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really noisy linnie

NorthernGannet

Sprinting down the street
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Missouri
You know how some things don't go as planned? In the least? Another linnie came across my path who needed a new home. He was well cared for, not a rescue or anything like that, but he lost his mate 2 months prior and the owner thought he'd be happier with other linnies. Despite hearing about trios being bad, I gleefully accepted with visions of a happy little trio dancing in my head, all singing Kumbaya. Um, that. Didn't. Happen. So many things about him are the complete opposite of Sprite and Jellybean, some good, some bad. But the only true problem is that he is LOUD. Oh my, he screams and screams (maybe it's a flock call, but it's nothing that I've ever heard from Sprite or Jellybean). It's ultra loud, very piercing, and literally hurts my ears. I have to leave, and the dog leaves too. You can hear him outside on the sidewalk!

It's' been 7 weeks, and he's improved a little with the frequency, I can at least now sit and make it through a chapter of a book without being run out of my living space. However, he's still pretty bad overall. I have tried various things from negative reinforcement to positive reinforcement, and absolutely nothing seems to make a dent with him. Sprite and Jellybean really do not like him, although when everyone's out they let him get about 10" away now, rather than the 12" it used to be :) Of course I've been watching for another linnie to come along, but even then I'm not sure if having his own personal buddy would make any diffference at all. I haven't been able to nail any one specific thing that sets him off. Although at times it's obvious what's done it, other times it seems purely random. He'll even do it as he's eating sometimes (a full mouth is not a guaranteed quiet mouth!). Sometimes he runs around like crazy while being loud and I feel he's very anxious about something, but then other times he's totally chill yet suddenly just cuts loose. He did come from a home with lots of noisy birds, so how much that has influenced him I don't know. My place is the total opposite, very quiet. And I'm not talking about just one or two yells in a row. I'm talking incessant, he can just go and go for lonnnnng periods of time. I'm really at a loss if this can be subdued any further.

All of that said, aside from the noise problem, he is super friendly, tamed down very quickly for me (he was a breeder before), loves riding around on my shoulder, eats almost anything I put in front of him. I was so tickled when he dove into the apples, unlike Sprite and Jellybean! But then one day Jellybean went crazy, so I gave him some and he snarfed them! So he learned from observation, and now he likes them too :)

-NG
 
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Nerine

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Is it possible he is afraid of the dog, and that is causing him anxiety?

Of course, he may just need some extra time to settle in, and get used to a new home.
 

Dona

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Hey NG, I agree that your guy could be calling for his lost mate or just used to competing in a noisy environment. No idea for sure or ideas on how to make it stop. Gigi is so quiet (chattering and chortling with an occasional call for an obvious reason) but I've heard that some Linnies are not. @Matto might chime in. He has a lot of Linnies and has said that their contact calls can be very loud, especially when they are separated.
 

NorthernGannet

Sprinting down the street
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Missouri
Thanks everyone! So by now it's been about 4 months since the mate loss, if that is the problem how long does it take to stop the actual calling?? I would've thought well before now, but then again, I'm not a bird. They were together 2 years. There are some other non-offending noises that are clearly things he's copying from his previous household, and several of those have noticably dissipated since being here. The contact calls Sprite and Jellybean make when they're separated are loud, but they are not piercing like Blueberry's. They squawk, but Blueberry does an EE EE EE EEEEEE.

I am not a fan of mirrors, but shortly after he arrived I did put a mirror in there, in case it helped him feel less lonely. It did seem to help a little bit, but now he spends lottttts of time sitting in front of it, chatting, trying to get his reflection to preen himself, etc. So I'm thinking maybe it's not really a good idea anymore.

Nerine, good suggestion on the dog. I have watched that closely since I first brought the bird home, and I honestly don't think it's the problem. He's an older dog who is very calm and doesn't even glance at the birds anymore. Blueberry doesn't seem to pay any attention to him.

Right now he's on my finger giving my nose kisses. lol!
 

Monica

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I do not recommend mirrors.... so I agree it would be best to remove it.

Some things that may help is to make his environment more engaging. Have him forage for food, play with toys, learn new tricks, give him fresh leafy branches that he can chew (bird safe and away from roads! i.e. not sprayed or contaminated). Maybe some good exercise via flight could help!
 

NorthernGannet

Sprinting down the street
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Thanks Monica. I do need to engage him more. Still working on getting him to play with toys. The extent so far is to pick at something once and that's it. However, today for the first time he decided to "play" with me with a cupcake holder, so I put a little piece of people cornbread (I know, I know, sugar!) in there and he was brave enough to go get it after I squished the edges up a tiny bit (he could still see it was in there). Baby steps. I'm pretty sure he'd be a good basketball player :) He does get a good bit of flying around on evenings/weekends, mostly following the other two around, or else when they shoo him away.
 

