Behavior question

[LoveMyConlan]

My 6 month old male b&g head developed these 2 habits that I'm not sure how to take. Are they ok or should I stop them?

1. His new favorite thing to do when we play is to grab my hand on the floor and roll himself over onto his back while he plays with/chews on my hand or his feet.

But he LOVES to lay his head on my arm while he hold my one hand, and I use my other one to run my hand from his cere down his neck and over the outside of his wings(just the top half by his shoulders on the wing itself). Or gently and slowly run his head feathers backwards. Or chin and crop area rubs. He lays there gently chewing my hand and at times falls a sleep.

2. He lives to play with hands. He's developed this habit of occasionally bending forward, shaking his tail, and 'attacking' my hand. Just like a cat. Once he had my hand he either does the above, or places his beak on the floor and grabs my hand in one foot pushes it behind him. Like he's pushing it away. But will do this a bunch of times.

My other birds don't do this. They they love being on their backs and getting a head rub.

But Rhage is flick his wings if I ignore them. I know past the shoulders and crop area is a big no no zone for hormone reasons, and I make sure not to go any farther.

But am I sending the wrong messages and should stop him when he tries to roll over or is this normal baby behavior?

He loves his head/neck massages but he just started with the rolling over to ask for them. Almost like he's asking me to message him to sleep.

I just want to make sure I'm not missing something that could lead to him being 'confused' later.

Any thoughts?

 

[LoveMyConlan]

PS. He does this with everyone in the house, not just me.

 

[SailBoat]

PS. He does this with everyone in the house, not just me.

Clearly, that is great news. Socializing very early is very important, keep it going.

Your B&G is months away from dealing with the first rush of his Hormonal 'event'. But understanding where specific zone are is a benefit.

At this stage, you really want to be setting boundaries and proper interactions.

Birdman666 has written so many excellent Threads and Posts that target working with young MAC's that you are really much better off searching for them in the MAC Forums. In addition, his writings also provide a solid foundation as your MAC grows and explores over the years to come!

Enjoy!

 

[wrench13]

Stick with head and neck scratches, you never know when a hormone induced bite . Time to start setting boundries with your B&G Macaw.

 

[s_car_go]

My Hy loves to play rough. She chomps on my hands and fingers but limits the pressure because I constantly set the limit. The verbal commands I use are "no pinching" to stop the pinching activity all together and "gentle" to reduce the pressure. She actually responds properly and has never drawn blood. She is very verbal and communicative and we know each other well.

She like to gnaw, chew and pinch on fingers, toes, ankles and arms since that beak is so big. We play fairly rough and she likes it. Its the sort of rough housing she would do with her siblings so it makes a lot of sense. She is still considered to be in the toddler stage of her development.

I play with every part of her body and she loves it. I don't restrict play to stay away from her erogenous zones yet since she is just a 2.5 YO. However that may change in the future and will see if I really need to like everybody says.

I am not afraid of her bite like I am with my B&G. I have to maintain dominance with her and not let her realize that her weapon could be a threat to me. If she knows I am fearful of her beak then things can turn bloody. She really is a gentle giant like the reputation they have.

My B&G is another story.

 

[LoveMyConlan]

Rhage has quickly learned the meaning of gentle. When he would get to rough all play stopped and he got a time out. He's just incredibly mouthy. Like a child always needing a pacifier.

He tests his boundaries with the 'no shoulder' thing. But generally after being sat back on the floor and ignored a few times he stops for the time being. I've learned with him you have to be 100% consistent with telling him NO. He'll test you if you're not paying attention. But generally, he's very easy on the bite pressure. He learned that before he comes home but we make sure that we keep up a consistent pressure allowance.

99.9% of the time he knows that if I can't pull my hand/finger from his mouth with just a gentle pull, he's being too hard and we stop.

PS he loves going out on his harness and meeting new people. I just warn them to move slowly, and just touch the top of his head. Usually he ignores people but will step up if they ask, but some days I notice he gets antsy with larger crowds and will yell when really tall people try to touch him. At that point I just tell people to respect his space, and I make sure to make sure no one can sneak up on him. I can tell when he gets like that because he'll constantly search for my other hand to grab in his beak (like I said pacifier) and if he has that he relaxes.

He recently went to a local ice cream place near the house, on his harness, and he sat on my lap eating his treat (a baby cone filled with bananas and blueberries) while I had my ice cream. He did great even with cars passing by and kids playing. He normally ignores everyone as if he trusts me to keep him 'safe'. But so far, when he's calm and asked, he's never hesitated to step up for a stranger... With me standing there of course.