Pionus biting. Not sure what to do. I am a new parront.

[Lynsey]

So I got Fonzie (White capped pi) as a hand fed baby at around 3.5 months old. He just turned 1. He is spoiled beyond belief. He gets a good mix of pellets, fruit, veggies, and an assortment of sprouted beans/seeds etc. He has lots of toys, an exotic wood dreams gym, a hanging rope atom, and a climbing net. I work 12 hr shifts 3 days a week, the rest of the week he is out for 8-12 hrs per day (he usually puts himself to bed around 7). On the days I work he comes out for an hour or two after I get home. Also have dogs in the house too (small).

He is usually more cranky at night in general. Sometimes he all of a sudden just bites hard (doesn't latch on yet) and draws blood. Seems like it comes and goes and other days he is the sweetest thing ever.

Tonight I got home and he kept trying to bite. He was striking out. I left him alone. Then he acted like he wanted scratches, so I scratched him for about 30 seconds and he bit hard out of no where. He drew blood on both sides of my finger.

My question is...I feel like I always want to end things on a good note. Is this true for parrots, or do you just leave them be when they are in a biting mood? I have never had him go to bed without nightly scratches. I just took his clicker and stick and made him move around his gym following the clicker getting treats along the way, and a nutriberry as his final reward. He was happy as can be to do his clicker training. Should I leave him alone for the night or try again? Also sometimes when he is on my finger he bites down on the finger he is sitting on. This seems like it is when he is excited. Will he outgrow some of this? Does this happen at this age? Worried about what he will do when hormones kick in (he is DNA sexed). I love him so much, just seems like he will go like 4-5 days as a sweetheart, then bite me for a few days. Hard not to be a bit shy....it hurts! I do try not to react.

Thanks for any suggestions.

 

[Lynsey]

So, I tried again. At first he was trying to bite. I used his clicker and stick to have him step up on my finger. Now he is back to his sweet self and getting scratches. He sitting on one foot and preening. He still not getting beak kisses tonight ;-)

 

[Hawk]

So I got Fonzie (White capped pi) as a hand fed baby at around 3.5 months old. He just turned 1. He is spoiled beyond belief. He gets a good mix of pellets, fruit, veggies, and an assortment of sprouted beans/seeds etc. He has lots of toys, an exotic wood dreams gym, a hanging rope atom, and a climbing net. I work 12 hr shifts 3 days a week, the rest of the week he is out for 8-12 hrs per day (he usually puts himself to bed around 7). On the days I work he comes out for an hour or two after I get home. Also have dogs in the house too (small).

He is usually more cranky at night in general. Sometimes he all of a sudden just bites hard (doesn't latch on yet) and draws blood. Seems like it comes and goes and other days he is the sweetest thing ever.

Tonight I got home and he kept trying to bite. He was striking out. I left him alone. Then he acted like he wanted scratches, so I scratched him for about 30 seconds and he bit hard out of no where. He drew blood on both sides of my finger.

My question is...I feel like I always want to end things on a good note. Is this true for parrots, or do you just leave them be when they are in a biting mood? I have never had him go to bed without nightly scratches. I just took his clicker and stick and made him move around his gym following the clicker getting treats along the way, and a nutriberry as his final reward. He was happy as can be to do his clicker training. Should I leave him alone for the night or try again? Also sometimes when he is on my finger he bites down on the finger he is sitting on. This seems like it is when he is excited. Will he outgrow some of this? Does this happen at this age? Worried about what he will do when hormones kick in (he is DNA sexed). I love him so much, just seems like he will go like 4-5 days as a sweetheart, then bite me for a few days. Hard not to be a bit shy....it hurts! I do try not to react.

Thanks for any suggestions.

Howdy Hi,
Yeah sometimes my birds get a bit bored ( even though they have a million toys ( or so it seems) that is changed constantly, they get noisy, bitey, and want to be held all day.

But put the TV on and turn it to Square Bob, sponge pants and they all sing and chat along with that. Sometimes music is soothing, other times just watching the TV is soothing for them.

 

[Lynsey]

I love him to pieces, and most of the time I get bit I have a sneaky feeling I'm going to. I'm getting better at recognizing that. My main concern is if he's grumpy should I just leave him alone? He puts himself to bed every night. Or should I try to end on a good note? I'm sorta used to dogs where the last thing should be positive... I know training a parrot is much different. I'm reading and trying to learn. P. S. I'm a 36 year old ICU nurse so I have tolerance and patience ;-) I have always had animals. I used to have a horse and now have an outdoor tropical fish pond, tortoise, and dogs. Just new to parrots other then a budgie when I was a kid.

