Click Here to check out the Toys I Mentioned in the video

I had two days off in a row this week!!  I know that doesn’t sound like a big deal, but when you work in retail, believe me, it’s rare.  It feels like spring break.  I intended to tackle some projects that needed tackling.  I actually tackled two.  And they were, of course, bird projects.

New cage covers were desperately needed for Linus, my umbrella cockatoo, and the cockatiels, so I moved this to the top of the to-do list.  I went to the quilting section at the fabric store and bought about 2 miles of dark broadcloth.  Linus has a really big cage.  He also has a really big beak and had shredded his cover beyond usefulness.  He has a favorite side to his cage for sleeping, and there was so little fabric remaining on that side that he recently decided to move to the other side for a good night’s sleep.  I know this because his back-end has been positioned over his water bowl all night for about a week now.  I don’t think I need to say more.  I constructed the cover and attached it to the cage using grommets and quick links.

The cockatiels.  My sweet little darlings.  The only thing worse that waking up to the horrors in Linus’s water dish is waking up to the cockatiel’s belting out a tune at 6:30am when I worked late and got to bed at 1 the night before.  Don’t get me wrong.  I love hearing their joyous little voices.  Just not then.  I made them a darker cover to encourage them to sleep a little later.

I was so excited when I went to bed last night, new cage covers in place, knowing I could sleep until I woke up rested.  Well, that was the plan, until I woke up to my alarm clock buzzing at 6:45.  Apparently, I had set it the night before out of habit.  The good news is that I did not hear a peep from the cockatiels at 6:30…if that can be construed as good news.  Oh, and by the way, I came down stairs to find that Linus had torn a hole in his new cover, right at his eye level, and every movement I made was being monitored by a blue eye ring surrounded by black cloth.  Creepy.

Today’s project was toy making for the cockatoos.  Linus was pouting this morning as if to say:  “Mom, I have nothing to do with my beak.”  I was thinking how he found something to do with it earlier that involved his new cage cover, but kept quiet.  I went to the lumber store for a pile of 2X4s and cut enough 1″ pieces to fill a 10 gallon bin.  I drilled holes into each piece so they could be strung onto chains.  I made HUGE toys for both Linus and Theo, my goffins cockatoo, who didn’t even notice the wooden behemoth in her cage.

Linus was thrilled, though, and spent most of the day transporting bitten off chunks of wood to his stainless steel pail for further processing.  I noticed about an hour ago that he has managed to give himself a black eye, something he does several times a year in the course of going to battle with his toys.  Sometimes they hit back.  He has already gone through about 7″ of wood, or the equivalent of 15 boxes of toothpicks (if I were counting, or thinking about going into that business).  I guess we both had a productive day.  Next project on the list:  Easter baskets for the cockatoos, and Easter…boxes for the little guys.

Parrots are instinctively highly attuned to everything around them.  It is this awareness of their environment that keeps them safe from predators.  So it’s easy to understand why parrots are so quick to pick up on the energy levels of their owners and the home they live in. This is something we can use to our advantage and is just one more example of how having an understanding of a wild bird’s nature will help us with the birds we keep in our homes.

Have you ever noticed that when you stand in front of your bird and act silly and animated that he will start bouncing up and down on his perch and become vocal?  Have you observed that when you stand quietly and speak to him in quiet tones that he will turn his head to the side and listen intently to your words?

The energy level present in the home is often responsible for the behavior, or misbehavior, of our parrots.  If things have become too chaotic or noisy, sometimes all it takes to restore peace is a quiet chat.

When Linus, my umbrella cockatoo, decides the time is right for his afternoon vocalizations, I can nearly always quiet him by speaking softly to him.  Even when he is in  full-on scream mode, I can generally stop it by standing in front of him and continuing to speak quietly.  He may not be able to hear me over his own loud voice, but he can see me, and I figure he has to come up for air at some point.  My low energy gradually rubs off on him.

