Hello! ...with a request for advice.

[bluejaguar]

Hi!
I am super grateful to have found this community and am looking forward to learning + sharing a lot with you all. My partner and I became "accidental" bird caretakers - and this road has taken us down the unexpected! I have loved birds my whole life and even have an entire arm covered with bird tattoos, however, i never much liked the idea of keeping birds as pets. additionally, we have 2 cats which I just assumed precluded birds

that all said, a year and a half ago, i was on a friend's porch in the middle of urban Los Angeles (where we live) and a green little budgie dropped out of the sky into my lap. he was stunned, tail feathers tattered. we checked all around for notices of "lost" parakeet for several days in the neighborhood + on craigslist, but nothing. he was tame, talking to me and so i brought him home. i got him a very large cage - and eventually a companion (kitana) and the 2 boys are now as happy as can be.

then a few months ago a friend of mine asked if we could adopt her father's citron crested cockatoo -- his cancer was advancing agressively and he was no longer able to care for her. she was becoming a screamer and clearly unhappy. after A LOT of consideration and lots of reading up on cockatoos (!!) and parrot websites, we decided to say yes and brought her home to live with us a month ago.

she is amazing, beautiful, clever and sweet. from day one she was very responsive and engaging with me -- but tentative of my partner. we gave her space, sat with her a lot (i work from home, my partner is in grad school and home part time too), read to her, etc. 10 days in, there was a family emergency so i had to head out of town for 4 days. when i returned, chula (our cockatoo) had properly bonded with my partner and they are, to this day, super tight. it's sweet and heartwarming. i was afraid tho that she might start exhibiting aggression then towards me but that didn't seem the case. she would happily step up (though still not when she didn't want to), easily come out of her cage, eat out of my hand, hang out and destroy toys just like always...until 3 days ago.

i don't know what happened and i am wracking my brain trying to understand how i may have inspired this change. i'm usually the one to "wake" up the birds, get them their morning food, etc. the morning went well. in the afternoon, she was on her cage door hanging out (one of her fav perches) and my partner and i were getting ready to head out. so as we do, i walked over to her letting her know we had to go and asked her to step up. she did, then as one foot held firm to my wrist, she surprised me with a lunge and a deep bite, just piercing the skin. in my shock, as this was the first time she has bit me like this i think i gasped, but continued to move her back into her cage and she then lunged two more times on my arm.

yesterday she was not biting and we spent a lot of time together, playing + taking walks outside. this morning however, when i came over to take her out for a walk / play, she again stepped up with her foot, then lunged at my hand again.

my partner however is not experiencing any of this biting and their relationship is continuing on just fine. the challenge is that i'm in the primary caretaker as i'm home more often.

a few things about chula:
- she is 8 years old
- she was hand raised by her previous caretaker
- her previous caretaker spoiled her (his words) and she was raised as a shoulder bird (we'd like to break this habit if we can)
- her previous caretaker used to get bit a lot, he told us, so just get some long gloves, he said (we haven't gotten gloves - don't want to encourage the biting)
- she has had clipped wings her whole life (we're debating changing that for the future)
- she is just coming out of a molt

i feel like i don't know what i'm doing, or if i'm inadvertently aggravating the biting issue or pissing chula off without knowing it. she is extremely content (grinding her beak, talking, etc.) with me sitting in the room with her doing my work...however, i am becoming quite fearful of her and that is not OK. We made a commitment to care for chula and giving her up is not an option.

any advice you might have is welcomed. thank you.

