How to discourage bad behavior?

[Begone]

I don't feel that I am punishing him, he needs to learn some behaviors are not acceptable. I believe Hawk taught me that.

I don't care who taught you that, you can't treat him like a dog. It's not working with parrots.
The only sucess with parrots is respect and to listen to them.
If you do you will have the best friend in the world. But that means no more demand and punishment.
Ask things, never demand.
You will be surprised how well it works.

 

[Snowghost]

I don't treat him like a dog! I guess what I did must have worked since for three days now he has not struck out at me. He sits on his cage door and whistles and talks to me. I fail to see how telling him NO, don't bite is punishing him. I believe greys have the intelligence of a three year old. I didn't strike him or confine him to his cage. I firmly said no, that hurts. I rewarded him each time he stayed on his cage and behaved.

 

[JLcribber]

I fail to see how telling him NO, don't bite is punishing him. I believe greys have the intelligence of a three year old.

Time will tell won't it. The smarter they are, the easier it is to backfire and become a problem. We'll see how things are at one year.

 

[TikkiTembo]

So, if Paco defends his cage, which is normal, should the OP stop cleaning it for a while? I'm honestly confused, because my first instinct would also be to say No Biting, in addition to rewarding good behavior. Of course, after attempting to avoid the situation all together by providing distractions or removing the bird.

 

[JLcribber]

So, if Paco defends his cage, which is normal, should the OP stop cleaning it for a while?

No. They should remove Paco from the situation so it's a non issue.

 

[Karen]

No. They should remove Paco from the situation so it's a non issue.

This made me think back to when I first had my bird. A large male GWM. He was totally hands off! Luckily, I had a no nuts or bolts cage. I used to take the front panel/door he was sitting on to another area. We've graduated since then, it's always baby steps, but for the most part it's been forward motion and always on his terms.

Just a suggestion for the OP: I believe it's Avian Adventures that makes their playtop cages lift-off removable. This may help to make Paco moveable until you're able to handle him.

 

[Begone]

So, if Paco defends his cage, which is normal, should the OP stop cleaning it for a while? I'm honestly confused, because my first instinct would also be to say No Biting, in addition to rewarding good behavior

You already know that Paco is protection his cage so you just do it in another way.
Only fools make the same mistakes twice.

I have taugt Eliy to be on the floor with me, we are playing and having fun and I let her be a part of what I'm doing and if I see that she is getting exited I just do it differently.
All this has taken a long time (years) but knowing that she don't attack me and also feeling comfortable is worth it. She never wanted to attack me, she just wanted to protect the only safe area she had here in the beginning.
Today she couldn't care less what I'm doing to her cage but part of that is because she knows I respect her and her private area.
And also that I'm not afraid of her but will never challenge her.

With Eloy I did it when he did something else. And never when he was above me.

I fail to see how telling him NO, don't bite is punishing him.

But that is how you treat a dog. The No world is not for parrots.
And the punishment was first that you ignore him telling you that he didn't want you to touch his home and second that you blow in his face.
To blow in their face is not nice at all. It will shock your parrot to back off.
Remember that we have predators eye's. When you go close and blow them in their face you do a aggressive thing that will force them to defend themselves. Not today and perhaps not tomorrow, but I'm sure of that they one day will and then we are not talking about some small bite. We are talking about a full face attack and when they bite they will not let go and they go for your eyes.
Do you really want that from your best friend?

It feels like you don't want help. You don't listen to our advice, and thinks everything we wrote is attacking to you when we are just wanted to help.
Therefore this is my last post in this thread.

 

[Snowghost]

Well we have had no more hitting me on the head since the last incident. He is back to his polite self. I encourage him, telling him he is a good boy. They are amazing animals.

 

[Hawk12237]

Terri, you really need to invest in a a large play gym, a perch stand or table top perch.

Point is that it's his cage, his security blanket, his territory. He has to be removed to an area he can sit for a bit and enjoy a snack out of bowl on perch. Stand, gym, what not....

You say he's scared of it? Blahh....they get over it in time. This allows you to clean his cage. Cage cleaness is very important.
You have to realize, the cage is the only thing you have for him, so it's his and he protects it. Any bird will. You need to spread it out a little, so he has other areas to enjoy instead of just his cage. You want to break the habit?? Then you have to at least get him used to other areas, even the back of an old chair to perch on.

