Stop Ya Squarking!!

The joyful twitter and chirping of a content collection of birds in the trees overhead is such a restful and glorious sound – one of the joys of nature.  But not so the harsh, discordant squarks and screams of a parrot demanding attention as dawn breaks.

Squarking, screeching and, sometimes, swearing, parrots are a problem for many bird fanciers and for their neighbours too.

It is not easy to change the behaviour of parrots but with a little cunning and slight of hand, most cacophonous cockatoos can be cured.

Mostly, parrots squark because they want attention or maybe some creature comforts. What you should not do is to give them attention when they are yelling. This just trains them to yell and squark even more the next time they want attention.

The general principle is to give them attention when they are quiet. But how do you do that without also rewarding the noisy behaviour?

Let’s talk about that shortly, but first there are some other duties.