Do you have a noisy bird beyond the normal? Does your parrot engage in nuisance screaming? Here are some online and print resources for you to check out at your convenience.
A number of bird owners deal with parrots who pluck out their own feathers or mutilate themselves. Learn why they do it and ways you can work with your (birds) in the online and print resources below.
Dorge, Ray and Gail Sibley. "What to Do With a Feather Plucker," Bird Talk, 13 (May 1995): 26-30.
Evans, Kathy L. "Feather Picking and Self Mutilation," Bird Talk, 11 (June 1993): 102-103.
Farlow, Susan. "Coping With Feather Plucking" in The Bird Care Handbook & Resource Guide, 1st ed., Monterey, CA: Seacoast Publishing (1997): 39.
Hallander, Jane. "Feather Picking: The Pattern Often Tells the Story," Pet Bird Report, 9 n. 2 (Feb. 2000): 76-78.
Johnson, Cathy. "Chronic Feather Picking: A Different Approach to Treatment," Proceedings of the Association of Avian Veterinarians, 1987: 125-142.
Johnson-Delaney, Cathy. "Feather Picking Diagnosis and Treatment," Journal of the Association of Avian Veterinarians, 6 (1992): 82-83.
Kauffman, Melissa L. and Amy Taylor. "Feather Picking: Reader Case Studies," Bird Talk, 15 (Aug. 1997): 52-71.
Lennox, Angela M. and Nicole VanDerHeyden. "Haloperidol For Use in Treatment of Psittacine Self-Mutilation and Feather Picking," Proceedings of the Association of Avian Veterinarians, 1993: 119-120.
Linden, Phoebe G. "Feather Picking: A Complex Problem! Checklist for causes and cures," The Pet Bird Report, 3 (M/A 1993): 14-16.
Messonnier, Shawn P. "Acupuncture: Discover this novel approach to treating feather-picking birds," Bird Talk, 17 (June 1999): 78-83.
Murphy, Joel. "Homeopathic Remedies for Feather Picking," Journal of the Association of Avian Veterinarians, 6 (1993).
Oppenheimer, Jerry. "Feather Picking: Systemic Approach," Proceedings of the Association of Avian Veterinarians, 1991: 314-315.
Ramsay, Edward. "Self-mutilation Syndrome," Journal of Avian Veterinarians, 5 (1991).
Ramsay, Edward C. and Howard Grindlinger. "Treatment of Feather Picking With Clomipramine," Proceedings of the Association of Avian Veterinarians, 1992: 379-382 and 1986: 265-279 (mentions grey cheeks).
Rosenthal, Karen. "Differential Diagnosis of Feather-Picking in Pet Birds," Proceedings of the Association of Avian Veterinarians, 1993: 108-112.
Rosskopf, Walter J., Jr. and Richard Woerpel. "Feather picking in psittacine birds: a clinician's approach to diagnosis and treatment", Proceedings of the Association of Avian Veterinarians, Miami, FL, (1986): 265-279.
Rosskopf, Walter J., Jr. and Richard Woerpel. "The Psittacine Mutilation Syndrome: Management, Incidence, Possible Etiology and Therapy", Proceedings of the Association of Avian Veterinarians (1990).
Schmidt, Robert E. "Use of Biopsies in the Differential Diagnosis of Feather Picking and Avian Skin Disease," Proceedings of the Association of Avian Veterinarians, 1993: 113-115.
Turner, Richard. "Trexan (Naltrexone Hydrocholoride) Use in Feather Picking in Avian Species," Proceedings of the Association of Avian Veterinarians, 1993: 116-118.
Vaughn, Samuel B. "Feather Picking: A Mystery of Avian Medicine," Bird Talk, 15 (Aug. 1997): 42,44,46-51.
Wissman, Margaret A. "Causes & Cures: Facets of Feather Picking," Bird Talk, 22 (Sept. 2004): 18-22.
Wissman, Margaret A. "Causes & Cures: Feather Picking Causes," Bird Talk, 20 (Aug. 2002): 14-17.
