wont stop a stupid whistle

[justinfisk]

hi can anyone help me out cause i am close to getting rid of me african grey for the last few month he wont stop doing a really loud alarm like whistle mostly when a leave the room and even worse when a go in kitchen but now he is even doing it when we are sat with him am trying to stop him doing it even shouting t him but nothing works any ideas on what to do

[Jayd]

There's a number of way's to handle a screaming Grey, Shouting and getting rid of you companion isn't the way to do it! Some questions? How old? How long have you had him? His age? Male or female? Anything changed or new to his surroundings? Before knowing the answers to these question, you might try: Don't yell at him!, Ignore him when he yells! Tell him 'Talk easy!, Sing to him when he yells! In between screams give him a foot toy! Never acknowledge him when he yells!!!

Thanks

Jayd, Maggie, Spock and the flock

[danmcq]

The best thing you can do is be patient, ignore the sound and perhaps replace it with a more likable whistle of our choice. It is a contact call as is normal when a grey wants to be with it's flock.

 

The worst think you could do is shout at your Grey. It will encourage the behavior even more and perhaps raise that sounds volume higher to match yours.

 

Patience, patience, patience and ignoring......

 

BTW - Welcome to the forum.

[Luvparrots]

Hi justinfisk, I'm sorry you are unhappy with your grey at this time. What is his name, how long has he been a member of your family and how old is he?? Details please. I found if my grey calls after me or at me it is just that she wants some attention or to know where I am. I always tell her what I am doing, where I am going and when I'll be back just like I would any member of my family. Our greys are so intelligent and really do try to understand us. Try to be patient and talk to your grey. I agree with others shouting does not help it only confuses them more into wonder why we are shouting or are unhappy. Patience and letting my grey be in my presence if I can seems to help in my home.

[judygram]

I can imagine that your shouting back to him when he whistles is only reinforcing the behavior, you have to ignore the bad behavior and reward the good and remember any kind of reaction to the obnoxious noise will only be entertainment for him to continue it. I know this will be hard to do but its the only way for him to learn to be quieter but some greys are just noiser than others.

Why don't you tell us some more about you and your grey, what is his name, how old is he, how long have you had him and so forth so we can get to know you a little better and be more able to help you with your problem but please don't think you have to get rid of him because he makes a noise that is driving you crazy, he needs a stable home with owners who won't give up on him just because he is too loud at times.

[justinfisk]

hi thanx for all the advice his name is rylie am not sure if he is a boy or girl and he is coming up to one year old he is relly soft bird and also a think the whistle sometimes means cause he wants tea cause the erson a got him off used to give hum a cooked tea t same time as they eaten lol so wen a do this he goes quite until he has eaten

[justinfisk]

hi thanx rylie is coming up to one year old excelent talker am not sure if he is male or female and ave had him for about 4 month he eats a lot of human food as in sausage and chicken cause previous owner used to cook him same tea as what they had thats why a think he does the whistle more when a go in kitchen cause he wants tea lol

[ozziebird]

sorry your having problems, I echo everyone elses thoughts, telling him off just makes him think 'ooooh this is fun I get a reaction' so will do it more - also most birds shut up when they are noshing their food anyways definately reward the good behaviour, whistle a fun tune when he makes his alarm noise, divert his attention with something fun rather than shouting, little things like him eating at the same time as you etc (esp if you sit down for evening meal) make him feel like he belongs and is part of 'the flock' , and as said above explain what your doing, they are so blimmin intelligent and will soon associate certain words with actions! treat him like you would a 5 year old, ozzie sometimes does this but luckily its only been occassional for eg when we come back off holiday,or he is in a mood over something, I have always whistled some daft tune or sing a song he likes to join in with to divert his attention and within moments he forgets he was making such a din, when he has done it out of the cage I have sometimes put him quite 'uncerimoniously' (but gently) down onto the floor and turned my back on him, immediately he has quietened and climbed back up to his cage or java and stopped the noise, there are always times that the little monkeys are just darn right obnoxiously noisy and in a mood about something or nothing, just like we are at times, but this is part and parcel of owning a grey and the benefits believe you me far outway their noisy outbursts, dont get me wrong when they are in full flow, sometimes you want to yell 'for goodness sake shut up' but its all about being one step ahead of them and although it can be ear piercing its about being patient and thinking through your response and what will eventually settle your bird or create an ongoing problem, it IS something that can be sorted but it will take time and patience;)

[judygram]

You need to offer him a healthier diet and quit feeding him sausage for that is way too fatty and salty, take a browse thru the bird food room for lots of ideas and suggestions as to what to feed. It is ok for them to eat a lot of the stuff we eat as long as it is without added salt and fat, a little chicken now and then is fine too. There are also several threads that tell what we shouldn't feed them for it is toxic to their little systems. Try offering plenty of veggies and a little fruit, beans, rice, some pasta and grains to give him a wide variety of things to eat, he might not take to them right off the bat but keep offering them and sometimes they will eventually try them.

[Luvparrots]

My grey loves to steal from my plate also. I just move a portion of what I know she can eat to "her side" of the plate. She seems to enjoy this.

[birdhouse]

Birds only keep the vocabulary that amuses them or gets them something. Sounds like the whistle gets Rylie food, attention & amusement so he's not going to stop until all of that goes away.

 

Everyone has already covered the best approaches to your problem. One other thing you might remember is how well our birds read our body language. There's no pretending to tune it out because Rylie will probably know that he's still getting a reaction out of you. That makes it a little trickier, but we always hope we're the smarter beastie when it comes to our greys.

[Lambert58]

Hello, Justin.

 

Greys whistle. They LOVE to whistle. Your fid is probably contact calling, as has been mentioned, or is just whistling for the joy of it. It's what they do. Spend as much 1 on 1 time with him as you can, is my best advice. Let him know he's loved and talk to him.

 

I really recommend you visit the posts here dedicated to our fids' diet. Salt isn't good for them and can cause problems. Same with sugar. Do some dietary research and get him some good pellets and balance that with fresh veggies as much as you can.

 

There's a lot that goes into the responsibility of caring for a grey, so the more you know, the more your fid will be happy

[Casey Luria]

My grey used to do that and I replied with a whisle I made up. Eventually she switched to my whistle and used it when ever she wanted to know where I was. I did it with my Amazon, who is louder and got the same results. Ignoring the behavior might work but the bird will try and find another way to get your attention and it might not be any better. Your reaction is negative attention and the bird will take that as it is better than no response at all. Yelling at the grey is likely to be interesting to him, most parrots are drama queens and love a dramatic response. Because they are flock animals they want to know where you, part of their flock are. Just let him know and everyone is happier.

Casey

[Popsicle]

Maybe he learnt he gets something good out of screaming/whistling loud. Maybe attention? My parrots did the same. And at the time I didn't know how to correct it.

No matter what, don't shout at him!! Remember to always ignore bad behaviour and reward good behaviour.

Try what this woman teaches in this video:

 

I know someone who tried it and after a while it worked. But have patience... bad habits won't change overnight.

Good luck!