I need help, having 2nd thoughts :(

[Lafalidle]

I have about 2 weeks until i pick up my black headed caique. Ive been spending every day at pet store bonding w her/him till weined. Everything i have saw this far has been so positive about the caiques. But just tonight i came across this site and im curious what experienced older caique owners have to say because frankly it scares me. If 9 times out of 10 once they hit around 4 and until they are around 10 they are saying they are very hard to deal with. They attack even their owners. The impression i was under and why i chose them was they were very friendly and just wanted companionship and attention but if they dont get it they could attack you? Granted i kmow yes they are birds and u can get bit but this is like psychedelic sounding stuff on this site below.

Just dont know how else to describe everything these people say.

 

[Kiwibird]

It's puberty, the point in which they become sexually mature and get a surge of hormones. All parrots have it happen, it's just like when kids go from sweet little children into teenagers. A lot on how badly the react has to do with how YOU bond with them, train them and what you allow them to get away with. One thing you must accept though, when owning a parrot, is the fact they all bite at some point. They are not feathered dogs, they are essentially wild animals, as they are not enough generations out of the wild to be truly domesticated (i.e. only positive traits bred down through thousands of generations). I have one of the most notoriously 'vicious' species (BFA, one of the hot 3 zons) when it comes to hormones, and he's a male to boot. It's not THAT big of a deal because we handle it appropriately and don't take the occasional lashing out personally. The positives of having our generally sweet, loving, inquisitive, friendly bird FAR outweigh the occasional nip or aggressive display due to natural hormonal fluctuations. Plus there are numerous things you can do to prevent or reduce aggression.

When it comes to aggressiveness with our bird:
He is NOT allowed to be vicious (and is corrected if he is) and he is NOT allowed to display 'mating' behaviors (and is ignored when he does). He IS stick trained for times he is too unpredictable to handle and we DO take as many preventative measures to reduce hormonal aggression as we can (such as keeping a year round, consistent sleep/awake schedule, feeding more vegetables and less sugary fruit during his mating season, consistent reinforcing positive behavior/ignoring negatives ext...). You will also learn your birds body language, as they usually display some signs they are feeling aggressive and should be left alone (not sure what caiques do, but pinning eyes, flared tail, slightly open wings are all pretty universal indicators of a PO'd bird).

If you mess with a bird clearly communicating he or she wants to be left alone, you can't blame the bird when you get bit. Plenty of people do though. Same with having no clue why the "bird just randomly turned vicious" at a certain age because they never did proper research and have no idea it's hormones or how to handle them. And those 2 points are where many of these parrot "horror stories" stem from.

 

[Jowelbg]

That's really well said, Kiwibird.

From my reading, puberty usually happens between 2-3 for Caiques, but can come later. Ours are coming up on bday number 2, so we'll hit it soon. I think that's an important thread to read because you need to know the worst case scenario. I don't think the 9/10 stat is correct, and I certainly don't think puberty lasts from 4-10. Otherwise, it would REALLY suck to be a Caique. From my reading, puberty is usually a year and can last 2 years. I've heard everything from "I didn't even notice it," to "I let a demon into my home." It's different for every bird.

I'd hope you weren't scared off, but definitely keep reading. I'd rather hear about an informed "no," than an uninformed "yes." I can't offer you more than my research, but there are plenty on this forum that have successfully navigated it's perils.

 

[Lafalidle]

Yeah i will definately have to learn mating seasins and body language once it comes to that point and stay clear lol. They made em sound half possessed. Its been a long time since i been around bigger birds to learn their body language, like 23 years, so it will be like learning fresh again and knowing when to stay away. Guess will be on bird terms so to speak. Do u think clicker training is good to use with bigger birds? For doing tricks yes, but also for knowing what is allowed and acceptable and what isnt?

 

[Kiwibird]

Being informed on the ways your bird will change throughout his or her life is key to being able to deal with it properly (or at least recognize what it is, and be able to do further research). So many people are "blindsided" by the onset of puberty and really have no clue why their bird "turned on them". To compound the problem, because they have no idea where the changes are stemming from, they go about trying to correct them in all the wrong ways and break trust with their bird. If you look at the age of many birds in shelters or the rehome history of older birds, the first time they are rehomed is generally within the age range the species hit puberty:20:.

If a bird is trained from a baby, many people have great success with clickers. And while it doesn't happen in all cases, some people find themselves needing to essentially re-train their bird at the onset of puberty, so the bird already having that skill set may help you work through that stage in life easier The one issue I have with clicker is you may not always have a clicker or treat with you when your bird does something you want to reinforce. That's why I prefer verbal cues/praise instead. A bird could be transitioned off a clicker to those things too.

