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Flock Calling/Screaming

WaterRaven

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Hey guys,

It's been a long time. Mogli is doing well in terms of health. He's a good boy, very affectionate and eating well, however he flock calls constantly when I am not holding him or sitting in front of him and I'm not sure what to do about it.

He starts flock calling from the moment he hears me step out of bed in the morning and throughout the day until bed time. (whenever he can hear us anywhere around the house and sometimes even if he see us right by his cage?). It was just a little here and there at first and I read somewhere that I should have a call that I do in return, but that seemed to make things worse, he would mimic the call and then flock call non-stop. Whether he can see me or not now, he flock calls.

The only time he seems to stop is if I take a nap on the couch in front of him.

His cage is in the living room. I wanted him to be where my husband and I would be the most, so that even if we couldn't get him out as much as we wanted to on the odd day, he could still see us.

I tried ignoring the behavior at first. Only coming over to him, talking to him, and taking him out when he was quiet, but it's to the point where there isn't a moment where he's quiet to reward him. Sometimes it gets to be too much and we have to roll him into a different room for a break. Apart from ignoring the calling and then coming up with a call to respond to him to see if that eased him, we also tried putting a blanket over his cage when he wouldn't stop calling and then lifted it and reward him when he was quiet. We didn't leave him covered for extended periods of time.

My friend told me to get a second cage for him and make that his nighttime cage/time out cage. She said I should set it up in a quiet room of his own and put him there to sleep at night and then get him in the morning and bring him out to his other cage. She also said that we can move him to that cage if he's being loud like he has been.

Is that what you guys would recommend?

I was thinking about it and I was worried if we started doing that, that he'd start to fly off when we took him to put him away or that if I got him out of his cage in order to put him in a different one, that he'd see that as a reward for calling.

In terms of him maybe flying away, I was thinking about getting him used to a carrier first, jazzing it up with some millet and treats and leaving it open for him to get used to and check out and then use it to take him to his night time cage.

Anyway, those were my thoughts, but any advice or tips would be very helpful.

We love him when he's actually talking to us and we play games like peekaboo, but the endless calling is sadly stressing all of us out.

Some other notes: He's pretty attached to me. He has regurgitated on me and he flock calls the most when he hears me get up in the morning. He doesn't always flock call when my husband wakes up (he gets up first). He lets my husband hold him and pet him, but he will fly over to be with me or move over to me if I am in the room.

Thank you all so much for your time :)
 

Tiel Feathers

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Do you have him on any sort of schedule? I think it helps to have them a loose schedule so that they know what to expect and when they get to come out and be with you. My birds come out about four times a day for an hour or so each, usually around the same times. If it's an usually day, we change it up a bit with no problem. My birds also sleep in a smaller sleep cage in a dark, quiet room. They love going to bed (most tiels do), and I never hear a peep from them until I get them up about 8:00.
 

WaterRaven

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Do you have him on any sort of schedule? I think it helps to have them a loose schedule so that they know what to expect and when they get to come out and be with you. My birds come out about four times a day for an hour or so each, usually around the same times. If it's an usually day, we change it up a bit with no problem. My birds also sleep in a smaller sleep cage in a dark, quiet room. They love going to bed (most tiels do), and I never hear a peep from them until I get them up about 8:00.
I have him kind of on a schedule in terms of coming out of the cage. Josh might hold him before he goes to work and then I get up later and say hello (but don't get him out or don't get him out long), but then go walk dogs (I am a writer and walk dogs during the week). When I come back I usually get him out and then I go work on housework or writing until we get him out again in the evening before bed.

I have his other cage set up in a quiet, dark room for bed time (but there's a light of course when I need it), so I'll start that tonight and see how he does.

The vet told us he needs 12 hours of sleep, so I am thinking we'll set a bed time for him.

Thank you very much for your advice, I appreciate you taking the time to help ^_^
 

Pipsqueak

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I believe in sleeping cages, that said I think you should get him a friend.
 

Tiel Feathers

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I would try not to turn on the light in the sleep room while he's in there. Maybe the more active he is when he's out, the less screaming he will be when he's in his cage. Have you tried any training with him?
 

WaterRaven

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I believe in sleeping cages, that said I think you should get him a friend.
Sadly we cannot get him a friend right now, but he is in his sleeping cage tonight. Thank you for your reply.

