How to discourage bad behavior?

[Snowghost]

Paco is now sliding down his cage and waddles around on the floor, his previous owner told me he does not know how to fly. That's another thread.

He is more comfortable now, chews up paper at the bottom of cage. As adapted well to me going to work.

We have a little problem NASA. I clean his cage and the top of the cage he stands on, is above my head.

Well he has decided he doesn't want me to clean his cage and pecks me on top of my head, and man it hurts!

I tell him no, blow in his face and say ah ah, that hurts. Anything else I can do?

 

[Danita]

Clean the cage when he is away from it? Give a toy to play with while you clean?

 

[Clueless]

Clean the cage when he is away from it? Give a toy to play with while you clean?

Great thoughts!

 

[Rain Bow]

Didn't you say he has a stand/tree? Or am I remembering incorrectly?

 

[Snowghost]

I put the T stand away, it just scared him. He has no other place to go other then tbe top of his cage

 

[JLcribber]

I put the T stand away, it just scared him. He has no other place to go other then tbe top of his cage

Well that's an excuse. You better start slow conditioning/exposure to these things like play stands or he'll never get used to them. So there's no other place in your entire house you can put this bird for 5 minutes while you tend his cage?

I tell him no, blow in his face and say ah ah, that hurts. Anything else I can do?

That would be almost the worst reaction you can make. You provided a "drama reward" which is sure to "increase" this behaviour. You don't react to situations. You change the antecedent to avoid the reaction all together.

 

[Clueless]

I confess I've done the drama thing more than a few times and experienced that.

I do this thing from time to time.....

 

[Mizzely]

Distraction is usually my main tool.

That or buy a hard hat

 

[Snowghost]

@JLcribber Paco has come a long way in the 6 months I have had him. He was cage bound for the 19 years of his life with little socialization, filth and poor diet. The first couple of days the poor guy was terrified to move. My room is small and he didn't like the T stand, so for now I removed it. He is adjusting to a better life. He now has a water bowl, his previous owner kept a slimy brown water bottle in his cage. When I picked him up from owner there was plexiglass sheets screwed to the side of his cage and there was probably a years worth of soiled paper in his cage.

Today I cleaned his cage and spoke to him and said no bite. He is not stupid. He didn't bother me. He used to strike when I reached in for cups and water bowl. I would ask him to "scootch over" and reward him, if he tried to bite I said no. He now scoots over with no problem.

I am not going to ignore him, he is learning and I was seeking additional ideas. Thank you for your response.

 

[Clueless]

Today I cleaned his cage and spoke to him and said no bit

I wonder if the tone of your voice was what convinced him today?

 

[Snowghost]

Who knows, I gave up trying to figure this guy out LOL. I always talk to him, let him know what I'm doing, I think I got that advice here. He is plump now and his feathers are coming in beautifully. He doesn't seem to mind being home alone while I'm at work. He now shreds his paper. He doesn't chew on the wooden ones he has. Maybe introduce some chew toys. I'm really happy with the progress we have made.

 

[JLcribber]

I am not going to ignore him,

I never said to ignore him. I said don't "react" with a "drama reward".

I'm glad he's doing so well and the progress you have made. Sounds like he's coming around just fine. Something else to keep in mind is, as he becomes more comfortable/safe/familiar with his new life his real cockatoo self is going to start surfacing more and more. 6-12 months is a pretty common honeymoon period. When it ends (they all do) there will be more adjustment for everybody.

 

[Princessbella]

Paco is now sliding down his cage and waddles around on the floor, his previous owner told me he does not know how to fly. That's another thread.

He is more comfortable now, chews up paper at the bottom of cage. As adapted well to me going to work.

We have a little problem NASA. I clean his cage and the top of the cage he stands on, is above my head.

Well he has decided he doesn't want me to clean his cage and pecks me on top of my head, and man it hurts!

I tell him no, blow in his face and say ah ah, that hurts. Anything else I can do?

Bella is like this. When I clean her cage, she is a monster, screaming and biting me. I put her on another playstand where she has to sit while I clean her cage. Then she gets a treat when I am done.

