Aggressive conure

[Theemm]

Good evening everyone! My name is Tez, i am 23 and live in San Diego, CA with my mom, sister, nephew and, until recently, my baby Pineapple Conure named Flash! Flash is 6-7 months old, i adopted him from a Family that did not want to care for him (the sex of the bird is still undetermined so we go by "he"). When we first brought Flash home he was sweet as can be, cuddled and loved his head rubs and all but as of recently, Flash has gotten extremely aggressive, lunging at and biting me, and especially my mom! And we have absolutely no idea why! We love him very much, no one here taunts him or is mean to him, he has a lot of time outside of his cage and if my mom leaves she takes him to work with her, we are a tad bit stressed is all i can really think of but not for him to be this hostile towards us and especially so out of the blue. If anyone who has owned a conure before can please give me some insight as to why (i have only ever had a cockatoo before him ). Please help, thank you!!

 

[Scott]

Welcome Tez, and thanks for joining the forums!! I'm your SD neighbor to the north, in Oceanside!!

It would seem Flash is now at his second and possible third home (counting the breeder) and has seen a lot in his short life. Depending on how long you have had him, the "honeymoon" period seems to have ended. Sometimes medical issues can cause behavioral problems, so if he has not yet been to an avian vet, a visit may be helpful.

I haven't had a conure for many years, so others can give you better information. You may find some benefit to reading this thread from the conure sub-forum: http://www.parrotforums.com/conures/56935-conure-s-aggression-worse-every-day-desperate-help.html

It is a long one, filled with some dissent, but has valuable commentary from Stephen (Anansi) and Mark. (Birdman666)

Since you previously had a cockatoo, you know the joy and challenges of living with a parrot!!

 

[MonicaMc]

Tez, without being able to see what happens before the bite, during the bite, and after, it's really hard for any of us to say why he's biting.

Maybe Flash isn't getting enough sleep? Maybe another animal in the house is bothering him? Maybe going to work with your mother is stressful to him? Maybe he's not being worked with right? (a common mistake for many new owners, or even seasoned owners who haven't had a young bird in years)


Think of biting as a form of communication. Flash is saying that he's not comfortable with something and the only way he's learned how to tell you is through biting. Maybe he's saying he's not ready to move? Maybe he doesn't know what it is you want?


Target training can be a great way to start learning how to communicate with him and can be fun for Flash and the family! Just keep training sessions short!

 

[GaleriaGila]

You'll get WONDERFUL ADVICE here. I hope you read and absorb and try.
If in the end, everything's not as you hoped it would be... here are my humble thoughts. I have lessened my psychological and physical wounds over the decades... not because I've changed the bird, but I have changed me. And a lot of that has involved giving up on a lot of my desires/expectations. After years of battle, I surrendered. I don't do stuff that gets me bitten. I don't scratch his head much, ever... tail is okay... weird. In some ways, I swallow my disappointment at having a pet that is so WEIRD. I guess I'm saying that if its okay with you, its okay. So I guess what I'm saying is...wherever the dust settles... please let it be okay. Don't do stuff that gets you bitten... take whatever ridiculous precautions needed. And in the end... give in to your obvious desire just to LOVE that little alien being.

 

[janquito]

My gcc behaved in similar fashion around that same age. I went into Petco & asked the lady there(she's the 'go to' locally) & she said he was acting like a typical teenager but I'd call it a toddler but either way, they want their own way & are trying to show you he's boss. If this is what is occurring with your bird (doesn't help that you're owner #?), he'll get better. Patience & maturity, time.

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[Printer bird]

GCCs are bossy little birds that like to push boundaries. Ours was very bitey and our hands were chomped to bits for months. They are also very emotional birds and when their excitement gets to be too much they push their excess energy into bites. You can see it if they have a surrogate "frenemy" toy that they shake when they're happy to see you or mad that you're leaving. It took us time to learn how to be with each other - we could anticipate his bites with time and he learned that he couldn't control us with the bites (i.e. he was testing our boundaries). Being firm and consistent helped. Setting him down when he bit and turning away and then re-engaging after a short period could help. Redirecting his energy into trick training can be helpful too - especially target training. Then they start to understand more what you mean and are happy to understand you. Use positive reinforcement to help direct them to what you want them to do (i.e. step up using a small piece of almond or pine nut as a reward, etc). Otherwise you can provide us with more information about times that he does bite so that we can see we can help you with your behaviour.

 

[GaleriaGila]

LOVE that, Printer: frenemy!
YES... the Rb has a buddy (a long hanging ball thingie) that he beats up when either very happy to see me or very angry when not taken out of the cage. Good one.

 

[Theemm]

Thank you all so much for your responses!! They are greatly appreciated!! i'm not giving up on my baby! I just wanted to understand him better and see where i could be going wrong. How exactly can i conduct target training? Is it like me rewarding him being cuddly and being firm when he's biting? I'm sorry, i don't mean to come off as ignorant, i'm just not used to this, when we had our Cockatoo (she passed away in June :'() it was an instant, unconditional love but of course every being is different and i love him no matter what. Update: today he was more tolerable since we took my cousins dog back to her house! Hopefully this could be the start of us forming a bond? Thank you all again!!!!

