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Mary, you need to set Tooey up to succeed. By that, I mean you need to get to him before the screaming begins. Can you set aside 10 minutes of Tooey time before you go out. I mean one-on-one Tooey time when he is the the center of your attention. Does his cage have lots of things for him to do when you are gone? Do you give him lots of wood to destroy? Puzzle toys. Hide treats in his cage like that almond in the shell. Can you whole family have a vigorous dancing session with him before you go out. Do you have a routine for putting him in his cage? My birds get 1/4 of an Avi-cake in the morning before I go to work. Is he clipped or flighted?

Antecedent: (what happens immediately before the behaviour) fill this in

Behaviour: Tooey screams

Consequence: What does Tooey get out of the behaviour? Fill this in

Possible Future Behaviour:

Bev

PS: Did you fill out the evaluation form on the PBAS list. I don't remember seeing it.

Yes iif you could suggest a portable stand that is good for Toos. I have a shower perch. I was thinking of getting a portable stand that doesn't take up much room. I have a small house with small rooms. And he is very destructive. I wil try to take him with me more. I used to let him sit on the back of the couch when I watched TV but he started acting aggressive around the couch. He runs up and down it looking for a nest hole and gets lungy. He also acts aggressive when my husband and I are together. He prefers to be with my husband and is very agitated when my husband is home but he is more mellow and relaxed when I am home aone which makes me think this is some kind of hormonal mate type behavior. Also I think when my husband bonds with him too much he might be worse. Too add to the story ... he stayed with a friend while we were out of town a few years ago. She has a female umbrella and Tooey and her bird got along fine. But he bonded with her husband and then he started to agiated bouncing and screaming. He also bit her hard. He wanted to be with her husband and was difficult for her to handle. Now I haven't had that problem but he definitely acts worse when my husband is home.

Mary

And you absolutely need to avoid situations where he gets agitated but he needs to be given opportunities to be a bird. I have dancing sessions with mine. I quite enjoy them. Nothing better for you than acting silly and the sillier you are, the more your birds enjoy it. For example, when I'm having a bath in the evening, all 3 birds come to the bathroom with me. I might play peek-a-boo with one, and just talk to the others. The thing is they are part of my family and as such I include them in things. We eat together because that is a very big thing for parrots. I know people who have a playstand set up so that the bird/s can enjoy eating with the flock.

Have you tried any of the things suggested?

Bev

Yes Tooey does enjoy one on one attention and I do take him in the bathroom with me when I go in. He has a shower perch. I also take his cage into the other room when I am in there and I don't want him cruising around but I try to move him around to where we are in the house. I try to always have things for him to do in his cage. I stuff small boxes full of his favorite things, like almonds in the shell and small blocks of wood but hidden in crumpled paper or small paper cups so he has to work harder to find them . He has puzzle toys but right now what he seems to like best are things on the bottom of the cage that he can do. Over the years he has probably had every type of bird toy out there. I am always looking at bird toys for new ideas. With puzzle toys once he figures it out he loses interest. One thing that isn't in there right now is a big bird bell. I think that might be something he would enjoy. I used to have one for him.
As for avoiding situations where he is agitated that is a problem. Yesterday he was agitated all day long, and the day before. Whenever there are people around coming and going he is agitated. On the weekends when my husband is home is always agitated. Even this morning he is showing signs of agitation. Maybe he is hormonal right now more than usual. I tried yesterday and the day before to keep him occuppied and had very little success. He screamed intermittantly throughout the day. When everyone is sitting right in the room doing stuff he will settle and play but as soon as anyone gives the indication that they might be leaving he starts bouncing and as soon as they start walking aways he starts screaming. A few years ago I tried to have a bird room for him. His main cage was in there and his smaller cage in the family area where he could come out and be with us. I thought maybe it would calm him to be away from the hubbub. I had a TV in there and played kids TV shows and had the birdie sitter DVD for him. That did not work because he doesn't like being alone and also he could hear us in the rest of the house. Maybe if there were other birds where he felt like he was part of a flock it might work but I dont dare take on any more pets at this point.
I used to dance and sing with him but it has been hard lately because my heart isn't in it. Does that make sense? I feel bad saying that but my heart is heavy right now. My marriage is under strain and things seem to be worse than ever with his behavior. I am not blaming Tooey. I know that he is just reacting to his environment.
Mary

No, Mary is it not difficult to understand. You have much on your plate and it is a rough time with parrots right now. My goffin has been turning everything she can find into splinters. My grey has been building a nest in the bathroom since March. And I don't have to deal with children and a husband. There's just me and my 3 birds.

They are looking for one more person to start the mini-lessons on the PBAS list, Mary. Are you interested in taking them. That should help with Tooey and give you some headway until you get a Threadleader. That may take a while.

And I think you and your husband need to have a night out.

