Update on newest cockatiels leg band + how to stop sudden aggression?

[Bekyro]

So a while ago I asked about my newest cockatiels leg band. Well, the short and sweet update is that I got it removed and he was very clearly happy for it to be gone.



He’s become a bit more social with me since then, adores my dad, sings a whole bunch, will strongly demand scratches occasionally and are teaching my other cockatiel Luna a heap of bad habits. So all in all it’s been going well, or somewhat well I guess.





Right now I’m training Zen as I ended up calling him in a few things. Im working towards building trust towards hands, and being comfortable being handled (when he’s put in the cage at night etc.) and where he’s not supposed to land.

One problem I have though that i don’t know how to handle is also why I’m back here. When I’m sitting in my bed with my journal (I use it to track stuff and keep to do lists etc.) he’ll come over and sing at it and if he gets close enough even try to eat it. But especially with two of my journals I’ve experienced he can get aggressive, even more so if my phone is visible and close by, or I’m just looking at stuff on it, sometimes without my planner even. He’ll suddenly attack my phone or arms or both and get super aggressive and I’m not sure how best to discourage that behavior. With how I use both my phone and planner keeping them away from him isn’t really an option since I use both regularly and need them in day to day life.



I wanted to hear if any of you guys have experienced anything similar and if there’s any tips on how to go about it handling it?

I’m lost since most of the time he’s fairly sweet, even occasionally very cuddly and then when it happens he’ll just lunge at my phone or me and attack


Any help and tips will be greatly appreciated and thanks in advence!

 

[saxguy64]

Awwww, such a cutie!
My guys, especially Tucker, my ekkie, is most offended if he's out with me and I'm trying to do ANYTHING with my phone. He's not aggressive towards me at all, but will go after my phone, or get right in my face so I can't look at the screen. "Hey dad, you're supposed to be paying attention to MEEEE!" And he means undivided attention.

So, does Zen calm down if you put away the journal and phone? If so, there's your answer. They want what they want, when they want it, no exceptions! 🤣 They have their own ways of communicating that to us. Some are just a little more polite about it than others.

 

[Bekyro]

Awwww, such a cutie!
My guys, especially Tucker, my ekkie, is most offended if he's out with me and I'm trying to do ANYTHING with my phone. He's not aggressive towards me at all, but will go after my phone, or get right in my face so I can't look at the screen. "Hey dad, you're supposed to be paying attention to MEEEE!" And he means undivided attention.

So, does Zen calm down if you put away the journal and phone? If so, there's your answer. They want what they want, when they want it, no exceptions! 🤣 They have their own ways of communicating that to us. Some are just a little more polite about it than others.

Luna does that too and can be quite demanding. Zen on the other hand will literally lunge at me, even if we are in opposite ends of the room and will keep attacking. He will also be more aggressive than normal for a while after. I’ve tried to remove things that seem to trigger the behavior, but as I mentioned my phone and planner I can’t always remove from him as I need them.

Another thing is that my planner normally sits on my desk. I have a small “bookcase” setup for it and some binders and when it’s there it’s ignored. It’s when I’m using it he super focused on it and also seem very focused on it when it’s just laying somewhere while visible.

 

[saxguy64]

Ahhhhh, these items have been deemed "evil!" Always interesting when they decide that about certain things. It does appear that they're specific to things that draw your attention away from him though.

 

[Bekyro]

Ahhhhh, these items have been deemed "evil!" Always interesting when they decide that about certain things. It does appear that they're specific to things that draw your attention away from him though.

Yes and no. The planner it happened with today for example isn’t the one I used the last few weeks as I were trying out an undated one and it was the same with that planner. At the same time I also have a general journal I can spend hours at a time working in and he’s never reacted towards that one like that. I wonder if it’s also because it’s in my bed? Like he sees it as his territory? And he’s not quite at the stage where he wants a lot of attention. Mostly he wants attention if I'm at my computer and will at most chill on me while I'm being varily ignored elsewhere