siobha9 Posted October 4, 2007 Share Posted October 4, 2007 I am not sure if I have posted this in the right place... should it be in feeding or in Training, but we have a problem. Liath has 3 dishes, one for water, one for warm fresh food, and one for dry mix(can't get her to eat pellets). So my problem is the dry mix. She chucks it everywhere, on purpose. She actually gets into the bowl and uses her feet and her beak and sprays it. She seems to be doing it to get my attention, as I have a wood floor and it makes a satisfying sound. How do I stop her? I have tried Ignoring her... doesn't work, she just empties the bowl Taking the dish... works till I give her back the dish. Yelling at her... stops until I stop yelling and then goes at it again. waiting till she stops and then fussing over her.. but by then there is hardly any food in the bowl, and loads on the floor. (this is the strategy I am using at the moment) I know she is doing this to get my attention but it is so wasteful, and my house looks like I never sweep the floor. She only does this with the dry mix. Any suggestions? Siobhan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted October 4, 2007 Share Posted October 4, 2007 Guess what Siobhan, your yelling at her is attention and she will keep it up to get it. Just walk away and ignore it, when she realizes it gets her nothing she will quit. Birds are wasteful and there is nothing you can do about that, my Josey wastes a lot of food also but yelling at her will accomplish nothing but making her do it all the more. You ignore the bad behavior and reward the good, so when she goes for a while not throwing out her food praise her and when she throws food out turn your back on her and ignore it, with no yelling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danmcq Posted October 4, 2007 Share Posted October 4, 2007 Dayo did the same thing for a while also. He just stopped on his own with no input or reaction from me or Kim at all. I guess we weren't any fun ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siobha9 Posted October 4, 2007 Author Share Posted October 4, 2007 Yes, I said yelling WAS a strategy I had tried. Until I realised she was looking for attention, and of course until she starting yelling back! At the moment I am doing the ignoring her until she is quiet and then fussing over her. But it is SO wasteful. I just hoped someone had a better idea, but if this is what I must do, then I will. Do you think taking her dish away and only giving it back for say 20 minutes at a time would help? I am just afraid of her being hungry. Siobhan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 4, 2007 Share Posted October 4, 2007 Radar does the same thing. He reminds me of a chicken scratching in the food. I ignore him, but he still does it. I think, for us anyway, it is just one of those "grey" things that I just have to live with. Debbie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 4, 2007 Share Posted October 4, 2007 <br><br>Post edited by: radar, at: 2007/10/04 14:27 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted October 4, 2007 Share Posted October 4, 2007 No I wouldn't take her dish away, just ignore the food throwing and she will give it up after a while. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danmcq Posted October 4, 2007 Share Posted October 4, 2007 Well, after Radars post of a 30 year old still doing it, it sounds like it may come an go over and over and over Ohwell, must be a "Grey Thing", I know they scratch around like that in the bottom of their cage and on the floor sometimes too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siobha9 Posted October 4, 2007 Author Share Posted October 4, 2007 OH MY GOD 30 years of sweeping up uneaten food!!!! Aaaaggh. OK best learn to live with it then. It just as well she's cute... My kids would be in major trouble for chucking their dinner on the floor. She gets away with so much as they keep reminding me! Maybe I should teach her how to use a dustpan and brush.... Siobhan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BMustee Posted October 4, 2007 Share Posted October 4, 2007 lol...if you teach him to use a dustpan you would have to post it on Utube! LoL, good mental image. {Feel-good-0002006E} I know that pretty much all young greys go through the "chicken scratch" phase, mine had his come and go already. It says on your profile that your grey is over a year old, so I'm not sure if maybe yours just didn't grow out of it or not. From some articles I have read greys do forage on the ground for food, so this could just be an instinctual thing. I would follow Judy's advice, ignoring it is the only way...everything else is attention. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MARIR Posted October 4, 2007 Share Posted October 4, 2007 Izzy (cag) would bark like our dog, and then when, the dog (Spot) would go over to the cage, Izzy would pelt the dog with the bird pellets. He must of finally caught on and started catching them in his mouth... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