I would try not to turn on the light in the sleep room while he's in there. Maybe the more active he is when he's out, the less screaming he will be when he's in his cage. Have you tried any training with him?
Ok, yes. He is in a room where we don't need to go in at night. I just taught him peekaboo. The next one I wanted to try that I saw on Youtube was Big Eagle. I was trying to find a video on how to teach him to do that :) He's a big cuddle bug and wants to be patted endlessly. We have a jungle gym for him too, but I want to buy a stool to put it on, because he has no interest in it on the coffee table. It's too low I think--that and even with millet tied to it, he'd rather cuddle with me. Also, he's flighted. His wings were clipped when we first got him, but we've let his flight feathers grow back in :)

Thank you for the reply :)
 

barry collins

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There is only one real answer here and that is you are his family and when you are not with him he will try to get your attention.
I have a bonded pair of adults and they stick to each other like glue and where one goes so does the other. If they get split up when flying round the house for any reason even if just in the next room they will scream for each other until they are reunited. I had the screaming when one was bonded to me but as soon as he got a mate he was content to be sat next to his new friend and now they make very little noise 99% of the time. There are ways to minimise or change the noise a single bird makes but it won't go away completely. You can try rewarding silence or alternative whistles to change the way he gets your attention but my bet is you will tire well before he does. A second bird makes sense if you want one but be warned when they decide to scream it will be double.. although it is not recommended you buy a bird unless you want 2 birds in case they don't get on like you hope. Try maybe setting aside a half or full hour of play and training every day but make it real intense. Workout or dance together, hunt for food together, practise recall and flight training or rip up some paper or leaves and twigs together. Same time every day and same bedtime every night so a pattern is formed and he learns the routine. Then he might be all tuckered out and give you a little peace...
 

Meyer's Magic

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Greetings! How long have you had Mogli? I recently adopted a male cockatiel (no idea of age), and he literally screamed for days. Believe me, I feel your pain. Clearly, it was a brand new environment, and he was stressed from being lost, but the constant calling was intense! After several days, I left his cage door open, and he gradually began hanging out on top of the cage, and flying around the room a few times a day. His incessant calling/screaming diminished greatly.

I don't know if this would work for you, but it may be worth a try. Best of luck!
 

WaterRaven

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There is only one real answer here and that is you are his family and when you are not with him he will try to get your attention.
I have a bonded pair of adults and they stick to each other like glue and where one goes so does the other. If they get split up when flying round the house for any reason even if just in the next room they will scream for each other until they are reunited. I had the screaming when one was bonded to me but as soon as he got a mate he was content to be sat next to his new friend and now they make very little noise 99% of the time. There are ways to minimise or change the noise a single bird makes but it won't go away completely. You can try rewarding silence or alternative whistles to change the way he gets your attention but my bet is you will tire well before he does. A second bird makes sense if you want one but be warned when they decide to scream it will be double.. although it is not recommended you buy a bird unless you want 2 birds in case they don't get on like you hope. Try maybe setting aside a half or full hour of play and training every day but make it real intense. Workout or dance together, hunt for food together, practise recall and flight training or rip up some paper or leaves and twigs together. Same time every day and same bedtime every night so a pattern is formed and he learns the routine. Then he might be all tuckered out and give you a little peace...
Thank you very much for responding and sorry for my delay in response!

Mogli has done much better in his own room. He calls if he can't see me (if I step into the kitchen for example) while he's out and when he first hears me coming to get him out, but he has otherwise returned to chatting to us and mimicking our whistles and calls when he's out.

I love your activity suggestions. I'll add them to our training/play time :)

Greetings! How long have you had Mogli? I recently adopted a male cockatiel (no idea of age), and he literally screamed for days. Believe me, I feel your pain. Clearly, it was a brand new environment, and he was stressed from being lost, but the constant calling was intense! After several days, I left his cage door open, and he gradually began hanging out on top of the cage, and flying around the room a few times a day. His incessant calling/screaming diminished greatly.

I don't know if this would work for you, but it may be worth a try. Best of luck!
Thank you for responding :) Mogli has been with us a year now I believe. We originally had him in the living room and got him out often. We'd just open his cage and let him hang out and climb and fly, but he started calling constantly if he could not physically see us, from the moment we woke up and then the rest of the day. Since he's been in his own room, he calls when I come to get him initially or when he knows I'm coming to tuck him in for the night, but that's totally fine. He's otherwise back to talking to us when he's out and having fun, rather than stressing all the time. Thanks again.
 