On the other side of that coin is instigating play.  For the parrot that tends to be a perch potato, some music and lively dancing and singing on your part might be just the things to get him moving, and exercising.  Sometimes birds are afraid of, or disinterested in, new things.  Since your bird trusts you, your enthusiasm with new things will make him feel comfortable with, and an excitement about, the things you introduce him to.  Once you tell him something is okay, it will be.

Talking to your parrot serves a number of purposes.  For the new parrot in the home, it is trust building.  Your new parrot can learn to feel relaxed with you as you continue to show him that you are a safe playmate.  As his comfort increases, you can begin to show him that you are fun as well.

Talking to your parrot can prepare him for events coming up in the future as well, such as your trip to Europe and his subsequent trip to the boarding facility, or any other big change that is approaching. Tell your parrot that a change is coming, but that it is a temporary arrangement and that everything will be fine.  Assure him that he is loved, and throw in how beautiful and good he is.  The more time you spend talking to him, explaining and reassuring him, the better prepared he will be for your absence.  I realize this sounds silly, and I can already see some eyes rolling, but this really does help, and I don’t know of a single parrot expert who doesn’t agree.  While they don’t understand your words, they will certainly take your tone to heart.  Somehow, this reaffirms your relationship with them and carries them through what might otherwise be a traumatic event.

In every case where a parrot that has the benefit of an owner that takes the time to talk to him, he will  feel included as a member of the household.  This improves your relationship with him, betters his life and will make him more family friendly.

1. Dirty Food:

The expression “you are what you eat” is so true.  Since we are in charge of our parrot’s food selection, we have to make sure that it is not only the best quality we can offer, but that it is safely edible.  Thoroughly wash all fresh foods. Even organically grown produce use pesticides, although not chemical ones.

Many of us work full time jobs and are in a rush to get out the door in the morning.  It’s convenient to feed the birds and go.  However, when we leave fresh or wet foods out for a period of time they begin to collect bacteria.  Most birds are very hungry when they first wake up, so this is a good time to feed them their fresh foods.  Often they will have finished their meal by the time you are ready to leave for work and the dirty bowls can be collected.  I will often cut up the food the night before and store in plastic containers for easy service in the morning.

If they are slow eaters, like mine tend to be, give them drier, less seepy foods if it needs to be left in the cage for a period of time.  I save the wetter foods, which collect more bacteria, for their second meal after I return home.

Even dry foods will go stale.  Any pellets and seed not eaten should be thrown away and replaced at least every other day.  Even better, serve only as much as they will eat in a day.

**Note: If your bird poops in it’s food or water, it is no longer edible.  It may dry as a solid in the pellet or seed bowl, but there is urine in their poop that will spread and contaminate the food or the water.

2. Dirty Cages:

Birds eat with their feet.  This means that when they are done eating, they will be tracking remnants of food around their cage. It will sit and harbor bacteria, which your bird will walk through again on it’s way to pick up more food or to get to its toys. The amount of harm this does to your bird depends on how often you wipe down the bars of the cage.  Dirty perches can lead to foot infections, which in birds are a serious thing, given that they are on their feet 24/7.

Did you know that a cockatiel can poop every 15 minutes?  This makes for a lot of poop in a single day, and poop is another bacteria gatherer.  I have gone into homes and seen a mound of poop building up like a stalagmite underneath a parrot’s favorite pooping spot.  If this doesn’t particularly bother you, then know that it dries and becomes airborne, causing disease in humans.

3. Use Of Commercial Cleaners:

Commercial cleaners leave a chemical residue on surfaces that are harmful to your parrots.  Never clean cages, toys,  or perches with any commercial cleaner or solvent.  In fact, I won’t let my birds play on a floor that has been washed with a commercial product.  Even those claiming to be pet friendly or a green product are not suitable to me.  I use white vinegar diluted with water, grapefruit seed extract (GSE) or a mild dish soap like dawn for any bird related cleaning.

4. Use Of Air Pollutants:

Parrots have an incredibly sensitive and efficient respiratory systems.  Their systems is designed so that when they take a breathe, a second breathe is necessary to push the first one to complete the cycle.  A third breathe pushes the second through to completion etc.  When you think about this, since two inhalations are necessary to equal one of ours, it means that if there are toxins in the air, birds are doubly affected.