[Wolf]

Let's begin with the I don't have any cockatoos announcement, so that it is right out front to begin with. Pajarita has some cockatoos and can be of more help than I can. I do believe that one of the tools that you need is a basic understanding of there body language and fortunately, except for the crest most parrots have similar body language so here is a link to help with that http://www.birdsnways.com/wisdom/ww15eii.htm
Some of what you have said about the previous owner getting bit often, suggests that even knowing the body language may not help as much as it should as this bird may be attacking without the normal warnings. Still you do need to know and understand their body language.
I don't know that you actually inspired any change in behavior other than by asking for step up to put her in her cage when she didn't want to go. In this you had done this several times and she may have tried to tell you with body language and you didn't get it and she may have decided to attack since you didn't listen to her anyway. But I suspect that this was probably a normal behavior that was on hold due to what we refer to as the honeymoon phase when they are new to us and the surroundings.
We can help you, but before I say more I would like to hear Pajaritas assessment and recommendations as she is much more experienced than I am.

[liz]

The honeymoon is over but I'll bet the birds last human did not try to understand it. It bit you automatically thinking you did not know or care either.

Just my idea. Old habits are hard to break.

[bluejaguar]

thank you! the bird body language is helpful -- we've read a couple of articles prior but this is a good reminder to keep paying attention to what she might be trying to communicate with us better. her body language this morning before she bit me, was calm, crest down.

also, the idea of a honeymoon period with the bird makes a lot of sense. so, going with that metaphor, now is when we get to really figure each other out. here we go!

i am also trying to manage my fear of getting bit again while continuing to show up + engage with her in other ways. her bite this morning drew a lot of blood -- I didn't pull away or vocalize, we just sat silently there a moment looking at each other and then she very gently walked to my forearm and sat calmly.

i've read so many conflicting things about what to do when your parrot bites -- to react, not react, walk away, not walk away, put her down, etc - from your experience, any suggestions?

thank you!

[Wolf]

There is indeed a lot of conflicting information concerning what to do when your bird bites you. In your case, you have an older bird, so age is not a factor in what to do or how to respond.
Some people say that you should not react and some of them can even do it ,I probably could, but I don't believe for one moment that is what would happen if the bird attacked another bird. The other bird is going to squawk and either move away or bite back. So I say ouch or something similar complete with the hurt feelings in it and move the body part away from the bird or the bird away from me. I then ignore the bird for at least 5 minutes. I don't keep yelling, just the once and don't carry on other than to say something like " Bad bird! No Bite!"

[Pajarita]

Welcome to the forum! I think there are several things going on here.
1) As Wolf and Liz have mentioned, the honeymoon is over and she (has she been DNA'd a female?) is now showing her true colors but this is normal, it happens to every single bird that goes to a new home so don't worry about it.
2) At 8 years of age, she is at her very peak physically, emotionally and sexually and, taking into consideration that these birds are big, strong, naturally hormonal and very needy, it's quite a HIGH peak
3) She was, obviously (gloves and frequent bites to previous owner), mishandled all her life -but this is correctable.
4) If she is now in the middle of molt, her endocrine system is out of whack (toos are short days breeders and would be getting ready for their second clutch right now, not molting) and this tells me that she must have been kept at a human light schedule and, most likely, also at a high protein diet which would make her overly hormonal (dangerous thing to do with a big bird with a BIG beak).

Now, as to how to correct these problems.

First thing you need to do is put her on a good diet. Toos are EXCELLENT eaters - so much so that, in my personal experience, they are the only parrots to go for the leafy greens before any other food (well, except high protein food, of course). I recommend gloop and raw produce for breakfast and all day picking and a good seed mix and nuts for dinner. There are several recipes of gloop under the diet section and pointers on how to transition a bird to it - the other thing you need to do is memorize the 'dirtiest produce list' because you will need to get them organic. Nuts should be used for dinner and as training rewards.

Second thing is to put her on a strict daily routine and a solar schedule. A solar schedule is like the one the wild birds follow: wake up with dawn and eat dinner and go to sleep with dusk. This requires full exposure to twilight (meaning no artificial lights on before the sky is completely lit and after night falls). Now, this is not going to help correcting the problem right away because we just went through the solstice so the days are still very long but you need to start sometime and, in reality, although it's a bit harder on the human, it's the best time for the bird because the change will be as gradual as it should be.

