Nipping at me

[josiesmom]

In the last few weeks, Josie has become very nippy towards me when I am holding her and someone comes near me. She will lunge at whoever comes near me also. I have bruises all over my arms from her because of this and also because she will grab on with her beak when I try to put her down or back into her cage. I don't understand what has happened to cause this. She knows she is hurting me because she always says "ow" after she bites. I've been trying to teach her "gentle" from a video I saw on here months ago and it's been going well until lately. I'm at a loss as to what to do because I can't just handle her when no one else is around which is what she seems to want.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you.

 

[JerseyWendy]

Hi Neet!

I'm sorry to hear Josie is becoming so ornery. It almost sounds like misguided aggression, especially if she does it when other people are around. Sounds as if she's trying to "punish" you for paying attention to someone other than her.

Have you tried giving her a brief "time out"? It may work, it certainly is worth a try, no? Firmly tell her NO when she pinches you (for whatever reason), and then tell her "Time out Josie" and put her in her cage or on her play stand for a bit.

 

[weco]

Looks like you're the preferred human in this equation & Josie appears to be jealous.....the nipping on you is to move you away from whomever Josie perceives as a potential threat & the attack mode towards other people is Josie trying to dissuade the other human from interacting with Josie's mate.....

You're going to have to show your displeasure with this type of behavior by picking him/her up & putting him/her in their cage.....it will likely lead to further dominance and/or attitude problems if it's not stopped asap.....

 

[SandyBee]

Yes you are her chosen one and she is nipping you to get you to either get rid of the person or get away with her.Since you know most of the triggers do your best to prevent the situations. With Bosley I have a felt toy ball I keep by me, when he started this with me I would give him the ball to bite on, also I would engage his attention and say "nice" or " I don't think so" If she manages to get you, give a time out. Be consistent and prevent as much as you can. It worked with Bosley he doesn't even try this anymore and it only took a few weeks. I am now working on him flying attacks to people he wants to chase off LOL, but we are getting there on that one too.

 

[fregley]

My Greenwing does this too, he's never been good with other people he's really bonded closely with me and doesn't like anyone else near - not even my husband!

From what I believe about parrot behaviour, they see the other person or even dogs etc as a threat to you and they are trying to "herd" you away and warn off the intruder.
It is natural behaviour but can be trained out of them in time, try training her to give a whistle or say something when other people or animals are around.

 

[josiesmom]

Today went a little better. In the morning, my older son decided that Josie needed a shower, so he set up the shower for her and even took her from her cage to the shower. She LOVED it. He tried to get video of her singing in the shower, but she was having way too much fun getting water everywhere so he stopped. After the shower, she was out on her play stand getting lots of attention from everyone, but me. The kids were giving her her favorite treat and she was showing off for them. Then, a little later, I tried bringing her back out to play and all was going well. She did try to nip at my arm while I was holding her, but I just tapped her lower beak with a finger and told her "no bite, be gentle" and she was redirected enough to not nip at me. That did seem to work; however, after a few times of that, she started regurgitating for me instead of nip at me. I did not want to encourage that behavior, so I put her back. I didn't say anything negative, just had her step up onto her pink perch, gave her a pine nut and told her she was a good girl for stepping up. I hope we are moving in the right direction here, but to be honest, the regurgitating makes me feel so bad because I know it is the ultimate form of affection from her.

Any thoughts would be appreciated. Thank you.

 

[MattieGirl]

Watching this thread with interest as I am having similar nipping problems, not just around other people but nearly any time I pick her up. I, too, have bruises all over my arms. She also wants to regurgitate frequently - I wondered if the two were related.

She is new to us - only a month here - so I am sure our situation is a bit different. She won't step up on anyone else in the family yet, either.

Hope your situation gets better.

 

[SandyBee]

Don't feel bad, your doing the right thing. Socialization and boundaries.These are. very intelligent creatures and want to be in a flock with a bonded partner. In any partnership they is usually a leader of sorts, that is what the human must be. They will love and respect you even more for it. Be consistent on what is acceptable behaviour.

 

[HusseinBerjaoui]

What if this is her hormonal season? I mean, she's been only lately nippy, so this is not just about the people around you...
Did she bite anyone else?

 

[MonicaMc]

Rather than discourage the behavior, per-say, I would recommend encouraging socialization more. If you can, get Josie out of the house and meeting new people! Get her accustomed to strangers, and, eventually, interacting with them! The more socialized she is, the better companion she'll be to you and your family!

 

[CaitlinBird]

Monica has a good idea going. While you and your baby are out you can give the strangers small bits of your bird's favorite treat so they can get some sort of interaction with your bird. I would also extend this kind of interaction with your family. Let them be the only ones to give her her most favorite treat. You need to hold off with giving her all the good stuff. Let everyone else get to share the love when it comes to treats and favorite activities. Best wishes!