We have all heard about the coal miners in earlier times that would put a cage of canaries into a mining shaft to determine if there were any odorless gases present.  If the canaries were found alive after a time, they knew they could enter and work safely.  If the air was safe enough for a bird, a human certainly would survive.

It is very important that we pay attention to the air quality in our homes. We should never smoke around our birds, or use incense, aerosol sprays or scented candles.  Pick your cookware carefully, anything with a non-stick coating can kill a bird within minutes.

No Toys In Cages:

The most common excuse for this is:  “Well, it never played with them anyways.”  And it never will learn to, if they aren’t there.  Birds are very active and intelligent creatures and they need mental stimulation.  If your bird doesn’t care for a particular toy you selected, try one of a different texture.  Most birds can’t resist toys made of shreddable materials.  A crumpled up ball of paper can keep a bird busy for hours. If you give them enough options and watch how they respond, you will hit upon just the right type of toy, and you’ll know from there which toys are preferred and most likely to be played with.  Just remember to keep it interesting for them by rotating toys every couple of weeks.  A reason many birds don’t explore toys is because they don’t understand what they are.  If you play with the toy with your bird, it will quickly get the message.

Establishing boundaries for your young parrot, one that has yet to reach sexual maturity, is an important first step in laying the groundwork for a happy and healthy co-existence between parrots and people.   By setting and adhering to rules consistently, you are ensuring that your older parrot, who might have become more assertive of his wants, will cooperate with your requests in pleasant and acceptable ways.

Rescues are packed to the brims with unwanted parrots. Many of them have been determined to be a “problem” later in life when owners tire of  misbehavior, destruction and their inability to retrieve their uncontrolled parrot.  Rescue owners frequently report that these behaviors stem from a parrot having been given free reign of the house and never being shown limitations.

The first step in eliminating unwanted behaviors is to find the source of the problem, and place the blame squarely where it belongs, which is always on the caregivers: US!  Whenever a parrot’s behavior goes awry it is the fault of the humans involved.  We have failed in either teaching acceptable behavior, or have been inconsistent in establishing our expectations.  Why would a parrot accept being told no today to something it was allowed to do yesterday?  How can we expect her to follow rules that have not been clearly defined?

Let’s look at the three top reason that people give up their birds, how it relates to us as their teachers, and what we can do to prevent problems in immature birds, or correct an existing problem in sexually mature birds:

BITING/LUNGING:

The young bird:

Baby birds learn with their beaks the same way human babies learn with their hands.  They explore and experiment.  It is not uncommon for a baby bird to nip us without understanding the intensity of the pressure they are applying.  These are not bites in the traditional sense, with the intention to warn or harm.  It is simply the exaggerated action of an inquisitive beak.  Still, this is an ideal opportunity to teach your young parrot how much is too much, and what is acceptable.

When she latches on to your finger or your clothes, quietly detach yourself (a good way to do this with a bird of any age is to gently push into the bite rather than pull away from it) and put her on a nearby perch or cage top.  Discontinue eye contact, don’t speak, turn away and count to ten.  Then you can pick her up again and go with whatever you were doing.  The most important thing is to be certain NOT to make a scene, even if it hurt.  A young parrot, in particular, will turn biting into a game in no time.  Then you will have to start over, but this time you will not only have to teach the right behavior, but undo what has just been learned.  If you are completely consistent in your actions, your bird will have learned that a bite equals only the loss of your attention, nothing more, nothing less.

The older bird:

An older bird that bites has learned somewhere along the way that lunging (threatening to bite) or biting will get her what she wants.  This is a more complex problem because it requires that you first undo the notion that biting is beneficial.  The only way to do that is to STOP making it beneficial.

How is biting beneficial to a bird?  Aside from all the fun drama it creates, which is, in itself, a good reason to bite, a bird can teach its owner to back off and let it have its way.  He’ll think:  “If the lunge doesn’t work, the bite surely will!”  And it usually does.