JLcribber

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Sadly we cannot get him a friend right now,
But that is something you should seriously work towards. The sooner would be better than later.

A solitary bird is a lonely bird because humans are very poor replacements for flock members. The problem will not magically stop no matter what "you do" because the bird feels its needs are not being met. That is the bird's perspective here.
 

EllaMay

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Daisy still calls out and she is in the main living area, I go to the little girls room she has issues and that is fine, she needs me totally visual and I understand it she was alone for so many years. She has Babe now but still calls out if I leave the room, and they have a thing going even though they are separate living cages with sweet talk and mating songs etc. They are next to each other.
 

WaterRaven

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But that is something you should seriously work towards. The sooner would be better than later.

A solitary bird is a lonely bird because humans are very poor replacements for flock members. The problem will not magically stop no matter what "you do" because the bird feels its needs are not being met. That is the bird's perspective here.
Thanks for the reply. In terms of companionship, I see a lot of bird homes are mixed species, on this forum and in general. Some owners have bonded cockatiels in the same cage or cockatiels that get along in separate cages and then bird owners who have say a cockatiel and love bird in separate cages. I'm sure their own species is the best companionship, but if we wanted to get a different bird species in a separate cage (which is what I had growing up), would that be ok? I would of course quarantine the new bird and house them separately. I was thinking about starting a new thread or looking for one on people's opinions on having different species of birds as companions in separate cages vs. the same species.

Daisy still calls out and she is in the main living area, I go to the little girls room she has issues and that is fine, she needs me totally visual and I understand it she was alone for so many years. She has Babe now but still calls out if I leave the room, and they have a thing going even though they are separate living cages with sweet talk and mating songs etc. They are next to each other.
Since he's been moved to his own room he's doing much better in terms of the noise, but because he's not in the living room with us, I'm considering getting him a friend. Not because of the noise issue anymore, but because I don't like the idea of him being alone in his room while I work during the day. Now that his calling isn't all day, it doesn't bother me if he calls if I go into the kitchen or go to the washroom :) Thanks for responding :)
 

JBosley

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I'm glad to hear things are improving!

This was a very informative thread for me, my Cockatiel has just hatched and will be coming home in a few months. I have never owned a bird, and this thread is a great read!
 

Familyof12

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I have a bonded pair of adults and they stick to each other like glue and where one goes so does the other. If they get split up when flying round the house for any reason even if just in the next room they will scream for each other until they are reunited.
I'm nodding my head yes profusely at this statement!! :omg:
 

Tara81

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I taught my little almost 4 month old tiel to do wings trick by first learning her clicker training. Then I would put her on a perch, use both index fingers to push her wings out a tiny wee bit, then click and give her a treat of millet. eventually i could push her wings out further and further. 2 weeks went by and I started to click whenever she spread her wings on her own just goofing around, and right after i would push her wings and say wings again and click and treat. She caught on when she put two and two together that way.I then changed the visual queue from both hands to one hand pushing her wings with a V shape, and now whenever she hears wings and see me do a v shape with my hand she does it if shes hungry :D

clicker training is easy, use a dog training clicker or make a click noise whenever u feed ur bird a treat for a couple of days, then use a target stick and get your bird to touch the stick and click at the same time then treat. You could maybe eventually teach him to ring a bell to be let out of the cage as well, as that would be more well tolerated then screaming.
 
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Tara81

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But that is something you should seriously work towards. The sooner would be better than later.

A solitary bird is a lonely bird because humans are very poor replacements for flock members. The problem will not magically stop no matter what "you do" because the bird feels its needs are not being met. That is the bird's perspective here.
I have to agree if your bird was not taught to be more independant frmo a young age. I rescued an old cockatiel before who had his mate sold off on him before I got him, so he screamed everyday even when I gave him attention because he missed his mate. I tried everything, even tried housing him with my budgies but it wouldn't work. Eventually (after 8 months of screaming all day every day) I had to give him to a kind lady who had a tiel and wanted another for her tiel to be friends with and he hasn't screamed once since.

Now , with my new baby tiel, I let her have out of cage time and in cage time and she seems content if I let her out for 2 -4 hours a day.She loves to play with her toys and I have tons of toys in her cage. 10 toys actually + 2 foraging bowls (hidden treats) and 1 toy is a foraging toy as well , the others are shredders or leather+ bead toys.

The only advice I can say is maybe teach him to forage and work for his food and then devise a plan that makes him work for food so he is very busy throughout the day to keep his mind occupied.
 
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