 

[RavensGryf]

To answer your question, I think yes, you should leave Fonzie alone if he is clearly in a grumpy mood. Ending the day with his routine scratches is only nice if the fingers scratching don't come away bloody! That's great that you're getting better at reading him. Also, when you see him get over excited, set him down. That can cause any parrot to bite. He needs to learn boundaries at this age too... what is acceptable vs what is unacceptable to you.

Generally speaking, the males are a little less tolerant than the females, and during hormonal times males especially can be a handful. Pionus are a close relative of the Amazons and will have a similar strutting display. Fonzie isn't there yet age wise, but they can start experimenting with mature behaviors such as more biting, hormonal gestures, and territoriality long before they're sexually mature. You might have heard in Amazon terms "hot three", well White Capped is considered the "hottest" of the Pionus! The smallest Pi species too.

Will he outgrow the behavior you ask... I think as he ages, he may get a clearer idea of when he feels he needs to bite, and be more legitimate about it, but a Pionus (like any other parrot) will still give you a good bloody one that you don't see coming occasionally, no matter how old the bird is . But they aren't known as a species to be prone to biting, for example in the way that Poicephalus are. They are 'usually' pretty legit about it.

 

[Sterling1113]

RavensGryf is spot-on. I've had my white capped pionus for over a year now, and granted she is a female(though I always say "he, him, his".. lol) once you figure out the body language, the rest is preventive measure.

One of the big things, is pionus don't really bluff. He wont puff his cheeks and open his beak when you stick your hand out unless he intends to bite. Unlike some species (*cough* ringnecks *cough*) where you can ignore the 'bluff' and they'll step up nice once they see they wont intimidate you.

Try doing the target training in order to have him step up whenever you remove him from his cage/play stand for a day or two. Then start asking him without a treat or clicker. My pionus has a "death stare" that you can tell she wants to bite if she's on your hand.. and that's your chance to relocate her. Lol. Best of luck with your little man, sounds like a feisty fellow

 

[Lynsey]

Thanks for all the replies. I have been getting better at reading him. He has not bitten me since I posted this... Maybe he read it too ha ha. He has been a sweet little guy. I have also figured out that he doesn't like changes in my hair during the day. If it is up, it has to stay up all day, or vise versa. I just don't change it during the day. If I do, I don't pick him up right away. I give him some time to chill. Same with my nail polish.

Bottom line... I love him to death, even when he's angry....

 

[RavensGryf]

Thanks for all the replies. I have been getting better at reading him. He has not bitten me since I posted this... Maybe he read it too �� ha ha. He has been a sweet little guy. I have also figured out that he doesn't like changes in my hair during the day. If it is up, it has to stay up all day, or vise versa. I just don't change it during the day. If I do, I don't pick him up right away. I give him some time to chill. Same with my nail polish.

Bottom line... I love him to death, even when he's angry....

I have noticed that not only with my own Pionus, but through hearing from other owners on a Pionus group, that they seem like one species very prone to freaking out or seeming 'offended' at owners who change their appearance to something they aren't as accustomed to for example a hat or glasses.

Even though my Poicephalus parrots are more high strung than Pionus, they still are more easy going with "looks". I've had a few other species too, who weren't phased at all. Some parrots, you could wear a ski mask and clown wig and they wouldn't so much as look twice. Well, they might look at you as if you're strange, but that's about all lol. So although Fonzie should be used to your hair, I think Pi's are just sensitive to this sort of thing.

Glad to hear things have been good .

 

[Sterling1113]

I have also figured out that he doesn't like changes in my hair during the day. If it is up, it has to stay up all day, or vise versa.

My pionus will bite the crap out of my husband if his hair is in a ponytail.. when we first brought Pascal home, hubby always had his hair down and/or a hat on. Now it's summer and his hair is longer, so he ponytails it sometimes. Pascal doesnt like it. Lol. So you're not alone

 

[Lynsey]

Yeah, if I wear a hat, forget about it. He fans his tail, attacks the cage etc.

Last night I came home from work, he was sweet and did his head bobbing throw up thing. I guess he likes me. I gave him a nutri berry and he played on his gym. I made a drink and went to get him and he was so angry. He later calmed down, but for the first time ever he put his leg out like he wanted to step up, then tried to bite. What a poophead. Then he wanted scratches. Brat.

Update: next day, total sweetheart..
Oh, and when I was referring to him not liking changes in my hair, it's more if I have it down, then put it in a ponytail or vise versa, he usually gets used to it in a like 20mins or less.

 

[Lynsey]

Update.... A month later my sweet Fonzie has come back. He's not biting. Learned "I love you" "whatcha doing? " and" Good Morning." I just bought him a new Wingdow unipod stand. Can't wait to get it. I will post some pics when it comes! He also started flying. First flight he flew across the room to me and landed on my hand. He was so excited he poofed up after the landing.