about twice a year. It passes. Keep it in perspective, be consistent, and you'll all come through breeding season just fine :)
Hugs!

:cockatoo:
Cheryl T. (Kaku2mom)
“Live that you wouldn't be ashamed to sell the family parrot to the town gossip.” ~ Will Rogers ~
cherylcat54
Parakeet
 
Gender: This parrot forum member is female
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Types of Birds Owned: 12 y/o Male M-2
7 y/o Fem. U-2
8 y/o Green Cheek Conure
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Re: Newbie here and need some help asap pls

Postby nikki1975 » Fri Feb 12, 2010 4:35 pm

Wow thanks for all the pointers..Its going to be hard not playing with him much cuz heck we even watch tv together on the couch lol..Took :cockatoo: to the vet today to get groomed and now he seems to be mad at me lol...Nikki
nikki1975
Parakeet
 
Gender: This parrot forum member is female
Posts: 5
Number of Birds Owned: 1
Types of Birds Owned: Goffin Cockatoo
Flight: Yes

Re: Newbie here and need some help asap pls

Postby windharper » Wed Feb 17, 2010 7:38 pm

Admittedly, I don't have a :cockatoo: and I haven't done a lot of research on them. But, this motivated me to go look further for information on them.

General consenses is that they mate for life (unless that mate dies or something, then they will pick another if possible). The problem that happens is that the male will be ~very~ aggressive toward his chosen mate. This means biting and yes, even to the point of drawing blood.

So, I retract my prior uninformed comments....they aren't applicable in your case. It sounds like he has indeed chosen ~you~.

I will still be interested to hear what happens.

Meanwhile, in all my searches, one website really stood out: http://www.mytoos.com

There is a storehouse of information there and some very sad pictures and stories! :cry:

Anybody considering a :cockatoo: or already owning a :cockatoo: will learn a lot about them here.

Best wishes,
Deb
windharper
Cockatiel
 
Gender: This parrot forum member is female
Posts: 63
Number of Birds Owned: 2
Types of Birds Owned: Senegal, Cockatiel
Flight: Yes

Re: Newbie here and need some help asap pls

Postby Mona » Fri Feb 19, 2010 1:26 pm

Hi Nikki:

I don't have a cockatoo but I do want to encourage you that there are a lot of ways to have "hands off" interactions so that you don't overstimulate your bird.

One thing that you might consider is to roll his cage into your living space in the evenings. Let him hang out with your family during "family time" but keep him in his cage. You can scratch his head between the bars. This way, he still gets ambient attention, a feeling of being part of your flock and you will not be putting yourself or your husband at risk.

Trick training is also good. Michael has tons of different videos and ideas for different behaviors that you can train. Training is a great way to set up interaction without making it about "sex".

Also, you might take your little guy for visits outside of the house. Be sure and take him in a carrying cage so that you don't have to worry about having him fly off. You can take him to visit friends in "safe" settings that are enclosed, don't have windows, don't have dogs, etc. This is a good way to help him "forget" about his hormones. I have a group that takes our bird to a National Guard Armory about once every two weeks for other bird interaction and exercise. It is amazing how much this helps the birds work off steam and settle down. We've been doing this for probably eight years and we have had very few aggression issues. I think it is because the birds are too busy watching and having fun.

I also think you should talk to other people with Goffins too's because every species of bird is a little different and there is a lot of good information out there. Goffins are really fun little toos.

Thanks!

Mona
Mona in Seattle
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Mona
Poicephalus
 
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