Conure troubles

1914 Views 21 Replies 7 Participants Last post by HrtsAfyre, Jul 31, 2014

Aisliyna

Discussion Starter · Jun 22, 2014

Kree had become obsessed with the Budgies to the point where he didn't want to spend time with us or Arra and he'd call to them day in and day out from his cage. He stopped human talking when he was doing so well (he's talking again since his ban).

Even when he was outside with them he obsesses, following Polar around so that he seemed more like his crazy stalker than his friend and not letting anyone else near him or else they get their tails pulled. Outside he lets off this high pitched call that must drive our neighbors batty, about once a second. It will last the entire time he's outside, hours if he's out there that long and I started having trouble catching him to bring him inside no matter what the bribe. It's been a few days since I stopped the aviary visits and now we have a new problem. He's started chewing the plaster moulding around the ceiling. I've had to reduce his out of cage time to only a couple of hours a day because he has to be closely supervised or he will literally tear the ceiling apart. This isn't exactly something new but it's gotten worse and every time my dad comes over (my landlord) I cringe and wonder what he's thinking about the damage. I don't even know how to fix it!

Any ideas how I can prevent Kree from destroying our house?

He's lost the aviary trips and reduced time outside his cage. I'm wracking my brain to think about how I can offer him the most stimulating environment without giving my dad high blood pressure over the damage he is doing.

He has plenty of toys and I'm always trying to think up new ways to keep him occupied but the only thing he really likes is his foraging basket... and the ceiling...

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Budget baby

· #2 · Jun 22, 2014

OH no Ali, Kree has become some what of a stalker well and truly by the sounds. Has he got a cage mate? Obviously he feels he likes the company of the budgies poor kree. meanwhile the ceiling is disappearing

I wish I had a solution to offer but I can't think of anything right now .

Aisliyna

Discussion Starter · #3 · Jun 22, 2014

Pretty boy said:
OH no Ali, Kree has become some what of a stalker well and truly by the sounds. Has he got a cage mate? Obviously he feels he likes the company of the budgies poor kree. meanwhile the ceiling is disappearing I wish I had a solution to offer but I can't think of anything right now .

He likes the company of some of the Budgies but he isn't nice to all of them. His cage mate is our Sun Conure Arra and they get along well but their bond isn't concrete. Arra would rather be with people and Kree would rather be with the Budgies. I've considered building them their own aviary next to Ark's in our front courtyard (far away from the Budgies in the backyard) but I'm worried I'd put lots of work and money into it only to find that he screeches the whole time and can't be allowed out there. I also considered converting a spare room into a bird room but I'd worry that once again, I'd put lots of effort into it only to find that he's ignoring the toys and climbing structures and tearing the house apart..

I did consider putting them in WITH Ark since he was housed with Sun Conures his whole life before I got him, although his aviary isn't exactly parrot proof and would need some work. I saw Ark with the Conures before he came to us, playing with them and bathing together with them. I know he was fine for 4 years of his life with them but bringing myself to put my babies in with a huge scary looking Currawong just seems... wrong..

If you think of anything let me know

I'd love to hear anyone's ideas.

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aluz

· #4 · Jun 22, 2014

I'm sorry Kree is giving you a hard time, it's clear you are doing all you can to prevent him from chewing your house.
Maybe if you make him some type of scarecrow to prevent him from accessing the ceiling or other areas. Or when he flies to a place where you don't want him to, you can put him on time out inside the cage, and by doing this consistently he will associate that with going back to the cage.
I do hope your Kree calms down and gives your house a break from all the chewing.

Aisliyna

Discussion Starter · #5 · Jun 22, 2014

aluz said:
I'm sorry Kree is giving you a hard time, it's clear you are doing all you can to prevent him from chewing your house.
Maybe if you make him some type of scarecrow to prevent him from accessing the ceiling or other areas. Or when he flies to a place where you don't want him to, you can put him on time out inside the cage, and by doing this consistently he will associate that with going back to the cage.
I do hope your Kree calms down and gives your house a break from all the chewing.

