Umbrella Cockatoo

The Umbrella Cockatoo is a known Prima Dona. They crave constant attention and they'll let you know when they're feeling deprived. Unfortunately, how they let you know usually involves a scream that will bring tears to your eyes.

The worst thing to do when an Umbrella Cockatoo screams is to scream back, throw water or give them any attention whatsoever for this abominable behavior. Why? Any strong reaction, positive or negative, will only serve to reinforce this behavior.

The Umbrella is a drama queen, the more drama they can incite, the better. It doesn't matter to them whether it is negative attention like water being thrown at them or positive attention like you running to their cage every time they scream, they'll take either and instead of quieting your Cockatoo, they'll get noisier.

don't get me wrong, Umbrella Cockatoos are snuggly and affectionate when they want to be but they're also loud as trains when they are unhappy. If they're not getting the attention they think they should be, you can bet they're going to let you know. Rather then cover you ears and curse you lovely bird, consider spending time with them. Train them, play with them, and snuggle.

In addition to playing with them, keep your Umbrella busy when you're gone. This means giving them toys to chew on, toys to climb, toys to play with including toys that make sounds and toys which enable them to forage and use their problem solving skills. Keep enough of the right toys in their cage and they'll forgive you for leaving them during the day.

Cockatoos have a tendency toward jealous behavior too and they can scream if they're unhappy with who you're spending time with. When a cockatoo bonds with their owner, they really bond. A new person or animal in their owner's life can be quite an upsetting experience resulting in ear splitting cries of rage and frustration.

Socialization at a young age helps curb this tendency for sure; however, if you're dealing with a jealous cockatoo, consider ignoring them until they stop screaming at which point they receive a reward and your affection.

This will teach your Umbrella that their screaming doesn't work; however, their being quiet will receive a reward. This will require tremendous patience and persistence on your side, but the results are worth it.

Other common causes for Umbrealla Cockatoo screaming are a lack of nutrition, not enough quality sleep, unclean cage, or illness. Make certain your Umbrella has an ideal environment, take them to the avian veterinarian for regular checkups and learn what their diet, sleep, and grooming requirements are. The solution to the majority of Umbrella Cockatoo behavior problems is patience, love, commitment, and diligence.

The Umbrella Cockatoo is a lovely and dynamic bird. Helping them to kick their screaming problem, through training, and probiding an optimal environment, isn't just helping you have a quieter household, it's helping your Cockatoo live a happier and healthier life. It's helping your Cockatoo live companionably with you and your family. It's a win-win situation for everyone involved.

Have you ever dealt with a cockatoo that REALLY has a screaming problem?

Some Cockatoo's it simple just doesn't matter what you do and he still screams. We suggest very strongly to never reward a cockatoo's screaming by giving him attention. However, sometimes that simply just doesn't work.

I have a strategy for these cockatoo's in particular and it doesn't involve dropping him off at the adoption center or a shotgun.

Cockatoo's scream for MANY different reasons so lets narrow it down.

Usually the most common reason is after they've been left alone for a long time, without any attention or interaction from you... basically they're bored out of their minds. And most likely somewhere along the way screaming was reinforced to them as a method to get attention, probably on accident.

And once this habit starts, it can often take more than just ignoring your cockatoo to break the habit.

My brother Dave had a screaming issue like this with his Umbrella Cockatoo, Linus. If he had been left alone for more than a couple hours Dave and made the mistake of letting him see or hear him, he would call out to him for 20-30 minutes -- VERY annoying!

To FIX extreme cases of screaming you REALLY need to learn how to do ONE thing well...

Polish and hone your skills at noticing what causes your parrot to scream -- specifically!

Does he scream after being left alone? How long after being left alone?

Does he ever do a physical behavior right before he screams?

What about his environment? Does he scream when cars drive by, or only when certain combinations of people are in the same room?

My Macaw, Tiko, won't scream at strangers unless I happen to be in the room. Noticing clues like this that can help you figure out an optimized training plan to help your bird kick the screaming habit.

But don't just look at what your bird does right before he screams -- try to notice situations where your bird doesn't scream. Often just figuring out what causes your bird NOT to scream can provide some GREAT clues as to how you can go about solving his problem.

This could include things like playing with toys, eating, playing on a favorite tree perch, etc.

In the case with Dave's screaming Cockatoo, he spent several days actually taking notes on what caused him to scream, and what caused him NOT to scream.

In this case it turns out that Linus wouldn't scream at me for attention if he had taken a vigorous flight that day -- flights were he got physically tired. These flights were always when I was in the same room. Dave would simply take the bird toss him into the air and let him have fun flying around chasing after him. (It sounds silly but he REALLY likes it)

Dave found that after these great exercise sessions with Linus he could leave him alone for awhile and go get some work done or much needed sleep. Once he figured this out Dave was able to set up a schedule where he could fly Linus several times a day and this greatly curbed his screaming.

So if you have a bird that won't kick that screaming habit, you've tried everything, and you're about to go crazy... think about putting your bird on a daily flight training schedule. A tired bird can be a 'Quiet' bird :-) For some other ideas about screaming Umbrealla Cockatoos check out what I have to say at hub pages!