Crying

[Juliejet]

Hi all (not sure I am putting this in the correct place thats why I haven't posted lately cause i was scared of doing that)
I have a Black Too (Jet)and he crys all the time we are all going insane he only does it with me.he is just over 1 year old and he has been doing it since we got him wasn't as constant as it is now I thought it was a hunger thing but he does it just after he eats he cries while chewing and playing he has plenty of thing to play and chew,his play tree stand is out in the common room where he can see everyone and he will be on that during the day for 4/5 hrs he just cries the whole time,his cage use to be out there as well but i had to put it in the front room so i can have a break from the crying its his sleep room as well he comes back out from 6 to 7.30/8.00 depending how long ppl can cope.when he is out during the day i let him entertain his self of cause i talk and interact with him but no holding I leave that for the evening.the thing is I'm starting to bring him out less and less and I don't want to do that he needs to be out more.as well he is starting to scream a lot more when I leave the room I have been doing the contact call but that doesn't seem to help I have been reading other site as well and trying a lot of the things ppl have been trying, but I don't seem to be able to get anywhere.I know its not Jets fault he is only doing what he thinks he needs to for attention even tho I think he gets enough.I have been thinking of rehoming him as I think if he has a new environment and someone that knows toos well he may not do it and then they can work with him cause I can't work at all with him cause he just cries constantly.well I'm open for some suggestions I have posted something similar at the beginning of the year and nothing much has changed here at home I get on and read from both forums nearly every day.

 

[weco]

Hi Julie,

Sorry, but I didn't see your previous post about Jet's crying.

How old is he & how long have you had him? He's not by chance a wild caught bird is he? How much time a day and what type of interaction do you & other members of your family offer him each day? Is he possibly a rehomed bird?

Does he know how to entertain himself and does he entertain himself at all?

The reason I'm asking all the questions is simply that from what you posted, it's very hard to offer any possibly solutions or suggestions. Maybe, with more information, you'll get more input from other members!

My Patagonian came to me as a whiner & a screamer, she prefers men, but her previous owner's husband was not a bird person, so always ignored her, except to raise his voice at her every once in a while.....whenever he came home, she would try to compete for his attention, though she never understood it was a lost cause. Even today, she, along with my other birds, will get vocal when I or anyone else comes in the house, but after a few minutes, they will generally quiet down, unless they feel ignored, then they might vocalize until they are recognized & spoken, after which things quiet down.

Our girls are both college students, always with their own agenda and usually get reminded there are birds at home, who need some attention too, especially since they both resident students and stay on campus, coming home infrequently, so the birds are also welcoming the girls home.....both girls, the oldest one's boyfriend and a couple of their friends are recognized and are expected to greet our feathered friends.

In the mean time, good luck.....

 

[BillsBirds]

Is this your first bird? Cockatoos are very needy birds. Especially Blacks. A friend has one, and he is the most clingy "velcro bird". They need as much interaction, stimulation and enrichment that you can give them. Try diverting his attention with toys, foraging activities, and setting up his play areas where he can see & hear the rest of the family.

 

[Juliejet]

Hi Jet is my first bird and he I just over 1 I have had him since he was 4 months old first I would like to say that I wish I had found this and the other site before I got him but that I can't Change now,I am the the one that interacts with him and tends to his needs the other family members don't interact with him much as he isn't that interested in them and I think they are over the constant crying and screaming,yes he does entertain himself but he cries as he is doing that.i do believe he prefers men ,I have tried ABA but it's hard when he just cries all the time as when he stops for that 2 secs you go to reward him and he starts it again,he has lots of things to chew on and play with he is out of cage 4/5 hrs by day then out 1 1/2 to 2 at night he sleeps 12 hrs at night in his own room.i have tried to play and do a little training but it's hard when he just cries and the bobbing and fluffed up feathers and rocks, I know Toos are needy I was prepared for that and the normal screaming but this is excessive I realise he is only young and I get that I properly have created this myself it has just crept up on me slowly .I'm thinking of rehomeing him as I'm thinking a change of environment and someone who has Too experience will be able to work with him so he can be a happier bird of cause that's not what I want to do cause I love this little guy but it's not about me it's about him

Billsbird Jet has and does all those things you say but he just cries as he is playing and chewing the only time he stops for 1 min is when he is eating his seeds and he can't eat them all the time as it's not good for him even when he is on me he cries it's very draining .

Thank you for your input

 

[MikeyTN]

He's still crying huh.....I remember your last post about it. When you have him out with you, what all you do with Jet? Do you play music for him in his room?

 

[Nexus]

It's their natural condition, I'm afraid.

Ever so often a couple of black cockatoos visit my area (unsure of exact species) and they don't stop their hollering. They squark and squark and squark. However, I went to a pet store recently that had a couple and they were fairly quiet, but they were receiving constant stimuli.

I think if it's too much, you may just have to sell him. It's best to find him a home that can manage him rather than live in constant frustration.

