Parrolet

Question
Hello I have a Parrolet, Jewel, who is 8 years old.  She was 2 yrs when she came to me a very mean, nasty, biting bird.  She has since calmed down, but she was an incredible amount of personal attention.  She will start a certain type of screeching if someone doesn't pick her up.  We have tried covering her, ignoring her, putting her in a darken room...nothing seems to help and it is getting worse!  My husband's job requires him to study almost every day and he is at his wits end!  Please someone help - I really don't want to give her up!!

Answer
Hi, Karen.  Thanks for posting!

What happened first...reduction in attention or the screeching?  Normally, parrots will screech when something important in their lives is missing...attention, food, clean water, clean cage, etc., etc.  A simple cure can be providing what the bird needs.  Sometimes when owners provide lots of attention then reduce the amount, the bird doesn't understand this and thinks the reduction in attention is due to something they did wrong, they don't understand, and problems crop up.  The solution to the problem is figuring out why the bird is screeching to begin with and try to change that negative behavior.  How much attention do you give your parrotlet each day and in what form?  Has this amount of attention changed recently?    

Also, you may actually be rewarding your bird for screeching by your reaction to her screeching.  In other words, the bird screeches, you cover her, move her to a dark room, etc.  You are giving the bird the attention she wants, albeit not exactly the type of attention she wanted, but attention none the less.  Usually, I recommend ignoring the bird completely as a start, but when this doesn't work, a different approach is necessary.  Ignoring a bird is not even looking at the bird, going near the bird, saying anything to the bird...acting as though the bird doesn't even exist!

If you can give me more details about the situation you have, I'll try to help more.  You might want to visit my website for some tips:

www.angelfire.com/falcon/birdinfo/index.html

Chrys