The formation of your parrot: the difficulties of punishment
Punishing your parrot
Bad social habits
In our culture, inflicting punishment is such a deep-rooted habit, by the way, we train our animals, how we raise our children, and how our own parents have educated us, that it is sometimes difficult to give up the almost instinctive urge to resort to them. True, some punishments are lenient (diverting attention, putting the culprit aside), but others are rather severe (shouting, hitting, shaking the cage, pulling out feathers, watering the animal with water, etc.). This innate need to control the behavior of those around us by imposing sanctions has given way to a wide variety of “proven” methods of training parrots. While these methods aim to control bad behavior, many of them rather go against the foundations of the psychology of learning and cognition. In addition, these are in no way useful to the bird, which always ignores the importance of good behavior, and often causes the opposite effect to that desired. Gradually, these methods undermine trust and destroy the bonds between the master and his parrot, thus amplifying many bad behaviors. These quick and miraculous solutions only compromise the unique bonds we share with these very intuitive and intelligent little beasts.
Social Dominance Theory: Relationship between dominant and dominated
Our propensity to punish first and then ask questions comes from the hegemonic culture rooted in human genetic baggage. Human society has always faced dominant groups; this hierarchy is even observed in most primates, our closest ancestors. In a way, humans are fundamentally predisposed either to dominate others or to allow themselves to be dominated. This deep-seated reflex prevents us from paying attention to other animal species and considering how they do things. When we use dominance-based training methods with our pet birds, we need to ask ourselves, “Does my bird understand the dominant and dominated relationship?” In this regard, here’s what Steve Martin of Natural Encounters Inc. thinks about dominance in wild parrots: “I’ve talked to many local researchers who study parrots in the wild. None of them have been evidenced of any form of hierarchy among wild parrots… nor aggression directed to exercise their domination. »
In reality, in nature, parrots sometimes quarrel to obtain or protect resources, but not to reign supreme over the flight. So why persist in punishing and dominating our parrots when they “refuse to cooperate”? In other words, punishments are very profitable only for the person who inflicts them, because they are effective only if they manage to reduce the targeted behavior. However, a poorly applied punishment rarely leads to this result. Unfortunately, on rare occasions, punishments have the desired effect. Bird owners will claim that when they shake the cage, their bird stops screaming (for a while). Even if they do nothing to really stop the behavior (the bird continues to egotize frequently), this positive, but temporary, result encourages the owners to continue. The occasional reinforcement, coupled with the resentment provoked and the unconscious desire for revenge, makes them dangle a dangerously addictive practice to train their animal.
Sidelining, jumping technique, and other myths
It is clear from a closer look at the methods of training parrots that techniques that have been widely acclaimed are strangely akin to punishments. According to behavioral analysts, punishment is any consequence associated with behavior and causes the likelihood of its recurrence to decrease.
Let’s take a close look at some of the most popular recommendations when it comes to behavioral problems in domestic birds.
Sidelining
When it comes to parrot breeding, there are several forms of seclusion: putting the bird back in its cage, turning off the lights, covering the cage, and confining the bird to a remote room are all examples. However, such attempts at punishment assume that the bird’s only motivation is to spend time with its master out of its cage. Since parrots are emotionally complex beasts, it is impossible to assume anything about their emotional state or what motivates them. If the bird feels tired, hungry, or nervous, going to its cage may be all it wants. It may also be that the bird only wants the attention of its master and makes it’s own to get it. In this case, rushing to take the bird, even for a brief moment, and putting it back in its cage only teaches it to misbehave to attract attention.
Parrots live a lot in the present moment. As a result, each behavior is reinforced or mitigated by the consequence immediately imposed.
In order for sidelining to prove to be an effective strategy for training your bird, this technique should be carried out immediately after the occurrence of the behavior.
- Indeed, the time to take the bird and put it back in the cage or take it to a distant room, or rush to turn off the light or to cover the cage, is enough to prevent any association between the act and the consequence.
- In addition, sidelining must effectively counteract the cause of bad behavior. However, we have already established that it is almost impossible to determine the exact cause that caused the behavior at the very moment it occurs.
