Lorikeet Attacked me!!! HELP!

[MarciaLove]

Ok so I have worked with MANY birds on aggression but never ones this bad he was a rescue and is a year and a half old I've had him 2 weeks now. It all started a couple days ago I was playing with him like I usually do just sitting and letting him play around on me and scratching his head which he LOVES and he bit my finger I ignored it cause it wasn't too bad a bite I thought maybe something scared him (but everything was very calm) and he did it again a little later so I ignored it again then pet him and put him away. Today (two days later) I was a little wary of touching him cause of the previous time I played with him but he was just being sweet jumping around and playing with some toys while sitting on me then he just stared at me and lunged for my face!! He bit my lip cutting a hole YES A HOLE through my top lip and lightly cutting my bottom lip I just got myself cleaned up its sooo painful I did pull back when he bit me but didnt yell or hit him or pull him off and then straight after he let go I put him up by putting a towel over him and went to clean up the blood on me. Also after both times nd before this last time he did this little thing where he hisses with his tongue sticking out and his wings slightly raised and bobs his body up and down. Any suggestions welcome please! I have dealt with biters before but this is difeffernt than my other I have tamed two lovebirds many parakeets, A Sun Conure, and a Blue Crowned Conure so I though I could handle this but now I'm not so sure I'm not saying I'm not willing to work with him just that I'm not sure how to deal with this I very much want to work on this and keep him! I just need some help!!

 

[MikeyTN]

They have their moments, you might of done something he didn't like. OR it can be hormones, when Malachai went through his hormones, he was a total devil attacking and biting viciously. Best thing you can do is leave him be cause IF they're flighted, they do the fly attack and it can get nasty. Malachai shocked me when he flew to me and started biting at me, then flew towards my partner and did the same thing. Now he's back to his normal self. Watch for the signs you just described, cause he does the same thing. When they do that, just back away and leave them be.

 

[MarciaLove]

thank you I will try that

 

[Thingamagigs]

That is good advice Mikey

What you describe is, for want of a better word, a dominance display. Its similar to a seagulls dominance/threat posture. They stretch up, arch their neck, fluff their feathers, hiss and eventually flap their wings.
I found a video on youtube on my first search, its even labelled dominance display LOL The little dramatic strutting in the opening of the clip is this dominance display.

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tPRDn6hnEeY]Lorikeet Dominance Display - YouTube[/ame]

The swaying/swerving head movement he does right in the face of another lorikeet is not normally part of the dominance display, it could be either part of their mating dance he is attempting to combine with a dominance display or a friendly greeting (they seem to sway their heads at each other in a general non threatening greeting). He might be a young bird, because he doesn't seem too serious about his display and no one is terribly threatened by it either lol

I found another clip with a bird who is doing just the mating dance by itself at first, so you can see that without it being combined. He also does a dominance display afterwards. Thats his wifey standing next to him

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8wsxDCgV3M]Lorikeets rave - YouTube[/ame]

Lorikeets are like conures in the way they play, their size and noise levels. But thats where the similarities end. You might be tempted to think your birds behaviour is just a troubled birds behaviour... but this behaviour is pretty standard for a lorikeet I am afraid. Lorikeets are very aggressive and socially complex birds.
I used to own and raise lorikeets, but I find they aren't normally a suitable pet for a household situation. In Australia its easy to set aviaries up for them and they make a delightful pet when they have their space. But in general I would not recommend them to just anyone. They can be as challenging as a large cockatoo, their size the only thing making them easier.

But at least you now know both sides of your new little jeckle/hyde You will learn to read the signs and adapt accordingly If you are able to, an aviary or outdoor flight for summer would be a huge asset, he can work off his energy outside and you can bring him in of an evening. Otherwise don't even attempt to get him out of his cage if he is in a mood. They never hesitate to give a bite.
My lorikeets were the only birds I have had a "no shoulders" rule with because its too risky having them near your face.

 

[MikeyTN]

I knew about the behavior problems prior to bringing him home so we're pretty used to it by now. Your right, they're not your everyday bird to own, they can be quite complex. We still love Malachai as he is like no other bird I've ever owned. We just learned to back away from the cage when he's in his mood. We would however own another Lory down the road after Malachai, he's just special!

 

[LoryLover]

Sweet Pea is my second lory and she is a female and has never just randomly started biting and biting hard.

However, the first lory we had was a male and he did behave that way. He bit completely through my 14 year old daughter's lip. Many times he would be playing cutely and then like a flash of lightning, run over to my husband and bite him hard on the face (drawing blood) and then be back playing like nothing happened. He would also chase my daughter into her bedroom, he was screeching the whole time. She would get to her room and yell "Mom!!! Come and get Woody!! He's attacking me!!!"

