I really need advice please on Rosie's biting - would be so grateful :)

[Ecclipse]

Lol - Im supposed to be learning - tomorrow is another day...best excuse I could come up with

Please help me guys/gals, Im really struggling with Rosie. She has come on so well and I love her so much - the joy she has brought me is amazing. She is stil biting and Im not posting this thread because Im impatient or wanting immediate results but Im struggling to understand why she is biting.:31:

I have read articles, websites, books etc on biting and nothing is helping. The information either discusses the taming of a bird or discusses agression and biting. I have also read info after info on body language and why birds bite. I have learnt alot - especially about body language but am no closer to being able to assist in Rosie not biting.

Here is a list of things that I have picked up and how she behaves:

1. She always wants to be with me and hops onto my hand - covered by her "blankie" (dishcloth cut to fit over my hand)

2. She comes out of her cage and plays around and with me as well as taking food from my fingers

3. She sits on my shoulder and alternates between her cage and the back of the couch to my shoulder where I sit and work

4. She hates me changing food/water etc in her cage - Hugo didnt like that either and I read that their cage is their space and to be expected???

5. If my hand is resting on my lap or side of couch she will calmly walk over and not attack but bite into my hand/finger as if it was something to chew - there is no sign of aggression (fluffed up, growling etc.) Her actions are slow and not threatened????? She will nibble and then nibble really hard - she doesnt lunge or get upset

6. If I try and get her used to my fingers by bringing my finger near her to try and scratch her head she then shows aggression and doesnt attack but fluffs up and opens her mouth wide

7. When she hops onto my arm or hand she is very happy but if any skin shows she will immedietly move to the area and bite.

I feel that the info on the internet is helping because she is tame in the sense that she has bonded with me but not my hands - its like she doesnt see my hands as part of me????

I have tried to endure the biting but she draws blood, I have tried repremanding, I have tried moving my hand away, I have tried moving my hand towards her to get her to release, I have tried blowing and praising good behaviour.

I thought if we could all put our heads together I could work out some way to figure out her reason for biting.....lol, sorry this thread is so long

 

[Spiritbird]

Perhaps it is time for a litle tough love. Every time she bites give her a time out and no attention from you at all. They will not think of the cage as punishment because it is their home and they are most comfortable there. Hope it works.

 

[Ecclipse]

Hi SB, do I put her back in the cage and close it?? How long does she need time out for?

 

[Spiritbird]

Yes just back in the cage giving her a look that says I dont like it when you do that. Lock the cage and step out of the room for a short while. I guess about 10 min. or so. There is no written suggestions. I do this with Rosie when she bites and it works for a while. This is the only suggestion I have for you. I know they say not to wear gloves but if you casually put on an ugly pair of gloves when you think she may bite it may deter her. Not to touch her with the gloves though. I just now thought of this.

Our birds are little

 

[Ecclipse]

Thanks SB, really appreciate your advice...maybe I have been spoiling her too much - lol. Will try that out and see how it works

 

[Spiritbird]

Nothing wrong with spoiling our feathered friends. I do it all the time. You should see my grocery cart. It looks like I eat the healthiest of all diets until I tell the clerk that most of it is for my bird. Do we get crazy looks!!

 

[SharonC]

I totally agree with SB. Levi, my Linnie, had a very bad biting habit...he bit to get his way in everything. I reprimanded him, put him in his cage, and ignored him for an hour. He learned quickly that his "ön people" priviledges were dependant on his behavior. This will work well, when a bird is biting due to "attitude". If a bird is biting due to fear, that's another story...

 

[bogo1]

Agree. Could she like your taste ...the salt on your skin? Try rubbing some vinagar on your hand where she tends to nibble ...just an experiment. If she backs off that might help us figure out what's IP.

 

[antoinette]

Rosie's aunt Ant would like her to my dear darling niece, what can I say !!!!!

When Mishka has attempted to bite me, I make a fist, showing it to her, almost placing it on her beak, and say uhhh uhhh, in a very stern voice. When she does something wrong now and she know it she says uhhh uhhh

Putting Rosie back in the cage will work wonders, Jessica to me the longer you leave her in the cage, the better. No talking to her, only uhhh uhhh, no music, dead silence. Leave the room if you are able to, now that is punishment in itself.
I have left Mishka in her cage, time out for 2 hours, when she tried to bite me.
I seriously think she learnt a lesson, she has never attempted to bite again.
Let us know how she progressing okay

 

[Spiritbird]

It is so great when there is an issue with one of our forum birds that we can put our heads together and come up with a plan to help. That is what we are all about. Here is one for you Jess

 

[antoinette]

It is so great when there is an issue with one of our forum birds that we can put our heads together and come up with a plan to help. That is what we are all about.

