Do all species "bluff"?

[dwright27]

Hi everyone, I haven't been on here in a few weeks!

I hope this is the right forum for this, otherwise admin feel free to move it somewhere more appropriate.

Do all parrot species go through a bluffing stage? I ask because I knew it existed in IRNs, but now I've read about it in Lorikeets and a few others.

If they do all go through it, does the severity of it vary? How about duration?

I will have to read more about hormones etc. at another time, I just didn't want to forget to ask about this. Thanks everyone!

 

[lexalayne]

Bluffing (Biting) Behavior in Parrots - What to Do


All too often, people that own young parrots wake up to find that their sweet baby bird has turned into a lunging, biting, aggressive little monster! If this sounds like your feathered friend, then don't give up hope -- many birds exhibit this sort of behavior during adolescence.

It's called the "bluffing" stage, and while many parrots go through it, a few species -- most notably Indian Ringneck Parakeets, Senegal Parrots, and Macaws -- are more prone to bluffing behavior than others.

The hallmarks of bluffing are lunging, nipping, biting, hissing, and a general resistance to interaction. Birds can enter into this stage seemingly overnight, and generally when they are between the ages of 4 months and one year. No one knows for sure exactly why some parrots go through the bluffing stage, but many speculate that it is due to hormonal changes that take place as the bird changes from a juvenile into an adult.

While it can be easy to shy away from a bluffing parrot, that is not necessarily the best route to take
Many new bird owners make the grave mistake of keeping their birds confined when they are bluffing, an action that only serves to make a parrot even more withdrawn and antisocial.

The best way to deal with a rebellious young bird is to continue about your routine, completely ignoring the bad behavior. This does NOT mean that you should neglect your bird -- he or she should still be socialized and handled every day. The key is to understand that the bluffing stage will pass and that you shouldn't take your bird's behavior personally. You will be lunged at. You will be "cursed" at (hopefully in parrot language), and you will probably be bitten a few times. It does not mean that you are a bad owner or that your bird does not love you -- but it does mean that you should pay close attention to the way that you react to your pet's behavior. Your bird sure will! To make sure that you and your pet make it through the bluffing stage with your relationship and bond intact, keep these tips in mind when confronted with your bird's bad behavior:

• Never scream at the bird. It will only encourage his undesirable behavior, as birds do not see loud vocalizations as negative.
• Try not to pull away from bites. This can be hard to do, especially since those beaks can be so painful, but if you can keep your cool and actually push into a bite rather than jerk away from it, the parrot will soon learn that biting gets him nowhere.
• Never strike at your bird. Aside from being extremely dangerous, it is pointless as the bird cannot see this behavior as a consequence of his actions.

Patience is a virtue when dealing with a bluffing bird. Depending on the individual, the bluffing stage can last anywhere from a couple of weeks to a few months. With plenty of work and positive reinforcement, however, you will find that your angry little bird will eventually be nice again -- and it will be worth all the aches and pains that come with avian adolescence!

Related

• Five Interesting Facts About Indian Ringneck Parakeets
• Signs of Hormonal Behavior in Parrots
• The Painful Truth About Biting and Pet Birds
• The Top 5 Behavior Problems for Pet Birds

Asiatic Parakeets
Facts About Indian Ringneck Parakeets
Indian Ringneck Parakeet Facts - Pet Ringneck Parakeet Information

 

[lexalayne]

My rescue B&G lunged at everyone constantly.. until the end of his life.. At first he used it to make people stay away.. but after gaining his trust he used it as a trick, by grabbing my finger to test me if I'd pull away. Then he'd let go and laugh hilariously and yell "Got Ya" and laugh all over again.. That took lots of time to understand his body language to understand when he wanted to play doing this... and it was nerve wracking at first... but it turned out to be part of his prankster personality.

 

[Amanda6]

I believe my grey is going through this and maybe even my new macaw that I have yet to bring home (is it possible for this to happen to a macaw at such an early age?-3 months).

 

[lexalayne]

It might be that your young macaw is "mouthing" ... kind of like a baby/toddler explores their world when everything goes into their mouth. Some of mine have done this as babies and I often distracted them with toys or treats. It also helps to teach them "gentle" if they pinch your skin or saying "OUCH" if they begin applying pressure to your finger .... in my case my collar bone... I've read that their parents teach them to be gentle with their beaks. None of this worked consistently for one of my guys so when he was too riled with this I'd put him on his stand and turn my back on him for a minute on the advice that they are flock animals and do not like being ignored. He was happy when I came back to him and he's pretty good now but I'll never wear a tank with him on me again and I trust him on my shoulder.

