Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!swrinde!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!usc!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!decwrl!adobe!dkletter
From: dkletter@adobe.COM (SUGAR in their vitamins?)
Newsgroups: rec.birds
Subject: Re: INDOOR Untraining Screamers
Message-ID: <8028@adobe.UUCP>
Date: 7 Nov 90 21:10:39 GMT
References: <1990Oct31.174425.13520@cs.ucla.edu> <155@tivoli.UUCP> <2731BD67.2128@intercon.com> <941@cfiprod.UUCP>
Reply-To: dkletter@adobe.UUCP (SUGAR in their vitamins?)
Distribution: na
Organization: Adobe Systems Incorporated, Mountain View
Lines: 22

of all birds, Parrots especially go for excitment in their lives. a lot
of couples where one bird takes a liking to either the male of female
can actually TRAIN the bird to bite the other. what happens is, the male
will pass the pet bird over to the female (why not share this cute darling
right?) but the bird doesn't want to move so it bites the female. the
male instinctively will yell at the bird or shake a hand or something
and the bird thinks "WOW, this is so cool! if i bite her, he does all
this neat stuff!" the same thing can happen with screaming. your bird
screams and you come running from another room and say something like 
"hey you, be quiet!" or whatever and your bird thinks that's really keen.
the thing to do is to IGNORE your bird when it does that sort of thing.
birds are like little children. the Parrots thrive on this kind of
attention. if you deny it, then they learn that it might not be OK
to do it. to go back to the biting example, say you pass the bird to
your SO and the bird bites your SO. what you would do is get up and
walk out of the room, thus denying the bird the little "show" that
you used to provide.

hope this helps.

-- 
Yes.  Beautiful, wonderful nature.  Hear it sing to us: *snap*  Yes.  natURE.