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So you trained them to love you and love you they do. Suns are the neediest of all the parrots I have ever had. We lost Julian last year over Thanksgiving and I still miss him very much. He was our "baby." I'll bet when they are shrieking they are also fluttering their little wings and swaying from side to side. It's so darn cute.
The problem you have is that they are very needy and have learnt that you will respond to their shrieks. We had the same problem with Julian. He had to learn that he was fine by himself and during that time we had to learn to IGNORE that persistant and obnoxious shrill that feels like it is cutting right through you. Man I miss that sound. I know crazy, but they also do it when they are just plain happy, excited, sad, lonely, bored, scared, angry.......pretty much for every reason. Thankfully for you they aren't into screaming to their demon the way cockatoos are. I have 2 of those too. Anyway one thing we did with Julian was tell him no in a firm voice and ignore him (I know it's hard) and then rewarding him when he was quite. For rewards we would give him a grape or a piece of apple or something like that and pick him up and play with him a bit, but only when he was being quite. Julian soon learnt and so will yours. Once we got him to quite down then we let him have his wings back over winters only. That way he could come and go as he pleased. He would spend just as much time back on his perch as he would hiding down one of our shirts. Of course Julian was potty trained and would always fly back to his perch to go. Gosh I miss that boy. Good luck with you two!
Yes they both flutter their wings and go from side to side when they do it. Their names are Sonny and Sammie. I have another problem with Sonny to. He is my bird and only likes me. Tolerates others but only for so long. He also just wants to be taken out and then put on your shoulder and left alone. I have got him to the point where he doesnt run for my shoulder everytime he is out and will let me pet his back but that is it. How do i make him more friendly? He came from a home where he was for show. They had a huge house and put him in a cage to look pretty and never touched him. Sammie on the other hand is nice as can be. But he is my fiance's. Sammie will let me take him out and play a little but not like my fiance can which i am completely fine with. Just want to make Sonny a little better.
Sammie loves hiding in shirts to lol. Sorry about Julian
Most of mine have been rescues from similar or much worse conditions. What people fail to realize when they purchase a bird like a parrot is that they are flock animals. They need to have interaction with their flock being that human or animal. It's sad really as it is abuse that some of those people also do with their children.
Suns are very needy birds, but also very much monagamous if allowed. That is they will chose their one favorite person and apply all their affection to that one. Some birds never develope a strong and loving bond while others will be so clingy you can't do anything with out them or they get very upset. Too which you usually get the tsk noise blown through their nares. I miss that.
When I met my husband he had never been around a parrot and my cockatoo had never been around a man. She was extremely timid and would jump at the least provokation which led to her getting a life threatening injury. I had to lay down the law. Niki would be required to perch back and forth from my husband to me and would be given only that as attention. Cockatoos are almost as neorotic as a human so she needed to know that I accepted him and expected her to also. She will never love my husband but will perch for him when needed. Louie my other cockatoo on the other hand will go to anyone. Julian was suspicious of my husband and very territorial over me. He would puff all up and sway back and forth with his beak wide open trying to appear the big mean bird looking for an opportunity to bite. Really all it does is make them look like cute stuffed birds to me. Makes you want to scoop them up and cuddle them. Anyway I did the same thing with Julian. I made him perch back and forth leaving him longer and longer. Eventually he discovered that my husband had something I didn't. Whiskers are awesome grooming bristles. It reminded him of my older son, his owner, and he began to accept him. Of course whenever my son came home from the military we were lower than dirt in his eyes.
Suns love to find little areas to hide and play. We used to make little tents in blankets and let him run in and out of them. He would act like he was making a nest for us and it really helps with the bonding. We would just lay on the couch or floor and watch a movie and let him play around. Sometimes we would crawl under the blanket with him and snuggle. Julian loved that. Eventually we started using stuffed animals that he needed to defend his mommy or John from. Now that is puffy. And the bond was built so strong that when my son did leave for the military he never forgot him and each time he came home Julian was in heaven. Of course each time he left the poor little guy would go through a terrible bout of depression that eventually led to a heart attack and death. He just loved his John so very much. Poor little boy died of a broken heart.
Something else we used to do is similar to another bird grooming. We would brush our fingers against the growth of feathers. Especially around the ears and below the beak. It feels really good to them. Since you already allow your Sonny (my Sonny is an insanely funny African Grey) to perch on your shoulder you could try giving him treats with your lips. I know some people recomend against that, but it is similar to how a bird will attempt to feed another (without all the puking). Julian learnt to take food from our lips, spoons, or our fingers. Treats are an important resource when training or building a bond. My young sons little parrotlet will just eat right off the plate. Tiny Tim has a fondness for pork products. He's a teeny tiny little feathered pig.
The biggest thing is time. Sunny was ignored for however much time and has leart that humans are not to be trusted. He has developed a suspicious nature do to being an object d art. Now you need to undo that and reintroduce him to flock behavior. Given time he will come to be more comfortable and begin exhibiting that very wonderful nature of curiosity that suns are so known for. Just spend time with him. Just remember the worst thing you could do is forget that he is like a 18 month to two year old child that will always need you and you will get so much love in return.
I'm so jealous you get to play with and recieve all the love of TWO of the most loveable parrots there are. Good luck!
