Help, she won't stop :(

[Brodie]

Scarlet is now getting a bit obsessed, how do I get her to stop screaming every time im not touching her. She won't stop screaming if I'm not touching her. And well I can't have her on me 24/7, that's just impossible.
I ignore her, it doesn't work, I cover her, it doesnt work, I even tried with a spray bottle, and well as I expected she just loved that. It's just constant. All the time. Someone please help its ear piercing. And the last two week have just got worse!

 

[Marley69]

Lol i feel sorry for u cause i bet she is LOUD LOL i really think u should ignore her wen she does that even tho u said u did, dont scream back at her or go near her when she is screaming cause she would know shes getting ur attention and u gonna end up going to touch her... Good luck

 

[JerseyWendy]

One of our members posted this, and perhaps you will find it helpful.

I do know that when Ekkies scream constantly, it can drive you insane.

X-Post....

If possible, it's best to avoid the screaming than have to put up with it... easier said than done, I realize! My mitred conure, Charlie, screams less when he gets exercise! Exercise involves him flying around! A tired bird is less likely to act out. Likewise, a busy bird (foraging, playing with toys, bathing/drying off) is less likely to act out.

Most people are aware of the extinguishing technique...

There is another technique, that of putting your bird up for success. That is, keeping your bird from screaming by preventing it in the first place. It takes work, like anything, but can lead to a happier bird without the need for screeching and having to ignore it. After all, who wants to deal with screaming?

Living With Parrots Cage Free: Does Ignoring Really Work?

Some other blog posts that may be of interest concerning screaming.
Living With Parrots Cage Free: Search results for screaming
Search Results screaming « Best in Flock – Parrot Blog

 

[friedsoup]

You can't ignore it and be in eye sight of your bird you have to leave the vicinity go out doors or to the garage do some gardening or the laundry and only come back when she stops. if you do this every time se will learn that you are not distressed when she screams but you leave and since she wants you there she will stop but you have to be consistance every time you have to leave the room and like I said go jogging or put on headphones and listen to music I know it sounds like you just letting them get away with it but your really not you teaching them that screaming drives you away and being quiet make you return(with treats) and attention.

 

[kc_y0]

I feel your pain, a screaming eckie is no fun!! I can only suggest to continue ignoring her, and walk out of the room to show your anger in her behaviour. When she Finally stops (Hoping that she does) come in and reward her, once the screaming starts, leave again. Eventually she has to get the message that you are boss, and you will pat her when you want, not whenever she screams. When Audrey was younger she would do this screaming and this method worked for me, she does not scream now (Though it was a scream for her night bowl of seed, not attention) I really hope it works for you as well Just be persistent, it will take a few days even possibly weeks before she understands. I know it can be stressful with the screaming, living in a unit, my main concern was the neighbours complaining. =[

 

[Brodie]

Thanks everyone! Appreciate the advice. I'll keep trying..
So hard though she's so persistent!

 

[WannaBeAParrot]

Brodie, Do u think your birdy is feeling unwell? Pritti gets extra clingy and screams for me regularly when he isn't feeling feeling well.

I know it is distressing for you. The exercise suggestion is a good one. If he doesn't fly, you can let him run around and play with toys on a clear, safe non-carpeted floor in a kitchen, large bathroom, playroom (nothing on the floor at all except toys a soft snuggly, i.e. a sock, and water and food, for safety). Pritti loves it and has a good time exploring the perimeter walking and walking, and I keep an eye on him.

 

[Pedro]

Scarlet is now getting a bit obsessed, how do I get her to stop screaming every time im not touching her. She won't stop screaming if I'm not touching her. And well I can't have her on me 24/7, that's just impossible.
I ignore her, it doesn't work, I cover her, it doesnt work, I even tried with a spray bottle, and well as I expected she just loved that. It's just constant. All the time. Someone please help its ear piercing. And the last two week have just got worse!

Brodie, first as mentioned a Vet check would be advisable to make sure she is healthy & isn't suffering some sort of infection. Get that all sorted.

Next i would contact a Parrot Behaviour Consultant, Jim McKendry springs to mind. Screaming is a learned behaviour & i am afraid you have rewarded Scarlett when she screams & now it's out of hand. Jim will ask you a stack of questions to see where you have gone wrong. Once you know how to correct your behaviour with Scarlett then you can move forward to fixing your girls problem.