 

[Scott]

Thank you all so much for your responses!! They are greatly appreciated!! i'm not giving up on my baby! I just wanted to understand him better and see where i could be going wrong. How exactly can i conduct target training? Is it like me rewarding him being cuddly and being firm when he's biting? I'm sorry, i don't mean to come off as ignorant, i'm just not used to this, when we had our Cockatoo (she passed away in June :'() it was an instant, unconditional love but of course every being is different and i love him no matter what. Update: today he was more tolerable since we took my cousins dog back to her house! Hopefully this could be the start of us forming a bond? Thank you all again!!!!

Your future feedback would be valuable, so let us know how Flash progresses!!

 

[Theemm]

Printer bird: when we brought him home, he was cuddly but it started when i started going to work it seems (i'm a Marine and the wee hours of the morning call-eth my name), first he would hiss and kind of chirp with a "tone" like he was arguing whenever i picked him up when i'd come home and now he either hisses and tries to bite whenever i go to stratch his head (it's his first molt but he likes the scratchies) or just charges (he literally hung on to a piece of my mom's arm and broke the skin). Last night a friend came over and he was like feathery butter, let him put him on his back and let him scratch him, he tried to bite too but he talked to him and calmed him down. Today he was more tolerable to us and even let me give him a quick head rub. Thank you so very much for your time!! P.s. We were dog-sitting for a short time, he seems less angry today now that she's gone

 

[janquito]

Are you giving him baths? They itch horribly when molting & the water, I'm told, helps soften the feathers & makes it nicer/better/easier (?) for the new feathers coming in. My Conor seemed to get mad when I left & let me know it when I would take him out but he got better. Conor has drawn blood from me countless times & I'm sure he will continue but he's getting better. Talking calmly does help at times but it's hard to speak calmly when your skin is being used as a chew stick! Lol! I do talk calmly when he bites depending on where he bites & if I'm expecting it. I don't know how your bird is but I've noticed mine sometimes gets a "flat head" (feathers form to make the top of his head look flat) when he's mad. Try to watch his body language; over time, you'll start to recognize what makes him bite and/or how he acts/looks when he's either going to bite or doesn't want to be bothered.

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[Danigrrl39]

Give no feedback whatsoever when he bites. I know it's hard to ignore it and not yelp, it hurts. He wants a reaction. Any reaction is reinforcing the cause effect. You're like a giant squeaky toy for him, so even if its a stern no, it's a reaction. Do not engage whatsoever, just calmly set him in his cage for an hour as a time out and ignore. When he is quiet, then engage. It's the same for them making noise in their cage when it's night night time. Even if you're saying shh, it's a response which is what they want. Think toddler. But with a sharp beak. Hope that helps

 

[MonicaMc]

How exactly can i conduct target training?
First - figure out what he finds rewarding. It can be treats, praise, physical attention, a toy, or?

Second, decide on your target. It can be your hand, a chopstick, a crochet needle, an acrylic stick, a ball, etc. It's easier to use an item the bird isn't afraid of, but you can train a bird to target to an item they are afraid of.

Third - start by rewarding the bird for looking at the target. Then reward the bird for moving their head towards the target. Then reward for taking a step towards the target. Then reward the bird for taking two steps towards the target. Etc.

NOTE: A bird does not need to physically touch the target in order to be target trained. Step up, when done correctly, is actually a form of target training!


Is it like me rewarding him being cuddly and being firm when he's biting?
See above. Also, please do not ignore a bite, nor "punish" a bird for biting.


The only bite that can't be rewarded is the one that never occurs. Easier said than done, yes, but possible! This essentially means to back off before the bite occurs and try to figure out why the bird was about to bite. If the bird is biting you, get the bird off! (gently, of course!)

Ignoring the bite simply tells them that they may need to bite harder or longer to try and communicate with you. If this behavior is ignored, this can lead to possibly an aggressive bird, or a bird who learns learned helplessness. That is, no matter the outcome, the animal has no choice in the final decision. Neither one is a good outcome.


I'm sorry, i don't mean to come off as ignorant, i'm just not used to this
That's perfectly fine! We were all new at one point in time! And even with experience, sometimes we have to change the way we do things if we end up with a bird who's behavior we've never dealt with before!


today he was more tolerable since we took my cousins dog back to her house! Hopefully this could be the start of us forming a bond?
Sounds like the dog was definitely a factor in your bird's behavior! Birds bite as a form of communication and it really sounds like Flash was trying to say that he's not comfortable with the dog in the house. The dog is, after all, a predator, and Flash is prey.

 

[GaleriaGila]

Monica, you always give such good, comprehensive information and support.