So you trained them to love you and love you they do. Suns are the neediest of all the parrots I have ever had. We lost Julian last year over Thanksgiving and I still miss him very much. He was our "baby." I'll bet when they are shrieking they are also fluttering their little wings and swaying from side to side. It's so darn cute.
The problem you have is that they are very needy and have learnt that you will respond to their shrieks. We had the same problem with Julian. He had to learn that he was fine by himself and during that time we had to learn to IGNORE that persistant and obnoxious shrill that feels like it is cutting right through you. Man I miss that sound. I know crazy, but they also do it when they are just plain happy, excited, sad, lonely, bored, scared, angry.......pretty much for every reason. Thankfully for you they aren't into screaming to their demon the way cockatoos are. I have 2 of those too. Anyway one thing we did with Julian was tell him no in a firm voice and ignore him (I know it's hard) and then rewarding him when he was quite. For rewards we would give him a grape or a piece of apple or something like that and pick him up and play with him a bit, but only when he was being quite. Julian soon learnt and so will yours. Once we got him to quite down then we let him have his wings back over winters only. That way he could come and go as he pleased. He would spend just as much time back on his perch as he would hiding down one of our shirts. Of course Julian was potty trained and would always fly back to his perch to go. Gosh I miss that boy. Good luck with you two!
Yes they both flutter their wings and go from side to side when they do it. Their names are Sonny and Sammie. I have another problem with Sonny to. He is my bird and only likes me. Tolerates others but only for so long. He also just wants to be taken out and then put on your shoulder and left alone. I have got him to the point where he doesnt run for my shoulder everytime he is out and will let me pet his back but that is it. How do i make him more friendly? He came from a home where he was for show. They had a huge house and put him in a cage to look pretty and never touched him. Sammie on the other hand is nice as can be. But he is my fiance's. Sammie will let me take him out and play a little but not like my fiance can which i am completely fine with. Just want to make Sonny a little better.
Sammie loves hiding in shirts to lol. Sorry about Julian
Most of mine have been rescues from similar or much worse conditions. What people fail to realize when they purchase a bird like a parrot is that they are flock animals. They need to have interaction with their flock being that human or animal. It's sad really as it is abuse that some of those people also do with their children.
Suns are very needy birds, but also very much monagamous if allowed. That is they will chose their one favorite person and apply all their affection to that one. Some birds never develope a strong and loving bond while others will be so clingy you can't do anything with out them or they get very upset. Too which you usually get the tsk noise blown through their nares. I miss that.
When I met my husband he had never been around a parrot and my cockatoo had never been around a man. She was extremely timid and would jump at the least provokation which led to her getting a life threatening injury. I had to lay down the law. Niki would be required to perch back and forth from my husband to me and would be given only that as attention. Cockatoos are almost as neorotic as a human so she needed to know that I accepted him and expected her to also. She will never love my husband but will perch for him when needed. Louie my other cockatoo on the other hand will go to anyone. Julian was suspicious of my husband and very territorial over me. He would puff all up and sway back and forth with his beak wide open trying to appear the big mean bird looking for an opportunity to bite. Really all it does is make them look like cute stuffed birds to me. Makes you want to scoop them up and cuddle them. Anyway I did the same thing with Julian. I made him perch back and forth leaving him longer and longer. Eventually he discovered that my husband had something I didn't. Whiskers are awesome grooming bristles. It reminded him of my older son, his owner, and he began to accept him. Of course whenever my son came home from the military we were lower than dirt in his eyes.
Suns love to find little areas to hide and play. We used to make little tents in blankets and let him run in and out of them. He would act like he was making a nest for us and it really helps with the bonding. We would just lay on the couch or floor and watch a movie and let him play around. Sometimes we would crawl under the blanket with him and snuggle. Julian loved that. Eventually we started using stuffed animals that he needed to defend his mommy or John from. Now that is puffy. And the bond was built so strong that when my son did leave for the military he never forgot him and each time he came home Julian was in heaven. Of course each time he left the poor little guy would go through a terrible bout of depression that eventually led to a heart attack and death. He just loved his John so very much. Poor little boy died of a broken heart.
Something else we used to do is similar to another bird grooming. We would brush our fingers against the growth of feathers. Especially around the ears and below the beak. It feels really good to them. Since you already allow your Sonny (my Sonny is an insanely funny African Grey) to perch on your shoulder you could try giving him treats with your lips. I know some people recomend against that, but it is similar to how a bird will attempt to feed another (without all the puking). Julian learnt to take food from our lips, spoons, or our fingers. Treats are an important resource when training or building a bond. My young sons little parrotlet will just eat right off the plate. Tiny Tim has a fondness for pork products. He's a teeny tiny little feathered pig.
The biggest thing is time. Sunny was ignored for however much time and has leart that humans are not to be trusted. He has developed a suspicious nature do to being an object d art. Now you need to undo that and reintroduce him to flock behavior. Given time he will come to be more comfortable and begin exhibiting that very wonderful nature of curiosity that suns are so known for. Just spend time with him. Just remember the worst thing you could do is forget that he is like a 18 month to two year old child that will always need you and you will get so much love in return.
I'm so jealous you get to play with and recieve all the love of TWO of the most loveable parrots there are. Good luck!
