Adopted Conure Likes To Bite My Fingers Only In Specific Situation

[Birdiemom]

Hey everyone!
I've done a bit of sifting through various other biting related threads but nothing seemed to be quite the same situation I'm experiencing.
We adopted our GCC, Felix, a little over a month ago. He was in two homes before ours. In his first home, there were a lot of children that poked at him and so he's a little anxious about fingers. He's settled into our home quite nicely. He follows me everywhere, loves to preen me and seems to like me (I hope!). As the time has gone on he's gotten more adventurous and likes to explore a lot more. He doesn't love to be scritched, but if we alert him before we do it he's fine with it. I've also been trying to get him more and more used to my hands. He's now fine with stepping up onto my finger. Before, he would only go onto my shoulder, but now he's fine with my putting my hand in his cage so he can come see me. The same with scritches. I seem to be the only person who's allowed to give him a little scritch without alerting him first.

I work from home, so I often have breakfast with him and then we head to my office so I can start my work day. He loves exploring my desk. He particularly enjoys throwing my desk supplies on the floor. Doesn't bother me one bit! It's cute! One thing he has started doing, and it seems to only be when I'm at my desk and typing or using my computer mouse. He nibbles at my fingers and then chomps down hard. He gives no warning and it doesn't seem to be like he's angry about anything so I'm not sure how to stop him from doing it.

At this point in time, I've been using the 'time-out' method. I try not to make a big fuss, despite the fact that it hurts. I quietly bring him back to his cage. When I head back to my office, he starts to scream. At first I thought he might be biting me to alert me that he wants to go back to his cage or something, but when I bring him there for a time out he seems to not be very happy.

Should I just stop letting him roam around my desk while I'm working? Sometimes he's fine, he'll snuggle up to my arm and rest or he'll be content exploring. But the random biting seems to be happening more frequently.
He only does it in this context or if he's scratched the wrong way, but in that case it's usually pretty obvious that he's upset. With the desk situation, he seems super content and happy and then he just chomps down hard enough to draw blood.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Teddscau]

Well, the problem you're describing is a common issue. Parrots, especially ones who are learning to accept physical contact with humans, tend to be very nibble-y. Fingers fascinate them, so they express that fascination by chewing and chomping down on said fingers, like a shark who bites a human because they're curious (the parrot and shark are just as curious as one another and don't intend to harm anyone, but both freaking hurt!). I had to put up with a month and a half of mutilated fingers before Noah FINALLY quit.

The key is to be patient, and if they start getting too rough, give them a warning (don't make a big deal out of it since they'll get ticked off and bite you for real, but make sure you get the message across), and if they ignore you, tell him "bad", set him down, walk away, and ignore him for 3–5 minutes. I personally wouldn't put him in his cage when he's being naughty, because he'll begin to associate it with being a bad place to go, and he'll start throwing tantrums when he has to go back in to sleep or whatever. Instead, place him somewhere neutral like a coffee table, the back of a chair, etc. The cage should be associated with only positive things, and not punishment.

Something else you can do to help avoid nibbling is to give him different toys including shreddables while he's at your desk. Mahogany pods are a hit with my guys, as are those soft balsa cubes. A potential reason he may be biting is out of excitement. Exploring your desk, throwing things on the floor...it may be overly stimulating for him, leading him to chomp down on you. Next time he's on your desk, watch him to see how excited he's getting before he bites you.

 

[wrench13]

Agree, time outs should not be 'back to the cage' time. A chair back or a t-stand away from your work area is better. ANd only for 3-5 minutes - you dont want to strand the lil guy.

 

[SassiBird]

Is it just me or do they seem especially aggressive towards fingers that move fast? (typing, twisting caps, dialing phones, etc...)

 

[Teddscau]

Is it just me or do they seem especially aggressive towards fingers that move fast? (typing, twisting caps, dialing phones, etc...)

Yes, it seems that fingers performing specific tasks are especially targeted by sharp little beaks. Noah's really bad about going after my knuckles. I don't know if I should bother trying to teach him not to scrape my knuckles with his beak (it's his equivalent of poking me), or if I should just try to avoid letting him become impatient. It's really annoying, and he'll start scraping and pinching my fingers and knuckles harder and harder until we get into a fight.