NorthernGannet

Sprinting down the street
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Missouri
So here's an example. This morning I uncovered him at 7:30am (he got 11 hours of sleep), right before I left for work. I took him out very briefly and said hello, then he flew to the play gym and started his super shrill loud calling. I immediately put him back in his cage. He ate some breakfast and seemed relaxed. I left the room to go to work, and when I got in my car in the garage I realized I'd forgotten my gloves. So back in I went and the moment I walked back into the house heard him yelling away. I didn't have time to wait for him to stop before I went back into the room (although he doesn't seem to be doing it for my attention anyway), and when I opened the door he was snuggled up next to his fleecy thing that hangs on the side, looking fairly relaxed, yet hollering like there was no tomorrow. He had things to do in his cage, fresh foods to nibble, etc., but he obviously wasn't interested in any of it. He was still calling when I left. I'm just not sure how to approach a fix. He will do this any time of day, not just the morning. The only good thing I could think of was that at least I didn't hear him when I was IN the garage, which I used to be able to do. So possibly it was slightly less shrill than 7 weeks ago. Lol. Sprite and Jellybean and the p'let are all so chill and quiet in the mornings, there's definitely not a conversation going on that instigates him. I don't know, is this just the way he's going to be, forever? I keep thinking that 7 weeks surely is long enough to initially settle in, but maybe it's not.

One time I got him up early and thought maybe it'd help if he got some activity going around with me on my morning routine. Well, he was loud when I turned the hair dryer on, loud when my electric toothbrush was on, and loud when the water was running. Haha, I didn't do that again since I'm the first one up!

Is this noise level typical for breeder, or ex breeder, birds?

-NG
 

Monica

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This morning I uncovered him at 7:30am (he got 11 hours of sleep), right before I left for work. I took him out very briefly and said hello, then he flew to the play gym and started his super shrill loud calling. I immediately put him back in his cage. He ate some breakfast and seemed relaxed.

Can you.... have breakfast prepared and offer it first thing in the morning when you wake him up?


when I opened the door he was snuggled up next to his fleecy thing that hangs on the side, looking fairly relaxed, yet hollering like there was no tomorrow. He had things to do in his cage, fresh foods to nibble, etc., but he obviously wasn't interested in any of it. He was still calling when I left. I'm just not sure how to approach a fix.
The noise of you coming back in could have easily set him off. Instead of a bowl of food, maybe a foraging activity instead? That is, making him work for his food?



Just trying to think of some things. It's hard to say if it's normal behavior for a breeder, or it's just *HIS* behavior. It can be changed, it'll just take some figuring out how to change it into something more desirable! ;)

Are there any noises that he does make that you enjoy?
 

NorthernGannet

Sprinting down the street
Joined
6/1/19
Messages
333
Location
Missouri
Can you.... have breakfast prepared and offer it first thing in the morning when you wake him up?




The noise of you coming back in could have easily set him off. Instead of a bowl of food, maybe a foraging activity instead? That is, making him work for his food?



Just trying to think of some things. It's hard to say if it's normal behavior for a breeder, or it's just *HIS* behavior. It can be changed, it'll just take some figuring out how to change it into something more desirable! ;)

Are there any noises that he does make that you enjoy?
Yes, breakfast is in my hand and ready to go before I uncover him. Sometimes he eats immediately, sometimes not. For all linnie owners' sakes, let us hope this is only HIS behavior :) If I'd gotten him as my first linnie, I would've thought he was typical and would never have gotten another. That aside, since it's clear he'll never live in the same cage as the other two, I did order him a little bit larger cage than what he's been in, it should arrive this week. I don't know if it'll help with this particular issue, but at least I'll be able to create various feeding stations for him to investigate, and he'll have more room in general. Plus, it has a nice big swing out door instead of the guillotine doors that I so despise!

Last night I took a couple of the toys from his cage and tried to continue teaching him to play with them (and me). He only gave me about 30 seconds of interest. Lol. I'll keep at it.

Haha, any noise that isn't piercing is a noise I will enjoy ;) But seriously, I do try to praise him after he's stopped being loud. I wait for a few seconds to make sure it's really stopped and then tell him good boy. Sometimes he's making quieter noises, sometimes he's silent. Either way I praise him and sometimes give him a hemp seed, which he loves. Maybe I should make a bigger deal out of it. He came saying his version of peek-a-boo, so I say that specifically to him when I first enter the room because I have to peek around the door to see him. He seems to associate the phrase with a happy mood.

Yesterday when I got home he was quiet so I took him out right away and went out to the kitchen to get some water. He was on my shoulder, relaxed and preening away. Suddenly I felt his beak on my cheek and I was like, what is he doing? It felt like he was licking me!! Turns out there was a little downy feather that had come off of him and stuck to my cheek, and he was removing it for me :) Now my other guys are happy to be on my shoulder too, but they wouldn't give a hoot if one of their feathers was on my face, let alone bother trying to get it off. Just another difference between them :joyful:

Thanks for all the suggestions! It's been very helpful and has given me some more oompf to keep on.

-NG
 
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