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Ekkie "booping"

Sniperzombies

Meeting neighbors
Joined
10/31/14
Messages
49
Real Name
Melanie
Hi everyone, I'm new here and I need some advice

I have a little girl who makes a high pitched "boop" sound whenever I leave the room. Its become a common phrase among my friends who have started saying "boop" everytime they hear a loud pitched sound or I leave the room. I know shes calling me back. I have tried everything. I've left music on, tv on, the radio on. She apparently does it all day long, even after I go to work. I'm now just moving into an apartment and I'm allowed to have her as long as she doesn't make noise. Shes really quiet otherwise. She has always been really attached to me, so much so that she refuses to do much of anything outside her cage except sit mashed up against my face. Has anyone had this problem or had any luck breaking them of this habit?

I also have a little green conure who is a jerk in the morning. He loves to scream. Any tips on soundproofing?

2014-02-12.jpg 2014-02-121.jpg 2014-02-129.jpg <-----Pizza Stealing
 

Birdiemarie

Feather Snuggler
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Ohio
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Marie
Welcome. Your redhead is beautiful! Ekkies can be quite loud and persistent. My girl can be heard three blocks away when she really let's loose. You're right, your girl is contact calling you when you leave the room. You can try answering her back but do it softly and reward her when she copies your lower tone. Ekkies are really not apartment birds so I hope it works out for you when you move. You can look for sound absorbing panels to put up on the wall.

Your greenie is adorable also!
 

Sniperzombies

Meeting neighbors
Joined
10/31/14
Messages
49
Real Name
Melanie
My ekkies name is Ruby also!

I've had her in 3 apartments so far and no one has complained. I don't think anyone can figure out what the sound is because its so unnatural. My new landlord was just not keen on birds and I had to talk him into it.
 

Kimberla

Rollerblading along the road
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Joined
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Northeastern Indiana
Love the pizza grab!! When I sit down to breakfast with scrambled eggs, Leo will do a run by and grab a mouth full of egg. Little brat. He will snag a piece of ham if I am not paying attention too. Gotta love him..... :m2:

I have had some luck with walking out of the room and turning right back around before the sound starts. I give a special treat. Wait and walk out again. Make sure to get back before the sound. If he beats you with the sound. No treat. Just keep expanding the time you are out of the room. The suggestion of teaching him to make the sound at a lower volume is a great idea.
 

Sniperzombies

Meeting neighbors
Joined
10/31/14
Messages
49
Real Name
Melanie
I like both these ideas, I have about a month before I move out so I can work on it then. Fortunatly my new place has a small office room that I'm thinking would be good for her. She likes it quiet and was never happy being out in the living room. I'm also hoping that by keeping her somewhere other than my bedroom she will progrssively learn that its okay to be alone.
 

Kimberla

Rollerblading along the road
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Northeastern Indiana
Melanie, I just happened to think of this. You might see if you can get her to play "peek a boo" It will maybe help her to understand that even if you are not in direct eye sight, you are not far away and you will be back. If you can lengthen the time there is something between you and her sweet face to help lead you into walking out of the room
 

CaliEckies

Jogging around the block
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653
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Florida
Our female would flock call whenever she saw me pass by the livingroom. Honestly I didn't even notice it after a few weeks of having her but when people would visit they'd be like -> :wideyed: :eek:
I don't believe mine makes any noise when I am not home- though we have a house and there are wild amazons living in all the trees around my house so no one would be able to tell if it was my birds or the wild ones. :lol:
I didn't answer her back though after 10 years that never stopped her from calling. She wasn't loud though IMO none of the eckies I have had or fostered have been loud. (loud compared to a macaw)
 

Milo

Rollerblading along the road
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Jenny
Audimute Sound Absorption Sheets | Materials That Absorb Sound | Soundproofing Blankets - Audimute Soundproofing
I got some of these and hung them on the walls in our current apartment... and our neighbor can still hear Rosco through them. Although she said that she can hear the difference before and after we put them up. It's going to depend a lot on how well insulated your apartment walls are. Have you spoken to your neighbors about the noise? If not I'd talk to them and ask them to come to you first so you can try and solve the problem before going to the management. Although honestly I'm not sure why you would move into a place that stipulates your parrots must be quiet, it seems like a recipe for disaster.
 

step_on_up

Moving in
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12/9/13
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14
Real Name
Derek
Our ekkie makes a similar noise, although I always thought she learned it from our smoke alarm with a low battery..... What we do to cut down on the loud "beeps" is we created a new contact call for her to use. I picked a noise Ruby already made (clicking 3 times). Whenever she made this noise, I would mimick it, and give her a treat. After a while, she knew I was contact calling her when I made the three clicks, and she would make the noise to call back to me. We've only been doing this for around 6 months or so, but a lot of her "beeping" has been turned into clicking. Here's an article I read about contact calls that I found really helpful: Contact Calls, Communicating - Jane Hallander. However, I'm pretty sure she's quiet when we are out of the apartment though, because when I'm dead silent in the apartment, she won't call.

We also put those audimute blankets along with cheap carpets on the walls to help dampen the noise. We've only been at this apartment for 3 weeks, so we don't know how much the neighbors hear of the birds, but it seems like the blankets make a difference.
 
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