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GCC Screeching Problems

Ultramandyna

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Hi guys,

My GCC screeches extremely loud and constantly if I get up from my table and literally stand one meter away from the cage to get things or to cook. I live in a small apartment and her cage is directly next to me, but if I am away from her whatsoever, even just a few feet away she starts screaming like mad. Any advice on how to stop the screaming?
 

Leih

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How old is she? How long have you had her? What's her cage setup like?
 

Zara

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I get up from my table and literally stand one meter away from the cage to get things or to cook
Cooking 1 metre away from your bird is not good for her. I know you say you live in a small apartment, but is there nowhere further to move the cage to?


What's her cage setup like?
What toys does she have, and what foraging opportunities are available to her?
 

Ultramandyna

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She's about 7 months old now? I've only had her for about 5 months. Her cage is about 3 feet long, 1 foot wide, and a little over 3 feet high? She's got a lot of toys inside, a foraging toy, lots of bells and jingles, swingsets and food bowls located next to her favourite toys. I do try to fume out the apartment whenever I'm cooking, obviously no teflon or ptfe cookware. It's all in one room except for the bathroom so it's kind of hard to move her elsewhere. In terms of the specific toys, she's got a ladder, swing 3 wooden chewable kebabs with bells on the end, and a whole lot of toys just with bells. She plays with her toys when I'm working next to her, but the main issue is whenever I get up from my seat she starts getting screechy. I'm not sure if I need to get her more toys? Or an increased variety? I'm cautious about getting anything with rope because she tends to try to rip up and eat those fibres even though she loves ripping it up
 

Ultramandyna

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I want to be able to get her more rope toys or those stringy toys because she really really likes them, but I'm really concerned about her habit of chewing and eating the bits and pieces that come undone.
 

Leih

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My conure really loves the wood stars, and the wood pieces that are notched. It's always worth trying different things, they get tired of chewing the same stuff. But then it'll be like new again in a few weeks. Does she play well on her own? Conures are pretty famous (or infamous...) for being velcro birds and I find I have to continually encourage my boy to be independent at times. Otherwise he'd be in my shirt all day :roflmao:

Are you home with her a lot?
 

Ultramandyna

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During the summer, I'm home with her nearly all day. She plays well as long as she is outside of the cage. I put her travel cage on top of her cage and opened the top, so she has easy access to food and water as well as her toys, and she will play with them for hours with no problem until she is back in the large cage with the doors closed. Once school starts i'm probably going to be out of the house for the majority of the day, but she's usually okay being alone.
 

Ripshod

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Is she screeching, screaming,, or just calling? A flock call can seem extremely loud in a small apartment.
 

Ultramandyna

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Screaming/Screeching. Definitely different from her flock call when I leave her sight. I'm thinking that she might be overly attached? Or maybe I'm not giving her enough attention?
 

Leih

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Can you take a video? Easier to determine with video examples. @Mockinbirdiva probably has some ideas too. :)

Have you ever considered getting her a friend? I know.... It sounds crazy, but when people have a bird that is over attached, getting them a friend usually helps immensely.
 

Leih

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Yep, another bird.
 

Ultramandyna

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I can't get another bird at the moment. I wish I could but it just won't work.
 

Mockinbirdiva

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No question about it... birds do love company and I suspect she gets a little separation anxiety when you leave the room. You are her companion she depends on. If she is locked up she is calling out in frustration because she can't follow you or get you to pick her up. She's young and very dependent on you. Try your best to ignore this behavior and hopefully.... hopefully she will mature and become less dependent on you and not call so much for your attention. Some of the vendors do have paper rope they sell that is safe for them to chew and destroy. Since your apartment is so small you might try a folding screen to give yourself some privacy from her but really, at this point she is young and when you move away it's just frustrating for her so she's voicing her concerns. Give it time and keep trying different types of materials for her to entertain herself.
 

Leih

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Ultramandyna

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Okay, thanks for the advice everyone! I'm gonna try giving her some more variety in her toys, maybe switching them out will help. Hopefully it's just that she's young and not used to being alone...
 

suileeka

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My GCC used to scream for HOURS if I wasn't in the room. Didn't matter that there were other birds there - he wanted me and nobody else. He stopped after realizing it wouldn't get him what he wanted, but that took a few months, at least. I suspect it is much harder not to react when she's doing it with you in the same room, but if you reward the behavior, she will continue doing it. I also encourage making her work for her food (foraging, hanging veggies on skewers, etc.). My GCC has never really been into toys, but he is into food!
 

Leih

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Oh yes, I definitely don't react when my conure is yelling for me. Like I don't even make eye contact, and then when he's been chill for awhile, I'll give him a treat or talk to him and make a big deal about him. It's tough... But he really isn't too bad about it anymore, so it definitely works.
 

msplantladi

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I can't get another bird at the moment. I wish I could but it just won't work.
Getting another bird doesn't always work...I ended up with two birds that hated each other, the screaming from one just taught the other to do it, try re-entering a rm to reward one for not screaming but the other one is screaming-even kept cages opposite sides of the room-they never interacted with each other, not just physically but verbally . Its a shot in the dark, sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. As far as the screaming...YES, I can't say it enough-birds need entertaining and its really important for them to learn to entertain themselves. There is a ton of information out there on tricks and toys and forging-remember they are like young children and need to use up excess energy , given showers for they can preen the pin feathers . Please let us know how things are going.
 
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