Wissman, Margaret A. "Causes of Feather Picking," Bird Talk, 17 (Mar. 99): 78-79.
Worell, Amy Beth and William L. Farber. "The Use of Acupuncture in the Treatment of Feather Picking in Psittacines," Proceedings of the Association of Avian Veterinarians, 1993: 121-126.
Worth, Gail. "Ask the Experts: Causes for Feather-Picking," Bird Talk, 17 (Oct. 99): 98-99.
Have a problem with your parrot biting you? You are not the only one. I have had three different parrots who enjoyed biting the crap out of me. Learn to look for what kind of mood they are in before handling your bird.
If their irises are mere pinpoints, if their wings are jerking a bit, if their head and neck feathers are puffed out, or if they are chatting angrily to themselves, stay away. I have avoided many bites just from watching their mannerisms before handling them.
Blanchard, Sally. "Getting Past Biting Behaviors by Understanding Them," Bird Talk, May 2010.
As a breeder who has owned and raised grey cheeks for about 9 years, I have had a chance to observe and puzzle over their seemingly inconsistent behavior. Several individuals have even returned grey cheeks to me because of this, and as a result, I have compiled some useful information from my observations to help new and current grey cheek owners comprehend their bird's behavior.
I think it's very important to understand the maturing process of grey cheeks and some of the personality changes that occur as sex hormones kick in. Whenever I sell these birds, I try to educate people about the changes they may see, since as the bird matures, they frequently do not understand the changes, and the bird is then abused, neglected or worse.
Here is a quick summary of what I have observed and learned by reading every bit of information I can find on grey cheeks:
As they mature...
0 - 12 months - Babies are generally very tame and cuddly, sweet. Some bite occasionally, especially the dominant personalities.
12 - 24 months - Sexual maturing process takes place. Behavior I see is:
Continued sweetness, but bonding with certain individuals occurs. May see some biting and aggressiveness towards "competition."
Dominating and territorial behavior begins. They can get very noisy if strangers come near.
Biting may start, especially in or near the cage (the bird's home). Note that I have had some birds (out of about 60) that never or rarely bite, but most of them do--it's part of their way of communicating and controlling their environment.
Like people, cats and dogs, their adult personalities will range from naturally passive and sweet to overbearing and aggressive. Note that you can train them to minimize aggression. I have never been able to predict how a baby will turn out.
18 months and older - Maturing continues.
They are a lot like Amazons and can be moody and testy. I have had several mateless birds start plucking all their feathers as hormones arrive, and they need mates. Biting can be frequent and appears random, but I do not believe it is. I think it's for at least one of several reasons:
The bird is simply trying to dominate you to show who is boss.
It may be competing with someone else for their human mate's attention. In the wild, birds will bite/strike their mates to drive them away from another bird trying to horn in on their mate.
It is mating season (from about March to September for grey cheeks), and their natural instincts make them more territorial and aggressive than usual.
It is protecting its territory. Usually you see this near its cage or when you are its territory (like your shoulder).
One grey cheek owner shared a video on YouTube about their grey cheeks defeating the slipper demon.
The fact that your grey cheek is biting does not mean the bird does not like you. If anything, it means it likes you very much and wants you for a mate. It helps to remember that wild grey cheeks live in large flocks and compete all the time for food, mates, and the best nesting places. They appear to take on long-term mates and bond very deeply with their chosen ones. They also get in bad moods and just want to be left alone (PMS?). When my pairs are nesting, even my sweet guys will bite me hard if I come near, and they can get me. They then revert during the off season.
Here's how I handle biting with fairly good success:
Like dogs, you have to establish dominance over your bird--you must be the boss! When one of my birds bites me--and it hurts, I hold the bird in one hand and grip its beak firmly (do not squeeze your bird too tightly as they still need to breath) with the other for up to a minute while saying "No!" Basically, it makes the bird helpless, which it does not like. Do this consistently every time it nips or deliberately bites, and after a while, you should see the biting diminish or disappear (at least with you--it will probably still be vicious with others).
