New White Fronted Amazon Owner

[Anansi]

Oh, yes! His trust for you has definitely grown! You've put in the time and shown the patience, and now you're reaping the rewards. I love it!

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[BIRDIGIRL]

Oh, yes! His trust for you has definitely grown! You've put in the time and shown the patience, and now you're reaping the rewards. I love it!

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Yes we are getting there slowly but surely...I sometimes stroke Mr Biggles on his breast with my thumb while he is perched on my fingers and sometimes he tolerates it and sometimes he doesnt and he nips me but he doesnt really hurt me its just a pinch and its like he's saying; go away or you will get bitten for real next time

 

[BIRDIGIRL]

A very short distance of about 3 feet or so but Mr Biggles has started to come to me when asked...he thinks about it for a few minutes and eyes me for a while and then flys to my hand...he did it a few times today...Im so pleased he is trying all these things and trusting my hand as a perch to fly to. The video was longer but it kept failing to upload so I trimmed it to the part that counts...sorry its so short but signal for internet reception is very poor.

[ame="https://youtu.be/G4mFFWOmh10"]Mr Biggles first day coming short distance on command - YouTube[/ame]

 

[Kiwibird]

What a good boy Mr. Biggles is! That's great he's picked up some recall

 

[BIRDIGIRL]

What a good boy Mr. Biggles is! That's great he's picked up some recall

Just about 3 ft or so and I have to call him for a while before he actually comes...it takes him a while to get from launch mode to actually taking off to fly to my hand but he did it a few times today...first time I thought it was a fluke but by the third time I realised he knew what he was doing...today Mr Biggles the parrot was smarter than me and I was the dummy... hee hee sometimes I wonder if its him thats teaching me and letting me think that Im the one training him while all the time its the other way round

 

[Anansi]

Nice! You've gone from trying to tempt him to come out of the cage to early stage recall training! You and Mr. Biggles have a lot to be proud of.

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[BIRDIGIRL]

Thanks Anansi...even if he never did another thing or made any more progress I think he is Amazing He has WOWED me Im hooked to Amazons he has won my heart...I had booked a baby conure like Roger for next year but I have now cancelled this baby as Mr Biggles is so interactive that I think my hands will be full enough giving him and PeterPan (quaker) all the attention they need.

 

[BIRDIGIRL]

Well we have now made friends to some extent but familiarity beeeds contempt and I am now being bitten...not nasty bites but just every now and again he is nibbling me with a beak that seems to effortlessly slice through flesh as if it was a knife through butter...I dont even feel the pinch of the bite most of the time but on three occasions today he has drawn blood...my Vampire Mr Biggles is at the moment sitting on his perch waiting for me to come and play so no doubt I will have a few more wounds before night. Next step on our training list is to get him used of going into his travel cage so I can bring him to have his beak manicured...hee hee he doesnt know it yet but that razor sharp beak of his is about to grow a little blunt...at least blunt enough not to slice through me when he grabs me...hes not being nasty hes just being playful but my skin is not as durable as he seems to think it is

 

[Christinenc2000]

OUCH Bites can hurt. Hope you are ok today

 

[Anansi]

He's testing his boundaries, now. You have to make it clear to him that bites are not okay. Bite pressure training is huge, here.

Also, you need to watch his eyes and body language for signs of "amazon overload" (as Mark likes to call it.) When an amazon gets excited enough, he sometimes can't help biting out of excitement. So when you start seeing those signs, you should put him down and walk away for a bit. Give him time to calm down.

There will also be times when hormones will make him more likely to bite. Again, watch the body language.

But I think you need to focus more on his behavioral training than the possible benefits of a beak manicure. It's definitely possible to get him to dial down the pressure.




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[BIRDIGIRL]

Yes we will have to work on his behaviour and bite pressure too...his eyes arent pinning when he does it...in fact twice I was unaware that he had even bitten me there wasnt even a feather ruffle and I didnt know I was bitten until I saw the blood...i need to keep an eye on him my little Vampire Once I felt him pinch and I firmly said no and put him back on his perch and walked away...I returned half an hour later and thats when he bit me twice without me even feeling him bite...not deep bites he just sliced through the skin somehow without me even feeling him doing it...since then Im a bit more attentive to what he is doing with that sharp beak of his...the beak really does need a manicure though as he doesnt chew toys and it just grows and that hook is sharp as sharp can be. I have tried playing with toys in front of him and enticing him into the play but the most he will so far do is push a toy with his beak he has made no attempt to chew any of the toys to date.

