Unweaned eclectus already one person bird - behavior mods?

[chris-md]

I'm asking for a stranger on Facebook - but I'm invested because of a gut feeling and a fascinating issue.

A person posted on a Facebook forum I participate in that only she can handle her 16 week old eclectus. Her husband gets bit more often than not. This seems VERY odd to me, and somehow tied to the age and not yet being weaned (one feeding a day).

Does anyone have an explanation for why a 16 week ekkie would be playing favorites? Is it just a passing phase that will end and needs to be ridden out?d

 

[OutlawedSpirit]

Chris, I will say that seems really odd to me. For a hand fed, unweaned baby of any species to be that attached to one person seems strange. I have handled and fed a lot of babies, from budgies to macaws, and I've never had an issue with aggression from a baby before. Nippiness when weaning from some species, yes, but it was a general nippiness all around, not towards one person or another. Unless that baby has not been socialized at all, that shouldn't be happening, I don't think. I've handled larger baby parrots older than 16 weeks for the first time and had no issues. (I'm not saying I've never handled birds, just saying that it's the first time those particular babies have ever met me. Just wanted to clarify if it didn't make sense. I've been up all night, so I'm not making sense to myself right now.) Something in that situation seems off, in my opinion.

 

[SailBoat]

I'm sure that it has likely happened to someone. That all said, I have not heard of it from by base of contacts.

Any likelihood that the guy is a mechanic, machinist, or like profession?

As stated above, something else is going on.

 

[Kiwibird]

Is it possible the husband might be a bit rougher with the baby or may have accidentally hurt her in some way and now the chick feels defensive? I'm not suggesting in any way he intentionally did something, but perhaps he holds her more strongly and it is uncomfortable or he accidentally dropped her and now she is frightened? Or maybe he's just a "loud" person and the baby is frightened of that? Think about how sensitive even adult birds are, sometimes to even the (seemingly, to us) littlest things. Could be something he's doing unintentionally and doesn't even realize.

Or along Sailboats line of thinking, does the husband possibly have some foreign substance residue on his hands (even after he's washed them) the baby can smell or sense somehow and doesn't like? People involved in certain professions or who have certain hobbies hands never really come very clean and are always discolored. Even after thorough scrubbing with soap and water.

 

[plumsmum2005]

Is it possible the husband might be a bit rougher with the baby or may have accidentally hurt her in some way and now the chick feels defensive? I'm not suggesting in any way he intentionally did something, but perhaps he holds her more strongly and it is uncomfortable or he accidentally dropped her and now she is frightened? Or maybe he's just a "loud" person and the baby is frightened of that? Think about how sensitive even adult birds are, sometimes to even the (seemingly, to us) littlest things. Could be something he's doing unintentionally and doesn't even realize.

Or along Sailboats line of thinking, does the husband possibly have some foreign substance residue on his hands (even after he's washed them) the baby can smell or sense somehow and doesn't like? People involved in certain professions or who have certain hobbies hands never really come very clean and are always discolored. Even after thorough scrubbing with soap and water.

My first thoughts too, the person and not the bird, something definitely out of sink for such a young one to be this way. Without actually being there how will anyone ever know though?

 

[Birdman666]

At that age, it could only really be fear based biting. The bird is comfortable with the wife, who hand feeds her, and NOT AT ALL comfortable with the man, probably because he's bigger, louder, moves faster, doesn't feed... etc...

It's a baby, and it's just a baby's perception.

The man needs to slowly work into the process... "Disfavored person" behavior mods are posted somewhere on here. I did those a long time ago. Don't ask me where... I don't recall anymore.

Eckies are flock birds... it's just a socialization issue.

 

[chris-md]

Thank you everyone. I've relayed the feedback!