If your bird bites you, or threatens to bite, when you go to retrieve her, calmly withdraw your hand, but stay where you are standing.  This way you have removed your hand from danger, but have NOT fled in terror.  Continue to engage your bird verbally, using quiet tones.  Offer a toy for the bird to chew on.  This is an incompatible behavior: a bird can’t chew on you and a toy at the same time!  Attempt the step up again,  and again as necessary.  While you may not have gotten the bird off the ground yet, she is learning that threats are not going to be effective.

Take a look at possible reasons for the bite.  Is it possible your bird is reacting out of fear?  Birds have been known to develop hand and other phobias, quite out of the blue to our way of thinking.  If this is the case, you will have to go slowly and re-establish trust. I think the best way to reform a broken bond is by literally starting over.  Interact with her as though she has just come to live with you again.  Move slowly and respectfully around her, letting her learn that you and the home offer no threat to her.

SCREAMING:

The young bird:

Vocalization is natural for a bird.  Your baby will sooner or later learn to use that ability to emphasize a point.  Your peaceful future with your parrot depends on how you handle it today, tomorrow and the days following. Think of the child in the cart at the checkout line in the supermarket who is wailing “But Mooomm, I WANT a caaaandy baaar!!!”  Mom finally relents and says:  “FINE.  Just be QUIET!”  We all know what will happen to Mom in the checkout line next week.  This is not a bad child, in fact, it’s a smart child.   But poor Mom will be paying for this transgression for a long time.

If your parrot is screaming for your attention, and not out of need, don’t give in until there is quiet.  This sends a clear message to your parrot and will save you a lot of frustration in the future.  Problems at this age are usually quickly resolved.

The older bird:

A learned behavior is difficult to change.  As many times as a parrot has experienced it can get away with something, it will take many, many more experiences of NOT getting its way to learn that the game is over.  A single slip up can send you back to Go.  As maddening and incessant as it can become, you must remain consistent in the following while your bird is screaming: Do not make eye contact, do not approach the cage, do not speak to or address him in any way.  You don’t hear anything, you don’t react to anything, your ears are not bleeding, you are not fantasizing about the “special” turkey you will be having next Thanksgiving.

As soon as there is quiet, within seconds, start to make pleasant conversation with your parrot and have a treat nearby to offer him.  Be very aware of your timing in doing this, so that you don’t reward the wrong behavior, and immediately disconnect with the bird once the screaming resumes.

Sometimes a pleasant shower or spray bath will give you a reprieve until you regain your sanity.  Remember not to issue this as a punishment.  Your bird is learning throughout this process that screaming has no gain.  It is expending a lot of energy to no avail, and will eventually give up and stop.  At this point, teach your bird a call to get your attention that is suitable.  I have a different contact for each of my birds.

It is really important that you analyze why your bird is screaming.  Are her needs (clean water and good food) met?  Does she have enough toys and shreddables in her cage?  Is she utilizing the toys you have provided for her or does she have to play with ones YOU thought were cute?  Is she comfortable, too hot or cold?  Is there anything in her environment she might perceive as scary?

Another consideration is that your parrot is screaming to get you to leave the room, which is usually what people do.  If your parrot becomes quiet once you, or the “problem human” is gone, this is pretty clearly the case.  If you leave the room you are rewarding the screaming.  Follow the same procedure as above, but try to ride it out in the same room for a bit.  The best advice I can give you is to go about your business without connecting with the bird in any way and when you do leave the room, don’t leave in a huff.  Just go as if you have business in the other room.  Remember, you don’t hear anything, your ears aren’t bleeding…etc, etc.  These methods work, they really do, as long as you remain unfaltering in your application, and your hearing is covered in your insurance package.

DESTRUCTION:

The younger bird:

Birds chew things. It is natural and normal and to be encouraged.  If you value your furniture and woodwork, you will set up boundaries on this issue right away or your parrot will literally eat you out of house and home.  The most effective way to keep a young parrot from destroying your valuables, is to not let him have access to them in the first place.  It’s hard to explain to a parrot why the wood toys on the playstand are okay to demolish, but not the chair legs.  Instead of wasting your time with this, make areas of the house off limits.  Have a designated area for bird play in your house and only let him outside of the area when he accompanies you and will be on a portable T-stand.

