Dawn 'Chorus'....

[ellsiebird]

Hello,
My dear Ellsie has a lovely habbit if her dawn chorus.... or just general screaming for my attention even when she can see me out side from a window...

I understand this will happen in the mornings as like any one she wants to get out, but there getting earlier and earlier, this moring 6am... i work nights so mornings are not my greatest thing though i will get up to let her out so i can sleep for another hour or two.

They are also getting louder and more frequent and more so when i leave the room, again with Senegals i know this is instict to call for the pack... but its getting SO obbsessive!!!

is there any way of controling this? or is just a fact of life for parrots? i have tried ignoring her until she is quiet, praising when she is quiet and then telling her off when noisey (but she just thinks im joining in to be fair with this!)

my concern is that i live in flats so she must be annoying the neighbours as i can hear her perfectly in the garden...

so really any advice on how to maybe lessen this?as i guess i wont stop it completely

Thanks

 

[Spiritbird]

Birds usually wake up to the light of day. Is there any way you can darken the room? I too live in a small apt. but I have shades on windows that darken and my bird does not start her morning songs until they are lifted.

 

[suebee]

do you cover her cage?? as nut will only let out a small chirp if we are up after 8am??

once you get up, sleep in same room as her, i have blankets/throws on sofa for when i just need a little bit more lol as she will cause a racket, if we let her out an leave her, especially if she knows we are in the house

 

[ellsiebird]

haah yes i do cover her most nights but i think the light gets through... when i get up early before my partner i have a to sneak so quietly around the house, if you make one noise she is off on one!!!
After a certain time she will just go for it, no matter if its dark or light.... this really is just a fact of bird life i will have to try and get used to..

any ideas about how to stop her when i walk out the room? as soon as she cant see me she wil l scream the house down, even if she is asleep and i move away she notices and again will not stop!!

 

[suebee]

lol no ideas there! i've just been summoned for the morning head rub!!

nut generally won't scream unless left alone, but thats just through the day

 

[Crackers]

Well, I think you need to go back to the part where you praise her for noises you do like or silence. My bird went from squawking all the time for attenion to one squawk a day and that is when I walk through the front door after work. Your Sennie has learned that squawking is also rewarding because you "tell her off" when she is noisey. Reinforcement can be you walking back in the room while your bird is screaming or using hand motions or voice during the screaming. You have also let her out in the morning after her screaming so you can get some sleep. I respect that but again, you are reinforcing the behavior you don't want which is screaming. She has figured out that she screams, you come and let her out. She screams and you vocalize back. You have to be really consistent if you want to correct this problem. If you leave the room and she screams, let her scream. You do not enter the room until she is quiet. Then you can reward her with a treat. The treat can be a favorite food that you only use for training, a toy, a pet on the head, etc...only use the reward for training and reinforcing the behavior you like. You can even let your bird out when she is quiet.
My bird makes an interesting noise that is somewhat loud but tolerable that he uses when he is calling to me when I am not in the room. I use the same call back to let him know I am close by and everything is alright. If he screamed, I would ignore it. He now uses the call if he wants to know where I am.

Also, don't make the bird the first thing you do when you get up. In other words, when I walk through the door or get up in the morning, I dont run to my birds cage. I try to make my schedule different for him so he doesn't know when to expect my presence or his food. In other words, I dont have set time that I play or feed him. The feeding times are close but not exact and I found with this type of schedule, he has adapted to many situations.

Make sure your Sennie is getting plenty of attention. Parrots are very social and need lots of attention. Unfortunately, you are going to have to untrain what she has been taught and it will take some time. I am sure you can correct it. I also recommend www.goodbirdinc.com. There is alot of good information on this very topic. Good luck and let us know how it goes!

 

[ellsiebird]

Thanks, i do ignore her during the day for her screams and wont reply or see her, or if i do go to the room wont acknowledge her, but my preseance seems to be ehat quientens her.... its hard when she lives in my lounge and my flat is small so rooms are restricted!!
But yeah i do try and ignore when she is off on one but my god is she determined to keep going!

I may try and change her sleeping pattern, she usually puts her self to sleep around 7pm and i notice the screams between 6-10 am... ( i dont get home till 4 am most nights urghhhhh) so do you think, if i try and keep her up longer so she doesnt sleep till ater that she may effectively have a lie in?

Very hard to ignore those morning screams as again live in flats, im only ground floor, but dont doubt she can be heard many floors above so its desperation to stop her for the sake of every one... but as you say im going to have to start all over!! x