25 year attachment

[CandisHambrick]

Good morning! I recently inherited a 25 year old Blue and Gold. The previous owner had gotten him when he was a baby. She was really the only one to do things with him. I feel he has done EXCELLENT since we have had him, about 3 weeks.He had NOT shut up, has learned words from our house and the schedule of things. He eats great. No feather plucking at all. But he will bite himself on the leg when he feels threatened. My question is when he does this, is it hard enough to hurt himself? We cannot touch him yet or get him out of his cage to check and see if there is damage under his feathers.

 

[texsize]

My Yellow nape Amazon bites himself on the leg when he is playing with his toys.
I have never figured out why but I don’t think he does it with much force.

 

[Flboy]

Welcome to you!

 

[mica21493]

I took in my mom's blue and gold when he was about 20 and she had him since he was a baby. We've had him six or seven years now. I lose track of all the dates. He still bites his leg/feet when he feels threatened though not nearly as much. I've never seen any damage in all these years. A lot of soft talking and bribing with treats helped (but don't reward the behavior, I always ignore it and treat when something goes on and he doesn't bite himself). Since joining here, I learned about target training which he is happy to do for a piece of his favorite nut (cashews). That seems to have helped as well.

 

[Scott]

Welcome and congratulations! Is this your first bird or have you prior experience?

Seems your B&G is nicely socialized in many aspects. Have you tried opening the cage door as invitation to exit? Bribing with a favored treat such as pieces of walnut or almond may be a good lure. Self-biting when disturbed may be "displacement" behavior, generally not dangerous.

Might find a pair of archived threads helpful:
http://www.parrotforums.com/general-parrot-information/49144-tips-bonding-building-trust.html
http://www.parrotforums.com/macaws/56384-big-beak-o-phobes-guide-understanding-macaw-beaks.html