It's a good idea and I've tried something similar before. Balloons tied to my computer to keep him away. The problem is what started as scary he soon learned wasn't any real threat and now my computer is missing 6 keys

I don't know of anything he is afraid of now :S

The ceiling is such a large area, they have access to 4 rooms, I'm not sure if there's anything that can keep them off every part of it.

Time outs are also a problem with Kree. Arra is easy to catch and put away but Kree has taken me a year to teach him to associate going back in his cage with treats and praise. I don't want their cage to be a place of punishment. That will undo all my hard work and encourage more screeching.

Such a hard situation

aluz

· #6 · Jun 22, 2014

You are right about the cage thing, it would go against your training method... Maybe someone else will come up with a better idea.

ParrotletsRock

· #7 · Jun 22, 2014

I don't know if this would work or not, but how about a plastic snake? Some of those are pretty realistic and birds should have a instinctive fear of them. Place it near the ceiling where you don't want him to be.

Aisliyna

Discussion Starter · #8 · Jun 22, 2014

aluz said:
You are right about the cage thing, it would go against your training method... Maybe someone else will come up with a better idea.

Thanks for trying. I really appreciate it

ParrotletsRock said:
I don't know if this would work or not, but how about a plastic snake? Some of those are pretty realistic and birds should have a instinctive fear of them. Place it near the ceiling where you don't want him to be.

I think my kids have a toy snake I can try and it may work for the spots he's already started. It just won't stop him from starting up a hole someplace new. Any where there is plaster he knows he can create a hole so that's all the walls and edges of the ceiling in every room. I'm thinking I need to find a way to discipline him when I catch him doing it but how do you discipline a bird that thrives on noise, fuss and chaos? There's nothing he likes more than creating a reaction. I've taught them the command "off" and they know what it means. Arra will obey but Kree will sometimes just sit there looking at me like "what are you going to do about it". If he's up higher than I can reach I have to use a broom to push him off and he'll give that broom a good yelling at and a bite before finally flying away! Then he'll sit there making laughing sounds because he thinks it's a great game... He truly has no fear

He's also not food driven like Arra is so attention is his reward in training and ignoring him is his punishment but I can't ignore him while he's destroying stuff lol

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Aisliyna

Discussion Starter · #9 · Jul 4, 2014

For anyone interested in the outcome of this issue. I gave up trying to find one. There's no way to keep the house safe from sharp beaks so I decided to go another direction.

I just about to order a new palace for my babies. They will still be getting the same reduced "out of cage" time but their cage will basically take up the entire room.

Us humans can go inside to interact with them and when we're not around they'll have plenty of space to fly and tons of room for toys and branches. They can still come out when I'm able to 100% supervise them but I think this will make them happier and healthier

http://www.gtmall.com.au/walk-in-bird-aviary-cage-large.html

I just have to go measure first and make sure it will fit LOL

Aisliyna

Discussion Starter · #10 · Jul 4, 2014

It will fit with some rearranging and I'm sure everyone that visits will think I'm an even crazier bird lady but I don't care! It's ordered

I can't wait to see the Conure's reaction to their new home!

ParrotletsRock

· #11 · Jul 4, 2014

awesome cage!! cant wait to see pix!!

SkyBluesMommy

· #12 · Jul 4, 2014

Lucky ducks, errr, I mean conures! What a great new home. Can't wait to see it all set-up.

Cozette

· #13 · Jul 4, 2014

My budgie tries to chew the cieling too if she can reach it so I had to lower her toys in that area so she can't reach it. How are they able to access the ceiling? Sounds like you have a solution, but as a side note, I know people that use a small cage with a cover as a time out cage rather than a main cage. The stalking the budgies may be hormonal behavior.

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Aisliyna

Discussion Starter · #14 · Jul 4, 2014

Thanks guys! I'll put up pics as soon as I have it set up

I still can't get over how enormous it is.

Cozette said:
My budgie tries to chew the cieling too if she can reach it so I had to lower her toys in that area so she can't reach it. How are they able to access the ceiling? Sounds like you have a solution, but as a side note, I know people that use a small cage with a cover as a time out cage rather than a main cage. The stalking the budgies may be hormonal behavior.