And, last but not least, you need to work on correcting her biting which she is obviously so used to doing that she doesn't even display and just goes for it. I have never believed the validity of the 'don't react' theory. It makes no sense whatsoever and not only because no animal on this earth would not react to pain so it's not as if we were 'copying' a bird behavior but also because the concept that parrots keep on biting you when you react because they like the 'drama' can only imply two things: 1) that parrots confuse an OWWW of pain for a YAAAAYY and parrots are not only super smart, they are also masters at our body language and tone of voice so if they can understand concepts that are only very subtly different (like a "I am watching you!" and a "Be nice!" both said when a bird is 'eyeing' and/or approaching another one it doesn't like) or that parrots are sadists that actually enjoy causing their humans pain which cannot be further from the truth as they are highly empathetic. I not only show pain with an exclamation, I also tell them "Bad, bad bird! No bite!" when the bite is hard and "HEY!" when the nip is hard and walk away from the handfed ones (I act differently with the wild-caught because they don't care for my affection).

Now, the trick to teaching a parrot not to bite is twofold:
1) make the parrot love you to pieces
2) avoid getting bit
And I bet you are thinking: "Well, duh! But easier said than done!" But it's not really hard, it just takes time. For one thing, you need to rethink the 'no shoulder perching' goal as I might as well tell you that it doesn't work with cockatoos because, as far as they are concerned, unless their body is touching yours, you are NOT keeping them company. Now, I cannot do it but you might be able to spend hours with the bird on your forearm and, if you can, then you might (or might not) get away with the 'no shoulder' thing. Parrots love been on our shoulder. It's not only a comfortable high perch but it's also the place where they are closest to our eyes and mouth and, when it comes to cockatoos, looking into our eyes and getting their beak on our mouths is what they live for. It doesn't have to mean that the bird will be 'in your face' all day long but it does mean that you need to find a balance that will satisfy her without been too inconvenient for you. For example, Freddy LSC would pursue me relentlessly until I do the Papapa with him. This consists of his perching high with his eyes a bit higher than mine and, turning his head sideways, look into my eyes, rest his upper beak on my top lip and click his beak while I click my teeth in perfect rhythm for a couple of minutes. I have no idea what this means to him but it's the high point in his day and he is not happy until we do it - so I get it out of the way almost as soon as I walk into the birdroom so I can do my chores (with him usually hanging from the front or neck of my Tshirt -remember, bodies need to touch).

For now, I would suggest you use a T stick to move her from one point to another and spend as much time as you can with her perching right next to you or with her on your lap to satisfy her 'closeness' need. Make it part of the routine to spend time talking, singing and whistling to her, put music on and dance clapping your hands in rhythm (they love this and will often dance with you). Praise, praise, praise and start using always the same word for the same action (Freddy likes to whip his head real fast forward and down -kind of like a deep bow- with his crest open so, every time he does it, I say in a cheery and enthusiastic voice: "WHIP IIIIIT!" and tell him he is a good boy and ask him for a kiss -I don't use food as rewards, I just give praise and show them love) so they start making the connection between an action and a word so this same word becomes a command for said action. Praise, praise, praise and give her a reward whenever she does something good (even if it's just not biting you when she steps up and is moved from one spot to another). But, mind you, a reward is only a reward when it's a high value item and these are almost always a high protein food item so if she is been free-fed (filling up a bowl in the morning and leaving it there all day long) high protein food (seeds, pellets, nutriberries, avicakes, nuts), it won't work because 'high value' means something they don't get all the time. And start target training but only two or three times a day, at mid-morning and late afternoon, and for only 5 minutes at a time (later on you can go up to 10 minutes at a time).

This should get you started but, please, come back with questions and let us know how things are going so we can tweak things here and there to help achieve the perfect relationship with her.

[bluejaguar]

Thank you so much for your detailed + thoughtful reply. It was extremely helpful.

