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Post by lolwutburds on Sept 29, 2010 7:59:51 GMT 10
Merrick, my Yellow Crowned Amazon, is REALLY scared of our vacuum cleaner. The only time he won't freak out and flail around the cage is when he's hiding behind his snuggie on his sleeping perch.
I have tried de-sensitising him to it by having him on my hand and telling him good boy and touching the machine. He will touch it and look calm when it's off.
I can vacuum all other areas of the house with the bird room door open but can't take it in the room when it's on. I've started storing it in the bird room when it's not in use and he has no problem having it next to the cage.
I've also tried turning it on it another room and talking to him while i have him out on my hand. He will have no issue with the sound in another room but if i walk him to it he'll fly away.
I'm confused about where to go from here. I won't clip him so he'll always just fly away when he sees it. it's getting to the point i can't vacuum the bird room if i'm home alone, as i can't trust him alone in the lounge on the playstand (he flies around to eat the speaker wire that's running to the back of the room...)
Help!
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Post by vankarhi on Sept 29, 2010 11:20:45 GMT 10
Maybe you might have to just move his cage out of the room when you want to vaccum it. He might just not like the noise of the vaccum cleaner and maybe he never will get used to it either. If you can't move his cage maybe then you could put him into another cage somewhere else......maybe a travel cage or something and just move him for a short time so you can vaccum.
I am lucky my birds don't mind the vaccum cleaner and even the babies I am raising at the moment are not phased by it even when i put the nozzle around their cages to clean up their mess........they just keep eating lol and my pet ekkie and cockatiel just scream with the vaccum cleaner ....... I am sure that especially Erik my male eclectus tries to be louder than the vaccum cleaner lol
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Post by Robyn on Sept 29, 2010 11:46:27 GMT 10
That's the same advice i would have given Tracey. I don't have an issue with any of my birds either but some do some crazy things when the Vac or mower & wiper sniper are being used, Precious will screech & compete. I had a boarder here a young eclectus & he got into the fruit bowl & had a bath. That was funny. Some get into the water bowl as well. Crazy bunch.
With your bird Kali i think he is scared & the more you try & get him used of having that big loud thing going the worse he'll get. I think i would just ignore his reaction, get in & quickly vac the bird room so he can calm down once you leave the room. Personally if he were my bird i wouldn't be trying to handle him & turn the vac on i would think i was negatively reinforcing his fear.
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Post by lolwutburds on Sept 29, 2010 12:49:25 GMT 10
None of my other birds have any issue, even my blind ekkie has never had an issue with loud noises and i can have the vacuum right near her head.
Unfortunately i can't move his cage out of the room as it's over two metres wide and weighs about as much as i do! I guess i will just try putting him in the travel cage if i am home alone.
It's the reinforcing that is confusing me. If he is fine when he's behind the snuggie and let's me use it without freaking, it that negative or positive reinforcement? I understand most things about the whole reinfrcing behaviour thing but i can't decide whether i am showing him it's not so bad, or if it's worse to let him hide.
He does actually stick his head around and watch it from behind the fleece, and his eyes won't pin like they usually do when he is excited or angry, so i would think he'd be calm, but i'm not sure.
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Post by Robyn on Sept 29, 2010 13:43:28 GMT 10
I think you have just answered your own question.
My way of thinking would be if my bird was comfortable in his cage hiding behind something while i did the vacuuming why would i force him to be outside scared witless. I would think forcing him to accept the vacuum cleaning is a negative & leaving him in the cage while you clean the room would be a more positive option.
I also have Amazons but mine will only compete with loud noises, i think mine a bullet proof so to speak. LOL.
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Post by vankarhi on Sept 29, 2010 16:54:37 GMT 10
If he seems ok while hiding behind his snuggy......and he is not freaking out.......then I would just vacuum his room. Maybe you are making more out of this than what he is?  My suggestions were just ideas........not necessarily for you to do.......just options if they suited. I also think that by trying to show him the vacuum cleaner etc etc is really not achieving anything while it is turned off..........it is when it is turned on that seems to be the problem |
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Post by lolwutburds on Sept 29, 2010 19:00:33 GMT 10
If he seems ok while hiding behind his snuggy......and he is not freaking out.......then I would just vacuum his room. Maybe you are making more out of this than what he is? My suggestions were just ideas........not necessarily for you to do.......just options if they suited. I also think that by trying to show him the vacuum cleaner etc etc is really not achieving anything while it is turned off..........it is when it is turned on that seems to be the problem oh, i appreciate the ideas! I'm open to any idea, which is why i posted. I probably worry a little more with Merrick than my other birds simply for the fact he is an Amazon and i'm worried about the potential for bad behaviour as he hits sexual maturity. I try not to baby him and cuddle too much, he's never allowed to sit on my shoulder like the others do and we work on recall and positive reinforcement on everything. I am lax on it with the others as they are all 'easier' birds (for want of a better word) and don't seem to require as much training to be wonderful companions. I could be making more out of it than what it is, but when he freaks and falls to the bottom of the cage, I do feel a slight cause for worry. His eyes will pin like mad and not in a happy 'i see peas in your hand' kind of way. A friend on another forum has encouraged me to put the vacuum cleaner on in the next room each day and slowly move a little bit closer each day, using praise and treats. If he leans back or eyes start pinning i am to take a step back and praise when he is calm. I think that's the way I will go. At the moment i am doing a similar thing, but it's much more infrequent. |
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Post by Robyn on Sept 29, 2010 20:03:05 GMT 10
Well you seem to have it all under control then. I hope your on the right track with his training.