- In addition, the setting aside should be short-lived (between 30 seconds and a few minutes, at most) in order to elicit an emotional reaction in the bird. If the punishment is long-lasting, the bird may forget the reason why it was sidelined. Unfortunately, it is too often considered right to “impose a punishment commensurate with the crime” to confine the bird to a remote room for very long periods of time. The latter may have broken his master’s ears for more than an hour when he only wanted peace and calm or may have bitten him to the blood for the first time and the experience proved particularly painful. At the time, our actions probably seem quite justified given the circumstances, but after careful consideration, it is rather revenge that constitutes our unconscious motive.
- Fourth, the key step in successful sidelining is to return the bird to the original location and reward it for good behavior. This last step is the most decisive and the most likely to be overlooked or ignored when training parrots.
So much time is spent dramatizing the bad behaviors of our birds that the right behaviors to adopt are neglected. Teaching his bird to behave well to get rewards from us is a greater motivation for him to act well.
The basics of the mild aversive stimulus
The next category of training methods uses unpleasant stimuli, the application of which may undermine the bird’s confidence. These include: watering the bird’s head with a powerful jet of water, shouting or howling at the bird, hitting and shaking its cage, dropping the bird on the ground, and abusing the techniques of jumping, flapping the wings and earthquake. All these techniques consist in causing an unpleasant sensation in the bird so that it now tries to avoid it. Some of them are still considered good training methods, but these techniques are likely to have unhealthy repercussions.
Watering the head of its tropical bird may condition it to fear bath time, leading to serious health problems. Shouting at your bird often causes the opposite effect, that is, amplifying bad behavior. Indeed, let’s not forget that parrots are noisy, turbulent and extroverted beasts. Often, when the situation turns to drama, our excessive reactions are perceived as a funny “false punishment”. In addition, dropping the bird on the ground is an aggressive gesture that may cause the animal to fear climbing on the hand extended to it, or even causing serious injuries.
To train a bird, the techniques of jumping, flapping the wings and earthquake are all adequate, but no longer apply when it comes to disciplining the animal. The jumping technique consists of blowing the bird successively from one hand to the other, with the aim of obtaining from the animal an increasingly rapid adequate response and rewarding it for its good behavior. This technique is also used to punish inappropriate behavior, purportedly to “show the bird in command,” in the same way that a sergeant forces a soldier to do push-ups to compensate for his misconduct. In order for the bird to establish the link between the act and the punishment, it must be on the arm of its master at the moment when it behaves badly. There is no point in rushing to take the bird, because we have already seen the ineffectiveness of these “false punishments”. If the bird is in a febrile state when its master asks it to jump, the animal may easily get upset and become even more aggressive than it was, and not the other way around. If the master is upset or angry during the jumping technique, the bird will feel it, and his anxiety and frustration will be amplified.
The technique of flapping the wings is an extremely important exercise for all pet birds. As inactivity-related obesity is a serious problem for many parrots, encouraging exercise is essential for their health and well-being. Many birds are reluctant to engage in physical activity and therefore need a little help. First, exercise should always be associated with positive reinforcement and not punishment, otherwise the bird will not see any point in doing physical activity of its own free will. Moreover, forcing the bird to flap its wings until it is too exhausted to behave badly does not teach it anything about the behavior to adopt, will affect the relationship between the parrot and its master and may cause serious consequences on the physical and emotional health of the bird. The exercise of flapping the wings should always be carried out according to the tolerance level of the bird. In addition, the animal should always be rewarded in a diverse way and should repeat the exercise several times a day in order to promote optimal health.
A bird with enough exercise is filled, less prone to stress and less likely to behave in an undesirable way than an inactive bird.
The earthquake technique is designed to discipline a baby parrot that takes a liking to use its beak when it is on the arm or hand of its master. It consists of shaking the arm slightly in order to unbalance the bird and temporarily deconcentrate it, thus making it forget to bite. As punishment, this technique is often misused; the bird is then violently unbalanced (and usually receives reprimands), and is sometimes even thrown to the ground. Let us not forget that most punishments are inflicted by an unconscious desire for revenge; so it is easy to punish a good bite on the arm by throwing the bird to the ground. This gesture lasts only a fraction of a second, but the lost confidence may have long-term repercussions.
It is clear that we must never use pain to push our pet birds to behave well!
