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Tame Ringneck now being aggressive

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

Re: Tame Ringneck now being aggressive

Postby Pajarita » Tue Jul 28, 2015 11:06 am

Why don't you let him out of the cage first and then clean it and change the food? Much less stressful that way and you would not be teaching him that biting you is OK.
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Re: Tame Ringneck now being aggressive

Postby Peanut_power » Wed Jul 29, 2015 3:11 am

Hi

Please see the dropbox link below. I thought I'd take a couple of videos so that you can see his behaviour in/out of cage.

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/s9ex4p7f1kdy ... PIaxa?dl=0
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Re: Tame Ringneck now being aggressive

Postby Pajarita » Wed Jul 29, 2015 9:21 am

Oh, Lordy... Well, for one thing, you need to change his perches because the ones in the cage are bad for his feet and toes. You can't use dowels, you need to use natural branches. The dowels are too smooth and too even so the feet and toes get no exercise (because they always end up in the same position) PLUS the bird will end up getting sores from always putting all his weight on the same pressure points (again, always the same position). Besides, they are too wide, you need to use different diameters so one as wide as the ones you have in there is good but the roosting perch should be of a diameter that allows the toes to go 3/4 of the way around it so they can 'lock' comfortably when they sleep.

For another, stop approaching the cage with your finger in a pointing position, you are antagonizing him and stressing him out - by doing this, you are the one creating the cage aggression.

Laddering (the making him step up over and over from one finger to the next) is not good. It's a flooding technique and, eventually, it will backfire because the bird will stop stepping up for you (see how he doesn't want to do it after the second time? they know when you are asking them to do something useless and resent it).

Touch: you should never caress the back of the bird they way you do it OR touch his lower abdomen (the way you did to make him step up during laddering when he did not want to). These are erogenous touches and are complete no-nos when handling birds (do you see how he is laying on your hand on the last video, resting his lower abdomen on it and lowering his tail? this is the position they assume when masturbating with your hand). You can only touch his head, neck, nape and cheeks.
Pajarita
Norwegian Blue
 
Gender: This parrot forum member is female
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Re: Tame Ringneck now being aggressive

Postby Peanut_power » Thu Jul 30, 2015 2:48 am

I've got some variety in terms of perches in his cage. there are 2 smooth dowels, 1 natural branch, one of those branch-shaped iodine perches and his swing (which he love sleeping on) is also natural wood.

Thanks for the advice once again. I tried just standing at his cage this morning and he still came forward to attack/lunge. My wife said that she's noticed that he doesn't show any aggression toward my daughter, perhaps he doesn't feel threatened by a mini-person?

Thanks for letting me know about laddering and the touch-zones. I can't believe my little baby has been such a perv *embarrassing*
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Re: Tame Ringneck now being aggressive

Postby Pajarita » Thu Jul 30, 2015 10:30 am

:lol: He's not a perv, he is a teenager getting aroused by improper caresses. His cage aggression is not going to stop from one day to the next even if you do stop going at his cage with your finger. You are going to have to prove to him that you are now 'listening' to him and respecting his space and his wishes - and this will take time.

Most likely, your daughter does not 'poke' with her finger the way you've been doing and that's why he doesn't get aggravated by her.
Pajarita
Norwegian Blue
 
Gender: This parrot forum member is female
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Flight: Yes

Re: Tame Ringneck now being aggressive

Postby Peanut_power » Thu Jul 30, 2015 10:37 am

I don't usually poke my finger at him, it was more in order to capture the aggression on video so that I could share it.

He'll be spending the weekend at my in-laws place, so hopefully the environment change helps him a bit - also, there are a lot more people around over there. He has stayed there before and often spends a day or 2 there during the week if my wife is visiting while I'm at work. So it's not a new environment and he's acquainted with all of them, especially my wife's teenage sister.
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Gender: This parrot forum member is male
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Re: Tame Ringneck now being aggressive

Postby Wolf » Sat Aug 01, 2015 7:59 am

Cage aggression is pretty common with parrots and I would wager that goes for most birds as well. It is so easy to forget that parrots are for all intents and purposes still wild animals and they still think like wild ones.
Since the cage that we give them is the closest thing that they have to a nesting area, it stands to reason that they are going to protect this area from intruders. This behavior is linked to their survival instincts and as such is nearly impossible to eradicate. For this reason I don't even try to change it, I just work with the bird on this by opening their cage and waiting for them to come out on their own. The bird is happy about this as it is able to defend its territory and learns that I can be trusted to stay out of their most precious space. I am happy as I don't get bitten, I get to improve our relationship by giving the bird this respect and it works out great for both of us.
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Re: Tame Ringneck now being aggressive

Postby liz » Sat Aug 01, 2015 8:48 am

I left the door open for Gimpy in case he wanted to come out. I looked into the bird room and he was on the floor. I thought it was progress until I saw the 5 cockatiels perched in his little bitty cage. I think they miss their cage.
I separate the top from the bottom of the cage to clean it. That way my hands are never in the cage with him.
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Re: Tame Ringneck now being aggressive

Postby Peanut_power » Mon Aug 03, 2015 11:52 am

Hi again
So I think I may just be dealing with cage aggression as Wolf has previously stated. He was away with my wife at her parents' place all weekend and completely fine, but as soon as we returned home and he got back to his usual cage he lunged at me once again. Then, when he was out of his cage, he happily stepped up. He is definitely a curious and attention-seeking bird and each time he was in the room with his travel cage, he would leave and explore the entire house until he came across some people and got some attention.
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Parrotlet
 
Gender: This parrot forum member is male
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Types of Birds Owned: Ringneck Parakeet
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Re: Tame Ringneck now being aggressive

Postby Peanut_power » Mon Jun 06, 2016 5:39 am

Hello all :)

So it is now nearly a full year later and I just wanted to let you guys know that we have made lots of progress! He is now a much friendlier bird to deal with. He also a very good relationship with my little girl (everyday she wakes up and asks, "Can I give Peanut a chili?" Then she dashes off to pick one from the tree).

He's still not fully back to where he used to be with me, but a lot better. Sometimes he allows me to scratch his head and cheeks, sometimes not. I also allow him to softly nibble my finger when I stroke him (my mind tells me that I'm proving to him that my finger is friend, not foe)

Also - very exciting news! He seems to be developing a bit of a black ring. He'll be 2 yrs old at the end of this year. A parent can hope for a boy, right? :irn: :irn:
Peanut_power
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