Not 1 of my eclectus are screamers they have never been rewarded for bad behaviour. Sometimes my breeding males get a bit noisy but that is usually when their hens are nesting. My hens very rarely contact call.

I am including this link of Jim's, you can phone him, hopefully he can help.

Parrot Behaviour & Enrichment Consultations

Brodie please read the link & get some professional help, if you don't get this sorted I am afraid you will have to look for a new home for Scarlett & her behaviour isn't normal.

 

[Brodie]

Brodie, Do u think your birdy is feeling unwell? Pritti gets extra clingy and screams for me regularly when he isn't feeling feeling well.

I know it is distressing for you. The exercise suggestion is a good one. If he doesn't fly, you can let him run around and play with toys on a clear, safe non-carpeted floor in a kitchen, large bathroom, playroom (nothing on the floor at all except toys a soft snuggly, i.e. a sock, and water and food, for safety). Pritti loves it and has a good time exploring the perimeter walking and walking, and I keep an eye on him.

Thanks for the info, but she's out playing all the time, me and dean work practically opposite shifts, so on of us is always home, so she's out all day following us around, playing with whatever she can find, including her toys and what not. She always sleeps good, I think because she's so active during the day.
She was only at the vets two days ago, my kitten had to go for a vaccination so I took scarlet to the avian vet there as well just for a check up, I thought the same thing when she was constantly screaming. She's fine. He said she is in perfect health, feather, and weight. And that I have nothin to worry.
Except for my ears falling off or something. Haha.

 

[Brodie]

Scarlet is now getting a bit obsessed, how do I get her to stop screaming every time im not touching her. She won't stop screaming if I'm not touching her. And well I can't have her on me 24/7, that's just impossible.
I ignore her, it doesn't work, I cover her, it doesnt work, I even tried with a spray bottle, and well as I expected she just loved that. It's just constant. All the time. Someone please help its ear piercing. And the last two week have just got worse!

Brodie, first as mentioned a Vet check would be advisable to make sure she is healthy & isn't suffering some sort of infection. Get that all sorted.

Next i would contact a Parrot Behaviour Consultant, Jim McKendry springs to mind. Screaming is a learned behaviour & i am afraid you have rewarded Scarlett when she screams & now it's out of hand. Jim will ask you a stack of questions to see where you have gone wrong. Once you know how to correct your behaviour with Scarlett then you can move forward to fixing your girls problem.

Not 1 of my eclectus are screamers they have never been rewarded for bad behaviour. Sometimes my breeding males get a bit noisy but that is usually when their hens are nesting. My hens very rarely contact call.

I am including this link of Jim's, you can phone him, hopefully he can help.

Parrot Behaviour & Enrichment Consultations

Brodie please read the link & get some professional help, if you don't get this sorted I am afraid you will have to look for a new home for Scarlett & her behaviour isn't normal.

Thanks Pedro, I will look into professional help, yesterday she was more quiet, and I'll see how long this keeps up. If it doesn't change I will give him a call in a few days, is he in Melbourne?

 

[Pedro]

No dear he is in Brisbane. You could try Kate she is a friend of a friend of mine & is very good with Parrots as well. Kate is in Melbourne.

- Pets Behaving Badly | Dog Training | Behaviour Modification | Obedience Training | Melbourne | Victoria | Interstate

Brodie are you able to put Scarlett outdoors in like a big enrichment cage. I do believe especially in Australia eclectus do a lot better outdoors in the day hours & sleep indoors at night.

 

[Brodie]

No dear he is in Brisbane. You could try Kate she is a friend of a friend of mine & is very good with Parrots as well. Kate is in Melbourne.

- Pets Behaving Badly | Dog Training | Behaviour Modification | Obedience Training | Melbourne | Victoria | Interstate

Thanks so much!

 

[Pedro]

Some more info for you to read.

