Rehabilitating an Angry Conure

[lodger]

Hello, all

I had a situation on which I was hoping to get some feedback.

About a year and a half ago, my wife and I adopted a then 4 year old green cheek conure from a shelter program. At the time, it was only the two of us and we lived in an apartment by ourselves. Our bird, a male, bonded particularly well with me but would occasionally bite my wife. Things went really well and basically had no issues.

Three months ago, my wife and I had to move in with her parents temporarily due to my wife giving birth to our daughter (additional help, MUCH more space). Since then, the bird receives slightly less attention than he had before, but due to my mother in law's allergies, is in our bedroom most of the time(we try to ensure that he gets at least 2 hours of time around people a day). The problem is that lately my bird has been furious with me and attempts to attack me any time I go near his cage. I can't even try to open the door without him trying to attack me. He will still snuggle with my wife, but I am not sure how to help him through this anger with me. It really bums me out to see that my little buddy seems to hate me now. Any help is appreciated.

 

[Spiritbird]

Oh I am so sorry you are having a rough time with your little guy. As you most likely know GCC need boat loads of attention. I suggest you talk to you mom about having the cage in a more busy area. GCC have no feather dust and are a good bird for allergy prone people. You could get an air cleaner. It sounds like he does not want to be in a bedroom.

 

[Riio]

Hi! I am fairly new to this bird thing, but I would have to say I agree with Spiritbird, it seems that maybe your lil guy is REALLY mad that he is in a bedroom now. Maybe you could talk to your mother-in-law and see if you could move him....maybe she wont have a reaction to him since GCC's don't have dust. The move, new baby, new people, new surroundings, and less attention have just really upset him. Good luck! Please keep us posted on how things are going!
~Bobbi & Rio

 

[CrayolaMeech]

I rescued a green cheeked conure 2 years ago. I don't know much about him or her at all. I know that he had at least two owners and could be under 5 years old, but its a guess from the person who knew the previous owner (who became sick and could not care for the 17 rescue birds she had in her home). I was told that Crayola was his name but he talks and calls himself "baby". He is a talker! He says "pretty bird", "Hi Baby!", "I love you birdy" and his vocabulary is growing! However, he is a screamer as well....not the quiet green cheeked conure you read about. I don't think Crayola was socialized and hated to be touched or picked up. If you got to close he would aggressively attack. He has always been a very nervous bird but I bought him a very large cage and kept it right in the living room (the busiest room of the house). I would just open the door and let him out for about 2-3 hours every day and talk to him. When he seemed to get a little more comfortable I would move his cage around the house to where we were. The top of the cage would open up to a perch. I would put the cage on the ground and open the top of the cage and he would just hang out with us. I started tempting him with food to my hand for a "step up". Sometimes it would work and other times it would not. I learned to read him and know when he wanted attention and when he didn't. He is a very moody bird but its been two years and he has come a long way! We bought him a play stand that he eventually would let me put him on. If I'm home, he is out of the cage and I have noticed a HUGE difference in him. The more I let him out of the cage and spend time with him, the better he is. He will sometimes fly off the cage and onto my shoulder or head. Now he loves to hang out on my shoulder, lick my face and chew on my clothes....he is a different bird. He doesn't like new people though and that is the next thing we need to work on. He is still very nervous with new people....but understandably, who knows what he went through before I had him. These birds need a LOT of attention. I notice when I'm busy and don't spend enough time with him, he regresses and starts to get nasty again. I saw a great program on PBS about Parrots that I think everyone should watch. Check it out! Video: Parrot Confidential | Watch Nature Online | PBS Video

 

[lquan]

GCC, like any other parrots, has feelings. If you pay close attention, you can read him/her. Even the simplest things you unintentionally do, can upset him/her. I'd never told this to my wife this, but my Lily is a lot like her! Always have to pay attention to the feelings. For example, on the weekends, if I get out of bed half an hour late to greet her, Lily gets angry at me and bite. She is out of the cage on her own at 7:00am waiting for me in the bathroom every morning. If she doesn't hear my footsteps by 7:45am, she'll get angry. As soon as she hears my footsteps, she flies out, lands on my shoulder and greet me with kisses. If she is mad because I am late, she greets me with bites. There are many other things that can upset my Lily. But they are reasonable things for her to get upset at. If I am in her shoes, I'll be upset at myself too. Parrots are like 2-year old. Just have to understand them.