I've only had the two lories, Woody for five years, and now Sweet Pea for last 15 years, so it seems to be a trait of the males. I could be wrong, but that's just been my own experience.

 

[MikeyTN]

LoryLover,

I think it's a male behavior too!!!! I know Malachai is a male for sure. There was another Lory that I fell in love with about 7 years ago, I believe it was a female. I visit several times a week for over a year before she was sent off to another store cause they couldn't sell her. We were going to go pick her up the very day she got sent off, we were quite sad....Cause from me visiting her that long, I fell in love with her as she was such a sweet bird, doesn't act anything like Malachai and doesn't do the male thing....

 

[cthulhus_minion]

Just asking, wouldn't leaving them alone when they did that reinforce this behavior of dominance? I'm new to birds but every pet I ever owned would only get worse about it if you let it be dominate. Other than snakes and they really don't get hormonal or dominate, some just don't like to he touched.

 

[cthulhus_minion]

And I'm not saying anybody is wrong, I'm just asking put of curiosity

 

[MarciaLove]

@ Thingamagigs the first video is what he is doing minus the head swerving form side to side! I can set up an outdoor aviary in summer and have plans to do it actually

 

[MikeyTN]

Just asking, wouldn't leaving them alone when they did that reinforce this behavior of dominance? I'm new to birds but every pet I ever owned would only get worse about it if you let it be dominate. Other than snakes and they really don't get hormonal or dominate, some just don't like to he touched.

Look at it this way, would you go try to pickup a bird that wants to bite you? Absolutely not! That's why you should see the early warning signs. They're not like your typical parrot, they can be fine one moment and go for the kill next minute. Some other parrots can be like that but nothing like a Lory in my opinion. Our point is to avoid the contact if they're in the mood, not saying to leave them be forever.

It can be like 30 min apart, malachai would change that quick.

 

[Thingamagigs]

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yh9CRQpQhpk]War of the Birds-Lorikeets vs Cockatoos.avi - YouTube[/ame]

They fear nobody! lol

cthulus minion... nope, not with lorikeets... they are... special. LOL They easily chase off and intimidate larger bird species.
There is nothing you can do to decrease their level of aggression... by leaving you are more or less reinforcing that they don't need to escalate to a full on attack to get your attention. Its the best way to manage their amped up personalities without getting a bite. If you stay, all you do is increase their frustration to the point they consider a bite essential to get their point across. And if one bite doesn't get you moving they will continue their attack until they feel comfortable that you understand their position.
I have never experienced a species of pet parrot that uses body language as thoroughly as lorikeets do. From body posture to feather position and eye pinning. You gotta be an expert in lorikeet language lol

Training can help lorikeets who aren't total hormonal nightmares... but they are all sugar powered nutcases anyway LOL Even during a training session they are as likely to bite as when you are doing nothing at all. Their little lorikeet brains go a million miles an hour, who knows what offense you committed in their brilliant sugar-high brains

Males regularly posture and two males who both fancy themselves superior will fight. Its over quickly (usually, sometimes it gets pretty hairy!) but the fact still remains the males live a rather competitive existence. Of course not all lorikeet species are the same, scaly breasted lorikeets are often much better pets, but they don't have such enormous flocks either so it is safe to assume there is less need for their aggression. I don't have experience with the other lorikeet species, just rainbow and scaly breasted lorikeets. I imagine they are fairly similar in certain ways, especially going on Mikey's description of Malachai!

And yep, you are absolutely right Mikey! at least 8 times out of ten it is a male who attacks. Females usually have less reason to resort to aggression, but they are still very feisty birds. You have a better chance at a nice calm pet if you choose a female. If you do get a sweet lorikeet who rarely/never bites then you are lucky Not to say they are completely without their charms... there was a reason I used to keep them and I would keep them again if I had my own place with a large aviary. I would have some aqua melanistic rainbows and some lutino scalys!
If you are happy to work life around their eccentricity they are hilarious little odd-balls who would happily spend all day long playing. I am still partially in love with them Especially melanistic rainbows (blue fronted rainbow lorikeets).

 

[MikeyTN]

When the ekkies escaped one day while I was cleaning and feeding. Malachai jumped out of his cage cause I was removing his bowls out of his cage. He climbed on top of his cage acting all curious then bam he flew and attacked Gracie full on right in front of me. I had to remove Malachai off her and Gracie flew to my chest shaking. He doesn't play well with others!!!! If you read up about some of the Lories, they don't play well with others and you have to be careful IF you ever do decide to add another Lory cause they can hurt one another easily. It is suggested to keep the black Lory and some other Lories singly because of the aggression issue. Malachai is NOT afraid of the big birds and he will take them on. I have to always make sure all the other birds is put away before I let him out.

