And the Biting begins

[spuffy]

Well he is a peach fronted conure, I think he is maybe 9 months old. My boyfriend is training for a week so he will be gone for a week and three days, he may come back early, but I doubt it.

Anyways the conure Brisby..last night I disturbed him while he was sleeping by mistake and he was swaying side to side biting at the cage. I ignored it since I may have woken him up, and dismissed it as him being started

So earlier (the next day which was this afternoon) I tried to get him out of the cage, and he bit me and hung on. I said No, NO, firmly didn't yell and just left him in there since obviously he didn't want to come out. He started the sway side to side and fluff up like cockatoos due when they are ****** off. So I left him alone and closed the cage back up.

He's really starting to test me lately by biting harder, he broke the skin which really didn't hurt at all. He was looking at me waiting for a reaction, when that didn't work he bit harder and he'd look at me again waiting for a reaction. I hope he isn't like this the whole week, since I would like for him to come out of his cage, and not be locked up all day.

He has two tiels which I take them out separately because he will attack the older one. About two weeks ago he did attack my hand and face (the conure), so I am not going to allow him to go on the shoulder anymore, especially since he is trying to dominate me.

I know conures are nippy in general and I expected this, however I'm hoping he doesn't get too upset that his best friend (my bf) isn't here. He's never been away from him this long, but he didn't have a choice in leaving for a week to go train for work.

Is this typical conure behavior? I'm wondering do I just leave him in there for today? How do I know when I should try again and see if he wants to come out?

Also his wings are starting to grow up..and he is flying around his cage. As much as I hate to do it, should he be clipped?

Another thing he is a bit afraid of hands, he doesn't like to be touched, which is fine with me as long as he doesn't draw blood if he goes on my finger. The biting is a new thing, but he is starting to bite harder each time, mostly with me.

I'm thinking about maybe getting him some foot toys as this may help with the behavior?

 

[MikeyTN]

During training you should have him clipped if that's the way he's acting towards you. Have you tried perch training???? Use two perches, make him go from one to the other, over and over. One thing it's a great exercise, another no one gets hurt, he would be biting at the perch not your hand, he will figure out he can't hurt the perch so he gives up eventually. Since he can't fly, he will be relying on you to pick him up. Use a perch to pick him up every time. Over time, then try your fingers again. Don't allow him to perch on your shoulder until you have him trained pretty good before attempting to let him get anywhere close to your face.

 

[suebee]

find him an anger release toy! lol nut has some that i put on her cage, inside and out!

nuts fav chew items are, my hair bands/clips, foot toys and also this toy that has plastic dummies etc hung like a charm

i'd also give him lots of space while his missing your boyfriend, and do the perch training as mike says, with treats

 

[spuffy]

Thank you for the tips, I'll try that. Thanks for the help, hopefully this will calm him down. I'll get him some toys since he loves swinging upside down and shredding things.

 

[MikeyTN]

find him an anger release toy! lol nut has some that i put on her cage, inside and out!

nuts fav chew items are, my hair bands/clips, foot toys and also this toy that has plastic dummies etc hung like a charm

i'd also give him lots of space while his missing your boyfriend, and do the perch training as mike says, with treats

Anger release toys! LoL. I laugh every time I see that post from ya..... how true though, my macaw beat on his toy when he's mad....

 

[Spiritbird]

All about biting: I could not say it better than Sally Blanchard.

https://companionparrotonline.com/beakiness.html

 

[spuffy]

Thank you for the other link, it explains it pretty well. It is a bit difficult at times to I guess trust the bird, since sometimes they may seem perfectly fine, and calm and they may still bite. I think he realizes that he scared me a few time. Yesterday, I talked to him calmly and he walked over and stepped up. Today he's more into talking to himself and attacking his toys.

They do seem to love the anger release toys.

 

[MikeyTN]

Suebee got you saying "Anger release toys!" LoL

 

[spuffy]

Nevermind, he moved some feathers and I freaked out for nothing, I thought he ripped out a spot. He gave me an almond earlier today. He knows when I am going to give him something he sticks his foot out and doesn't bite, the snatches it away without even saying thank you.

 

[merlinsmom13]

All about biting: I could not say it better than Sally Blanchard.

https://companionparrotonline.com/beakiness.html

Great article!

 

[Liz]

We are considering a conure and really appreciate the tons of comments in the forums online.
I just found this interesting paragraph about biting and I have a question about it after :
And it’s true. Birds bite. They sometimes even bite the hand that feeds them and the person to whom they’ve bonded. It’s not like a dog biting. Birds certainly do bite out of aggression, but it’s more likely to be out of fear, frustration or anger. Birds bite one another as part of their natural interaction, and they expect us to tolerate some degree of this natural behavior. It’s a means of communication that leaves many people feeling hurt and rejected. To put it simply: birds are excellent communicators. Biting is a way of saying “I don’t like that,” and a very effective way of saying it at that. We humans are often not so direct or assertive, and we tend to hold a grudge when somebody or some bird is more assertive than we are. (end quote)

I like the idea that another species of creature in our home is something to explore and enjoy, but I'm confused about the comments re. not reacting to biting. If birds are direct communicators and they have plain messages, could we not respond in kind so they understand ?
Another context, If one of the cats at home here, have a choice piece of food, he will growl, the other cats do not take offense, they actually respect it. So i've tried that, holding a pet rat in my lap, i hold the rat and do a silly soft growl, and lo and behold, said interested cat just walks away !

I'm confused, like i say, about biting birds. I have read all of the training ideas, which we would do, but are there any actual bird communication things we could imitate ?

thank you for reading

 

[merlinsmom13]

I think by not reacting you are giving a clear message, I will not pay attention to you when you bite me. Nothing will change if you bite me. I've found that Merlin wants my attention above all things, he even enjoys the ouch.

 

[spuffy]

Oh, I know for a fact they love when you make any type of sound that birds love it. I said ouch more of a reaction than pain and his little cute devilish face lit up basically saying "oh!". I didn't react the other times and he seemed annoyed and gave up. It takes a while to get use to the behaviors of a different bird, and how to observe them to know when as a human to back off.