I have never followed a particular training method, but I tend to react to Kiwi's bad behavior much the same way you would a misbehaving toddler. He gets verbal 'warnings', 'time outs' and/or ignored when misbehaving. Good behavior is consistently rewarded with verbal praises and kisses (his preferred reward). We use consistent, simple cue words and (no threatening) hand gestures to communicate our expectations of him, and have had him long enough to reinforce 2 way communication from him by reinforcing certain positive actions he can use to cue us into a need (such as raising a foot to indicate he's like to go home, or turning his back to us when he does not want to come out of his cage). It sounds insane, but that show "super nanny" actually has many concepts that you can "retrofit" to training your bird They are highly intelligent and people often underestimate their learning capabilities! I look at them more like feathered toddler than feathered dogs.

 

[dskidd]

I'd hope you weren't scared off, but definitely keep reading. I'd rather hear about an informed "no," than an uninformed "yes." I can't offer you more than my research, but there are plenty on this forum that have successfully navigated it's perils.

Both of Kiwibird's posts are perfectly written. And I completely agree with Joel's point as well.

Henry is coming up for two on New Year's Day, so I'm monitoring him closely. I've noted a few things; however, some of these behaviors may simply be because he's becoming more self-assured and confident.

I often joke about E&H running the house, and so forth; that I'm living life on their terms. However, joking aside, it really IS life on their terms, in a myriad of ways. One of my jobs, as a responsible owner, is to work within that context. It's a matter of trying to constantly create situations that work to their benefit. Simplistically, I suppose I'm attempting to fit what they want/like to do into something that works out positively for all of us. Sure, it doesn't go perfectly: I've been bitten as much as anybody else. But the rewards of their companionship overshadow by far any of the negative incidents.

In short, the training is continual: both theirs and mine.

As Kiwibird says, they are highly intelligent little creatures. In addition, they never forget--at least not in my experience.

 

[punkindave]

All good thoughts and views..
We've got a 7 year old hen that is the most passive and sweetest bird in the world until she decides to attack me!! The only bird in the house that draws blood every couple of months. I believe it's hormonal because it just comes up VERY quickly and is quite aggressive then after a few minutes she's fine. Normally starts with

The other three Caiques are quite passive and never apply excessive bite pressure, even when worked up by a wrestling session. They gnaw and try to use their beaks to gain advantage but never enough to break skin. Each one is an individual and has their own preferences for play and exploration. There's only one who totally prefers one of us, the others are equally loving on both of us!

 

[Irishj9]

I have 8 of these, average age 2.5 years, with hens laying eggs, so I have to say I dont think they are 'half possessed'.

They are FULLY possessed, but only half the time. yesterday I caught Spot with a net ( which she HATES) but only because she was being a B*tch with the lovebirds.

She spat venom at me like a snake......

Ten minutes later she was over for cuddles and scritches like nothing happened

WTH?

 

[Birdman666]

Well, these guys are feisty and playful most of the time, and that feistiness is part of the attraction. The rest of the time it's a pain in the Ahh.... finger!

Feisty goes with the territory. However, a well socialized Caique that gets handled often isn't likely to turn into an unhandleable monster. They may have their moments and moodswings, but it really shouldn't be anything too unexpected, or difficult to manage, with a little common sense and discipline... You will get to know your bird.

All birds go through their hormonal days. I wouldn't lose much sleep over it.

Look at how many people think amazons become these raging out of control hormonal beasts... and yet mine never really have. And macaws? Remember the thread about the aggressive greenwings chasing people around the house - Yeah, well, apparently Maggie never got the memo!

If the bird gets handled and socialized it will remain pet quality even if it has a few mood swings now and again.

If the bird doesn't get handled or socialized... then... well... that would be on you, in my opinion. And it wouldn't be a hormonal thing...

And Caiques DO get spoiled bird syndrome, and people blame hormones for that. When it's really about a lack of discipline, and boundary setting.

So consider the source. How was that bird raised?! Bet there's a cause and effect in there somewhere... (But I'm kinda jaded and biased at this point!)

 

[punkindave]

Don't forget also, that they all get angry if you rudely interrupt them while they are "on a mission".. It could be an especially satisfying "surf", tearing up a piece of paper towel or playing in the laundry basket. Always "distract", don't try to stop them..

 

[Birdman666]

Don't forget also, that they all get angry if you rudely interrupt them while they are "on a mission".. It could be an especially satisfying "surf", tearing up a piece of paper towel or playing in the laundry basket. Always "distract", don't try to stop them..

Now that one I can totally see... I think the same advice goes for Sennies as well!

Ranks right up there with don't attempt to pick up an amazon on "overload." Same concept. Different bird. Similar result if you fail to heed advice...

And people have the nerve to look surprised when it happens!