Rude Beaking

Hi Everyone,

I've only had my Jenday a few months and he is starting to be really rude about Stepping Down and beaking fingers and clothes.

First with Stepping down: He basically really wants to be with me all the time and so he is fine stepping up onto me but doesn't want to step down. He holds on to my finger with his beak for dear life, which obviously doesn't feel to good. Haha. If he is on my shoulder, he'll hold on with his feet so I have to pry his feet off to get him down. he just refuses. Once I get him off, I make him ladder on my fingers. He'll do it a couple times and then he seems to realize what's going on and doesn't want to do it anymore. He'll start grooming himself as if to say "I don't have to do what you want. See, I'm being good now and preening my wing".

Also, If he is on my shoulder, he is just altogether being rude about it. He picks at skin and clothes. I've tried giving him foot toys to play with while I'm holding him and he just drops everything. He things clothes are waaay better. I've tried telling him "No" without raising my voice and glaring at him, but he doesn't care. I try to make him step up and ladder which goes back to my original problem with him not stepping down off of me. I know he's just having a little naughty streak and I need to figure out how to not reinforce these behaviors. I feel like I keep trying to research online and can't seem to find any good article.

Lastly, he is beaking fingers and then biting harder and harder. I've tried "Jiggling" my finger to set him off balance, but he has good feet to hold on tight and if he does get set off balance, then he grabs with his beak to steady himself. Seem like there has to be another solution. And again, he would rather have fingers than foot toys.

I know these are all common behaviors to be corrected so I know there's hope, I just don't know what else to do. thank you in advise for a newbie. haha.

Is he being rude? Or is he bored? Maybe he's curious?


All the behavior you describe are rather normal. Might I suggest not allowing him to bite? As in, don't put him in a situation that will result in a bite? (aka don't put him on your shoulder if you know he's going to bite there)


My suggestion would be to stop with the laddering and the earthquake. Sure, it may work, but there is an alternative that can teach him what to do, instead of what not to do.

This method is known as target training. You can use with or without a physical target. A physical target could be a chopstick, bamboo skewer, empty pen case or any other similar object.



First off, get out your jendays faovirte treats! (whatever that might be - sunflower seeds, millet, dried fruit, nuts, etc) Cut up his treats into tiny pieces (i.e. sunflower seed cut up into 4-6 pieces! tiny! - you'll know the treat is too big if he uses his foot to eat it) and leave a couple pieces large. Have your Jenday on his cage or on a perch, make your hand an extension of the perch, and teach him to walk towards you. You start this by giving him the large pieces of his treat and if he accepts it, switch to the smaller pieces. Then, each time he moves towards you or even looks in your direction (orientating his head towards you), give him a reward. Reward him for stepping closer to you. Reward him for touching you. Reward him for putting a foot on you. Give him lots of rewards for putting both feet on you!

Do this at least once a day, and if you have the time, do it 3-5 times during the day. Keep the training session short, though! Say, 2-3 minutes, 5 if his attention span doesn't waver. It's ok to have short training sessions! Better yet, frequent short training sessions are better than the occasional long training session.

Only give him more food once he's finished eating what he was already given. You might be able to tell when his attention is wavering when he beak wipes, walks in another direction or seems to not pay attention to you.


Repeat this for several days at least, and in the mean time, do not allow him up on your shoulder until you get a good step up down pat.



Here's the step up process laid down in steps.

1. Reward bird for looking at you.
2. Reward your bird for moving his head towards you.
3. Reward your bird for taking a step towards you.
4. Reward your bird for taking another step towards you.
5. If he doesn't run away, keep rewarding him for remaining where he's at. (if he runs/backs off, you may need to start over again)
6. Reward your bird for taking a couple more steps closer.
7. Encourage him to come closer yet again and reward him.
8. Reward your bird for touching you with his toe(s).
9. Reward your bird for putting a foot on you.
10. *JACKPOT REWARD* Give your bird lots of goodies for putting both feet on you!




