Ignore Biting??? Seriously????

[Jrizzo]

I saw a Visio by Micheal and he said when a Bird is biting, ignore the biting. I believe that to be sound logic, except when the bites are drawing blood. My Blue Fronted can bite and pick your flesh off like a buzzard on road kill. How can you ignore it?

He is 3 yrs old, re-homed. I have him about 1 month. He is good sometimes and steps up, and sometimes pecks at my hand like a woodpecker until he catches a finger and that is hard to ignore. Then, believe it or not, he starts laughing . Yes laughs like a human. His previous owner must have thought biting was funny and the bird laughs hardy ( ha ha ha ha, ha ha ha ha) after he gets you good. I don't think it is funny, but have to admit, it is amusing to hear him laugh.

Anyway, how can you ignore hurtful biting that causing some serious skin breakage and bleeding?

Joe

[Michael]

I don't think you finished reading. I try to rely primarily on boting prevention and avoidance and then training by positive reinforcement.

http://TrainedParrot.com/Biting

If your parrot bites you and it upsets you, your parrot will do it again. Reacting to a bite is the surest way to encourage the bird to do so again in the future.

[Wolf]

Well, I know that sometimes, no matter how hard you try that you just can't ignore their bite. On this forum you will hear both ignore the bite and don't ignore the bite. I know that I could not ignore all the bites that I have received. So to be honest with you, I don't even try to ignore them, but I also don't overreact to them or make a big deal out of them either.
If you dramatize the bite or carry on about it excessively, you will nearly always have a repeat performance, which you don't want. Parrots love drama, so if you get bit you do need to keep the reaction short and don't tell the bird off, so to speak. My reaction is primarily, " DAMN !! No Bite ! ". I then hold some tissue on the bite to both stop and catch the blood and carry on.
My birds know it if they bite me, they know that it is too hard and that it hurt, they know that I don't appreciate it. But, I try to not give them something to think that was fun, I'll do it again.

[GMV]

Depends on why the bird is biting you.

[Wolf]

GMV, I really think that you are wrong, but to be fair, please clarify you meaning.

[Pajarita]

I don't believe in the 'ignore the bite' and, personally, I think it will go the way of the 'dominance theory'.

Thinking that a parrot would bite you again if you show pain implies one of two things:

1. That parrots enjoy causing pain
2. That parrots confuse pain for fun

Both premises are stupid, if you ask me. Parrots are not sadistic, they are not naturally aggressive and anybody with a parrot which loves them knows they are extremely empathetic and compassionate. And, for them to confuse an exclamation of pain with fun drama implies they are stupid - which they are not. They are not only highly intelligent but also masters at reading our body language and tone of voice.

I am going to give you a personal example. I get bit and let out an exclamation of pain - immediately all activity in the birdroom stops, there is complete silence and everybirdie turns to look at me intently, then a CAG flies to my shoulder and, bending over to look into my eyes, she asks: "You OK, sweetheart?" - another one kisses my cheek - a jenday flies over and goes after the bird that bit me. Now, I ask you, what do those actions mean? I'll tell you what they mean to me:

1. They know I was hurt and there is no confusion in their minds that my exclamation was of pain and not 'drama' to be enjoyed
2. They don't like me to be hurt and so they comfort me and protect me.

Now, when it comes to bites, the solution is not to ignore them but to avoid them until the bird learns that you represent no threat to him and that you will not ask for anything he doesn't want to give.

In your case, your bird bites you because he hasn't learned to trust you so you need to establish the bond before you can handle him as a pet. Parrots are not like dogs, they are not genetically predisposed to wanting to please anybody, they don't understand the concept of dominance or obedience, they are not grateful for a good cage, toys, food and drink and do not trust implicitly. You have to win them over and you need to do it with respect for their wishes, with no expectations, patience and love.

[Wolf]

But , I will bet that once you get past the initial shock from the pain of being bit that you don't start carrying on about being bit, in other words you don't turn it into some big to do. And the making a big thing of it, dramatizing it is what I meant by I don't give them something to think that it was fun and thus do it again. I know my birds love watching drama play out so unless it is something that I want repeated I don't give them drama.

[Michael]

Thinking that a parrot would bite you again if you show pain implies one of two things:

1. That parrots enjoy causing pain
2. That parrots confuse pain for fun

Both premises are stupid, if you ask me.

NO. The parrot will bite you again because it will learn that biting makes you back off. By showing that the bite is a big deal, you teach the parrot exactly what to do to make you go away. I'd rather my parrots show displeasure in less painful ways. And they do. Not only because they trust me but also because they have learned that biting me is as useless as biting the cage bars or anything else for that matter.

The laughing parrot may well be biting for fun though.

[GMV]

GMV, I really think that you are wrong, but to be fair, please clarify you meaning.

i think if the bird is biting to get a reaction try to ignore it but if it is one of those things where its a freak accident where instincts take over it may be ok to react a little. Maybe i'm wrong again.

[Jrizzo]

Micheal, you have a point. My flesh is not made of Kevlar and ignoring the biting turned me into a wimp. So I went to the hardware store and got a pair of leather work gloves. He was biting them with the same vigor and just gave up and stepped up on my hand. Now he just steps up on my gloved hand right away but still pecks at the bare hand.

Joe