CPS 1999 - Managing Parrot Behavior: Behaviour Problems and the Future of Companion Parrots by Liz Wilson

 

[CathnPoe]

Gosh, that sucks.
Haven't read through all the other posts to see if this has already been said, but in my own words (info courtesy of Barbara Heidenreich):

1. Ignore - leave the room, don't make ANY sound that could inadvertently reinforce the behaviour (not even brushing teeth!) Pretend you don't exist!
2. Wait for silence or a sound (whistle, tweet, etc) that you like
3. Return to room and reward
4. To make sure you capture the right sound (or lack thereof) be sure to bridge (such as yell out "GOOD" or click) so when you come into the room to reward, scarlet knows what it's about.
5. Be persistent and keep rewarding the desired sound (which seems to be easier to capture and reinforce than silence)
6. If she starts screaming when you re-enter the room, turn your back on her. If she continues to scream, walk out of the room.

Don't cover the cage or give ANY attention, even bad attention, as this all reinforces.

 

[MikeyTN]

My ekkies are very quiet!!! When they do make noise, it's usually talking and whistling. When they scream, best thing you can do is walk away! We have over 21 birds here in the house. A lot of them came to me with issues that the previous owners can not resolve, screaming as one of them and behavioral issue, and diet. We don't really have much issues here once I get ahold of them and work with them one on one. One of the babies I've raised came back to me recently as I asked the lady to give him back to me cause we had an agreement that she will NOT sell him out if she doesn't want him anymore. I do not know what had happen to him in their house but he became very skittish and mean. Draw blood 100% of the time, he proved that about several month ago when I was watching him for her for two weeks. BUT this time he's with me for good, no issues! He haven't bit me once since he's been here for over a week so far. He comes out on his own and play on me just like he did when he was a baby. But I am a very stern person as I don't let them get away with the biting part. Same with screaming. IF all my 21 birds screams like yours, that would drive me insane but I took care of it before it reaches that point. One type I could not get to stop screaming was conures....lol.....They scream no matter what....Of course they all have their moments, but it's very brief, it usually quit within a few min. Play music for them, let them watch tv, just walk away and do something else and ignore the scream.

 

[CathnPoe]

My ekkies are very quiet!!! When they do make noise, it's usually talking and whistling.

How did you raise them to be quiet? Did you just reinforce quiet behaviour and ignore bad, or something else?
I've done a lot of reading, but I always like to hear first-hand experience.

 

[Pedro]

My ekkies are very quiet!!! When they do make noise, it's usually talking and whistling.

How did you raise them to be quiet? Did you just reinforce quiet behaviour and ignore bad, or something else?
I've done a lot of reading, but I always like to hear first-hand experience.

MikeyTN bought his eclectus as a matured pair, with the knowledge he has gained over the years he knows how to control them with positive reinforcement.

For my own eclectus i just teach them from babies what is acceptable & unacceptable behavior. It's not hard. I find that most new carers make their first mistakes not long after the bring their new baby home.

Rather than go into a long essay this link is worth reading.

http://www.parrots.org/pdfs/all_abo...tal_enrichment/friedman_parrot_principles.pdf

 

[MikeyTN]

My ekkies are very quiet!!! When they do make noise, it's usually talking and whistling.

How did you raise them to be quiet? Did you just reinforce quiet behaviour and ignore bad, or something else?
I've done a lot of reading, but I always like to hear first-hand experience.

I ignore ignore ignore IF they scream or being naughty. They do not get any attention from me. The babies I've raised, IF they scream, I would talk to them in a calm voice by telling them quiet. Everyone thinks my house would sound like a zoo but it doesn't. They sing and talk 99% of the time, not screaming! When I'm on the computer, I usually have one or more of them with me. Either on a play stand or on me somewhere playing and carrying on. Since I've been home the past half an hour they all chattered and called for me since they knew I was home. Right now it's pretty quiet. Few chatters, mainly the finches and the Lory. The Lory rarely shuts up....lol....He likes to make noise but that's just how they are. I think he and Java talks back and fourth....At one point Java was a big screamer, none stop ALL the time, he doesn't do that much anymore as he learned the talking and making funny noise pleases me better. He knows IF he screams too much, I just shut the door without saying a single word to him. Birds are very smart, they will learn very quickly on what no to do if they don't want to be ignored as a part of the pack. I rarely shut the bird room door, only a few occasions I've had to do so. Usually when we're on the phone or visitors. Most of my birds don't like strangers for some reason.....