Here here, amazing. With so many bird brains in one place, anything can be accomplished

 

[Ecclipse]

SB - I agree fully about shopping for our birds then us - lol!!!!! and am so grateful that we can all gang together and find a solution - if only I birds knew , lucky they cant gang on us - one lovebird brain is enough for me - heehee.

I am going to use the techinique that you guys have suggested and give her time out. I did notice something interesting today - I have been learning alot and I have rosie is the room with me - playing - RUNNING - playing - RUNNING - lol but have not had her on my shoulder because she RUNS down my arm and wants to write for me - lol. Anyways, its been 48 hours where she has had half the amount of time on my shoulder and this morning when she was sitting on my arm she licked my hand and gently nibbled - MADE HUGE FUSS and PRAISE - could be a once off thing or maybe she is feeling a little "unloved"???

Right - tough love coming up - oh boy!!!! hahahaha...

Thanks for the advice about the vinegar Bogo - unfortunately I hate vinegar so I will end up running away from me has that method worked with you?

 

[Ecclipse]

Please check if my plan sounds ok

Im going to continue using the "blankie" for step up and not try and touch her but place my hand near her when she is on my lap or arm - I will then give her time out OR should I try using my fingers for step up and try touch her??? Dont want to overkill the process??

Hey Ant, Rosie has you on speed dial but seems to think Im the one that needs to call you - lol

 

[wildheart]

Im going to continue using the "blankie" for step up and not try and touch her but place my hand near her when she is on my lap or arm - I will then give her time out OR should I try using my fingers for step up and try touch her??? Dont want to overkill the process??

I will dump the blankie if I was you, it covers your hand and it might be confusion her. Rosie thinking: "Now it is a blankie then it is a thing with stuff growing out of it, let me bite it and see if the blankie comes back."

its like she doesnt see my hands as part of me????

The blankie is part of you, the hands only comes later. Dump the blankie.

Sterretjie, well actually all the kids in my house are terrified of my garden gloves. Sterretjie runs away as fast as she can and forest tries his best to hide, so, I think gloves are not a good idea either. This will once again hide your hands and make it something separate from your body.

I wouldnt use the fingers yet, chances are that she will bite them because they are blankie free and therefore new to her. I am just guessing here!

Why dont you try and hold out a perch with the one hand and behind the perch hold a treat with the other hand. In other words, she has to clime on the perch to get to the treat. But dont hold the treat every time because then she will insist on it. Play with her toys as well, the more she sees your hands as part of you the better.

Hope that helps.

 

[Ecclipse]

Thanks for the advice Linkie....I have taken everyone's advice and am seeing results. Will dump the "blankie" and start getting her used to not having it. She gave me kisses on my cheek yesterday and am so chuffed. Thank thank you so much for all your advice guys/gals....it is defianetly the way to go

 

[bogo1]

Team work! We have the bird brain outnumbered with more bird brains. Its all good!

 

[Ecclipse]

Well said, Barbara We are all an excellent team!

 

[Spiritbird]

Learn to watch her body language. There are times when our birds do not want to be touched. If my Rosie is in that mood I would be bitten for sure. I can tell when she does not want to be touched because she turns away from me and looks elsewhere.
Or she watches my hands like "what do you think your are going to do with those". Yes I guess gloves only covers up the issues here. Same for vinegar.

 

[bogo1]

Oh... yeah on the vinegar. So this was something the owner of one of the birds I fostered was told. Her bird had an odd tendency to put her beak around any hanging rope, twine, really anything not metal and just stay there and sort of suck on it...or something like cribbing if you know anything about bored horses. Anyhow, it became problematic in that the bird would do that rather than just about anything else. So the woman was instructed to soak the hanging string in vinegar to keep the bird from just sitting there sucking on it. It seemed to work for her. Non-toxic but birds don't like the taste. So that is why I thought of it when you said Rosie was kind of nibbling on you before she chomped down.

 

[wildheart]

The vinegar idea sounds great for that situation. I wonder if I should soak my whole couch in vinegar so that Sterretjie would stop trying to clime under it! Maybe I should soak a towel and then put it under the couch! I think I am going to try that! Thanks Barbara.