Now, the main goal of this isn't to teach him to step up, since he already knows it! The main goal of this is to teach him that *EACH TIME* he steps up or comes to you, he gets a reward! And that he can step up without biting!




Once he understands that, and you want to allow him back on your shoulder, you need to give him a treat for stepping up off your shoulder. Spend some time with him, give him scritches. Let him know that coming *off* your shoulder is a good thing!

Of course, you could also teach him to walk from your shoulder, down your arm, and onto his cage/perch for a reward, too!

Or maybe.... stepping from your shoulder to his cage for a reward.





Rather than punishing him for the undesired behaviors, *TEACH* him what you want him to do instead!

Target training is good, and I'm wondering if you've developed a Velcro bird situation where it's hard to get him off of you rather than on. Is more of the concern getting him to be less clingy and dependent on you for all his amusement?

Thanks for the tips. I can definitely work on target training with him and trying to reward his good behavior. The trick is finding a food he'll take all the time. He is much more interested in me than food no matter what food item it is.

I agree that he is definitely "Velcroed" to me. He thinks people are the best thing ever, but mainly me. Haha. He comes to work with me at my counseling clinic and looooooves all the people. Suggestions for getting him to entertain himself? I feel like he's very clingy and needy. I don't mind doing stuff with him daily, but I can't be with him 24/7 and that is definitely what he wants most. Mommy just hold me and play with me and love on me and tickle my belly and tell me what a good bird I am. haha. He's kind of a narcissist. :-D

If he eats a seed based diet, you can always try to see what the first 3-5 items are in his food dish, then remove those from his diet and only use them as training treats.

You can try training before meals - that is, training him when he's hungriest.



Of course, you don't *HAVE* to use treats/food. You can use toys, praise, scritches or any other number of things! Food just tends to be the easiest to give for most birds.

I actually used scritches as a means to not only get my first cockatiel, Casey, to step up, but also to fly to me! Any time she comes to me, I give her scritches almost every single time! Any time she goes back into the cage? More scritches!



Here's an article by Lara Joseph where she talks about a clingy cockatoo.


Question on behavior . . . Cockatoo wants to be on us at all times! | Lara Joseph

Thank you for that article. I've already started working with him this morning. I made him a bunch of new toys last night and he is having a blast with them. His favorite so far is, i made a foraging toy with plastic buckets and tied them together like a rain chain and filled tge buckets with paper, foot toys and a few dried fruits. Every time he starts playing, I give him a little pecan. I was trying to clicker train him at the same time but he is scared of the clicker noise. He drops his treat and runs away from me. So perhaps I'll wait on that. I don't really want him to associate food and playing with big scary noises. Haha. I want to work with him on that target training too. I think he would really enjoy that. I'm definitely learning that the average person should not own exotic animals. Unfortunately, I think its why so many get rehomed. People don't do enough research on how to properly care for them. Lots to learn about my little guy.

You don't need a clicker, you can click with your tongue, or use any easy distinct sound as long as its consistent.

Awesome!

Kalidasa is correct, you don't have to use a clicker. It's merely to serve as a bridge between "that's what I want to see" to "here's a treat". Besides using a tongue, you could use a clicking pen, or any other item that makes a precise noise. Maybe even try saying "Good" and giving a reward. Likewise, you don't *need* to use a bridge to reward a behavior... it just may help in the long run to define the specific behaviors you want him to do later in life.

So interesting development. After Merlin's injury last week, he had to stay home from work for rest and recovery and now it seems like his naufgty behaviors have nearly disappeared! It seems crazy to me! He obviously received waaay less attention and yet he is being less clingy. He isn't being rude with his beak. He isn't SCREAMING all the day long! He is stepping down from me onto his perches. He is listening when I tell him "no". He is playing with his toys and entertaining himself and will keep playing when I walk in the room! When he is doing this, I'm telling him what a good boy he is and giving him a lot of verbal praise. I'm half afraid to bring him back to work. Thoughts???

He may simply not enjoy going to work with you because it's too much stimulation? Or maybe he needs to go to work less?



Because from the sounds of it, he was misbehaving as a means to tell you he's not happy going to work.