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Kree sits on top of the kitchen cabinets to access the corners. He will also sit on top of door frames or curtain rods and rip the paint right off the walls in those spots. Arra chews on the door frames themselves. There are so many problem spots I wouldn't know where to start keeping them off the kitchen cabinets, door frames and curtain rails. So frustrating.

Here's the worst spot but there are about 6 others he's started and plenty of spots he could start.

The problem isn't just using a cage as a time-out spot but getting him to come to us. He won't step up unless there's a good reason for it, whether it's attention, food or cuddles. If he thinks he's in trouble he will avoid me and I won't be able to catch him to even put him in time-out. Kree didn't come to us tame so we've had to put a lot of effort into getting him to trust us and hands in general. If I start putting him in time-out he's going to stop letting us catch him at all and I'll have to chase him around the room for an hour every time I want to put him to bed at night. These guys reach sexual maturity at 2.5 years and mine are only a year old so I'm not sure if they are old enough to start acting hormonally yet. It's possible though. Kree has been a lot calmer since banning him from the aviary so it's nice to have my boy back.

If having a more stimulating cage environment doesn't fix them then I can just stop letting them out entirely and start visiting them instead.

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Cozette

· #15 · Jul 5, 2014

Wow that is really bad! I would also be worried about them ingesting dry wall.

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Aisliyna

Discussion Starter · #16 · Jul 5, 2014

Cozette said:
Wow that is really bad! I would also be worried about them ingesting dry wall.

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Yes, I am worried.

It's taken him months of a bite here - a bite there, to get it that bad because as soon as we see him doing it he gets told to get down. He seems to be mostly shredding it rather than eating it because I have to sweep up the pieces off the floor afterwards but that doesn't mean he isn't eating any at all. Ugh

Budgies are so much easier lol

Aisliyna

Discussion Starter · #17 · Jul 9, 2014

Freight tracker says it's set to be delivered today however there has been a vaccination resistant strain of Rubella/German Measles going around and of course I would get it. I've been stuck in bed for days, I don't think I've been this sick since I had the chicken pox when I was 16. I'm not sure I'll be able to put it together but I'm going to try my best because my poor birds haven't been out of their cage at all

photos to come, hopefully.

SkyBluesMommy

· #18 · Jul 9, 2014

Ah, Allie, get well soon. I had chicken pox at 15 and have never felt like I recovered 100%, so I can't imagine anything worse. Can't wait to see the new set-up for the birdies.

Aisliyna

Discussion Starter · #19 · Jul 9, 2014

SkyBluesMommy said:
Ah, Allie, get well soon. I had chicken pox at 15 and have never felt like I recovered 100%, so I can't imagine anything worse. Can't wait to see the new set-up for the birdies.

I believe it. I was diagnosed a year later with a heart murmur and feinting spells, which I never had before chicken pox. I assumed the 2 were linked. This is just as bad but without the unbelievably itchy rash, thank goodness!

Unpacking the 5 huge heavy boxes was enough to do me in. This is the puzzle I get to put together, which wouldn't be so bad but it's really heavy and I'm the only adult around today.

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HrtsAfyre

· #20 · Jul 24, 2014

You are such a dedicated and caring person who has gone to great lengths and expense to keep ALL your birds happy and healthy. I hope the large room aviary solves you're conure problems. It definitely sounds like he is enjoying your attention, including the negative attention, ie the broom.

Forgive me if I missed reading through all your posts and my suggestion is something you already tried. I did read that he's a flighted bird. If all else fails and even if it goes against your grain, you may have to resort to clipping his wings. He may just settle down once he finds he has no "lift" or "maneuverability". Dependant on you to get from point A to point B he can only destroy what you give him on his play stand. If this causes you scratching problems or other behavior issues, contact Michael, The Parrot Wizard or watch his parrot training videos, he may have solutions for you. His techniques have psychology behind how to interact with your parrot. This Conure may just need to find things to do that amuse you. They are little clowns and enjoy doing entertaining tricks for clicks or treats.

Good luck with the indoor aviary and or any solution you come up with. Your perseverance and commitment are admirable. Keep me/us posted on your progress. I look forward to updates.

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