Tooey is not doing this to upset you. He has learned to scream to get attention? Now we need to teach him another way to get his needs met. Did you have a chance to read Lee McGuires article on screaming on the PBAS files.

Bev

Today was better with Tooey. I am going to celebrate a success here.When we were getting ready to leave I spent a few moments talking to him close to his cage, kissed his beak, gave im a few nuts in his bowl and when we left he didn't scream. Could this be a hopeful sign?
I want to thankyou again for your support and encouragement. I am trying to see how Tooey'sneeds could be met better so he doesn't have to scream.
Mary

That's exactly right. By spending time with him before the screaming starts (by the way this is called an antecedent change or you are changing the environment), you prevent the unwanted behaviour from happening in the first place. Then when you get acceptable vocalizations, you reinforce the hell out of those by giving favourite treats, praise, etc. Mary, I have 3 birds. I don't get home until 6 pm and they go to bed at 9 pm. I try to include them in as many regular activities as I can. Zazu likes to fly to the top of the fridge and whine until food is ready. It is really quite funny although there are days it gets on my nerves but that's my problem, not hers. I could change that very easily. Gypsy likes to watch from the spiral bungie and Sally watches from the floor. No big deal for me but it is a big deal for them. They've been stuck in their cages all day. They all come to the bathroom when I take a bath. Sally on the floor, Zazu on the towel rack and Gypsy just outside on a shelf. Again, no big deal for me but important to them because they are spending time with me. I realize you have a husband and children but could you set aside some time in the evening that the whole family can spend with him to help him burn off some energy. Doesn't have to be a lot of time but it needs to be consistent so that Tooey knows there is a fun time coming every night. Kris Porter lives in Alaska and she wrote that Enrichment Book. It is free. Have you seen it? It has amazing things that you can do to provide enrichment for parrots. I can e-mail you the link and you can print it off.

Yes, Mary, you not only can hope, you can do this. Using positive reinforcement can and does change behaviour. Tooey's screaming got reinforced somewhere and that's why he does it. Behaviour has function which means there is always a reason for it. So now we have to find other acceptable vocalizations that Tooey can use to get his needs met instead of screaming. In the meantime, that enrichment book will give you some really good ideas for things that Tooey can do and you won't have to get a bank loan to do it. LOL

Bev

PS: Are you interested in taking the mini-lessons. They will help you get familiar with the terminology. Just tell them on the PBAS list that you are interested in taking the mini-lessons. There is quite a long list of people waiting for a Threadleader. In the meantime, we'll see what we can do here.

Keep up the good work, Mary!!!!

I would love to get the link for the enrichment book. I will check out the mini lessons. It may take me awhile to get through them though. I didn't see big changes in Tooey's behavior this weekend but I am feeling more hopeful. Thanks for everything.
Mary

Here it is: http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/Parr ... TY%20BOOK/

It is the in the Files section of the PBAS yahoo group. The article Lee McGuire wrote on changing her Mollucan's screaming in in those files too. That is definitely worth a read. She is amazing and is Susan Friedman's right hand woman. LOL

Also, Mary the mini-lessons are just to familiarize you with the terminology used in Applied Behavior Analysis. You will find it really helpful once you have a threadleader and begin the process.

Also, you wrote that Tooey did not scream when he was at the birdy sitters which proves that there is something in your environment that sets the stage for Tooey to scream. We need to figure out what that is and change it.

What things have you tried so far?

Bev

I am pretty certain that what causes Tooey to scream in our environment is my husband. On the weekends when my husband is home Tooey is agitated and will screams whenever he is not sitting close by. Even if everyone is in the room with him and his cage is full of toys and things to chew that he loves he will be agitated if Pat is in the other room. I also cannot let Tooey be out on his perch because he will try to bite the kids when they walk by. He also screams when I take him to his sleep cage in the evening, when my husband is home. But he won't scream when my husband puts him to bed. During the week when I am home alone with tooey I can let him be out, take him with me from room to room or just hang out with him in his cage while I am doing something and he is 90% better. My husband just does not have the energy, time or motivation to spend with Tooey and I don't think this would help as it would encourage Tooey to be over bonded with him. Also for example even if I take Tooey in another room with me and try to distract him he knows Pat is home and he is distracted and unsettled. It is very difficult.
I read the enrichment book and filled his cage with things to do which he was busy with on thursday all day while I was sleeping, during the day, he hardly made a peep and I was very encouraged.
Unfortunately I think I wouldn't have a problem with him if I was alone or if he wasn't so obsessed with Pat but that seems to be the big issue. Maybe I should find a weekend home for him.
Mary

Hi Mary,

Sorry, I haven't responded but I was on vacation last week. Any changes?

Is Pat not willing to put him to bed every night. How long does it take him? Does it make for a quieter household?

Bev