african grey biting

[Wolf]

I know exactly what you see and how it works as my Grey has done this to other people and while she is hormonal she has done that to me. I have read of several Greys that have done this sucker move. What makes it so effective is that this looks almost the same as when they are actually asking for a pet. Now if my Grey stands her feathers up just or shortly before the bows her head I know that it is a trick. I also watch to see if she scratches her chin so to speak as she has never bitten if she does this. Greys are smart and mine was abused so I have thought that a large portion of this behavior may have been due to the abuse. She is always watching and thinking and at times it seems like she is testing me as if to say are you really listening or just pretending to be paying attention. I really don't know what to say other than approach with caution and watch her closely to see what the difference in her body language is before and during the time that she bows her head. Another thing that might help is when she seems to offer her head start to reach towards her but then stop and watch her for a minute to see what she does, with mine when I do this she nearly always has this sly look on her face it does seem to center around her eyes but is not pinning and include more than the eye it is more her entire face as viewed from the side. There is always a difference and although I can tell you the difference in my Grey, I don't know if yours will have the same cues.

[Pajarita]

i would tell my sister to put down training right away and 1 thing, what is the best age to train her? (so that i could answer her if she asks ) the last time she bit me was the moment i realized i should respect her space and pace, after that i didnt let her perch me anymore i would just give her treats time to time when we are alone in the living room

It's not so much that you should not do any training, it's that the training needs to be informal and more 'as you go' than specific training sessions with specific goals or tricks. Step up and step down is something that all babies do without needing to be trained for the simple reason that they all want to be on you. Another 'teaching' is for them not to 'beak' you hard. Baby birds will use their beak to test things the same way that babies put everything in their mouth and, sometimes, they put too much pressure on it making it almost a nip (which is a bite that is hard enough to hurt but not hard enough to cut the skin and make you bleed) so, when they do, you gently say something like "Gently, gently" and touch the top of their beak softly so as to let them know what it is that you are talking about and, as soon as they release the pressure, you praise, praise, praise. See what I mean? You are, in reality, teaching the bird something useful but you are not 'training' in the sense that you are not having a session with treats given for tricks done. Another thing you teach this time is what "No!" means when they are getting into something they shouldn't and all you do is just say a firm "NO!" accompanied by a "Naughty bird!" - kind of like the same way you would teach a baby not to touch something dangerous, for example. These things are actually much more important for the bird to learn than tricks because you are teaching it how to live with humans in a way that will be safe for the bird and productive for both the bird and the human.

But the most important thing right now is for the bird to feel loved and respected. And to eat proper food which is not soaked peas (you need to cook peas). It's great that she is still been handfed, not only because the formula is nutritious but also because it provides and excellent bonding tool. Get some whole grains like oat groats, wheat, kamut, rice and cook them thoroughly (but don't allow them to get too soft), mix them with cooked lentils and white beans (cook them with high heat for, at least, 30 minutes) and mix this with chopped or small sized vegetables like chopped broccoli, corn, cooked peas, cooked and diced carrots and squash (or any type of pumpkin) and sweet potatoes. Mashed potatoes are not really nutritious so I would eliminate them from her diet. My grays LOVE juicy fruits like melon, oranges, berries, grapes, etc but they also like tomatoes, carrots, peppers, etc. This is the time when babies learn what to eat so it's very important that she learns to eat a wide range of vegetables and fruits. And always eat with her in the morning, only not your normal breakfast but hers. I am not a fan of eating vegetables early in the morning but I always munch on one a bit when I serve them theirs even though my birds are all good eaters already.

[Pajarita]

I have had our re-homed cag for almost a month and a half and now she has started to bow her head, and when we go to pet her she bites!! We don't understand this. Maybe she wants the affection but maybe still not completley trusting as it's only been 6 weeks?? Any thoughts?

It's most likely a bad habit. What I do is ask them, first. I say "Pica, pica?" (it means 'it itches?' in Spanish) and if they bow their head after, I know they want it. But, of course, this only works when they've learn the phrase. What I would do in your case is start by doing what I call "Piquito" (little beak). I use my index finger and with the tip of it (and keeping a sharp eye on them!) I very gently and very slowly caress the top beak from the base to the tip. This is only after I ask, of course, but you don't have to wait for their acquiescence for it although I always spend a little while talking softly to them kind of face to face (the bird's head needs to be at your eye level) and the 'talking' is nothing but praise, praise, praise... you know, things like: "Oh, what a good boy you are! Oh, yes, you are a good, good boy! [Name of bird here; is a good boy! Such a pretty, pretty bird! You're my baby bird? Yes, you are! You are a sweet baby bird! I love you!" in a gentle, soft, singsong voice until you see the bird is relaxed (look at his body and plumage) and then you say the phrase -which in my case is "Piquito? piquito?" and slowly caress the beak. This enables you to 'prepare' the bird to accept and establish a physical interaction that he will learn is not only not hurtful or disrespectful of his wishes but actually pleasant. Once you see that the bird eagerly approaches the interaction (you will see the bird relaxed from square one and even stretching its neck so as to reach out to get the caress), you start caressing the sides of the beak by making a 'pinch' between your index and your thumb and holding the thumb on one side as 'anchor' (you don't move it) and moving your index from the base to the tip in a soft and slow caress over and over. This 'side beak touch' is what the parents do to get the 'feeding response' in the babies so it's something they understand and recognize as a sign of affection and care. Once I get to this point and the bird consistently responds positively (meaning, it shows me that he wants the caress and waits for it relaxed), I ask the Pica Pica question and proceed to scritch its head. But don't overdo it the first times. Just do a couple of scritches and nothing else. Plenty of time to do it longer later on when the bird is used to it.