I love grey cheeks and hate to see them mistreated as they age and their owners do not know how to adapt to them. If you keep control over them, most grey cheeks remain some of the best companions I know.
Written by Kathleen Mandis
Article has been reprinted with the author's permission. This article may not be reprinted without written consent from the author.
Owners, in case you have not figured it out for yourself, grey-cheeked parakeets (grey cheeks), due to their inquisitive and fearless nature, are quite prone to all types of accidents. Robbie Harris' book (1985) and some of her articles mention grey cheeks will challenge or try to play with larger parrots and can sustain serious injuries from a larger bird not willing to put up with their antics. In their practice, Drs. Walter Rosskopf, Jr. and Richard Woerpel (1996), Avian & Exotic Animal Hospital in California, have noted injuries in grey cheeks from larger birds as well. In my own experience, my grey cheek, Kiwi, had one of her left, rear toes removed by a quaker parakeet when she was about 5 months old. The nail is completely gone leaving just a stub.
Grey cheeks also sustain many injuries from their climbing and wandering tendencies. Kiwi--whose wings are clipped--once jumped to the floor from a height of 8 feet. Luckily, she was not injured. She even jumped from my shoulder into a dish of soft margarine one time. What a mess!
I received an e-mail from a woman named Helene from Tennessee last month about her grey cheek, Baby, who is one of the 'fearless' ones who's antics caused a life-threatening situation. "A year ago my 'baby' dove off the balcony with clipped wings; he glided poorly to the carpet below. He broke his mandebill, and after several operations, his split beak still grows sideways. I have to keep it filed constantly, and he no longer has the ability to eat seeds. His diet consists of bread crumbs mixed with baby foods, vegetables, meat, and fruit. I blend all his food and feed him from a spoon most of the time. Last night we were in the den, and he was on his cage upstairs in one of the rooms. He decided that he wanted to be with the rest of us, so the next thing we knew he came flying off the balcony on to my husband's lap and was billing and cooing and looking for attention. [Though] only 6 years old, he...is doing well [despite his handicap]. He's a character and even with the broken beak he is fearless. We love him to pieces."
Grey cheeks climb on electrical cords if not supervised and love to burrow in tight, warm places. I have received numerous e-mail messages from owners who have lost grey cheeks due to rolling over on them and crushing or smothering their pet when the bird was allowed to sleep with them. Grey cheeks also get underfoot, get beneath you when sitting, or may be climbing up your clothes and get stepped or sat on. According to emails that I have received, crushing/smothering seems to be high on the list of accidental deaths in grey cheeks.
Other hazards are ceiling fans, hot burners, open pans of hot grease or boiling water, open lids on toilets, etc.
Being extremely intelligent and single-mindedly determined is another trait that many grey cheeks exhibit. I have been seriously attempting to keep Kiwi away from my other bird, Chipper, until she recovers from an illness, in order to protect my other bird. She is 'bound and determined' that she will get in Chipper's cage. She stalks the floor, back and forth, looking for ways to get up to his cage. I have a good laugh every time I watch this process. Her latest attempt at accessing his cage was successful. I left the room and came back just in time to see her climbing up the mesh on the stereo speaker and watched her leap over from the speaker onto Chipper's cage. She was extremely pleased with herself, and then perturbed, when she was scooped up by me and placed back into her own cage. The speaker is now farther away from Chipper's cage much to Kiwi's chagrin.
I have also caught Kiwi hanging by her beak, legs flailing in the air because she had attempted a feat beyond her abilities and needed rescuing. She has started leaping off my shoulder or finger sometimes when we are walking around the house, and she lands fairly hard. No injuries there so far. Unfortunately, since she has been ill, she does not like to have me out of her sight and has started walking around the apartment hunting for me. This is a major concern as grey cheeks are fairly small birds. I have to be extra careful where I walk and of Kiwi's location when she's out of her cage.
I cannot stress strongly enough that grey-cheeked parakeets must be supervised at all times when they are allowed 'out' time! Please take every precaution you can with grey cheeks in the house. You never know what they might be up to.
Reprinted from the former Grey-cheeked Parakeet website, 1997.
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