 

[Amanda6]

It might be that your young macaw is "mouthing" ... kind of like a baby/toddler explores their world when everything goes into their mouth. Some of mine have done this as babies and I often distracted them with toys or treats. It also helps to teach them "gentle" if they pinch your skin or saying "OUCH" if they begin applying pressure to your finger .... in my case my collar bone... I've read that their parents teach them to be gentle with their beaks. None of this worked consistently for one of my guys so when he was too riled with this I'd put him on his stand and turn my back on him for a minute on the advice that they are flock animals and do not like being ignored. He was happy when I came back to him and he's pretty good now but I'll never wear a tank with him on me again and I trust him on my shoulder.

I hope just mouthing, but it didn't seem like it was that to me. She seemed to lunge towards me. So if she does bite/pinch me, I should say "ouch" and place her on a stand and turn my back for a couple of

 

[dwright27]

Ideally, I will end up with a bird that has gotten past both the bluffing stage and their first really hormonal stage (or is it the same thing)? But, you never know. I know that I will need to learn to read the bird's body language to know whether they're seriously mad or just messing with me. (I know that if I had a B&G it would mess with me, knowing that I'd be intimidated by the huge beak lol.)

I wonder if it's always easy though to know whether the behaviour is hormonal/age related or if there's something wrong. At any rate I'll make sure I have an avian vet before bringing a bird home.

I have a huge list of species I'm interested in, but the main two are Eclectus and Galahs. Wonder what their bluffing stages are like..

 

[lexalayne]

I hope just mouthing, but it didn't seem like it was that to me. She seemed to lunge towards me. So if she does bite/pinch me, I should say "ouch" and place her on a stand and turn my back for a couple of

I don't even begin to know the answers, just following advice I've run across from different sources... my own saying is if it doesn't bleed it's not a bite... many don't agree with me on that but it is very easy for larger parrots to break the skin to the point of needing stitches.

 

[Monica]

I don't believe that parrots bluff. I do believe that parrots are taught inappropriate behaviors, but bluffing in itself does not exist. That is, "bluffing" is a form of communication that should not be ignored, and when it is ignored, leads to a bite.


Barbara's Force Free Animal Training Talk: Do Animals Bluff?



Rather than ignoring the behavior, you should figure out why the bird is lunging (are you walking by too fast? moving your hand too fast?) and try to change your behavior, thus stopping the lunging behavior which could then lead to more aggressive behaviors.


It's better to avoid and distract a bird from performing undesired behaviors than it is to allow that behavior to occur then try to punish the bird for that behavior.

 

[lexalayne]

Barbara Heidenreich is the best !

 

[Monica]

I'm glad she answered that question since everyone believes that parrots bluff (aka doesn't mean business/it's a trick), especially macaws and ringnecks. I had been questioning the very idea of that behavior and didn't really believe in it myself.


As per her knowledge, which I agree with, parrots don't bluff. The behavior that is being described as a bluff is, in fact, a form of communication. They don't *WANT* to bite, but they will, if push comes to shove, and that's what they are saying.


I see a lot of people who get birds and the birds lunge. Their owners are told that the birds are bluffing and the behavior is ignored. The behavior then escalates into full blown out biting. People then wonder why their birds are biting. Well, they ignored their birds *TELLING* them that they would bite and get bitten... next advice? Ignore the bite.... which could potentially lead to more aggression, unpredictable bites (cause why warn the human? they aren't listening anyway!) or learned helplessness.... none of which is desired behaviors.



It's a sad, vicious cycle.

 

[Peppo]

I hope just mouthing, but it didn't seem like it was that to me. She seemed to lunge towards me. So if she does bite/pinch me, I should say "ouch" and place her on a stand and turn my back for a couple of

Paco will be 24 soon, so he's out that of that stage, but when he is naughty, I put him down on his play-stand, fold my arms and turn half away while giving him a dirty look. I only do this for about 10 seconds. By then, he has the sweet look again, I pick him up, kiss him and go on as normal. It almost always has worked for us when he picks up a naughty habit. They do not want to earn our disdain. It does work. They learn that certain behaviors get that response and they do not like it so they eventually stop.

 

[Wasabisaurus]

Wasabi does not bluff. If he looks like he is going to lunge, he does. There is no doubt. At all.

 

[Monica]

Wasabi does not bluff. If he looks like he is going to lunge, he does. There is no doubt. At all.

Most people consider the act of lunging without biting as "bluffing". That is, it looks like they are going to bite, but they don't. And people are taught to ignore the behavior.


Just bad advice.