Another thing, most people just scratch parrots the way they would scratch a dog or a cat but, although some of them don't mind, it's not what another parrot would actually do and, in my personal opinion, if you do what nature makes other parrots do, you are one step ahead. If you look at a parrot preening another parrot, you will notice that they use their beak in an open and close motion... It's hard to explain but basically, what you have to do is use your index and thumb (they become the top and bottom beak of the 'other parrot' -read: you!) and scratch with your index without moving your thumb (the top beak doesn't really move in parrots, it's only the bottom -just like a person's mouth- so that's why the one finger scratching while the other doesn't move imitates the movement). Kind of like if you were trying to pick at a small scab on your hand.

I don't know if I am been explicit enough so let me know if I am not and I'll try harder.

[Wolf]

I can't say that it is not a habit for one reason it is not hard to turn anything into a habit but I do know that I have never read or seen of any bird that is not a Grey doing this particular action. So I do think of it as a species wide trait, but that does not preclude it from being a habit either.

[Pajarita]

Well, the male Senegal used to do it, too... but you are right that it seems to be more common in grays. One thing I forgot to mention is that grays are not really big on getting their head scratched - you mentioned this but I forgot to agree with it and I think it's a very important thing to make clear to gray newbies because they always talk about grays been so affectionate and deeply bonded to their owners so the new owners expect a cuddly bird when grays are not. It is true that they love their owners to pieces but their 'affection' and 'devotion' seems to be geared more toward wanting to perch ALL THE TIME on your shoulder than anything else. Mine don't even want me to scratch their heads every day - not even for a couple of seconds! They will both greet me and would accede to my caressing their beak but Pookey TAG can go days without wanting me to touch her and, although Sophie CAG is much more affectionate and would ask for Up up! (that's how she was taught Step up), give me a kiss, rub her face against my cheek and ride my shoulder very happily for a while every day, she can also go a couple of days without accepting the pica pica... It's the way they are, I think.

PS. One thing that always gets me is that when she does accept the pica pica she ALWAYS goes "Cool!" when I am doing it

[Wolf]

Kookooloo, loves to have her head scratched, but only when she asks for it and only for a short period of time. She also does not want this on a daily basis it might only be once or twice a week. She likes to spend time on me but spends just as much time next to me or just hanging out close by, usually no further away than 2 or 3 feet such as any where on the back of the sofa or on top of the floor lamp at one end of the sofa. Sometimes she just sits there quietly and other times she is in a conversational moods and beeps and whistles, talks and makes sound effects or dances to the music that is usually playing, she really likes to dance. If anyone else is in the room or sometimes in the house other than me she doesn't talk. But in her own way she is very affectionate with me and only with me.

[Bunchy]

I have had our re-homed cag for almost a month and a half and now she has started to bow her head, and when we go to pet her she bites!! We don't understand this. Maybe she wants the affection but maybe still not completley trusting as it's only been 6 weeks?? Any thoughts?

It's most likely a bad habit. What I do is ask them, first. I say "Pica, pica?" (it means 'it itches?' in Spanish) and if they bow their head after, I know they want it. But, of course, this only works when they've learn the phrase. What I would do in your case is start by doing what I call "Piquito" (little beak). I use my index finger and with the tip of it (and keeping a sharp eye on them!) I very gently and very slowly caress the top beak from the base to the tip. This is only after I ask, of course, but you don't have to wait for their acquiescence for it although I always spend a little while talking softly to them kind of face to face (the bird's head needs to be at your eye level) and the 'talking' is nothing but praise, praise, praise... you know, things like: "Oh, what a good boy you are! Oh, yes, you are a good, good boy! [Name of bird here; is a good boy! Such a pretty, pretty bird! You're my baby bird? Yes, you are! You are a sweet baby bird! I love you!" in a gentle, soft, singsong voice until you see the bird is relaxed (look at his body and plumage) and then you say the phrase -which in my case is "Piquito? piquito?" and slowly caress the beak. This enables you to 'prepare' the bird to accept and establish a physical interaction that he will learn is not only not hurtful or disrespectful of his wishes but actually pleasant. Once you see that the bird eagerly approaches the interaction (you will see the bird relaxed from square one and even stretching its neck so as to reach out to get the caress), you start caressing the sides of the beak by making a 'pinch' between your index and your thumb and holding the thumb on one side as 'anchor' (you don't move it) and moving your index from the base to the tip in a soft and slow caress over and over. This 'side beak touch' is what the parents do to get the 'feeding response' in the babies so it's something they understand and recognize as a sign of affection and care. Once I get to this point and the bird consistently responds positively (meaning, it shows me that he wants the caress and waits for it relaxed), I ask the Pica Pica question and proceed to scritch its head. But don't overdo it the first times. Just do a couple of scritches and nothing else. Plenty of time to do it longer later on when the bird is used to it.

Another thing, most people just scratch parrots the way they would scratch a dog or a cat but, although some of them don't mind, it's not what another parrot would actually do and, in my personal opinion, if you do what nature makes other parrots do, you are one step ahead. If you look at a parrot preening another parrot, you will notice that they use their beak in an open and close motion... It's hard to explain but basically, what you have to do is use your index and thumb (they become the top and bottom beak of the 'other parrot' -read: you!) and scratch with your index without moving your thumb (the top beak doesn't really move in parrots, it's only the bottom -just like a person's mouth- so that's why the one finger scratching while the other doesn't move imitates the movement). Kind of like if you were trying to pick at a small scab on your hand.

I don't know if I am been explicit enough so let me know if I am not and I'll try harder.

veryinformative I will be trying this technique and see how it goes Thank You

[Bunchy]

Thank You Pajarita, Very informative. I understand what you are explaining and will try this over time. Will let you know how it goes!!