If your bird SUDDENLY stops loving you (do THIS)   Author:  28767  Category:(Discussion) Created:(7/23/2008 7:48:00 PM) This post has been Viewed (321 times) If your bird SUDDENLY stops loving you (do THIS) Ever had your sweet, precious little parrot suddenly stop loving you? Most parrots at some time in their lives (usually as they sexually mature) suddenly seem to detach from their favorite care takers. This type of behavior is easiest to deal with if caught RIGHT away… just like one of our subscribers from Michigan did with their Congo African Grey parrot. >>> Listen to their story… it's good advice: Bogie is an almost 3 year old Congo African Grey. When he was younger, every morning he would eagerly "step up" when I came to take him out of his cage. A few weeks ago he decided that he did not want to come out on the "step up" command. He would climb around inside the cage, trying to get away from me pulling him out. It was like a game to him. After a few weeks of struggling to get him out of the cage I decided to try another approach. I would open the cage door and tell him to 'step up". If he does not listen, I close the door and walk away for 15 minutes and then come back again. At first I had to do this a few times every 15 minutes until he would finally listen. Now he know that if I come to the cage and tell him to "step up", if he doesn't listen he stays in the cage. So he listens! (As I am writing this he is in the background saying Bogie, step up!) WF in West Bloomfield, MI >>> My comments… Bravo W.F.! You're doing just what needs to be done to a parrot as it starts to reach sexual maturity and act out towards you… not let it call the shots. You're doing a perfect job of setting up healthy, acceptable boundaries for your parrot that let him know he just can't bite or attack or run away, just to get his way. I take this same approach with my own parrots… and so should all parrot owners out there… there are WAY too many lazy, easily overrun parrot owners out there who let their little birds RULE their homes. They think they're being thoughtful towards their parrots by letting it get it's way all the time… somehow thinking that this will earn their birds love more. But their dead wrong, and I'm glad you're one of those types of people that understands that setting up healthy boundaries with your bird is the ONLY way to raise a parrot that is a well adjusted, happy member of your family. But I also wanted to point out that there are probably going to be LOTS of other ways your parrot tries to get his way in the near future, if he hasn't tried them already. When my bird was sexually maturing he would constantly lunge at me to try to scare me off. But I realized that my Macaw really wasn't trying to attack me, but instead just trying to scare me away… and holding my ground REALLY helped nip this behavior in the bud. Other types of behavior that I had to overcome were things like nipping at my hands when I went to pet him (harder than normal). Again, I had to realize that If I were to shy away from my bird when he'd nip at me, I'd be training him to realize that all It takes to get his way Is nip at me… NOT a good habit to start if you can help it. The best advice I can give you is to make sure that whenever you leave your parrot to be by himself after interacting with him… make sure you leave on your terms. Don't leave right after he bites you… or right after he screams. This just reinforces the behavior. Instead, if your parrot bites at you or screams, make him perform one trick for you, like the eagle… just so he knows who's boss, and that he's not the one who gets to decide when you leave. Something about always making a parrot perform a trick right before you leave him alone has a way of letting the parrot know who's boss, and who's setting the ground rules in your home. And if you haven't taught your parrot to perform tricks already… shame on you… it's HANDS DOWN the fastest, easiest way to establish rapport with your bird, and you can easily learn tricks by picking up a copy of one of our trick training courses. You can join Unsolved Mysteries and post your own mysteries or interesting stories for the world to read and respond to Click here Scroll all the way down to read replies. Show all stories by   Author:  28767 ( Click here ) Spring is coming