Misuse of the aversive stimulus
These techniques do more than inconvenience the animal and may even prove painful. Giving chiquenaudes on the beak of a bird, taking the animal by the beak and shaking it, tearing off feathers or even hitting it is a sign of a deteriorated relationship devoid of any rationality. These cruel techniques trap the animal and its master in a vicious circle of aggression and fear, rather than teaching the bird the appropriate behaviors to adopt to live in the home. Given our knowledge of these remarkable creatures, it is hard to believe that some abusive techniques are presented in publications barely fifteen years old. Since parrots have only been domesticated for two or three generations, these fierce beasts of nature have retained their wild bird instincts. We know that parrots are capable of great trust and they do us great honor when they show loyalty to us. Intentionally inflicting suffering on them violates the very essence of this bond of trust. In short, one should simply never use pain to motivate a bird!
Abandoning your bird, an illusory solution
Unfortunately, this solution is too often the ultimate decision of many pet owners. Every year, thousands of parrots land in shelters and pounds or are returned to the breeder under the pretext that they will be better off in another home. These owners justify their action by telling themselves that they could not do anything more for their bird, whose very uncertain future promises many emotionally and psychologically trying years. Indeed, these birds will repeat the bad behaviors adopted in their first home every time a new situation arises. Veterinarians frequently see birds with their third, fourth, or even fifth owner. If these eternal adoptees breed and raise their young, they risk passing on the undesirable behaviors to their offspring, thus condemning the next generation of parrots to potential failure. Parrots are too sensitive and intelligent to buy, sell and trade on a whim. It is important to recognize our share of responsibility for the problems our parrots are experiencing and to seek lenient and proven solutions to restore the bonds that unite us to our feathered companion.
The truth about punishments!
For punishment to succeed in changing behavior, it must meet specific criteria. Indeed, according to Steve Martin: “The moment when the punishment is given is essential for the behavior to be modified”. In order for the bird to understand the link between the act and the consequence, it must be taken “on the fact” from the first occurrence of the undesirable behavior. Unfortunately, we often discover the nonsense of our animals after the fact, or only after the nth time they get away with it neither seen nor known. Any punishment inflicted in these circumstances only confuses the animal, which does not understand the nature of the reprimands it undergoes. If the bird is caught with its beak in the bag, the punishment should be severe enough to deter the animal from doing so, thereby decreasing the likelihood of the occurrence of the undesirable behavior. Too often, reprimands are mild at first, but as frustration grows, the penalties become more and more severe. From one reprimand to another, the bird becomes insensitive to punishment. This vicious circle does not give the parrot the chance to learn the appropriate behaviors to adopt. Eventually, constant frustration gives way to hostilities, thus destroying all the trust that the bird has in us, which is now perceived as a burden.
These training methods and punishments are inconsistent and difficult to apply due to our lack of knowledge and misuse, in addition to causing many serious repercussions. According to Susan Friedman, who holds a Ph.D. in the field: “Research on the effects of aversive punishment is not new, but has not been rigorously studied either. On the other hand, one of the research carried out, spanning several decades, was conducted on many animal species, including humans.”
The researchers identified the four main effects of using the aversive stimulus as a behavioral modification tool:
- Flight and avoidance behaviors
- Decreased overall response (indifference)
- Aggressiveness
- Widespread fear (phobias) (Azrin and Holtz, 1966)
Our once favorite companion will likely avoid any interaction, run away or fly away as soon as we approach, or even attack us to prevent any negative stimuli. These unfortunate beasts live in a constant state of anxiety and high stress that, in the long run, may cause feather pecking, mutilation, and obsessions (excessively repetitive gestures, such as tigers taking a hundred steps at the zoo), and behaviors that show sickly insecurity or aggressiveness.
Consolidate or destroy trust
Before establishing a training program, you have to ask yourself the following question: will the action I am about to do strengthen the trust between my bird and me, or will it destroy it? This simple criterion is enough to grasp the havoc that the explicit techniques are likely to cause. The good news is that there are other solutions!
Applied Behavior Analysis (AAFC)
Applied behavior analysis (ABA) is a technique of assessing behavior based on the environmental factors underlying the occurrence of behavior (history), as well as targeting the response to be modified (behavior) and the immediate outcome attributed to that response (consequence). No behavior occurs in isolation; rather, the latter is the result of external influences and previous reinforcements.
