My conure is an idiot

[Grumpee53]

Since i retired my gcc has grown very attached to me. He has to be on me all the time. I put him in his cage and he continues screaming. He does not talk, and if i do something he doesnt like he will bite. I dont think i have a shirt now without holes. If anyone tries to take him from me, he will bite them. He hates any bright colors. Any idea how to get him so he isnt so attached to me.

 

[GaleriaGila]

My usual narrative...

I have an old bird who is set in his ways, and may be a good example of what can happen if you DON'T do effective, early intervention.
I have reduced biting to almost zero over the decades... not because I've changed the bird, but I have changed me. And a lot of that has involved giving up on a lot of my desires/expectations. After years of battle, I surrendered. I don't do stuff that gets me bitten. I don't scratch his head much, ever... tail is okay. I NEVER do stuff that makes him mad... I don't touch others when he's out; I rarely try to get him to step up onto my hand first. Hand-held perch first, then hand. In some ways, I swallow my disappointment at having such a little monster for a pet, but he is what he is. I ALWAYS wear my hair down when he's on my shoulder, so all he can bite is hair.
Since he's fully flighted, the ONLY way I get him into the cage is to toss a chile pepper in and he flaps in after it.
But please... listen to and try all the good advice you'll get here. Don't surrender until you know you've done your best. Then just accept and love whatever/whoever your bird turns out to be.
My darling is kind of a worse-case scenario, but we have it all worked out between the two of us.
Many feel that GCCs are the sweethearts of conures. Good luck!
Glad you found us.

 

[Puck]

LOL, if that's the definition of an idiot, I definitely am one, too, 'cause some of my human habits are definitely just as annoying as his habits!

There's a saying around here that it's never the fault of the parrot--it's important to think about what you're doing that is causing this situation and how you can change that to alter the new habits. It sounds to me that your conure has become over dependent on you since you retired (likely because you've spent a little too much time with him and he has come to expect your attention all the time) and you need to start working on encouraging and rewarding independent behavior. I am not sure how the not talking thing fits into this as many birds never talk, but as for the attention screaming and the biting, there are lots of threads on training regarding these issues if you use the search function above. Screaming for attention and biting are both very common problems and people seek help in regards to them all the time. Good luck on helping your buddy!

 

[Loko]

Hmm.. I dont really see the relation to anything idiotic. It sounds like your bird just loves you and has seperation anxiety /is over bonded. You need to teach him how to entertain himself - playing with toys, flying, climbing, things birds do. If he can entertain himself he will be much more comfortable when alone. A lot of people do this - I have too - you dont work, or have a month off, or whatever and begin to have your bird with you 24/7 and nothing less, and with you and only you. He gets used to this and expects it all the time for now on, but its very important he knows how to entertain himself in case you werent around for a time. The aggression - he is "protecting you" - you need to socialize him and have many different people play and hold him so he knows other people are okay. Some situations are just best avoided altogether like if he is jealous of a pet dog or cat, just avoid having them near eachother completely. With himans it is more about socialization to solve it but keeping him off your shoulder around other people may help too so he doesnt feel so "big".
Basically everything already said listen to, I basically uust rephrased some of it in my own thoughts anyway. He probably wont ever talk, and about colors you can try to desensitize him, put some bright stuff in sight but not close, and gradually over a few weeks bring it closer, then eventually try to relate ot with treeats.
Ignore screams and reward him for making a more tolerable sound, so he will get screaming does not uelp, but this noise gets me a treat and out of the cage! Also, make sure he is getting a well balanced diet - pellets, fruit, veggies, whole grains, and a tiny bit of different seeds
Sounds like he loves you a lot, so share it back Mista Grumpee!

 

[EllenD]

I was thinking the same, your green cheek is not an idiot at all, he's a green cheek conure! They are known as "Velcro Birds" and most owners expect their green cheeks to want to be "stuck" to them all the time. The fact that he doesn't talk has no bearing on anything that I can think of, a lot of green cheeks do not talk, or do not talk well. My guy mumbles and tries to talk (mostly copying my Quaker) but his "voice" is very scratchy and I'm the only person that can hear his "words". They just aren't generally known as a talking parrot, though as always there are exceptions.

I had something similar happen with all of my birds, including my budgies, that I'm dealing with now, though I'm having the opposite problem. I had a serious illness (cancer) and hadn't worked since April. So I've been home constantly with the birds, and they've become very accustomed to having me at home. Well now I'm starting work again and they are having a hard time with it. They have tons of toys, play stands, play gyms, food, whatever they could possibly desire all day long, as well as having each other, but when I come home for lunch at noon they go absolutely insane. The same when I get home in the evening. On my day off (today) or Sundays they are stuck to me (literally), afraid I'm going to leave them again. My birds know how to play with toys by themselves, but they just haven't needed to. Now they have to adjust once again. They will, but it takes time.

You are home all the time now and your bird is bonded to you and wants to be with you all the time. I have a hard time seeing this as a problem, lol, but I'm trying to think of it from that perspective. If you want to put some space between you and your bird, you're going to have to do just that. You can't expect your bird to suddenly not want to be with you while you're home, right in front of him. You're going to have to separate yourself from him during the day. Make sure he has lots of toys to play with, foraging activities to keep him occupied, and then put him in a separate room from you for an hour. He'll scream and yell for a while, but it will eventually stop. I don't know how much time you want away from him, but you need to make the separation happen slowly so you don't really cause him to be upset. This is a situation that can cause severe behavioral problems, like plucking, so you need to make sure he still gets a lot of your time during the day. After all, all pet parrots need a lot of attention and affection. That's just part of having a bird, specifically a Velcro Bird.

As far as the biting goes, green cheeks are known for being nippy, but you've been given good advice already regarding this. Sometimes we have to change our own expectations about what we want our birds to be like. You can't just pick him up when you want him and then expect him to be quiet and leave you alone the rest of the time, it doesn't work like that. And you said it yourself, "When I do something he doesn't like he bites me."...okay, so maybe you need to think about what it is that he doesn't like and modify your behavior a bit as well.

Think of it this way: Every day I see posts on here (literally every day) from people who are absolutely desperate for their birds to like them and want to spend time with them, and on them. "How do I get my bird to like me?" is a very common post title. Most people like this are absolutely ecstatic if their birds step up on their finger for just a few seconds. If their birds wanted to be "stuck on them" all day they would be thrilled, as they love their birds and want nothing more than to get the same in reverse from them.

So it could be much worse...

Sent from my XT1575 using Tapatalk

 

[Grumpee53]

Hey thanks guys. This was a big help. We have had him for about 3 years now, and the little bugger is wraping us right around his little toes. Its like he is trainer us instead of us training him. If we are home he is always out of his cage, unless we need a break.

 

[JBassset]

Its like he is trainer us instead of us training him.

Well... now that you've realized and accepted that fact things should get easier for ya!
:32: