Please help! New Cockatoo biting

[Grey_Moon]

I can't give you a lot of advice on the 'too as I do not own one (i came across mytoos.com and was suitably scared out of my mind---check them out I think its an amazing truthful site for toos) but I can tell you about the greys.

Whoever told you they were mild mannered n sweet...

Greys are extremely sensitive and the big thing is they're smart---they're very defensive and reactive so what this boils down to is they've got you figured out before you've even said hello to them. This means they're quick with the beak or to flee if they don't trust you or your intentions.

They are known for being self-destructive and for being easy to disturb---and with a cockatoo around they may end up being bullied or distressed by the toos who are louder and more assertive. Plus, they do not like to share and are known for being jealous---greys are not always the best in multi-bird homes.

They *can* be sweet and gentle, loving birds---with 'their' people who they've spent a lot of time with and love and trust.

[Andromeda]

Thanks everyone,

While I know the original post seems rather naive and we've probably got ourselves in over our heads please understand that I don't make any decision lightly. More research on my part should have been done before investing in a cockatoo and I can only blame myself for being foolish and listening to the store owner who said everything would be fine in a couple weeks when "she" settled down.

Honestly when I saw your initial post my mind was blown when you said this was your first bird and it was a cockatoo. Yes, you should have done more research but it's quite common that people purchase a bird without fully understanding what they are doing. The truth is that if you do lots of research you will be far better prepared but until you've actually owned a bird it's hard to really wrap your head around how high-maintenance they are.

Among other things I think people assume they are "domestic" like dogs and cats but the reality is that they are wild animals with a very strong "fight or flight" instinct whose trust has to be earned.

That said, if I were an irresponsible person I would not be on the forums asking for help from others such as yourselves who are much more experienced and knowledgeable. Please understand I have absolutely ZERO intention of giving this bird up. I made a commitment and I plan to stick to it. For now, I will heed everyone's advice and lay low on paying off the grey. I will spend the next couple weeks vigorously researching and applying methods from the links and information everyone has provided.

Please don't take this the wrong way but initially I was worried that this bird was surely headed for a re-home. It's nothing against you personally but that is a very, very common scenario with cockatoos, greys, and macaws (and other birds as well). However, after seeing your subsequent posts it's clear that you're not irresponsible but rather inexperienced. Yes, you were naive when you made the purchase but clearly you are committed to the bird and are willing to do research and invest time into training it so I know you can have a good relationship with your cockatoo.

From what I've gathered, it's US not understanding the birds body language and pushing it to step up etc when it doesn't want to which is causing bites.

Is your cockatoo flighted? Generally speaking a bird will choose to flee first, and will only bite as a last resort (unless they have learned through experience that biting is rewarding). Clipped birds are more likely to bite because when the "fight or flight" instinct takes over "flight" isn't an option so they choose to bite instead. If a bird is cornered (say, in its cage) it's also more likely to bite because, again, escape is not an option.

Learning a bird's body language is one of the best ways to prevent a bite (or a lunge). Different species display different warning signs, and sometimes individual birds within a species differ in their warning signs. It'll take a little time but if you observe your bird very closely you will learn its body language. As I mentioned before, they often start with small warning signs and escalate into more obvious signs before they give up on non-verbal cues and finally bite.

I'll start applying your techniques and post back on how it goes.

The good news is that target training is really, really easy to teach because usually the bird will bite (attack) the target stick. You can start off rewarding it for hard bites but eventually you just want the bird to gently touch it so after a while you don't reward the hard bites and only reward the increasingly gentle ones. It can also help to anticipate when the really hard bite is coming, let the bird begin to touch the stick and click for that small touch, but then pull the stick away just before it chomps down.

If you consistently work with the bird for 15 - 30 minutes per day (broken up into 3 sessions or so) I think you'll be pleasantly surprised with how quickly it will learn to target. Once the bird learns to target the stick is seriously like a magic wand that makes the bird go where you're pointing. Haha

Good luck and let us know how it goes!

[GlassOnion]

I fully agree with everything Andromeda said

[cheebamaster]

UPDATE

We spent the past couple days applying Michael's target-training techniques and things are improving a lot! We have gotten bitten a couple times but she is stepping up a lot better and every once in awhile lets us scratch her head so a big improvement!

Thanks all for the help

[Rokisha]

Thats great to hear! Glad your making such good progress!

[pennyandrocky]

glad to hear it.i hope you'll soon enjoy your too as much as we do mya

[Andromeda]

That is such great news, cheebamaster! Best wishes and please stop by again in the future and give us another update!

[e_flamingo]

I've had parrots most of my life, and having recently lost our senegal to old age, we decided on a cockatoo. We bought one in (stupid, foolish, blind, you name it) reliance on the seller's representations. Yeah, I know - save it. Anyway, bird was underweight, vet said needs to get on pellets. Can't get bird on pellets. Bird was eating peanuts and squirrel food. So the seller knew nothing about the bird other than he screams and has bad habits and they didn't want to spring for the right food.

Got weight back on bird and have pretty much stopped the bad habits. The biting was remedied by my old faithful method of immediate reaction - they get a short, strong puff of air in the face every time they go to bite or bite. Ignore a bite? I read that, I can't get behind it. I realize that negative attention is still attention, but I believe in diversion therapy. He doesn't like getting air in the face, I don't like getting bit. He doesn't bite anymore but getting him to eat pellets isn't happening. I've offered vegetables fresh, dried fruits, no peanuts as we have to get an avian panel as it is to determine if there's any liver damage from the aflatoxin in the nearly all-peanut diet he formerly had.

My issue is about a new bird. A Moluccan. This was a rescue. Like Jekyll and Hyde this bird! One moment sweet, cuddly, loving and the next, longes out and bites. Now if I'd had any inkling this was going to happen, I wouldn't have walked so close. Now I know. In the past, I'd carry a water bottle with a spray head on it and when bird would lunge, bird would get hit with stream of water. I don't know if this is PC or not, but it's always been effective. Is a rescue a lost cause or is there hope for this multiple-personality parrot?

Thank you.

[pennyandrocky]

it's never a lost cause. it could be hormonal since it's breeding season. i look at mya's body language in the morning to see if it's going to be a good or bad day. if she's twitching her feathers/excited i leave her alone til she calms down.

[marie83]

No bird is a lost cause but I would seriously rethink your strategy to deal with bad behaviours. That is not negative reinforcement, that is punishment.