These simple components (antecedent, behavior, and consequence) constitute the rudiments of behavioral analysis. In order to change a behavior, one must:
- identify and control the stimulus causing the behavior, and
- adjust the consequence associated with the behavior to increase or decrease the probability of the behavior occurring.
When identifying environmental history, the importance of the immediate effect should not be forgotten.
- What happened before the targeted behaviour occurred?
- Did the bird’s body language predict this behaviour?
- What external factor triggered the first sign of reaction?
When choosing the consequences to be applied, it is necessary to identify the reinforcer at the origin of the repeated behavior and eliminate it, while rewarding the appropriate behaviors to adopt. Many people are obsessed with what they don’t want their bird to do, and forget that the bird can’t stand by and do nothing. Owners need to give their bird something to do so that it does not get upset. To eliminate undesirable behaviours, the behaviours to be adopted must be associated with a greater reward than that from the initial bad behaviour.
Positive reinforcement
The Positive Reinforcement Training (PRT) method first gained popularity in the 60s, when it was used to train marine mammals. Through various awards, the coaches taught the dolphins incredible behaviors, sometimes even unnatural; in particular, the dolphins agreed to undergo unpleasant procedures at the veterinarian, without anesthesia. Today, this technique is used to train all kinds of species all over the world, but it is only recently that positive reinforcement contributes to the training of our pets. This method of training, which involves detecting and consolidating the right behaviors with a variety of rewards, is the gentlest and most rewarding. Although it is often referred to as a way to “buy” the animal, positive reinforcement is widespread in nature. A wild parrot that falls on a tree overflowing with fruit will return to this place until it no longer finds any. As soon as he no longer receives a reward for his efforts, the behavior manifests itself less and less, until it ceases (or until the tree blooms again the following year). Any living thing on our planet will naturally try to get more resources, increase its chances of mating, etc. In scores of laboratory tests on a variety of species, from mice to primates, reward-trained animals continue to respond to this type of reinforcement, even if they have another food source at their disposal. It is clear that strengthening has an effect on our consciousness.
Conclusion
Our unconscious propensity to want to dominate, fueled by the incidence of incessant din, bruises and difficult moments, has undoubtedly rooted these traditional techniques of avian training on the North American continent. Every bird owner has the memory of a time when his frustration took over his good intentions towards his pet. This recognition is the first step towards improving our relationship with our favorite companions. The second is to look for training methods that aim to develop and consolidate the bond of trust that unites us to our bird. Imagine a relationship based on rewards and play, where your bird is willing to do anything to get your approval. Imagine the bad behavior gradually fading away. As the owner of a parrot, an endangered animal species, it is incumbent upon us to forge special bonds with our pet, as this relationship will last a lifetime.
Paying a fortune in winter for strawberries and seeing them end up at the bottom of the cage without the parrot even deigning to touch them with the tip of its beak… Frustrating, isn’t it?
However, this is what many humans live daily who, to their great misfortune, live with a parrot that is said to be fussy.
The fussy parrot, too often dependent on its sacrosanct sunflower or safflower seeds, has a very precise idea of ”what its bowl should look like” and, as soon as it is used, very quickly gets rid of everything that, according to it, should not be there.
Very, very discouraging.
Why do some parrots act this way?
It is not because they are capricious parrots. It is quite simply that: feeding oneself is an innate behavior whereas knowing what to consume and how to prepare it are behaviors acquired by the imitation of experienced models. Let me explain: eating behaviors are part of the socialization experiences of the young parrot. In the wild, parents take a long time to pass on information to their offspring on: how to obtain food, handle it, prepare it and ingest it. This learning is done by incentive and imitation and can take place over several months depending on the species.
We are talking about a very important stage in socialization, the survival of the young parrot will depend on this learning.
Parrots in the wild spend the majority of their time around food. They fly in pairs or in groups, from one place to another to locate and gather their food; this is an opportunity to share and socialize with their fellows and, in doing so, they also give themselves a lot of exercise. In addition, it is also the moment when they learn to make choices, to make decisions… What am I going to eat? Where and with whom will I do it? The search for food is therefore not only for feeding for these social animals. These are times of the day when parrots congregate and interact with each other.
