new to the group, and I have a major problem.

[kygirl]

Hello, I am new to the group. I just got my second grey . I lost my other of 20ytrs due to cancer. This one has a screeching problem. I never had this problem with the other and don't know how to handle it. she will just do it over and over again louder each time. My poor dogs I know my ears are ringing I can just imagine how they feel. she/he is 13 months old. I fear if I can't stop this to be fair to the dogs as they were here first (one is 7yrs old) I will have to get rid of her. the problem nobody else is gonna want her.

[Luvparrots]

Hi kygirl, welcome to the Grey family. Please tell us some about your routine with your new grey so we can get a better idea of what is going on around your new friend. And what is your grey's name?

[katana600]

She's young. How long have you had her? It's not a usual issue because greys are generally not screechers. Something is bothering her. With patience and helping us understand when it started, we all might put our heads together and salvage your relationship. It could be as simple as where her cage is placed, a toy that has her scared or a change in your schedule. No one wants to hear constant screeching, but together we may be able to help get all of you some relief.

[Acappella]

Like Kat said, greys aren't known to be screamers, so the first thing is to look at and possibly move the things around her cage to see if something specific is scaring her. Maybe, as a new fid, a trip to the vet would be a good idea. If everything checks out, then it's a bad habit and you've got some work ahead of you doing some sound extinguishing. The good news is that this is a fixable problem. You, and any one else in the family, have to ignore her 100% of the time when she's making the undesirable sound. This sounds easier than it is. Our instinct is to turn to them, even if it is to tell them to be quiet. If you do, then you've just rewarded the bad behaviour by giving her your attention. They are flock animals and their instinct is to want to be with the rest of the flock. One of the most powerful training tools you have is to withhold your presence and attention. It absolutely has to be 100% of the time though. Think of it this way. If you respond after she's screamed for half an hour you've just taught her to scream for half an hour! The other important thing with sound extinguishing is to reward pleasant sounds or moments of silence. Example. She is screaming in the living room and you're in the kitchen where she can't see you. Suddenly she interrupts the screaming to make a more pleasant sound. You repeat it back to her right away with lots of praise and head towards her cage. If she start screaming again, you stop the praise immediately. Maybe one of the periods of pleasant sounds, or silence, is long enough for you to get into the room with her, but she starts again before you make it to her cage. Turn your back! This sends a powerful msg to them and it's an immediate response to bad behaviour.

 

Warning: the bad behaviour may get temporarily worse before it gets better. This is because she's trying to figure out why a behaviour that got one kind of response in her old home (attention, even if it was negative) isn't getting the same response here. Buy yourself some soft foam earplugs to deaden the intensity of the sound for a while. Sorry, I don't know how to help the doggies! I swear to you this works. Now when Dorian picks up a sound I don't like it disappears pretty quickly. He's come to recognize when I start this practice and stops the "bad" sound, except maybe twice a day when he goes through every sound in his repertoire, but that I can handle. Good luck. We're here to cheer you along.

[neoow]

Totally agree with everyone else's responses here. Once you've ruled out something scary in/around the cage or a health problem, then it's probably attention seeking behaviour. Alfie has learned lots of these over the years to get a reaction from me, family members and house mates. His favourite one is a really loud squeak at the moment- it's very short, sharp and LOUD. He waits until my current housemate is next to his cage then does it, as it has maximum effect. He also does the same to me- but usually saves it for my housemate. My housemate has listened to my instructions and just ignores it as best as he can. I do too. However, it can make you jump! If he makes other noises, I make sure I respond to those and ignore the loud squeak noise. It has certainly lessened- but he'll still do it every so often.

 

He used to make one of my previous housemates react all the time. His cage used to be at the bottom of the stairs and when one of my housemates would wander down the stairs Alfie would launch himself at the side of the cage, making said housemate jump and react. Even though it wasn't a positive reaction, Alfie did it every single time... because it was still a reaction and some form of attention from that housemate.

 

The best way is to reward the "good" sounds and try your best to ignore the "bad"/unwanted sounds. When your parrot starts screeching/screaming, just ignore it and carry on doing what you're doing. Maybe even move further away. When your parrot makes sounds you like then talk back and praise.

[danmcq]

Welcome to the Forum. How old is your Grey? They can have have some loud and yes annoying sounds at times. If this is an older Grey, it could have become an ingrained sound/call if it was supported by previous owners just by replying to it, even if it was with a shut up, be quite etc. The grey would have interpreted as a response call. In regards your Dogs, they will get used to that sound over time as all do. The best way to slow down and hopefully stop an unwanted call from a Grey is to completely ignore it. Walk out of the room etc. every time it occurs. I look forward to hearing more from you.

[Brat Birds]

Welcome! We do love pictures too.

[Muse]

I know others have suggested a vet check but as a nurse my first concern with an atypical scream would be pain. I would definitely have your baby thoroughly checked by an avian vet. Do you happen to know what the bird's background is? Did they maybe come from a home with other birds such as cockatoos or amazons? We recently took in an amazon who loves to scream and our female grey is starting to learn to "speak amazon". It does not bother me - in fact I usually join in - and our dogs are used to it so it is not a problem here (we are a bird rescue). But I can see where some people might not be happy about it. If it is a learned behavior it may be more of a challenge but as others have said - it is fixable with time and patience. A 13 month old is still a baby and this may be a baby behavior they will just grow out of. I know mine used to make this adorable sound as a baby, I can only describe it as "moink, moink" and after about 18 months, it stopped. It was a sound that usually accompanied begging or excitement but I think as they learn more complex communications they leave the simple sounds behind. Except that pterodactyl screech. That is forever, evidently, lol. Please don't give up on your grey. With time and patience any undesirable behavior can be modified. Is the bird starting to talk? Perhaps focusing on words when the screaming starts will reinforce human speech and extinguish the screeching. I taught our birds "inside voices please" and believe it or not, that usually works. I say it in a firm but quiet tone. We also have a screaming session (we call it "birdie fun time") daily where I put on bird sounds, or play YouTube videos of other birds making lots of noise and we all scream and screech and sing and have fun. This gives them a focused time when they know that loud noise is okay, and lets them be birds (which are typically noisy). We follow it with very soft music and a nap (for them). Sometimes if the behavior is amplification of normal bird behavior (the kind of scream they do during play with each other) a simple play session will get it out of their system for a while and allow them to focus on other behaviors once they have had their fun. It might be useful if you have a camera or smartphone to get some video and share it because sometimes seeing and hearing the actual sound can be helpful in diagnosing the cause.

 

Best of luck and let us know if you need further help. Welcome to the group, this is a fantastic resource for any bird owner as everyone here is kind and helpful and supportive!

[kins2321@yahoo.com]

kygirl... your baby, is just a baby! They screech, yell, and are out of control, until you teach them different! Sophie eventually learned.... shhhh! Dogs will protest too! BUT... you comitted to this bird. Its not about being fair to the dogs. ( sophie and dogs are best friends now). You accepted this bird into your family. MAKE it work! Nancy