Whats happened to my bird :( (Sorry for essay in advance)

[Ozzy]

Ozzy and I have made it so far since I got him last August. He went from trying to attack me through the bars every time I walked by to letting me scratch him all over and flip him onto his back. However, since I got back from vacation three weeks ago he is a different parrot. I am at my wits end. He is so mean now and takes every opportunity to lunge at me and attack me. He has torn my hand up to the point that it is completely swollen and I have trouble writing in class. He screams all the time now whether in his cage or out. I dont know what to do, this is all so upsetting.

He was at the pet sitters for 6 days and has been there before without any issues after. There is a cockatoo in that house that is loud and that may be where he got the screaming from. Its not even the screaming that is getting to me its the biting and lunging. I ignore him when he screams and he quickly settles down and talks at a decent level and thats when I respond.

What do I do with this attacking and biting? I feel like I am back at stage one. Should I just start all over and keep talking to him and not force the holding? He is out for an hour in the morning when I usually hold him for about twenty minutes. Then he is out all night (usually 4-6 hours) and I hold him off and on and move him around the house with me.

I am not debating giving him up or anything, when I commit to a pet its for life. My cats have lived on three different continents, moving continents is not even an excuse to give up a pet in my opinion. Its so bad I actually looked at his leg band to make sure it was him even though I can tell by sight. I know he still wants me around as he still calls for me when he cant see me and wants to make sure I'm around. He also jumped off his cage onto my back the other day when I was cleaning up and started preening me. He cant decide if he loves me or hates me. I cant even read his body language anymore and I used to be so good at it. It seems like he tricks me on purpose

I guess I just need/want some advice and support. I am so lost

 

[Parrot Parent]

I've read the sometimes when you leave a parrot for some time with another person they learn to like the other person who took care of him. I've also read that sometimes parrots hold grudges when left. Perhapse he is going through something hormonal too? Maybe he wants to breed but is frustrated because he has no mate? If thats the case then it should pass with his season. In the mean time why not go back to the techniques you used to train him? It worked the first time so why not again? I hope your baby returns to its normal silly self

 

[suebee]

awww sorry your goin through this i agree with parrot parent

nut use to be like this with me, so i just let her fly about after me, as she didn't want to setp up for me or sit on me, but would still follow me about the house, so i use to ask her to come on, and if she didn't shut the door as i left room, she wasn't alone for long, and like your ozzy she would call for me as soon as i left, so i started to ask her to come on, when she would quickly fly onto my shoulder etc till we got to another room where she would find another perch to watch, or she would fly into room i was off into 1st. and i would do this each time i had to move rooms house work took forever lol as there not fast in makin up there minds!

now i've got to the point i ask her to step up, and if she doesn't want to, she's not as beaky!

ozzy still loves you, his just being a brat so just let him take time with gettin use to your routines again!
and gettin bit is no fun, so i avoided that at all costs lol, as i felt it, stressed nut out for having to bite me, as much as it stressed me out. as i knew she wanted to be with me, but still wanted to give me the iggy rather like a 2yr old does, so i always gave her an option on what to do

 

[Spiritbird]

Good for you in not giving up on your bird as many people do now days. I would suggest to go back to basics and look at all aspects of your birds life. Start with sleeping. Is he getting 12 hrs. of quality sleep in a quiet room? Is his diet meeting the needs of a cockatoo? Does he have enough intelectual stimilation? Are his socialization needs being met? Is he getting quality one on one time with you.

In a Phoenix Landing eduational class I attended this past weekend it was mentioned that many people cuddle the cockatoos too much. You will know this if he is not contented to play by himself for a few hours.

I imagine this situation is very frustrating for you. Keep in there and let us know how it is going.

Later: Opps I made a mistake on the kind of bird you have. Sorry

 

[mtdoramike]

It sounds to me like it's a mix between hormones & Pouting because you left him. I would leave him to himself for a few days and totally ignore him and see how he does. Then slowly start showing him attention by sitting near his cage and talking to him. Wait until it looks like he wants to play or interact with you.

I'm sooooo sorry to hear about this, but Amazons are known for their mood swings. I'm curious if the Cockatoo that the sitter had was a female? This could have caused
Ozzie to be more hormonal than usual if he's alone at home with you. But that is just a guess. But I'll bet within a week or two, he'll be right back to his old self.

This is going to make you not want to ever go anywhere ever again.

****, it's making me re-think my St. Thomas trip in a few weeks. I would hate to think Tiki would be that aggressive when I get back and I'm leaving for a couple of weeks.

 

[Pedro]

Do you think it has anything to do with hormones & maybe the breeding season is getting ready to kick in. Other wise if it's totally out of character i would have a Vet check him out. It's also possible he has a low grade bacterial infection????

I board Companion Parrots & i must say i have never had any of the problems mentioned & the longest a bird has stayed with me was 3 months.

 

[Ozzy]

Thank you all for your kind words. The cockatoo he was boarded with is a female and I wonder if this is bringing out his 'manly' side. I also am aware that amazons go through a period where they may have a few years of moodiness during adolescence. I was hoping that I had adopted him after he already went through this but maybe not.

I am going to take it slow and continue to sing (off key) and talk to him as he likes to sing and have conversations. While it would be nice to have a bird that cuddled, it is most important to me to have a happy bird. If he is happy not being held then so be it.

His diet has not changed so I am not looking at that as an issue but we have a vet appointment next week for blood work to rule out anything else. I take him in every few months anyways as he is underweight and I need to make sure all his vitamin levels are okay.

Mike- Dont be worried about your trip! Ozzy has been at the boarders before without incident. I'm sure Tiki will be fine! Enjoy visiting your wife's family and the beautiful islands! Once again I appreciate all the kind words from everyone.

 

[MikeyTN]

I had friends that stayed at the house while we were away on vacations before. But we no longer go on vacations anymore as many pets as we have now. We stay home with them and don't go too far away from the house....by having someone there watching them makes me feel better then to take them to a different surrounding that they are not familiar with.