Ely, Barney, and my hand.

[SirEdwin89]

First up is Ely....

His poor backside...

Next up is Barney.

And last but not least, my poor hand getting Ely off my shoulder after he darted up it.

 

[Allee]

Ouch! That was painful! Roll up a soft fluffy hand towel and keep it with you. When Ely heads for your shoulder, block him with the towel. When he starts to take a bite of flesh, block him with the towel, very gently and not in a threatening manner. After a few beakfuls of terry cloth rather than human flesh, he should start to get the idea. A play stand comes in handy too. Toos can get themselves worked up to an all out Too tantrum when they don't get what they want. Placing them on a stand a few feet away from you gives them a chance to cool off and let's them know aggressive behaviors are not acceptable. Shoulder privileges should be reserved until you really trust your bird and can predict his behavior.

Beautiful birds! Thank you for sharing your photos!

 

[SirEdwin89]

Ouch! That was painful! Roll up a soft fluffy hand towel and keep it with you. When Ely heads for your shoulder, block him with the towel. When he starts to take a bite of flesh, block him with the towel, very gently and not in a threatening manner. After a few beakfuls of terry cloth rather than human flesh, he should start to get the idea. A play stand comes in handy too. Toos can get themselves worked up to an all out Too tantrum when they don't get what they want. Placing them on a stand a few feet away from you gives them a chance to cool off and let's them know aggressive behaviors are not acceptable. Shoulder privileges should be reserved until you really trust your bird and can predict his behavior.

Beautiful birds! Thank you for sharing your photos!

Thanks for the Towel tip, I'll definitely try that. I was actually trying to get him to go to his play stand when he darted up my shoulder. He is going through hardcore hormone time right now, and has been doing the naughty-butt-wiggle, so I try and move him to the stand when he starts getting rubby. He absolutely loves shredding wood, so its a good distraction to let him calm down.

The bites were actually after he had been on my shoulder (with me trying to get him to step up to get him down and not take another ear bite) for about 15 minutes. I don't trust Ely nearly enough to willingly put him on my shoulders. Confetti is the only one who gets that privileged currently.

Once he was up there though, I just couldn't get him to step up. No aggression at first, (he just constantly tried to get lower than my hand and nuzzled me) Then I guess he just had enough, He smacked by hand twice with his beak (like a head butt) and then grabbed and pulled 3 times in rapid succession. At that point I had gotten over by his cage and after he had "taught me a lesson" he merrily stepped back up on to the top of his cage and started preening.

Does the whole Stern No without overly reacting to a bite still work when you cant look them in the eye when you say it?

 

[Allee]

A stern No works very well if they are focused on you. A stern No works well with a trained bird. Much like toddlers, Toos can become overstimulated very quickly. Ely is in a strange new world with strange new people. Two weeks is nothing to a Too. He came to you with baggage and no boundaries. That's okay, you said you were up for a challenge, with the right attitude you can only go forward. A Too's beak has three prongs and as you know they can deliver a very nasty bite, just like the screaming, Ely has been rewarded for biting, a wicked bite gets a dramatic reaction, Toos love drama. Don't pretend the bite didn't happen, he knows very well that he bit you, he attacked you in fact. If possible, avoid situations that cause confrontation. For instance, if your Too is hostile or extremely hormonal, avoid physical interaction. Place him on a stand with a cord of wood, talk to him, visit with him, don't pick him up. A lot of it is action and reaction, with any parrot, maybe more so with Toos. Decide on your reaction beforehand, when Ely attempt to bite too hard, a stern No, walk straight to the play stand with as little drama as possible, place him on his stand, turn your back and walk away. He will learn that this happens every single time he behaves badly. He will also learn that you will not hurt him no matter what. This takes time, it's hard to imagine such noisy birds appreciate a calm environment but they do. His grip on your arm tells me he is still nervous, a human perch is a questionable thing to trust when it's holding you up, he hasnt had a lot of human contact, he'll need time to process. He will learn to trust again and when he does he will want to do as you ask--most of the time. He'll still be a lovable mischievous Too. Music is a great distraction, most Toos love to dance, for some, a special treat is a good incentive. Eli has also had a very bad diet, if birds feel awful on the inside, they tend to get cranky. If the clip was extremely traumatic, that could be the reason for his aggression, he just isn't sure how these brand new humans will work out.

I should mention it's possible Ely has been traumatized by being toweled, if the sight of the towel scares him, find a piece of cloth that he can live with, your shirt, (yes, they will take the shirt off your back and laugh about it) a baby blanket, something he sees as a positive thing. Maybe a short perch, they are all individuals and have their personal hot buttons.

BTW, I thought your title in your other thread was very witty.

 

[Flboy]

Now that hurts!

 

[happy410]

Ouch! That makes my hand hurt just looking at the picture.
Beautiful birds.