 

[Sarahmoluccan]

How does he respond to praise? Praise did wonders for Echo. I flood him with praise when he's good. It might seems over the top by sometimes for me being good is simply resisting the impulse to bite. Echo use to be a total brat when it came to cleaning his cage. But now he's great. I would talk to and tell him was a good bird whenever he wasn't biting or doing other threatening behavior. It didn't happen overnight but gradually it did work for us

Another side note I find cage size matters. Echo was originally in a woefully inadequate and small cage when he first came to me. I got him out it ASAP with a decent size cage. And now he's in an even better size cage. I found with each upgrade he would get better and less cage aggressive. My theory is the bigger the cage the harder it is to defend all that territory and the more mellow they'll become. I don't if this applies to you and your situation but it might something to think about

 

[Begone]

That would be almost the worst reaction you can make. You provided a "drama reward" which is sure to "increase" this behaviour. You don't react to situations. You change the antecedent to avoid the reaction all together.

I agree with John.

Dont punish him for thing's he can't help.
He have no other place to go, and he don't want you doing what you are doing. You must respect that. The cage is his home, it's common that they protect it. So he is not doing anything wrong. And we are not saying so to be mean, we are saying so to help you become best friends.

You must create a safe way of cleaning his cage. One day he will have enough because you are not listening to him. That day he will attack you and bite you really hard, and after that their is no turning back.
When we say here on the forum that always avoid a bite we really mean it.
You don't avoid it, instead you are challenge him. You will loose, trust me.

 

[Begone]

How does he respond to praise? Praise did wonders for Echo.

That is also my way. Always encourage good behavior and ignore bad.
Eliy was also really aggressive over almost everything when I got her.
I just gave her love, respect, time and encourage her for every small step she did in right direction. Today I trust her to 100% and I can do whatever I want that I couldn't done in the beginning.
To create trust and make them realize that whatever they do you will still be their loving them and treat them good is what I find out works with every parrot.

 

[Karen]

I clean his cage and the top of the cage he stands on, is above my head.
Well he has decided he doesn't want me to clean his cage and pecks me on top of my head, and man it hurts!
I tell him no, blow in his face and say ah ah, that hurts. Anything else I can do?

He is communicating the best he can and he has been telling you from the very beginning that he doesn't want you to do that. You need an alternative plan other than punishment when he communicates his dislike. I would like to suggest that you get the play stand back out. If he's going to grow and learn to accept new things, he needs to start by seeing them at a comfortable distance, then closer, then closer. Teach 'touch it', I'm sure there's videos somewhere of how to do this. I will try to find some. Teaching him to 'touch it' will expand his acceptance of so many things. You teach 'touch' with excitement, praise and reward, no punishment, no negative. It's a good thing.

I know you still have to clean the cage in the meantime while you begin putting the tools in place that you're going to need for the long haul. The answer as to how to do this won't become clear until you try different ways to do it that won't upset Paco. Paco will tell you when he's comfortable with what you're doing, or not.

My bird has been with me for 15 years, to this day I have to watch every move, every flicker of his eye, every everything, so I know what he's saying and thinking about what I'm doing.

Off the top of my head, if I were in your position, I would try to do the cleaning job with 2 people. One to clean and reassure Paco and one to distract in a pleasant rewarding way; singing, being silly, feeding treats, etc. Paco will tell you, you just need to listen.

 

[Karen]

There are several positive trainers. Barbara Heidenreich is one.

teach touch to a parrot, goodbird, barbara heidenreich - YouTube

 

[Snowghost]

Paco is a CAG, not a Cockatoo. I am sure as he gets more comfortable his personality will bloom and I can't wait. I don't feel that I am punishing him, he needs to learn some behaviors are not acceptable. I believe Hawk taught me that.

He has really come a long way in such a short time. I had a wild caught White Front Amazon for 25 years, she was not near as intelligent as Paco. I loved her with my entire being. I believe I forgot how long and patient one must be with these amazing creatures.

In retrospect I truly believe Paco has improved much faster then I expected. The guy has had a long lonely life and here I come along giving him food he has never seen before and is allowed out of his cage to roam as he wishes. It will take time and love, something I have a lot to give this intelligent, beautiful being.

Thank you all for your continued support and advice, love you guys!

 

[Snowghost]

@Karen Thank you, I bookmarked it!