 

[Juliejet]

I put the radio on when he is in his room and the tv when I'm out all day (one day a week)
I play with him in the evening for about a hr the rest of the time he is entertaining his self but is crying as he is doing that .the odd times he is quiet (5 secs rather than 2 secs ) I say good boy jet nice and quiet and give him a treat but then he just starts again .im thinking of Nexus but I won't sell him I may do it through a rehomeing program that way if he still does it for the new adoptees they have to send him back instead of putting him in a dark room or something it's hard cause I do spoil him with his feeding

 

[Betrisher]

It might be worth your while to make some foraging toys for him. Don't just give him his meals, make him work to find his food about the cage. You can search this site for ideas on how to make good foraging toys - lots of our members have contributed to threads about this. Other ideas could be providing him with branches that contain gum nuts or casuarina cones. Black cockies just adore cracking casuarina cones, so I'd start with that (NB. Casuarinas are making cones right now, in case you were wondering).

Does he like to shred paper? You can slice up a phone book (use a band saw) and drill a hole so you can hang it by a string. You can fill up a 2 litre milk bottle with shredded paper. Cut slits in the bottle so cocky can pull out the shred. You can put a few peanuts or sunflower seeds or whatever treats he likes best in the bottle just to make things interesting.

Does he like to make noise? Does he have a bell? Don't use small silver bells, find a petshop that sells pipe bells. These are safest for large-billed birds and have no removable (swallowable) parts. Go op-shopping and find plastic baby toys (be very careful to get ones that won't harm your parrot if he chomps them - which he certainly will). You can get neat plastic links and all sorts of teething toys and playgyms with movable parts. My Alexandrines love plastic toys that have pushable buttons that play a sound. They learned quick-smart how to push the buttons and treat us to comments from Sesame Street all day long! LOL!

I got some 1" thick sisal rope from a marine supplier in Sydney. I just strung it in loops from the roof of the cage and the Beaks sit and climb and swing on it. Threading cotton reels (you can buy coloured plastic ones from craft shops) onto a bit of paulie rope or wire coathanger can make a neat activity toy. You can also get all sorts of large plastic and wooden beads and cotton rope from bird toy suppliers (look on ebay). It's a LOT cheaper to make your own toys from parts than it is to buy them outright.

LOL! I'll shuddup now. Do a search on foraging and toys to see what you can come up with. There are some useful tutorials in our Toys forum - you could check those out too. For example, I posted instructions on how to make an inexpensive cargo net. Good luck with your bird! Try not to give up on him!

 

[Juliejet]

Believe it or not 90% of what you have suggested I have done ,I have bought bags of plastic toys from op shop been to 5/6 of them lol and he can go through them in no time and that is fine,the only thing I haven't done is the cargo net with the sisal.every day I put new stuff for him in his cage and on his tree stand that we made it is pretty big with lots of branches on it.he has had the cones all types of things and he does chew them the thing is he can chew and cry at the same time ,he isn't into the phone book thing,cones he like but gets over them after a few days and I only put them out once a week or so he has a fisher price toy that sings songs when he presses the buttons that he isn't into to much but it's on his stand,he has a wicker basket full of lids of all types that he chews,every month I need to put a new basket on cause he chews that all up as well and that's ok, he has a mop head that he likes to preen on,a toilet roll that he picks at,little boxes that I put almonds in shells in and hang and he pulls it up and chews through to get the shell he has foraging wheel to work for his seed in his cage and a draw for seed as well on the stand,a good thing I come up with is a 30 ml syringe that I put little beads and things in he can see them and he chews through it to get to them other hanging toys that he pulls up as foot toy that he chews,oh I wish he would just stop crying so we can enjoy him more the screaming is beginning to become a problem it's only when I go out of sight I know what I need to do it's just trying to be consistent.well anyways I could go on.Thank you for the comment I guess I was hoping someone would come on and say they had the same problem and after a particular time it will slow down so I can see a light at the end of the tunnel

 

[Juliejet]

As well I will go and have another look at some more ideas on things to make that's where I got most of my ideas from

 

[Jayyj]

There's a forum member called mekeisto who's a zookeeper who works specifically with black toos - might it be worth dropping him a pm? Difficulty with black toos is they're very rare outside of Australia - I don't think I've ever come across one in the UK - so if it's a specific problem with this species it might require a more specialist opinion.

Not suggesting that the lovely people on this thread don't have a lot of experience and wisdom! Just the constant crying thing sounds different to anything I've come across, and I'm wondering if it could be a species thing.

Edit: no sooner do I open my mouth and there's a thread in Behavioral about a goffin with the same issue. Sorry!

 

[Juliejet]

Thank you how do I find mekeisto ? I don't think I have enough posts to Pm ATM

 

[Juliejet]

I did a search and I am unable to find mekeisto

 

[thekarens]

It's actually mekaisto. Do a search for black cockatoo on the forum and you should be able to find them.