 

[SirEdwin89]

A stern No works very well if they are focused on you. A stern No works well with a trained bird. Much like toddlers, Toos can become overstimulated very quickly. Ely is in a strange new world with strange new people. Two weeks is nothing to a Too. He came to you with baggage and no boundaries. That's okay, you said you were up for a challenge, with the right attitude you can only go forward. A Too's beak has three prongs and as you know they can deliver a very nasty bite, just like the screaming, Ely has been rewarded for biting, a wicked bite gets a dramatic reaction, Toos love drama. Don't pretend the bite didn't happen, he knows very well that he bit you, he attacked you in fact. If possible, avoid situations that cause confrontation. For instance, if your Too is hostile or extremely hormonal, avoid physical interaction. Place him on a stand with a cord of wood, talk to him, visit with him, don't pick him up. A lot of it is action and reaction, with any parrot, maybe more so with Toos. Decide on your reaction beforehand, when Ely attempt to bite too hard, a stern No, walk straight to the play stand with as little drama as possible, place him on his stand, turn your back and walk away. He will learn that this happens every single time he behaves badly. He will also learn that you will not hurt him no matter what. This takes time, it's hard to imagine such noisy birds appreciate a calm environment but they do. His grip on your arm tells me he is still nervous, a human perch is a questionable thing to trust when it's holding you up, he hasnt had a lot of human contact, he'll need time to process. He will learn to trust again and when he does he will want to do as you ask--most of the time. He'll still be a lovable mischievous Too. Music is a great distraction, most Toos love to dance, for some, a special treat is a good incentive. Eli has also had a very bad diet, if birds feel awful on the inside, they tend to get cranky. If the clip was extremely traumatic, that could be the reason for his aggression, he just isn't sure how these brand new humans will work out.

I should mention it's possible Ely has been traumatized by being toweled, if the sight of the towel scares him, find a piece of cloth that he can live with, your shirt, (yes, they will take the shirt off your back and laugh about it) a baby blanket, something he sees as a positive thing. Maybe a short perch, they are all individuals and have their personal hot buttons.

BTW, I thought your title in your other thread was very witty.

Thank you for all the advice! Was his grip really that noticeable? I mean you are spot on about it, he has the grip of death about 24/7. Ill start working on cutting down on the physical interaction and increasing the play-stand interaction and see how he starts reacting. Should I go so far as to move him from one place to the other on the T-stand? Not to avoid getting bit, I don't really care about that outside of my face, just to avoid the physical contact? Or would that be overdoing it?

 

[Allee]

I'm sorry, I should have added, no, don't stop the physical interaction, instead watch closely, when you're bird is in a calm mood, go over, offer your arm, if he is receptive let him sit on your arm and have a chat, be ready to block him from running up your shoulder. Keep the sessions short, the goal is to end the session before Ely goes into cockatoo overload. Parrots pick up on our emotions, if you can lower your energy before you approach, it will help. There are good days and bad days, don't get discouraged. If he's in a receptive mood, lengthen the sessions, reward him when you return him to his stand, verbally or with a treat. Birds love to be told how amazing they are.

The grip wasn't that obvious but I've held frightened Toos, they hang on tight. When he's developed some trust, you'll feel the difference.

 

[SirEdwin89]

I'm sorry, I should have added, no, don't stop the physical interaction, instead watch closely, when you're bird is in a calm mood, go over, offer your arm, if he is receptive let him sit on your arm and have a chat, be ready to block him from running up your shoulder. Keep the sessions short, the goal is to end the session before Ely goes into cockatoo overload. Parrots pick up on our emotions, if you can lower your energy before you approach, it will help. There are good days and bad days, don't get discouraged. If he's in a receptive mood, lengthen the sessions, reward him when you return him to his stand, verbally or with a treat. Birds love to be told how amazing they are.

The grip wasn't that obvious but I've held frightened Toos, they hang on tight. When he's developed some trust, you'll feel the difference.

Gotcha, thanks for clearing that up, we are on the same wave-length now.

 

[Allee]

I'm happy to help if I can. I love Too success stories!

 

[smbrds]

Too beautiful looking 'toos. I remember a friend of mine having an M2. Luckily, over time, she gained my trust and vice versa, but she was already friendly if not just shy at first. When she was in 'too mode, she was in it. Some great advice given here. I look forward to hearing more progress with Ely.

 

[SirEdwin89]

I'm happy to help if I can. I love Too success stories!

Well it will definitely be more of a success story eventually (I consider getting him out of the house he was in a minor success on its own! ). I'm already smitten with my new boys, And a few cuts/headaches is nothing compared to just seeing Ely not terrified of people. Also, he has given me the perfect excuse to buy the noise canceling headphones I've wanted to get anyway :21:

 

[Scott]

I'm happy to help if I can. I love Too success stories!

Well it will definitely be more of a success story eventually (I consider getting him out of the house he was in a minor success on its own! ). I'm already smitten with my new boys, And a few cuts/headaches is nothing compared to just seeing Ely not terrified of people. Also, he has given me the perfect excuse to buy the noise canceling headphones I've wanted to get anyway :21:

Terrific pictures, they are beautiful!! Thankfully those imprints on your hand did not draw blood, and are a reminder that shoulder privileges are definitely earned. I suspect you will get to that point soon enough!!

LOL at the last sentence. Toos have loud and distinctive screams, but you have a great way to adapt!!