 

[Hawk12237]

Well we have had no more hitting me on the head since the last incident. He is back to his polite self. I encourage him, telling him he is a good boy. They are amazing animals.

That's temporary, but your approach is good!
Regardless if mine is in a good mood or bad mood when it's cage cleaning time, I remove him from the bird room. To somewhere else.
When done they can go back in.

 

[Monaco]

Very helpful to see the back and forth here, and the methods fleshed out with more details.

Can I add a question here?

 

[Clueless]

Very helpful to see the back and forth here, and the methods fleshed out with more details.

Can I add a question here?

Sure, unless it's a different topic. If it is a different topic, just start your own thread.

 

[Snowghost]

I don't have room for a table top perch. will putting one on top of his cage help?

As I watch him more closely I am wondering if he was afraid of the paper. When I first got him he wouldn't chew the paper up. I know he chewed it because when I picked him up he had about 6 inches of chewed paper at the bottom of his cage and it was soiled and smelly.

I clean is cage in the morning, and evening and before going to bed. I know he wasn't used to someone cleaning his cage on a regular basis. He would fluff when he saw the folded newspaper. When I went back to work he started chewing paper again and it made a mess. So now I hand him a small sheet of paper to chew on.

He came with a toy that is wood, there are some pieces that he chewed on. I bought him a new wooden toy and he won't pay attention to it. Is there a company that makes softer, safe chew toys?

 

[Monaco]

I clean is cage in the morning, and evening and before going to bed. I know he wasn't used to someone cleaning his cage on a regular basis. He would fluff when he saw the folded newspaper. When I went back to work he started chewing paper again and it made a mess. So now I hand him a small sheet of paper to chew on.

I'm sort of expecting a similar situation with Monaco. She's coming in a few weeks, and I've been warned about her perches. (She's been clipped her whole life, so I suspect they're literally a lifeline for her.) Her owner says she throws a tantrum when she takes them out to clean them. I am definitely making a plan for how and when to do these chores, but I definitely want to learn how to minimize the trauma to either of us. For instance, her cotton rope perches... Do I need two sets to change them out quickly? Or, is getting used to the process a better plan? I will do my best, but it's unrealistic to not expect things to go wrong at some point. I guess the simplified question is how to minimize the impact of the things they dislike that there's not much choice about. Special treats at cleaning times? How can I and the OP prove ourselves trustworthy during tasks the bird's hate?

 

[Clueless]

Love wins them over.

 

[Hawk12237]

I'm sort of expecting a similar situation with Monaco. She's coming in a few weeks, and I've been warned about her perches. (She's been clipped her whole life, so I suspect they're literally a lifeline for her.) Her owner says she throws a tantrum when she takes them out to clean them. I am definitely making a plan for how and when to do these chores, but I definitely want to learn how to minimize the trauma to either of us. For instance, her cotton rope perches... Do I need two sets to change them out quickly? Or, is getting used to the process a better plan? I will do my best, but it's unrealistic to not expect things to go wrong at some point. I guess the simplified question is how to minimize the impact of the things they dislike that there's not much choice about. Special treats at cleaning times? How can I and the OP prove ourselves trustworthy during tasks the bird's hate?

You move them to a different location when cleaning. I never clean cages with birds in them.
Even a back of a near by chair where you can chat with bird as you clean...it helps the cage relationship.

 

[Rain Bow]

I'm sort of expecting a similar situation with Monaco. She's coming in a few weeks, and I've been warned about her perches. (She's been clipped her whole life, so I suspect they're literally a lifeline for her.) Her owner says she throws a tantrum when she takes them out to clean them. I am definitely making a plan for how and when to do these chores, but I definitely want to learn how to minimize the trauma to either of us. For instance, her cotton rope perches... Do I need two sets to change them out quickly? Or, is getting used to the process a better plan? I will do my best, but it's unrealistic to not expect things to go wrong at some point. I guess the simplified question is how to minimize the impact of the things they dislike that there's not much choice about. Special treats at cleaning times? How can I and the OP prove ourselves trustworthy during tasks the bird's hate?

& @Snowghost

I'm just commenting on the extra perch's & moveable area to place your fids...

Yes having a 2nd set speeds things along. Trading out perches worked out well in the begining... I also learned putting him in another room w/ supervision helped a bunch. He'd get mad when he was back at his cage, but it was minimal.