For what its worth I just treat my Amazons just like the Eclectus & the rest of my birds. It hadn't occurred to me that there could be a problem with their behavior & that they should be treated any different. My 2 are almost 5 years old & i must say i haven't had 1 problem that i feel is worth worrying about.
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Post by lolwutburds on Sept 29, 2010 20:16:39 GMT 10
Well you seem to have it all under control then. I hope your on the right track with his training. For what its worth I just treat my Amazons just like the Eclectus & the rest of my birds. It hadn't occurred to me that there could be a problem with their behavior & that they should be treated any different. My 2 are almost 5 years old & i must say i haven't had 1 problem that i feel is worth worrying about. That's great to hear  You hear so much from the Americans about Amazons being such difficult birds but personally i've only heard of one problem with a hormonal Amazon here in Aus. Not that i know many people with them.. Maybe I should not fret so much? I find that the Americans can get overly-concerned about their birds, like "my bird sneezed, i've made an emergency appointment at the vet!" kind of attitude is rife over there, while the Aussies tend to take a more relaxed viewpoint.. What kind of zons do you own? Are they pets or breeders? Do you find it harder to read their body language as they get older? I am finding it quite easy to tell the difference in body language now between 'happy-excited' and 'angry-excited' but i'm wondering if that will change. |
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Post by Robyn on Sept 29, 2010 21:09:48 GMT 10
Kali, as far as i am concerned all companion parrots have the potential to act up, be hormonal if you like. Its all part of owning a companion parrot. I don't take their behavior to much to heart. I guess you could call me totally laid back where my birds are concerned. They are birds if they want to hang off me fine, if not well that's fine to.
I don't mean to knock the Americans either but a little over the top comes to mind.
I have a pair of BF Amazons. The male is super friendly but the hen is a bit stand offish. They live outdoors in an aviary & i go have a play & cuddle every day. I don't really have a problem with reading their body language i haven't really thought about it to tell the truth. I just enjoy having them around. The male will growl & fan his tail if he isn't happy. At this point in time i think the hormones are working overtime as i do hear some real weird sound coming from their cage. But the hen isn't ready or they are not compatible. I am not to worried about them breeding although it would be nice.
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Post by avinet on Sept 29, 2010 22:14:54 GMT 10
Kali, as far as i am concerned all companion parrots have the potential to act up, be hormonal if you like. Its all part of owning a companion parrot. I don't take their behavior to much to heart. I guess you could call me totally laid back where my birds are concerned. They are birds if they want to hang off me fine, if not well that's fine to. I don't mean to knock the Americans either but a little over the top comes to mind. Sounds like your approach and mine are very similar Robyn - I like my birds to be birds, and behave like birds. If my Greys want attention I give them attention, if they want to hang out with each other and not me then that is fine as well - gives the other birds a chance to get a shoulder. In fact I treat them identically to my pet cockatiels and other birds in the house, and they are two very well adjusted birds without the neurosis that Greys have a reputation for. cheers Mike |
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Post by lolwutburds on Sept 30, 2010 7:45:34 GMT 10
Oh, I understand they all have the potential.. I have a Nanday that 'makes fun' with her toys constantly and can be quite hormonal and grumpy. But she's small, she's easy to read and doesn't do a lot of damage with that little beak. Any time she bites me, it's 100% my fault because I know when not to go near her.
On the other end of the spectrum, I have a GCC that's the same age. He is completely asexual and a snuggly little thing. I don't think i will get the same problems with him as I do with Coco. I guess it's just the luck of the draw.
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Post by vankarhi on Sept 30, 2010 11:27:42 GMT 10
back to the problem with you bird and the vacuum cleaner........ ;D ..... I was thinking this morning while doing my housework and feeding/cleaning birds.......why are my birds not afraid of the vacuum cleaner??
For me when I take a chick out of the nest I put it in the brooder which is dark and warm and place it in the spare room for maybe a day or 2....just so the baby can adjust to the new sounds of being inside. Then it goes into the dining/lounge room, still safe and warm in the brooder which is nice and dark still. When I vacuum at this stage I start in the other end of the house and work my way down to the lounge/dining and kitchen then I vacuum my back verandah as it has marine carpet on it. So I guess in a way I probably have desensitised my birds without realising it. Now I can vacuum around the babies little day cages (small parrot cages) and they just sit there and watch me or continue to play or eat.
So I am thinking what your friend has suggested is probably a good idea........since you can't remove him from the room anyway.
The only bird I have ever had issues with is my breeding eclectus hen who once was my pet. She was by far the best pet bird I have ever had........but somewhere along the line I have done something wrong to her and she seems to have taken a very deep dislike to whatever it was I did or was doing. Apart from their diet (the ekkies that is) I don't treat them any different to any other bird I have owned...........but now I guess I have learned sooooooo much in the past couple of years especially the past few months about animal behaviour and the do's and don'ts etc etc.......for me I have changed slightly the way I do things.......which I guess is giving the birds a "choice" and I don't seem to have any problems now.
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raven
Addicted Member
Posts: 117
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Post by raven on Oct 2, 2010 0:12:59 GMT 10
My partner is phobic about spiders, I used to be scared of the dark, she is now able to put little spiders outside, I am OK in the dark....just let Merrick alone, let him hide in the place he feels safe, do your vacuuming and maybe eventually Merrick will slowly realise the vaccy won't hurt him. There is no advantage to scaring or pressuring him with the vacuum. You vacuum, he hides..no harm done.
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My suggestions were just ideas........not necessarily for you to do.......just options if they suited.
You hear so much from the Americans about Amazons being such difficult birds but personally i've only heard of one problem with a hormonal Amazon here in Aus. Not that i know many people with them..
