Lily is the worst pet ever!!!

She is bitey and stubborn and always flying places she isn't allowed to go, poking holes in things that ought not be holey, and chewing up things that will make her a dead birdy. She hates all things healthy and would sell both me and my husband down the river for a handful of yummy sunflower seeds.
And have I mentioned the screeching? All the time nonstop screaming unless she has our undivided attention. That bird is the reason that I am going to be deaf when i'm old. At least I won't have to listen to that noise!
And the mess! Just flinging her food around the room like a chimpanzee! Grinding up pellets and dropping the powder onto the rug. Wasting my hard earned money! She is a terrible pet and anyone would be foolish to have her!

With all this being said I love my Lily Bug and would miss her terribly if she was gone. Is that crazy?

Also I do sort of have a question. I read that touching your bird anywhere but their head overstimulates them and that they will think you are their mate but if you want to harness train them you have to get then used to touching. How do I do it so that she doesn't fall in love with me?

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Umm.... What you have described is a parrot. You are right, they are horrible pets. That's because they were never meant to be pets, they are wild animals and you can't take that out of them. So why would people own them? Because they give you a relationship that you won't ever experience with another creature on this earth. And let's not forget that parrots aren't the only ones who have these behaviors- all birds do. I own a rescue house sparrow who does all of these things. Naturally because of her small size she doesn't produce near the damage or ear piercing noise, but she will do everything in her power to irritate me. Yet, she always wants to be with me. Any reaction is a good one to her. She bites me and all of my shirts. She pulls at my hair and occasionally pecks at my nose. When she bites too hard, I give her an earthquake with my body and make a loud, unpleasant noise. If she still won't let up, I put her on the floor, a completely unnatural and scary place for a tiny bird to be. Then she doesn't bite anymore. She doesn't eat her pellets much and she throws half the seeds in her dish all over the carpet. But if I have chocolate, she will do anything for it just because she knows I never let her have it. She flies away from me when it's time for bed because she doesn't want to go in her cage. She purposely poops on my iPad screen because she knows I'm not giving her all my attention. And it's very purposeful- she will stop what she's doing and fly over, poop, and fly away. She chirps and sings all day long(this is quite pleasant, but coming from a parrot it's not!) why would I ever want such a creature in my house? Because when she sits on me, her feathers slightly ruffled, and she looks up at me with those sweet, slightly squinted eyes, and makes a tiny "love chirp," it's all worth it, because nothing can compare to that 5 second moment of pure bliss and love.


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Ugh I know right. She gets me with her cute tiny duck noises and her poofy feathers. Makes all that horribleness worth it somehow.

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Hi! FYI, non stop screaming is a learned behavior!

*sigh*

I feel your pain, and your joy! The Rickeybird has been my flighted, fearless fiend... I mean friend... for three decades now!

Flboy said:

Hi! FYI, non stop screaming is a learned behavior!

Click to expand...

Barbara's Force Free Animal Training Talk: Stop your Parrot from Screaming for Attention

Yeah, she learned it from her previous owner. She is a re home.
She's actually gotten a bit better since I got her, now she only screams when I'm out of the room. She used to do it nonstop.

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Thanks for the article! I'll be sure to try those methods mentioned in there.

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I was training her not to scream before we bonded and that just simply wasn't working because she hated me a little bit anyways so now maybe it will be better.

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You can touch them on the back and wings, you just shouldn't stroke there the way you can the head because it resembles the feeling that they get when mounted, or that is my understanding, anyway. I pick up my too with hands wrapped around her, just to get her used to me doing it now and then, I just don't make it a daily occurrence. Sometimes there are reasons you have to touch them places it's not the "norm" to pet, but there's a difference between getting your bird adjusted to human contact and constant stimulation of the back the way we often stimulate the head. This is my understanding, though I will be the first to admit I'm no expert on bird training.

BB can be an irritating little pita fluff ball Running across the key board,chewing this and that,boxing with my ear lobe..but when he looks at me and says Hi Daddy! all of that goes right out the window


Jim

Okay, thanks for the advice. Lily is equally bonded to my husband and I so I thought maybe that would be a factor as well because she doesn't see one of the other of us as her only flockmate.

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Skittles can be a REAL booger. He has the attitude of a 40yr drag queen stuffed into a 12" bundle of feathers. Seems totally illogical, but it is what it is and I wouldn't have it any other way. The little diva is impossible not to love and I'd be lost without him.

As for the initial question about petting. I've heard that you are supposed to avoid the lower back, especially around breeding season. I pet Skittles all the time. Mostly his head and neck and the top of his back and especially his wingpits (he loves wingpit rubs) but he doesn't try to mate with me. He does try to mate with the laundry, the pillows, the towels and the blankets. I mean, lets face it, the dude gets around.

Haha I'm glad Lily is a girl so she doesn't feel the need to bang everything in sight 😂
The reason I was concerned about the touching especially was because of egg laying. Don't want anything to do with that. I'm always sure to keep anything nest like out of Lily's cage and try not to stimulate her too much lest she decide to start a family.

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I would suspect it would be more of an issue with females. When I had Peaches, my cockatiel, chronic egg-laying was a persistent issue which reached epidemic point when I got Skittles. It just increased it. It got to a point where I couldn't even touch her without her being stimulated. Which really sucked, cause I loved holding her.

Yeah that was what I was concerned about. Lily so far seems pretty unbothered by us touching her and even gets irritable if we try to touch anywhere but her head. She regurgitated for us once but we just ignored her and she never did it again.

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Skittys_Daddy said:

Skittles can be a REAL booger. He has the attitude of a 40yr drag queen stuffed into a 12" bundle of feathers. Seems totally illogical, but it is what it is and I wouldn't have it any other way. The little diva is impossible not to love and I'd be lost without him.

As for the initial question about petting. I've heard that you are supposed to avoid the lower back, especially around breeding season. I pet Skittles all the time. Mostly his head and neck and the top of his back and especially his wingpits (he loves wingpit rubs) but he doesn't try to mate with me. He does try to mate with the laundry, the pillows, the towels and the blankets. I mean, lets face it, the dude gets around.

Click to expand...

"Wingpits" LMAO! now THATS a good one lol! Beebs is still a youngster,and thankfully he IS a guy. He has just started to let me grab him in my hand,fully,and hold him gently,while I kiss his little noggin and face. Sure he objects,to some point,but I have read/heard cockatiels aren't too groovy on the idea of being mushed apon but he is letting me do so,slowly.

WINGPITS...LOL...good one!


Jim