 

[weco]

I did a search and I am unable to find mekeisto

As long as you're a logged in member in good standing, you can usually get to a member's profile & contact link by clicking on the "Community" button...that will give you a drop-down menu, choose "Members List" at the bottom & you will come to the "Members List," but if you look to the right of the "Title Bar" and click on "Search Members" you'll be able to do a member name search & arrive at their profile page.....you do have to properly spell the particular user name though.....

 

[Juliejet]

Thank you I found him in a roundabout way and have PM him hopefully he can give me some advise as I really want it to work out with Jet

 

[Mekaisto]

Hi Julie, I'll try to help you if I can, but there's only so much that can be done over the internet. If you're still having problems, it wouldn't hurt to find someone who does parrot specific behaviour consultations. I'm afraid I live in Melbourne, so I don't know anyone in the Sydney area, but a good avian vet should be able to recommend one.

Now these questions might sound a bit weird, but they'll help me get an idea of what's going on.

-How old was Jet when you stopped giving him formula, and how did you wean him?
-Did you interact much with Jet when he was little? Touch him on the back/head?
-How often do you pick him up and spend time with him, with no toys involved?
-When did Jet start screaming/calling, and do you remember what you did when he first screamed? (I know it was a long time ago)
-What do you feed him every day, and how much does he eat?
-When he was young, were you the only one who spent time with him, or did friends/family spend time with him too?
-Where is Jet's cage - near a window, in a corner, in the middle of the room?
-What do you or other family members do when Jet screams?
-Do you have any other pets?

If you could even get some photos of Jet, the room he's in, and even a video of the noises he's making, that would help

 

[Juliejet]

Hi I just put up a Utube video to give you a idea of the crying and a look at his play stand

[ame=http://youtu.be/DhoCDrDYMho]Jet the Black too - YouTube[/ame]

 

[KimKim]

I'm sorry he is still crying... But do you only spend 1 hour a day with him? Tame cockatoos need more than 1 hour of one on one time then that (so I have read). I hope Mekaitso can help you... Wishing you luck.

 

[Juliejet]

Thank you for trying to help
-How old was Jet when you stopped giving him formula, and how did you wean him?
A .jet was 4 months old when I got him from a pet shop( not good I know) after say a week he started I took him for his well being check and all was fine a little under weight ,after say a month I took him back to the AV cause I was worried that he wasn't eating much as I was trying to get him off seed (again not good he was just eating seed & nuts when I got him they said he was eating sprouted seeds but I don't think he was) and the crying I think was because he wasn't eating enough the AV seen how drained I was so we agreed for Jet to stay there for a week to try and get him to eat fresh food and pellets,mind you while I had him I was offering him all types of stuff and pellets ,sprouted stuff the only thing he would eat was potato Mash ,pumpkin zucchini, squash,rice,pasta,eggs,meat,tuna and so on ant that's what he eats to this day 2 x day and say a handful of sunflower seed and 5 nuts a day still won't eat the pellets and I have tried 4 different ones,he has peas in pods and lots of other stuff but everything is in very little amounts and he still isn't at a good weight I really think hunger is a big part of the crying but I can't just give seeds and nuts
Oh it got that bad at one stage I even tried feeding him formula but he didn't want it

-Did you interact much with Jet when he was little? Touch him on the back/head?
A.as soon as he came home but I know u mean as a baby but we didn't have him as a baby

-How often do you pick him up and spend time with him, with no toys involved?
A.he is out on his stand for 5 hrs a day and I am always trying to interact with him but he just cries then he goes in his room till 6 then that's the hands on time for about 1 1/2 hrs he is on his stand then he flys to me and we have a play he is happy chewing toys on me and jumping to the floor and playing with his box of toys he is not keen on being petted but he allows me to,during this time he is crying all the time he doesn't just sit their he need to be playing with something and that's fine

When did Jet start screaming/calling, and do you remember what you did when he first screamed? (I know it was a long time ago)

Well I did a lot of reading and I got that I'm not to give any attention to the screaming and reward when he stops and that's the tricky part as when I go to reward him the crying starts it all started of slowly than gradually got worse I know that I have created this but I have been try my best to curb it

-When he was young, were you the only one who spent time with him, or did friends/family spend time with him too?
A.im the main person the others in the house would go up to him and try and pet him but they are scared he will bit but he hasn't yet bit anyone as for everyone in the house I think the are over the constant crying and there not interested in him anymore and that's a shame

-Where is Jet's cage - near a window, in a corner, in the middle of the room?
His cage use to be in the family room but because he was crying when he had seen I had to put it in the front room,he is great when he is in that room he plays he has the radio on and the tv when I have a long day out ,thats his sleep room as well,the stand is in the family room and he sees everyone there he can stay on that stand all day and not cry at all when hubby is home and I am out I know it's because I'm his mum and he wants me,

-What do you or other family members do when Jet screams?
A.everyone knows to ignore him and give no attention at all,it's hard at times they will say to me OMG jet just shut up lol


Do you have any other pets
I have a husky and he is out side

Jet is a great little man and I really want us all to live in harmony hope you can understand what I have said