I can practically guarantee that your parrot will make every attempt to step outside of these invisible boundaries to explore, so be alert and react in time before damage is done.  Birds are crafty little devils and will sometimes wander off just to get you to come and get them.  This is a favorite game.  Usually they will be looking over their shoulder to make sure you are watching.  Try not to make this too much fun for them.

The older bird:

Bad habits are hard to break. Damage to the house is probably the best example of the result of lack of limitations.  I am not going to pretend that I haven’t experienced damage, but it’s always been my fault because I have been dumb enough to turn my attentions away from a cockatoo for more than a few seconds.  Several years ago, Linus, my umbrella, managed to open up about two feet of the top seam of my couch in the 30 seconds it took me to go into the kitchen for a drink.  I came back to find him staring at the exposed stuffing contemplating the fun he was about to have.  My bad.

The best way to start with the experienced home-wrecker is to make sure he has plenty to do in the area he is allowed to play in.  When he wanders off, divert his attention in such fun ways that he would rather stay put.  If your parrot enjoys eating a good book, why not give him one that you’re done reading! Over a period of time he will not only learn where the no zones are, but might actually prefer the play area.  Never say: “My job here is done.”  He will continue to surprise you by finding things you didn’t realize he was aware of.

If you are having behavioral problems with your parrot, NEVER RESORT TO hitting, shaking the cage, throwing things, or spraying with water out of anger and frustration.  These methods will only anger the parrot, and/or make him fearful of you, and compound those problems you are already experiencing.  Parrots do not respond to violence in ANY productive way.  Punishment is ineffective in dealing with parrot problems.

The way your bird behaves is all on you.  Birds are not bad, but they are inquisitive and that will sometimes get them into trouble.  The methods I mentioned of dealing with those problems are by no means the only ways, but ways with which I have had successes.

When you have a bird who won’t touch the toys you give, it’s very disheartening. Birds need to be active, and they need something to mentally engage them which playing with toys does. Especially with all the different types of toys out there.

The first thing you need to try with a bird who refuses to play with toys, is make sure you’ve tried every type of toy before assuming your bird doesn’t like them. I’ve taken in a lot of birds, and sometimes they just don’t like the type of toys you’re offering.

Here is a list of the types of toys there are for parrots, to make sure you have really tried them all!

1. Shreddables (anything made out of wood or something that can literally be shredded into pieces)
2. Food finding (toys that contain food inside of them)
3. Puzzles (mentally challenging toys your bird has to figure out how to open or solve)
4. Busy toys (swings, boings, ladders, nets, anything that your bird actually gets on to use to get around but can also play on too. These toys can be used instead of some perches to make your bird more active in his cage!)
5. Play gyms & food finding trees (these are used outside of the cage and contain many toys on and around them)
6. Food toys (literally food made into the toy itself, so the bird is eating the “toy” but the whole thing is really food)
7. Foot toys (small toys that birds like to grab and hang onto with their feet)
8. Noise making (bells, metal toys and anything that makes sound)
9. Any other ones I may have forgotten!

If you have tried ALL of those toys and your bird won’t take to ANY of them. Here are some suggestions for you to get your bird to still be active and eventually learn to like toys.

TRAINING!

Ah yes, the wonderful world of parrot training and what BirdTricks.com is ALL ABOUT! Training helps build a line of communication between you and your bird, and teaches your bird that it can learn in the first place. Once you open this line of communication, there is endless possibilities!

You can train your bird to play with toys.

Using the techniques we teach you in all of our parrot training courses, and using the toys that come highly recommended by The Womach Brothers through their monthly toy program, you can simply apply them to getting your bird used to toys and training him to actually engage in them.

So get your clicker, your training course as a refresher, your touch training stick and your bird’s favorite treats… and get started on getting your bird to be the active, happy and healthy bird he needs to be by training him to play with his toys!