Searching for food, feeding each other, playing and grooming is what a typical day in the life of parrots looks like in their habitat. They are intelligent birds who require a stimulating environment in order to learn and develop well.
For a parrot to accept novelty, like an unknown food in the middle of its bowl, it would first have to be able to develop its curiosity, to have learned to make its own choices and to have had the chance to cultivate a little bit of his taste for adventure. Every day, when I operated the shelter, I was confronted with these finicky parrots, who went so far as to become totally panicked at the mere sight of a new object, a new toy and, you can imagine. … a new food. These birds had obviously never been stimulated to accept novelty. For them, anything surprising meant threatening … even the food.
Curiosity, like the quest for and the choice of food, are learned behaviors and should preferably be developed very early in the young bird. Fortunately, the lack of socialization in the face of eating behaviors is not irreversible in parrots. Obviously, it is always more difficult to convince a pubescent or mature bird that it should convert to a varied diet than to teach it to a youngster in the first place.
In their natural environment, parrots are encouraged to curiosity and adventure. Of course, when they are very young, they rely entirely on their parents to protect them and provide them with good, nutritious and safe food. But as they grow up, they are encouraged by their parents to experience new foods on their own, touch new textures and shapes, and taste new flavors. Food exploration is a very exciting and stimulating activity for a young parrot.
Whole foods
In recent years, a wide variety of commercial feeds have appeared on the market. Much like dogs and cats, humans have adopted this style of feeding their parrots, seeing only the practicality. It’s clean ( doesn’t hull seeds everywhere ), quick and, we are told, “the feed would be complete and well balanced [sic]”.
So why bother and insist on feeding a variety of foods to our “domestic” parrots? Bluntly, for all the reasons listed above! The feed may promise a nutritious food, but certainly not exciting and stimulating …
What can a parrot do with its time when you are outside the house all day or have no time to take care of it? Working for its food becomes almost the only occupation of the pet parrot who finds himself … without company! Cracking the husks of nuts, peeling his banana or orange, peeling peas or beans are, more often than not, his only physical and sensory activities when he is locked in his cage. So why deprive him of it? Most importantly, since studies of parrot eating habits are still very young, offering a wide variety of foods is almost our only guarantee of keeping our birds long and healthy.
Unfortunately, it is domestication that makes these birds so picky about food. The very young parrot cannot develop his curiosity or his taste for adventure if, day after day, he is offered extrudates or any other restricted variety of foods. Often, the human living with a “capricious” bird, after a while does not even bother to offer him new food. He thinks to himself: “What good is he, he won’t eat it”. One thing is certain, if we do not offer them, he will not have the opportunity to discover them!
Some people believe they know their parrot’s food tastes and avoid offering it such or such a food on the pretext that the bird “doesn’t like it”. By doing this, these people refuse to recognize the bird’s right to change its mind and yet this is often what happens: the bird changes its mind and ends up tasting this food, probably because this food presented day after day has become more familiar to him and therefore less threatening. A food, presented in a constant manner will in many cases pass from the “unknown” box, therefore worrying, to the “known” box, that is to say, reassuring. Did you like spinach or broccoli when you were little? We all have the right to revise our positions. In the beginning,
Parrots are suspicious by nature: maybe he won’t swallow food the first time, but at least he will learn not to fear it and, with a little luck, tomorrow he will taste it and end up with it. eat. This will open up new avenues for him for the next “weird things” he finds in his bowl. A bird that has been fed only grasses or feed may refuse all other forms of food for a very long time. But if the human persists, he will possibly have the pleasant surprise of seeing his parrot one day attempt the adventure with a piece of papaya or a grape. At the shelter, we witnessed this kind of “unblocking” almost every week.
What to do?
Parrots learn and act by imitation. Imbued ( eam ) or imported parrots will often learn by imitating their companion or social group, regardless of whether they are avian or human. You are the model of your parrot. So at mealtime invite your bird to the table or approach its perch so that it feels close to the social group you make up with your family and offer it the same food that you are carrying. to your mouth, encouraging the latter to do the same ( always take into account prohibited foods ). You might be surprised.