Now, he trusts me, I could go into his cage & change it around while he's in it. I'm the interior decorator & new toys person. I still spray & wipe it down while he's being supervised tho.

We had an issue a few months back where he wigged out & attacked the spray bottle I was using to wipe his bed time cage with... My hand (particularly my thumb) got between his beak & the spray bottle. Initially, I thought it was down to the bone, from that bite, luckily it was not. I said bad boy, I believe, then left the room, shut the door & went into the bathroom & shut the door. I believe I then cursed like crazy & then cleaned & wrapped my wound.

I know he was just extremely pee'd off @ that bottle. Why, who the heck knows! His instinct was to leap off my husband & attack the bottle. I know he was pee'd off because he flew, he rarely chooses this as it can be painful for him. Like (I believe) @Karen said, you need to keep an eye peeled & always watch what is going on w/ them, you just never know & that body language can tell you a bunch. I never use a spray bottle around him & his cages anymore. I'd need to do it w/ chain mail metal gloves & @Clueless hard hat. I know that this is working out for you (for now) but I've tested & tried all the advice that @JLcribber has ever given me. I have yet to be able to say where my tested way has won over his advice. He's always been right & Buddy's well being has been improved so much because I was making sooooo many mistakes, (including blowing on his face).

My advice is to skip doing it your own way & avoid the injuries in advance. You can't win a reasoning contest w/ a parrot. Eventually they always find a way to win...

 

[Hawk12237]

I don't have room for a table top perch. will putting one on top of his cage help?

As I watch him more closely I am wondering if he was afraid of the paper. When I first got him he wouldn't chew the paper up. I know he chewed it because when I picked him up he had about 6 inches of chewed paper at the bottom of his cage and it was soiled and smelly.

I clean is cage in the morning, and evening and before going to bed. I know he wasn't used to someone cleaning his cage on a regular basis. He would fluff when he saw the folded newspaper. When I went back to work he started chewing paper again and it made a mess. So now I hand him a small sheet of paper to chew on.

He came with a toy that is wood, there are some pieces that he chewed on. I bought him a new wooden toy and he won't pay attention to

I don't have room for a table top perch. will putting one on top of his cage help?

As I watch him more closely I am wondering if he was afraid of the paper. When I first got him he wouldn't chew the paper up. I know he chewed it because when I picked him up he had about 6 inches of chewed paper at the bottom of his cage and it was soiled and smelly.

I clean is cage in the morning, and evening and before going to bed. I know he wasn't used to someone cleaning his cage on a regular basis. He would fluff when he saw the folded newspaper. When I went back to work he started chewing paper again and it made a mess. So now I hand him a small sheet of paper to chew on.

He came with a toy that is wood, there are some pieces that he chewed on. I bought him a new wooden toy and he won't pay attention to it. Is there a company that makes softer, safe chew toys?

Well, you can put one on his cage, as an extra play area. But point is you want to get him used to other areas. Especially to clean cage.
These ones here below you can place on your table, or have one with a stand, which I have.
Keeps them in another area to explore the view.
Keeping him confined to cage area around his cage makes him scared to venture out beyond that. Both these are under 60 bucks on amazon.
One ( table top) 39 dollars, the stand 59....

 

[Hawk12237]

Well, you can put one on his cage, as an extra play area. But point is you want to get him used to other areas. Especially to clean cage.
These ones here below you can place on your table, or have one with a stand, which I have.
Keeps them in another area to explore the view.
Keeping him confined to cage area around his cage makes him scared to venture out beyond that. Both these are under 60 bucks on amazon.
One ( table top) 39 dollars, the stand 59....

 

[Begone]

I never use a spray bottle around him & his cages anymore.

May I suggest that you place a spraybottle in that room so he can see it.
Get a new one with a different color, that is important. Place it pretty far away from him. After one week move it. (or if he ignores it totally)
Continue doing that until he don't care or look at it. Then place the bottle near his cage. And let it stay. Place something he likes on top of it. (or attached)
For every time he ignore and don't care, place new treats. Also spray with it when it's empty so he get used to the sound too but only when he ignore and are far away.
You can also cover the bottle with a blanket and let him get used to the sound when he is eating some treats.

I have taught two birds to accept spraybottles with this method, both was abused with a spraybottle. One was terrified, and the other one did go to full attack-mode as soon as she saw it.
I always think it's worth a try to make them accept things in our home. And for their sake knowing that the past is the past.