Bluffing Behavior

[pacoparrot]

Darwin is 1 year old now. I would say we have a good bond but he is starting to go through some bluffing behaviors such as being too mouthy, lunging, being to rough ,and being territorial over his cage bowl doors. He gets chop every morning and then natural organic seed in the afternoon and a small amount of natural colored pellets some days in the afternoon as well. He spends most of his caged time being active. He tries to walk up his ladder with his foot toys and I usually give him a box filled with shredded paper to work on all day. He hangs out on my hand/arm or on the back of a chair when he is out and sometimes I will give him a box of foot toys to play with ans throw around. I want advice on how to get him through this delicate period of his life without making him hate me. I just want him to remain my companion who I can handle and hang out with, This whole bluffing thing makes me nervous that he is going to become mean and end up being a different bird then what i have grown to love!

 

[Comafly]

Don't stress, Paco! At one year old he is well on his way in to puberty, and the kind of behaviour you've described is 100% normal. Unfortunately there isn't much you can do to stop him from acting this way, apart from the tried and true "Reward the good, ignore the bad".

If he's lunging and being rough, don't react either verbally or physically - otherwise he will take that as a sign it's a good way to get attention. Simply place him back in his cage without a word (or simply a firm "No" while looking him in the eye), wait 5-10 minutes, and then take him back out. Repeat as necessary. If he's making nice noises and being gentle, give him a treat or two and some nice words to let him know that's what you like.

Sorry to say the puberty phase can last up until your bird is 2-3 years old. It's not all doom and gloom - it wont just be consistently bad behaviour for years, but he will have wild mood swings where some days he is your good old friend, and other days he is a noisy, lunging brat. It's not uncommon for owners to become very discouraged and sad during this period because they take it personally, or question their decision about buying the bird. From the sound of things, you treat your bird extremely well and have a great relationship, so just keep doing what you're doing and ride it out!

Just as an addition: I wouldn't recommend seed as significant part of your birds diet, as seeds are loaded with delicious fats and oils, and if your parrot knows he's going to get seeds every day, he may not eat as much of the good stuff you're feeding him - and in the worst case scenario can lead to liver disease. A sprinkle of seed in their meals is a great addition as they're filled with stuff like magnesium and zinc - plus it's fun for them to shell the seeds - but as a general rule of thumb 80% of their daily food intake should be composed of soft foods.

Hope that helps! If you have any more questions don't hesitate to ask.