Hi its me and Sunnybird

Well I have lived with and loved my goffins for 27 years or more. Stopped couting!She has had anxiety since around 2012 . Vet in the area is great Dr Jenkins- he tried haldol, cbd oil and boarding to see if she would stop. Nope. So we are over that, just trying to get her to reduce her need to be on my shoulder 13 hrs a day . When I go out, she is fine. She goes to sleep well- at 6:30 pm every nite and sleeps thru the nite. BUT, when it is waking time, if she knows I am in the house, she must be with me. Not on her cage watching me but on my shoulder. It is taking time away from my boyfriend and I. Andd oh yes, I know that is her manipulation. There has to be some way I can reduce her need without her screaming. I will get kicked out of the neighborhood! Plus, my guy is extremely sensitive to it. I do not want to get rid of either! LOL!
Sunny is SO fun. She plays catch and throw, she has a decent vocabulary and shows me what she needs, when. She eats a variety of foods but also needs to be on my shoulder when she eats breakfast and dinner. Other times, she does eat her parrot diet. She loves to dance and listen to music. Had her on Cousin Brucie 60s facebook as she loves that music! I know it is training for me, any help is great!

Welcome to you!

Welcome and be welcomed. We have lots of ''too owners here, you will feel right at home.

To a certain extent all of our parrots train their humans to their needs, think of all the concessions we make for their benefit. But we as humans do have the upper hand, because we can change our outlook and control our thoughts. Parrots, on the other hand will always think like parrots. So you must use that to mold Sunny a bit. Screaming or bad behaviour - it is always the fault of the human , not the parrot. That is the thinking on this forum, and once realzed, you will be able to meet Sunny's needs and yours. Remember parrots are ruled by their bellies. You need to usue that to your advantage.

Welcome to you and Sunnybird!

Since her vet is Dr. J, we must be neighbors! He is beloved and respected as the epitome of local avian care. I've visited his practice before moving to Oceanside. If Dr. J is stumped, he may recommend a second opinion with his protege Dr. Loudis in Encinitas.

I am the humble servant to a family of 5 goffins. (wild caught pair and 3 offspring) They are extremely intelligent and skilled manipulators. That Sunnybird goes to sleep and allows you to leave home without upset proves the point. The goal is to teach her self entertainment and the desire of private time in your presence. Can you think of an event(s) in 2012 that increased anxiety? Goffins do well with an oversized cage filled with a variety of toys. Mine enjoy and destroy wood macaw-sized playthings.

They respond well to training with treats, slivers of almonds/walnuts are great motivators. Sunnybird may respond to creative target training: http://www.parrotforums.com/training/60435-clicker-target-training.html
Might help to place a TV with attractive programming near her cage to help occupy.

Scott great idea about the tv. My dear, just have it on Youtube, and search on parrot, there must be at least 24 hours of videaos with parrots. My Salty loves to watch those, learns all sords of new words and stuff ( singing and whistles) Maybe Sunny will be interested enough to give you a break, he he. With toys, if she sees you playingwith them, she might just want to get i on the action.

To use a very crude vernaculair: she has you by the short and curlies here.
If you do something she does not approve of she will scream, and that is something you cannot afford.
Thats is a win-win situation for her.


Distraction might help (always worth a try), and maybe shifting the initiative back to you?
You know she wants to be on your shoulder, but make sure to invite her there-- maybe you can slowly switch the mind set to : "I want- so I get" to "I got invited- so I get" and the "wanting= getting it" can fade away.