Why parrots shouldn't be punished+ alternatives

[BirdyBee]

As tempting as it is, shouting at your bird or flicking its beak, or in worse cases, hitting it, does not work and can cause a lot of psychological or behaviour problems. For animals like dogs, the only reason why hitting it or shouting at it "works", is because they are scared so they are trying to get them out of the situation(Still doesn't make it right IMO). This is not the case with parrots. They will most likely become aggressive as they see you as a threat.

A very common myth is surrounding dominance. A lot of people claim that you should be dominant over your parrot. This is false. Parrots are flock species. This means in the wild they all help each other to survive, example: finding food, fighting a predator, etc., so being dominant doesn't help them. While some of them don't always get along, or some species are more solitary, dominance isn't something in the parrot world. Hight dominance is also nonsense. The reason why they want to be high is because they feel safer. YOU being dominant over them will cause just a lot of problems and not solve any.

MORE ON DOMINANCE:

Ok, back to punishments. The main reason birds shouldn't be physically punished it because if you do stuff like flicking their beak, tap them very hard, or(in extreme cases) hitting it, your bird will learn that your hand is bad and is something they should fear. Even if it does work, it is still abusive(even to other animals). The only reason your bird might listen to you when these techniques are applied is not out of respect, but because they have to, otherwise they get hurt.

Shouting is also bad, because not only can it cause the same problems as physical punishment, but sometimes it's what they WANT. A lot of times, your bird might be screaming at you to get your attention, so you shout at them, telling them to quit it. This is bad because they will learn if they scream, you respond back to them, giving them attention, leading to unwanted behavioral issues. Same with biting. If they bite you and you shout at them, they will learn not not learn that they are being a bad bird, but that you don't like being bitten, so it's just very reinforcing to them.

Another common form of punishment is giving them a time-out(putting them back in their cage). Time-outs aren't really going to help. If your bird likes their cage, they will repeat the behavior so that they can get to go in their cage. If your cage is so boring that no bird would like it your cage is probably not appropriate for a bird. If you really need a break and can't handle your birds behavior anymore and you're just stressed out, then it's fine, but if you do it to discipline them, it most likely won't work and will cause problems

Spraying them with a water is also nonsense. If you spray them with water each time they do an undesired behavior, they will learn that water is bad and it might affect their desire to bath, because YOU just taught them that water means they are doing something bad, and they are being put in an uncomfortable situation, so they will do anything to avoid it. It can have a negative effect on your bird, sometimes to the extent that they are even scared to drink water.

Covering their cage when they are showing an unwanted behavior shouldn't be done. Most of the time this is being done when they are being noisy and they are screaming. The best thing is to try and find out why they are screaming. Is it because they are lonely? Or because they want some free-time? Or are they just having a tantrum? In that case, if they are throwing a tantrum just ignore them. While covering their cage might quiet them down for a while, covering their cage can things worse because example: they can't see anything, it disrupts their light/dark cycles, or because it can also encourage hormonal behavior.

Ok, if you SHOULDN'T punish them, what SHOULD you do instead?

There is a lot of solutions, most common being:


Positive reinforcement

This is one of the best and most effective way to reduce a behavior. Instead of punishing them when showing unwanted behaviors, reward them when they do a behavior you want to see. It can be very effective especially in training your bird.

Thank you for reading! this is all that I have for today and can think of. If you think I should add anything, let me know!

~~More videos on training/punishment: ~~

 

[𝕾𝖙𝖔𝖗𝖒𝖞𝕻𝖎𝖈𝖆]

As tempting as it is, shouting at your bird or flicking its beak, or in worse cases, hitting it, does not work and can cause a lot of psychological or behavior problems. For animals like dogs, the only reason why hitting it or shouting at it "works", is because they are scared so they are trying to get them out of the situation. This is not the case with parrots. They will most likely become aggressive as they see you as a threat.

A very common myth is surrounding dominance. A lot of people claim that you should be dominant over your parrot. This is false. Parrots are flock species. This means in the wild they all help each other to survive, example: finding food, fighting a predator, etc., so being dominant doesn't help them. While some of them don't always get along, or some species are more solitary, dominance isn't something in the parrot world. Hight dominance is also nonsense. The reason why they want to be high is because they feel safer. YOU being dominant over them will cause just a lot of problems and not solve any.

MORE ON DOMINANCE(PLEASE WATCH FOR MORE INFO):

Ok, back to punishments. The main reason birds shouldn't be physically punished it because if you do stuff like flicking their beak, tap them very hard, or(in extreme cases) hitting it, your bird will learn that your hand is bad and is something they should fear. Even if it does work, it is still abusive(even to other animals). The only reason your bird might listen to you when these techniques are applied is not out of respect, but because they have to, otherwise they get hurt.

Shouting is also bad, because not only can it cause the same problems as physical punishment, but sometimes it's what they WANT. A lot of times, your bird might be screaming at you to get your attention, so you shout at them, telling them to quit it. This is bad because they will learn if they scream, you respond back to them, giving them attention, leading to unwanted behavioral issues. Same with biting. If they bite you and you shout at them, they will learn not not learn that they are being a bad bird, but that you don't like being bitten, so it's just very reinforcing to them.