loviechick Posted October 4, 2007 Share Posted October 4, 2007 Maybe you could try getting one of those larger ceramic covered bowls and see if that helps in the food throwing escapades! I do feel your pain though. BOTH of my greys find it fun to lift their bowl out of the holder and dump their ENTIRE bowl of food. Now granted hardly any gets on the floor, however talk about a waste of food. I caught on quickly so they only get a little bit of pellets in their dish in the morning when I leave for work, enough to last a couple hours until I make it home for lunch to cook for them. Yesterday when I was cleaning the cages, there was about 1.5 cups of perfectly good pellets in the bottom of both of their cages, its a waste, but that's one of the "perks" of having a CAG I suppose:laugh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imran Posted October 4, 2007 Share Posted October 4, 2007 Polly does the same thing too.. throws food out of the cage she doesnt wana eat..:evil: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest briansmum Posted October 4, 2007 Share Posted October 4, 2007 yep i can sympathise too we often get hit by flying pellets, i just ignore it nothing else you can do really. it is very annoying though, i spend all that money on those pellets and time preparing his fresh food and he throws it about. for example, every morning brian has some sunflower seeds for breakfast. well i had a melon in the fridge that was just asking to be cut into and thought bri would really appreciate a breakfast treat, so i put him aome lovely big chunks in his dish. on top of the sunflower seeds. guess what my feathered friend did? threw ALL the melon out one by one as hard and far as he could to get to the seeds. unfortunately you're gonna have to get used to the mess and the waste cos chances are she's gonna do it forever :dry: someone posted once (i'm so sorry i forget who it was) that greys throw food on the floor because in the wild they'd throw bits down there to keep potential predators from being interested in them up in the trees. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lovemyGreys Posted October 5, 2007 Share Posted October 5, 2007 Definitely a grey thing, only one of mine does it thankfully, she chucks everything on the floor, i'm forever sweeping, just ignore is all i can add Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 5, 2007 Share Posted October 5, 2007 Just be sure, when you sweep up all that food, to put it outside for the wild birds. They love it, especially now that it is getting cooler. I keep a container & put Radar's "excess" in it, and transfer to a flat container outside. Debbie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Makena Posted October 5, 2007 Share Posted October 5, 2007 Yep Makena does the same thing... I just put small amounts of pellets in his bowl and continue to refill them during the day. I also give him mixes of fruits/veggies and he picks out every piece that he doesn't like and flings them across the room... lovely... Oh well, just another grey quirk! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest briansmum Posted October 5, 2007 Share Posted October 5, 2007 lol, we should start a "longest grey food fling" contest and see whos grey can throw their food the furthest :lol: :lol: :lol: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imran Posted October 5, 2007 Share Posted October 5, 2007 yea.. i get mad sometimes too.. cause it takes hardwork to cut the veggies and fruits into small pieces... and its all chucked outside the cage.. but its ok kids are kids just bare it hehe :laugh: yea beccy "longest grey food fling" would b cool topic.. i ll give polly the food he hates the most.. to win the contest :laugh:<br><br>Post edited by: imran, at: 2007/10/05 12:18 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Makena Posted October 6, 2007 Share Posted October 6, 2007 Yah good idea Beccy! I think it should also include wall art... you wouldn't amount of stuff I find splattered on the wall!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest briansmum Posted October 6, 2007 Share Posted October 6, 2007 my newly deocrated walls are in such a state now! lucky for brian i love him more than the walls Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted October 6, 2007 Share Posted October 6, 2007 Well you gotta Beccy, there is no doubt about it you love them more than anything in the house. I think a food throwing contest is just the thing we need although Josey doesn't throw it very far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birdgranna Posted October 6, 2007 Share Posted October 6, 2007 Quinn is a foot eater with his pellets and loses most on the way to his beak. Jiggy is a dish dumper so I have to have dishes that screw to the cage. They both take one bite out of their fresh food and toss it. I now put news paper on the bottom of their cage on top of the grate. As the day goes on they "forage" around on it and pick up the pellets. The fresh food I pick up ONCE and put it back in the dish and remove it after an hour. I have plastic paneling nailed to the walls in their room for easy clean up.Good thing they are lovable 'cause they sure are messy;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted October 6, 2007 Share Posted October 6, 2007 I have thought about getting some kind of clear plastic material to put on the walls to make for easier cleanup, but you got that right, they have to be lovable or who would put up with the mess otherwise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siobha9 Posted October 6, 2007 Author Share Posted October 6, 2007 I am definitely with you on the wall art. I have decided that spaghetti and tomatoe sauce does not go well with my paint colour. I used to move Liaths cage around, but now she stays firmly in one corner ! Siobhan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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