Need a little help with a Conure

[NabZ245]

Hey there,
I know this is my first post, but i've been reading the forums for a while, and i'm finally in need of some advice (didn't take long!)

Anyway, I purchased a green cheek Conure from a friend's friends about two weeks ago. He seems to have settled in well, however over the past two or three days he's started developing a biting habit.
He's always bit occasionally in the past, i assumed it was him getting use to me. He did seem to get better until recently.
Here's a video to explain what i mean:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DxR3eDvCtAA




Most of the time he will be an angel, step up when i want, take food from my hand, etc. But, later he will start biting as shown in the video. I'm trying to act like it's not going to achieve anything, but after a few nibbles, it does start to hurt. Also, when i place him back in the cage, he starts biting again. He sometimes even tries to climb up my arm and out.

Now the cage should be more than ideal for him, It's about 6ft tall and 3ft wide, It has three toys in there, a swing with bells, plenty of pearches and even a ladder. His food and water bowls at the bottom of the cage, and it's cleaned frequently, so there shouldn't be a reason for him to dislike it.

He also seems to be afraid of music and anything that moves, for example, if he sees a pencil in my hand, he'll fly/glide (with his clipped wings) to the other side of the room. So yeah, if anyone has any advice for this first time parrot owner, i would greatly appreciate it!

[HyperD]

My sennie too does that. To me it looks more like she is trying to clean my nails rather than a malicious bite.

Parrots have a natural fear of things they are not familiar with. Try not to suddenly bring it into their view... Let them get used to it from a distance and gradually bring it closer...

[maggie198]

I feel your pain. Conures are delightful birds, but seem to love biting and chewing. Like puppies with a toy. Sometimes they're just feeling things out, other times they're expressing inner emotions, lol. I have only one bird right now, a black capped conure. I've had many other kinds in the past, and even my caique did not nibble and nip so much! I'll be interested to see what others on this board might say, as usual methods have not worked for me. What I do now is give her a "time out", back to her cage, when she goes overboard with the biting. Where she proceeds to bite and chew her toys. Some of it may be age related too, like that previously mentioned puppy stage.


maggie

[Michael]

That's not biting. That's just a typically curious little parrot that wants to touch everything with its beak. Ignore it and it will become less over time. This doesn't mean you have to put yourself through pain and just wait till it stops. I curl my fingers or move them just a little so it hurts less or cannot be done. Also, hold your parrot the right way and it reduces this tendency as well.

[NabZ245]

Hi there,
Thanks for the responses, i really do appreciate it. I do generally hold the parrot the correct way, but when he starts one of these "episodes" he starts climbing all over my hand, and i turn my hand over so he doesn't fall. And i'm not sure if he's just curious with his beak, because the nibbles do seem to hurt a lot, and he starts the same thing when i'm placing him back in the cage.

I guess i'll continue to ignore it, and try the finger curling method, I hope it works out.

[bmsweb]

I simply distract my birds and don't allow them to develop the habit in the first place. If you keep letting your bird chew your fingers, it will take it further and further over time. So don't let him develop the habit in the first place. Have a toy handy or something to distract it as soon as you think its biting. But be sure it is biting and not holding on to climb or preening your finger.

Having said that your bird doesn't appear to be biting you. I assure you if it were, you would truly know about it in a big way LOL. You need to also be aware that conures will grab onto you with with what appears to be a bite to climb up etc.

[NabZ245]

Thanks for the response, i'll be sure to keep a toy close by. And i'm pretty sure it's biting, i've bled twice, and when he does occasionally grabs the finger to pull himself up, it doesn't hurt this bad.

I'll give him a week or so and let you know how it goes

Thanks again!

[bmsweb]

And i'm pretty sure it's biting, i've bled twice

Sounds like it

Breaking the habit takes more work than stopping them from developing it in the first place. Just do what ever it takes to distract and divert its attention, so long as it isn't something the bird doesn't like. Keep thinks positive all the time. With my Cockatiel all it took was me whistling to him and he would stop and listen to me.

I'm pretty sure you will notice a change within a week. Just make sure you don't leave fingers out for him to play with. My son had a habbit of doing that with our Budgie and it eventually changed to full on biting!

[Alcatraz]

If your bird starts biting again, move your hand in a slight twist motion so it has to stop biting and keep its balance. Nothing too dramatic to where it might fall off, just enough to make it concentrate on balance. Its simple and the bird will learn quickly.

[Kim S]

Or the bird will bite down even harder to keep his balance. Thats what mine does.