Now my parrot will not stop screaming??!!

[Wolf]

Just sit down where ever you want and don't panic if he crashes a few times at first. Just continue to talk to him in a calm manner. Oh, when I said to just sit where ever make that any place that does not block the way to the cage door.

[Pajarita]

You need to birdproof the room (put something in front of the windows so he can see there is a glass there -like a decal -they sell ones especially made for birds that can only be seen in UV, a suncatcher, beads or a sheer curtain- make sure there are no openings behind the furniture where he could fall and hurt himself -you can use rolled up towels- that kind of thing) and put perches or make sure there are different things were he can perch if he goes flying around (actual perches work but also things like a lamp shade, the back of a chair, a bookshelf, etc -my birds love to perch on the hand railing of the stairs). Take away his seeds or whatever high protein food you are feeding him after he wakes up from his noon rest and let him out about one hour before sunset and, once he learns that he gets his seeds for dinner (it will take a few days), he will go back into his cage to eat them on his own. And, if he doesn't, do as Wolf said, wait until he is fast asleep and then gently grab him with a small towel and put him back into his cage until he learns to do it on his own.

[quakerboo]

Thanks for all advice so far. A couple of times today he has done his scream that he does when hes scared. The first time he did it I couldn't work out what it was, I pulled his sheet furthur down to let him calm down and then took it back up and he was fine. He did it again about half an hour ago and the only thing I saw that happened was he stretched his wings out which made one of his toys swing a little bit. He then did that scream and moved up and down his perch (the toy is on one end of this perch). However he has to climb past this toy when on his way to his food bowl and he does this no problem, so can he really be scared of it? Also whenever he has done this scream before (apart from when ive got too close) its never been obvious what the stimulus was. When hes done this scream today ive been sitting in my normal place which is a good few metres away from him (he currently lets me get about 1m away from him so I know I was keeping my distance. And there was no sudden loud noise or movement. Also the toy has been in the cage since I put him in there and its one of those bulletproof foraging toys that he has to pull the shapes out of (hes not played with this toy yet). Can someone help me work out what is making him scream in this frantic way?

[Wolf]

Yes he is afraid of that toy, so I would move it out of his cage at least for a while. Dearheart, we are doing what we can to help you to work this out with the information that you give us. We are not there and this means that you are our eyes and ears into your birds world and we can only picture in our mind that which you describe to us. I do believe that I have said it before but just in case I haven't pictures of his cage and the surrounding room fro the vantage of the cage would help us to see what is there and may be affecting him. Videos of the same especially when this occurs would be even better.

[Pajarita]

I agree, take the toy out of the cage. Also, is his cage against a wall or does it have a solid back? Because birds don't like been exposed on all sides, it makes them feel insecure and anxious. As they get older or spend more time in the same environment, the place and people become familiar and 'his territory' so they feel secured in it and, sometimes, they no longer require this (I keep all the cages against walls and the only one that is not has a towel hanging in a corner so it covers half of two sides to give the parrot in it a little safe 'nook' where to roost.

Now, I don't want you to take what I am going to say as a statement that definitely covers your bird because it might not but baby birds that are gavage-fed or handled incorrectly will be high strung (or nervous) their entire lives. Did you get yours from a petstore? Because, usually, they buy from birdmills and a lot of them end up with behavioral issues, same as puppies from puppy mills do.

[quakerboo]

Ok, I cant take any pics im afraid so I will try and describe to you. His cage is against a wall and also a sheet is over one side aswell so he can see fully out of the front. He seems to like this more so he has a kind of quiet corner. The room is quite empty as I have recently moved in. There is a tele to his left about 4m away, and the sofa is infront of him but slightly to the left across the room, thats where I sit. Other than that theres a small empty table about 1.5 m from him and a small fold up chair near his cage which I have positioned at the distance he lets me sit comfortably from him which at the moment is about 1m. There is nothing else in the room. All else he can see from his cage is the empty hallway.
When he screams it kind of sounds like a really high pitched alarm, when he does it he either shuffles up and down his perch or clings on to the bars of his cage. I will remove the toy but im not sure its that as he chooses to perch at the end of the perch right next to the toy and he just did the screaming thing again and it didnt seem to be a result of that toy.

I got him from a breeder who bred different types of birds and upon going there I did realise that he definately wasnt a good breeder by the way he seemed so scared of him and the way he grabbed him out of the cage. I suppose it was stupid to still get him however I thought i might be able to tame him still and I also thought it would be much better if i took him than leave him with that breeder.

He does seem to be getting more confident here, for example he lets me go much closer than he did
before and if in the morning I uncover him at sunrise and give him some food and go back to bed, if he hears me turn the tele on in there or answer my phone he does a different kind of scream because he doesn't want to be alone. he doesnt scream if I go out the room to do things throughout the day, but I think if im going to just sit there and chill he would rather me do it with him. This, wrong or not, has encouraged me a little bit as it makes me think he actually likes me being around rather than being completely petrified of me.
So really its the scared screaming which is my biggest problem at the moment, as I believe very very slowly he may actually be getting used to me day by day.

I know parrots do make screaming noises, I feel like this isnt just a normal vocalisation, I think it must be fear and it's horrible to not be able to work out what it is. Do you think maybe its me? Do you think its possible that although im not really near him or doing anything sudden when he does it, maybe he just suddenly catches my eye and becomes really aware of me and wants me to get away for a bit?
At the moment im on holiday from work and Im not really doing much so I spend 80-90% of his awake time being right there in the same room as him.

[Wolf]

Well it is a good thing for the bird to be away from that breeder although it will make it more difficult for you in the beginning. Although, he maybe scared of you, probably due to the treatment he received from this breeder, he is even more scared of being alone. A bird left alone at his age in the wild is one that gets eaten. At this point in his life this bird should want nothing more that to be perching on your shoulder or head, they love heads. They are never alone in nature from hatching until they die, so it is not in their nature to be alone, ever.
Sometimes it is hard to figure out what it is that they are afraid of but if you watch closely you should be able to see some indication of what it is. Pay attention to where they are looking also look to see if they are straight up or if they are leaning as they could be leaning away from what is bothering them.
Pictures and videos....is the computer that you use to success this site a laptop or desk top? I ask because many laptops have a built in webcam that you can record videos with and then pull single pictures out of the video.

[Pajarita]

I bet you that terrible breeder gavage-feeds his babies -no other reason for a baby to be afraid of the person he has seen every single day of his life and who brings only warm food and comfort to him! But I am glad you bought him because he needs somebody like you that is understanding and keeps on trying as you are doing.

Now, quakers scream for no good reason all the time. Lord knows mine does! She loves to lift the edge of the papers on the bottom trays of the cages and get under them (she also loves fighting me to change them ) and, even when she is in there all by herself or with her husband, she screams. Their loud screams is the number one reason why they are given up so be prepared for them because there will be screams all his life.

Why don't you try putting some branches on the outside of the cage so he can climb up and chew on them a bit?

And, yes, I think he is coming along very nicely taking into consideration his rough infancy, poor thing! And I think he is beginning to find comfort in your presence and this is the very first and most difficult step in his way to been bonded to you so keep on doing what you are doing.