Eating is a highly social activity in the parrot world and the mere fact of being with you at the table could cause the parrot in its need for integration to try to conform to the group, thus ingesting the same. food than his table mates. This taste for imitation and the extraordinary adaptability of parrots sometimes creates rather unusual behaviors. So, Etienne, my blue-fronted Amazon came to demand utensils of his own when he was invited to the table. Hey yes, Étienne eats with his own spoon and he seems to really appreciate this attention. This ritual only takes place when he is with us at the table. The rest of the time, whether installed on a perch or in the aviary, he eats quite normally from his bowl. It seems that he made the association in his head: eating at the table = eating like humans.
It is important to reward the “finicky” bird each time it agrees to try a new food. Look at him, express your satisfaction with a caress or attention, reinforce this good behavior. The message that the parrot receives at this moment is: I taste something new, it is good and as a bonus, I am receiving the attention of my human… Happiness!
If your bird is more than finicky, you can offer moist, warm food. Parrots, both older and babies, love to feed. By mashing his carrots and serving them hot-lukewarm ( no more than 106 ° F / 40 ° C ), he’ll feel like you’re feeding him. This is practically irresistible for any parrot.
You can also present him this same carrot that he refused the day before in a different form: diced, in sticks, grated or minced by passing it in the food processor. The texture and shape of the food can make a big difference to a bird’s eyes. For him, it’s a new experience. It is also sold on the market of small skewers on which we prick food, which take the form of shish-kebab to hang. The food then becomes a delicious toy and, as everyone knows, parrots are playful.
What must be understood here is that it is essential that your parrot has a varied diet, as much in the choice of food as in the shape, texture, color and taste. If you are consistent and above all patient, it is almost certain that your bird will come to try new feeding experiences. All parrots love to eat and are foodies of their kind. Maybe yours doesn’t know it yet, but be patient and it will come.
Cockatoo anorexia
As some already know, I have a slight weakness for cockatoos. These birds fascinate me. Maybe it’s because they give me a harder time than other species because the imagination they deploy to control their well-being overwhelms me at all times. It is obvious that for a cockatoo living in captivity, the ultimate goal is to capture the full attention of its humans, regardless of the means used to achieve its ends.
Cockatoos eat very little at a time, but often do. They are very active birds and they keep a margin of lightness to be able to fly or hop as they please. In addition, they are generally quite selective as to the food they carry in their beak ( I mean in general… I also know gluttonous… ). They are foodies, not foodies. These birds are also, to our chagrin, overly observant and imaginative and very dependent on the attention that those around them give them. When you mix all these ingredients, it gives… the king of the manipulators of the avian world!
These magnificent birds are, more often than not, the favorites of these ladies and, as everyone knows, we women are born with the gene of guilt and worry. Of course, this “peccadille” does not escape the discerning eye of our charming cockatoo!
If, unfortunately, your cockatoo’s lack of appetite seems to worry you and the bird takes notice, ladies you’re done. As long as the cockatoo notices that it attracts your attention by eating little or refusing its food, bingo! He will use this means to push your insecurity and worry to its climax. The Moluccan and Alba cockatoos are graduates of quantum anorexia ( they eat very little, just enough not to starve and rarely in front of you ).
The source of the problem lies in the fact that the more you insist on feeding the “anorexic” cockatoo, the more it will refuse food or will only accept the treats it likes and that you give it, trying to convince you that “it’s better than nothing at all”. Not stupid the wasp !. The bird manages to capture your full attention and moreover, we only offer it treats… Heaven for a cockatoo! The real problem is that this kind of behavior can have a severe impact on your bird’s health if this merry-go-round lasts too long.
In almost all cases, anorexia in cockatoos is instrumentalized ( most of the time created by one of those overly loving women ). At this point, I simply suggest offering the bird some quality food ( according to your beliefs and not his ) and leaving the room and not picking up anything when you find that he has not. touched his bowl; to pretend we haven’t noticed. If the bird can no longer obtain attention by acting in this way ( Madame no longer there or no longer noticing that it has not eaten), he won’t starve himself for nothing. If he is hungry he will eat. The funny thing is, it works almost every time, but again, persistence and consistency is a must, otherwise, he’ll start his little game over again. To manipulator, manipulator and a half!