Another common form of punishment is giving them a time-out(putting them back in their cage). Time-outs aren't really going to help. If your bird likes their cage, they will repeat the behavior so that they can get to go in their cage. If your cage is so boring that no bird would like it your cage is probably not appropriate for a bird. If you really need a break and can't handle your birds behavior anymore and you're just stressed out, then it's fine, but if you do it to discipline them, it most likely won't work and will cause problems

Spraying them with a water is also nonsense. If you spray them with water each time they do an undesired behavior, they will learn that water is bad and it might affect their desire to bath, because YOU just taught them that water means they are doing something bad, and they are being put in an uncomfortable situation, so they will do anything to avoid it. It can have a negative effect on your bird, sometimes to the extent that they are even scared to drink water.

Covering their cage when they are showing an unwanted behavior shouldn't be done. Most of the time this is being done when they are being noisy and they are screaming. The best thing is to try and find out why they are screaming. Is it because they are lonely? Or because they want some free-time? Or are they just having a tantrum? In that case, if they are throwing a tantrum just ignore them. While covering their cage might quiet them down for a while, covering their cage can things worse because example: they can't see anything, it disrupts their light/dark cycles, or because it can also encourage hormonal behavior.

Ok, if you SHOULDN'T punish them, what SHOULD you do instead?

There is a lot of solutions, most common being:


Positive reinforcement

This is one of the best and most effective way to reduce a behavior. Instead of punishing them when showing unwanted behaviors, reward them when they do a behavior you want to see. It can be very effective especially in training your bird.


Thank you for reading! this is all that I have for today and can think of. If you think I should add anything, let me know!

~~More videos on training/punishment: ~~

Yes! I was waiting for someone to make this thread, actually about to make my own.

 

[BirdyBee]

Yes! I was waiting for someone to make this thread, actually about to make my own.

The idea of making this just came up in my mind and that's when I realized: there isn't enough people talking about this topic!

 

[SailBoat]

Sadly, punishment is so common that the results fill the Rescue Centers. Thanks for beginning this Thread.

 

[foxgloveparrot]

Wonderful!! Yes, you should NEVER punish your birb!

 

[wrench13]

Again, I have one caveat. SHunning is technically a form of punishment that flock parrots meet out to unruly members. Shunning your parrot for biting is the only time I mention this method of correcting, and never to put the parrot back into the cage ( that only tells them to bite when they want to go back to it). Shunning really only works when the parrot is bonded to you and wants to be with you. It is only done for a minute, two at most ( or the lesson is lost).

 

[Terry57]

The idea of making this just came up in my mind and that's when I realized: there isn't enough people talking about this topic! Next I think I'll be talking about wing clipping. Although it is debated, I'll just talk about pros and cons(imo there is no pros that benefit the bird) and situations where they might need to be clipped and where they shouldn't be clipped or it'll be about the adoption vs breeder debate, and the pros and cons on both sides.

Thank you for a helpful thread! I do want to say that I don't believe that shouting or hitting dogs should ever be an option, either. In my opinion, training any animal by using fear to make them bend to your will is wrong.

 

[𝕾𝖙𝖔𝖗𝖒𝖞𝕻𝖎𝖈𝖆]

For sure! I train my other animals to accept things at times, like July and her shell treatment.

 

[BirdyBee]

Again, I have one caveat. SHunning is technically a form of punishment that flock parrots meet out to unruly members. Shunning your parrot for biting is the only time I mention this method of correcting, and never to put the parrot back into the cage ( that only tells them to bite when they want to go back to it). Shunning really only works when the parrot is bonded to you and wants to be with you. It is only done for a minute, two at most ( or the lesson is lost).

I'm not sure what "Shunning" is?

 

[LaManuka]

I'm not sure what "Shunning" is?

"Shunning" is the name of a method used to let a bird know that biting is not acceptable. As wrench mentioned, it's something seen in the wild, usually when a juvenile bird is testing the boundaries of what behaviour is tolerable within the flock and what is not. It involves, if a parrot bites you, you pop it down somewhere neutral and safe, such as a table or the back of a chair. Not the floor as you don't want to teach birdie that this is a safe place for him. Neutral territory is important because if you take it back to it's cage, this may actually be what the bird is trying to achieve, and depending on the species, the cage may also be a source of aggression as a number of parrot species get very territorial around their cage. It's ok if he makes his own way back to the cage, but you should not be the one to take him there.

Once the bird is placed in the neutral spot, you turn your back on him for a good minute, making absolutely no eye contact whatsoever. This lets birdie know that if he continues with this type of behaviour he may very well get himself ostracised from the flock, and no little "prey" species of bird wants that.

In order to work best, this method needs to be repeated consistently by every member of the household. Smart little parrots don't take to realise that fun times with you stop when the biting starts! And this is also why it works best with a bird who already wants a relationship with it's humans too. It by no means guarantees that you will never be bitten again, but it generally helps to cut down the instances of severe biting a lot.

 

[Zoruace]

Great thread! (As usual ) Pippen!

 

[wrench13]

Thanks LaManuka, perfect description. Other than that , the OP's post is spot on.

 

[BirdyBee]

Thanks LaManuka, perfect description. Other than that , the OP's post is spot on.

I didn't really mention shunning and I don't want to talk about it since I don't really know anything about it