Where we are today is she is begging for my attention, lifting up her foot excitedly, wanting to step up and play. This was happening yesterday too and we did just fine. This morning, not so much -- she stepped up both feet gently + confidently then bit my arm quite hard. one day at a time, right? I will be using your advice now re the t-stand.

yes, she has been DNA tested.

as i work from home, i spend much of my day with her. prior to the biting she would be hanging out with me on my lap or shoulder, playing with toys/chewing things up or on the back of my chair, hanging out. we'd gotten good at doing the dishes together, cleaning together, doing conference calls together (ha!). however, these past few days she's mostly hanging out on top of her cage (she has a perch/play area there), and staring out the window next to her, as I sit in the room talking to her, doing my work, etc. I am engaging her verbally and she still enjoys head scratches and when i come over and stand close to her -- she's move towards me and get excited. we do have her on a solar schedule as well. during the day, she spends most of her time out of her cage and puts herself to "bed" at night in her cage as the sun begins to set.

as for diet, adding the gloop had been something i was considering but hadn't done yet. will definitely take your recommendation and add that in. currently she's on her greens (you're right, she does love her leafy greens!) and fruit for breakfast with seeds/pellets/some nuts in the evenings. everything we offer is organic and we will focus more on diet too. thank you.

we found out last night that her biting began within the year before we got her as her caretaker's illness meant he could spend less and less time with her and she began screaming + biting to express her displeasure. we have curbed the screaming in our home (not an issue) -- she whistles instead to get our attention, which we're fine with (so are the neighbors!)...though she just now had some fun squawking back at a crow cawing loudly right outside her window!

i asked as well what kind of training he had done with her, and nothing other than hand raising her from a chick and letting her hang out with him on his shoulder all day / or in an outdoor cage on their deck. we are softening up to her being a shoulder bird, understanding more now that this is just who she is and closeness is key.

the other question we had was related to training a bird who really prefers only one person. she's super in love with my partner (she doesn't get bit, no matter what, it seems). i will keep being present and keep engaging her as I have been (though wit as much handling right now) -- and any other tips specific to this would be appreciated. thank you!

one day at a time.
i'm super grateful for all your time + sharing + wisdom.

[Wolf]

Not wanting to rain on your parade, as you are making good progress and I do not want to discourage that in any way, but I think that it is important that you know that unless she has been taught to raise her foot to ask to be picked up that a parrot holding one foot up and out in front of them is a defensive gesture, so watch the rest of her body language when she does this to be certain which way she intends it to mean.
I am sorry, I got to go, birds needing me now.

[Pajarita]

Yes, the foot up often means "I am warning you, don't touch me!" but I've never seen a too doing this although it's super common with amazons and grays. My too lifts his foot when he wants me to grab it and caress it, when he wants to get on me (he also jumps from a high perch so he can 'land' on my body), when he says "ByeBye" (everybody thinks this is the cutest thing -and I agree! ) and when he displays or dances so, although it could be a warning, I guess it would depend on the rest of the body language (my Freddy never, ever bites me and the most he does when he gets mad at me is scold me).

You are doing GREAT and I would not worry too much about her preferring your partner to you, they are such affectionate animals that, to them, affection is more a physical need than just a simple pleasure so they are the ultimate "love the one you are with' birds. Give her time, patience and love and you'll see.

[liz]

Blue, you are doing great.

Even though I had Rambo he did not teach me body language he just used English. Myrtle was skinny, dirty and scared when I got her. She stayed on top of her cage most of the time. When I walked by or talked to her she lifted a foot to me. I was so ignorant or parrots that after a few times of her of doing this I tickled it. Stupid as I was, I said "tickle tickle" and tickled her foot every time. I just did not know. It was the only physical contact we had. She accepted it and started saying "tickle tickle". She has turned it into a sort of game. When someone comes into my house she flies to them and asks for a "tickle tickle".

Sometimes stupidity works for me.