HE DOES NOT DO THIS ALL OF THE TIME, JUST EVERY NOW AND AGAIN.HE ALSO INSISTS ON PULLING MY EARINGS OUT AND MY GLASSES OFF OF MY FACE, THE FUNNY THING IS HE NEARLY ALWAYS SAYS OUGH JUST LIKE I DO IF HE RIPS MY EAR. IS HE JUST PLAYING OR BEING NAUGHTY, AND SHOULD I STOP THIS BEHAVIOUR.?
2006-11-24 01:35:52 · 17 answers · asked by flybnite2003 2 in Pets ➔ Birds
Parrots chew, they explore the world with their tongues and beaks since they don't have hands. It is fun for them to chew and T shirts are a texture they may not get to play with much since most toys are not cloth. The strong beak of a Grey easily puts holes in a shirt, unfortunately. What I do is that when I am home and the bird is out of the cage I make sure I am not wearing any clothing that I'd be upset if it got a hole chewed in it. I wear old clothes around my birds so that problem is not really an issue.
As far as glasses and earrings go, yup, parrots are curious and love to explore their environment and no matter how many toys he has your glasses and jewelry are going to tempt him. Plus, parrots soon learn this is a great game and also a great way to get our attention! It is really hard NOT to react in some way when your eyeglasses or earrings are being yanked off. This "Ough" or "Ow" sound you make is reinforcing to your bird. He thinks, "Wow, what a cool game, I yank these funny things off and she always jumps and yells. This is fun!" Parrots love drama so any reaction is a reinforcement for behavior. Since it is so hard not to react to this I think the best thing to do is prevent it from happening as much as possible. Don't let your bird up on your shoulder, keep him occupied with activites or other toys to chew on when you are handling him, and remove all jewelry before handling your bird. I do wear my glasses when handling my parrot because I feel it offers some eye protection if a bird decides to get rowdy but that is up to you.
2006-11-24 04:56:53 · answer #1 · answered by Rags to Riches 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I'd take those earrings off or he may just make a bigger hole in your ear than you care to have. As far as the shirt goes, you should stop him, if not the next thing will be curtains, dress clothes, whatever. Make sure he has a lot of chew toys, even tie in a not one of your chewed up t-shirts for him to gnaw on. Teach him that he has toys for chewing and that your belongings are off limits. It'll work, my African Grey knows her boundaries and it didn't take much to teach her. By the way, how old is he?
2006-11-24 19:27:54 · answer #2 · answered by professor grey 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
He is playing; your clothing and earrings are just another source of entertainment for him and it won't matter how many toys he has, he'll still be attracted to your earrings (ouch!) and any other adornment you wear.
We have what we call "bird shirts" and we wear those when we spend time with our birds. If we're dressed for work or an evening out, we don't allow the birds to be on us. It saves having to replace expensive suits, dresses and jewelry.
2006-11-24 10:43:56 · answer #3 · answered by silver2sea 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
He could just be preening you when he bites your t-shirt. The glasses and earrings are not part of you, so as far as he is concerned, they have got to be removed. The same as he would do for a mate in the wild.
2006-11-24 15:26:56 · answer #4 · answered by MW 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
He is exploring but this behavior should be discouraged, it can lead to getting you bite. Teach it boundaries. Our parrot started doing this and would kiss my hubby on his beard. Then hubby shaved and the bird was kissing and bite a big plug out of his face. We have since retrained her and us not to have shoulder time or kisses. We love her and she is a great bird. Read some info on this at bird and ways.
2006-11-24 15:36:05 · answer #5 · answered by shortansassy 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
lol.. birds just do those kind of things. Maybe he would like some bird toys and treats to occupy him more. Yes , He does love you, and want you to pay him more attention.
I've heard stories they self mutilate themselves if the owners loose interested in them..
2006-11-24 09:39:01 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
No, dont stop him. They are just like little children. I got a green one with yellow head. Just say NO constantly and eventually he will understand. They are just curious of their enviroment. They also do this things to call for attention.
2006-11-24 14:39:44 · answer #7 · answered by Italianissssima 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
its his way of saying 'i love you'. and if you ask why he bites holes in your t-shirts, he probably does it for the same reason my cockatiel annihilates two straw hats a month, reducing them to nothing but (literally) dust and rubble.
2006-11-25 00:24:54 · answer #8 · answered by Shayde 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
he is like a prisoner. they don't always cause problems, but if you cage them up long enough they are going to try to inflict pain against you! freedom is their dream! Anyways, i think he is just playing.
2006-11-24 09:38:33 · answer #9 · answered by Jon C 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
parrots are mischievous by nature, get him some toys
2006-11-24 09:39:21 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