 

[LoryLover]

LoryLover,

I think it's a male behavior too!!!! I know Malachai is a male for sure. There was another Lory that I fell in love with about 7 years ago, I believe it was a female. I visit several times a week for over a year before she was sent off to another store cause they couldn't sell her. We were going to go pick her up the very day she got sent off, we were quite sad....Cause from me visiting her that long, I fell in love with her as she was such a sweet bird, doesn't act anything like Malachai and doesn't do the male thing....

Ah, it's too bad you missed getting that female lory! But.... with the females there's the worry about egg laying, & egg binding. We've now had two experiences with Sweet Pea. But seeing as she's turning 16 yrs old in March, that's not bad at all. And... with each situation I can look back on it and figure out what to do or not do in the future to prevent another situation. I really didn't realize that the bed in our guest bedroom had a cardboard box under it, and it must have been under there for years, but it was this particular season that Sweet Pea decided to make a nest out of it! Anyway, even though our first lory, Woody, was quite a devil sometimes, he was great fun. Being our first lory, we were enamored with him, and greatly amused by all his antics and endless energy.

 

[MikeyTN]

Yea I know, she was a beautiful Yellow-Streaked Lory. They named her Chicken, they know I liked her cause I'm there enough time visiting....lol....Just when I decided I want her, I brought my partner along to see her and my partner liked her a lot too. It was only the next day when my partner decided to go pick her up for me since I had to work, my partner called me on the phone to give me the bad news that she's gone. I didn't like another Lory since then until Malachai and we've seen a lot of beautiful Lories. My partner always wanted a black bird and we weren't thinking about bringing home a bird that day at the bird fair as we have plenty, when he chose me, my partner says, I want that black lory and so did I....lol....He's very quirky, that's what we liked about him, no other bird that we have nor what I've had in the past is anything like him. Even though he can be a devil at times, he can also be a sweetheart.

 

[LoryLover]

Just asking, wouldn't leaving them alone when they did that reinforce this behavior of dominance? I'm new to birds but every pet I ever owned would only get worse about it if you let it be dominate. Other than snakes and they really don't get hormonal or dominate, some just don't like to he touched.

During the 5 years we had our male lory, I don't recall him displaying dominance behavior, or maybe we just didn't recognize it, seeing as how he was our first lory. Lories have very strong personalities, are super fun-loving and super playful. When you have a lory, you are drawn into playing with them - it's their charm. I would definitely agree though, that if you notice the behavior that precedes a vicious bite, then of course, you'd back off and give them their space.

 

[LoryLover]

When the ekkies escaped one day while I was cleaning and feeding. Malachai jumped out of his cage cause I was removing his bowls out of his cage. He climbed on top of his cage acting all curious then bam he flew and attacked Gracie full on right in front of me. I had to remove Malachai off her and Gracie flew to my chest shaking. He doesn't play well with others!!!! If you read up about some of the Lories, they don't play well with others and you have to be careful IF you ever do decide to add another Lory cause they can hurt one another easily. It is suggested to keep the black Lory and some other Lories singly because of the aggression issue. Malachai is NOT afraid of the big birds and he will take them on. I have to always make sure all the other birds is put away before I let him out.

Our red lory, Woody, won a fight with a hawk in our back yard. Now if that doesn't demonstrate how feisty the lory can be, I don't know what could, lol!! Amazingly he wasn't hurt at all, no puncture wounds, broken wings... quite a bit dazed though. He was sitting on his stand on the patio and a hawk swooped in and grabbed him. Woody was fighting for his life (loudly too!), and he won. For the whole next day, he was a statue bird in his cage... and we worried about him. But the following day, he was back to his normal self, playing and being feisty.

Loved that video Thingamagigs!!

 

[cthulhus_minion]

Well I wasn't planning on getting one anyway, but I defiently won't now lol I don't want a pet I have to step on eggshells around lol defiently not a lori-person, no offense to those that love them and have them, its just not for me.

 

[MikeyTN]

LoryLover,

Wow....I know they're feisty but didn't know they would go against a hawk....They act quickly to fight back unlike a lot of parrots that would just freak out and not know what to do. And they go for the kill with constant biting non stop....

 

[Pinkbirdy]

My yellow streaked lory will fly and bite my daughter when she gets him too excited.We have learned how to tell how if hes getting there to prevent it .Not that it doesnt hurt but its funny how they look different.[I have a picture of mine in funny stories ,different shaped beak] We have to have him out by himself because he will fly and attack the other birds even my Macaw.But most of the time hes great with us [Their so smart]