 

[BIRDIGIRL]

I went in search of a thread for I know there must be one but I cant find it. Can somebody please send a link to a good thread on how to teach bite pressure so I know Im teaching Mr Biggles correctly. I never succeeded in teaching my old Conure (Roger...he didnt often bite but when he did he enjoyed making me squeal with pain...he thought it was hilarious to make me suffer ) so I failed to teach Roger this and Ive never needed to teach my Quaker as she is already and always has been really gentle with her beak. Thanks in advance

 

[Anansi]

Sure thing. Here are two that might help. The first focuses on bite avoidance, the second on dealing with a biting issue. Let me know if you have any further questions.

http://www.parrotforums.com/training/57935-brainstorming-biting-parrots.html
http://www.parrotforums.com/questions-answers/58911-bird-bites-always-2.html

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[JerseyWendy]

Here is another excellent article our Mark (Birdman) wrote. It doesn't only apply to big macs. http://www.parrotforums.com/macaws/56384-big-beak-o-phobes-guide-understanding-macaw-beaks.html

 

[BIRDIGIRL]

Sure thing. Here are two that might help. The first focuses on bite avoidance, the second on dealing with a biting issue. Let me know if you have any further questions.

http://www.parrotforums.com/training/57935-brainstorming-biting-parrots.html
http://www.parrotforums.com/questions-answers/58911-bird-bites-always-2.html

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Thanks a mill I will go check these out now. I have just put Both PeterPan and Mr Biggles to bed for the night. I like them to get 12 hours rest at night. Before I put them to bed I closed the door on Mr Biggles cage and went into the front room and brought Peter pan out on my shoulder to meet Mr Biggles...he was not impressed initially and we had a whole lot of tail flaring and pinning eyes but then he settled...maybe he figured out that PeterPan is a girl quaker I dont know but suddenly the mood changed and anything I did with Peter Pan Mr Biggles tried to do too...I shake hands with PeterPan and Mr Biggles was lifting his foot and extending it to me after a few mins of Peter Pan doing it...I asked Peter Pan for Kisses and she makes a kissing sound and before I knew it Mr Biggles was blowing big sounding kisses at us through the bars of his cage too...Peter Pan waves Bye bye on our way back to her cage and Mr Biggles waves back and attempts to say Thank you in a high squeaky voice like Peter Pan hee hee I enjoyed this introduction though I wont be trusting that razor sharp beak of Mr Biggles anywhere near Peter Pan without there being bars between them What a pair. Peter Pan hates a camera and I find it so hard to get good pics of her. Mr Biggles doesnt care for the camera either but hes more easily fooled about its presence than PeterPan is. She sees it whereever I hide it and refuses to speak in its presence

 

[BIRDIGIRL]

Here is another excellent article our Mark (Birdman) wrote. It doesn't only apply to big macs. http://www.parrotforums.com/macaws/56384-big-beak-o-phobes-guide-understanding-macaw-beaks.html

Thanks Wendy I will check this one out too....I will be alll studied up for my Little Vampire when he wakens

 

[BIRDIGIRL]

Mr Biggles isnt a big fan of a mist shower but he has improved a great deal in the last few weeks since the vet allowed him to have a shower after his treatment. In the beginning he would just fly away and hardly got any misting at all, then after a few attempts at mist showers he would reluctantly allow a little bit of misting. He is still not the happiest of birds about the mist shower but this is the best he has been to date. I tried him in the shower in the bathroom but it freaked him out way more than the misting and he wouldnt go near the tap at the kitchen sink either...Im guessing he never had a shower or a bath before I got him as he wont use a bowl of water either to wash himself....but we are getting there a little reluctantly maybe but slowly and surely the misting is becoming a little more acceptable each time I do it. At the moment he is misted about twice a week .

[ame="https://youtu.be/E9jRKxrgYBo"]Mr Biggles still not a big fan of his shower but he is improving - YouTube[/ame]

 

[JerseyWendy]

Kudos to you for being so persistent with Mr. Biggles! :emoticonc

His plumage is looking REALLY good! He may not seem to enjoy his baths, but we both know he must feel like a million bucks afterwards.

 

[BIRDIGIRL]

Kudos to you for being so persistent with Mr. Biggles! :emoticonc

His plumage is looking REALLY good! He may not seem to enjoy his baths, but we both know he must feel like a million bucks afterwards.

Hee hee Thanks Wendy...Today was payback for him biting me yesterday...actually there is a moment on that video when despite himself he began to open his wings to be misted and thats the first time he has done that...in fact its the first time he hasnt flown off with me hot on his tail with the mister....is it any wonder he decided to bite hee hee...actually; although I deserved to be bitten today after inflicting the mister on him he hasnt bitten me at all...well not yet anyway LoL

 

[Anansi]

He really is looking good. One thing you might want to do is shift the direction of your mist spray. If you get a step stool or something you can actually spray him from above. Most birds hate getting shot horizontally in the face. The water can get up their nares.

When I'm showering my ekkies, most of the spraying is done from above or angled a bit to the side to get every bit of their wings. I do spray a bit horizontally as well, when I want to wash the crop, chest and abdomen area, but I'm careful to avoid a direct shot in the face.

Might make a difference in his enjoyment.

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