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Post by criswell on Apr 15, 2015 12:15:16 GMT
In the last week Criswell has decided it is fun to bite me. Since we've got him he has enjoyed sitting on my hand eating seeds and never used to bite. Then if I put my hand in without seeds he would gently nibble it which I didn't mind and it did sometime make me laugh because it was cute and tickled. We also started touching noses through the bars which led to him trying to nibble my nose. So most likely I have taught him that I don't mind if he bites me.
Last Friday he jumped on my hand and started biting it hard and refused to get off. That made laugh even though I tried not to and it hurt but he wouldn't get off my hand and kept running around all over my hand biting it. He was probably having great fun. He's bitten me most days since then and I'm trying to ignore it but it's hard when he refuses to get of my hand and just keeps biting.
What should I do now? I don't want to make the situation any worse. Should I stop feeding him seeds from my hand? I've stopped touching noses with him through the bars and I'm trying to ignore him when he bites me. Would it be ok to wear a glove or is that just going to make things worse?
I'm concerned that he has decided that he's the boss. Am I going to be able to fix that? I guess I need to set some rules for him and stick to them. I don't expect it is going to be easy though. I have plenty of time during the day that I can spend working with him. I just need to know what are the right things to do.
All help and advice is appreciated. Many thanks.
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Post by reajen01 on Apr 15, 2015 16:37:36 GMT
I am no expert in this at all and I'm sure the more experienced ones will be along to help shortly. But.....I have read somewhere that blowing on them gently can discourage unwanted behaviours - please don't do this until someone with more knowledge confirms this though!
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Post by OP on Apr 15, 2015 17:46:23 GMT
I feel you need to break the habit and show him who is boss. Everytime he starts biting put him back in his cage, no ifs and buts just put him in the cage for a while. If he starts again when you let him out, put him back. He needs to know what he is being put in the cage for, so as soon as he starts biting put him in the cage. That is what I would do anyway.
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Post by criswell on Apr 15, 2015 19:52:10 GMT
Thanks both. Criswell is very unsure about coming out of his cage and he panics when he is out. At the moment we're working on stepping up and just generally having my hand near him in his cage. He doesn't seem to be afraid of my hand and I don't think he is being territorial as he doesn't come over to me to bite me. He'll eat some seeds off the palm of my hand when he's sitting on his perch but but now when he jumps onto my hand that's when the biting starts, and he especially wants to bite my fingers. This evening I made a fist and put it next to him. He didn't want to step on to it but very gently nibbled the back of my hand, like he was grooming me. Is it ok to let him do the very gentle nibbling, or is that just encouraging biting?
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Post by OP on Apr 15, 2015 20:13:21 GMT
Sorry, I may have misunderstood. I thought he was biting when he was out of the cage. By the sounds of what you are saying he is afraid of your fingers and the biting is his defence. Nibbling the back of your hand is fine. I think that he thinks you are trying to bring him out of the cage with your finger. He doesn't want that. He needs more time to trust you. Just slow down, feed him and let him nibble the back of your hand. He will get used to you.
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Post by Hezz on Apr 15, 2015 22:28:35 GMT
I don't think he is afraid of your fingers, Spyro does this with me sometimes - mostly it is a "leave me alone" sort of thing. Don't stop doing what you are doing with him when he starts to bite, but do discourage him from doing this. I use my other hand, index finger to become another beak, if you like. Give him sharp sounds such as ah, ah, or whatever suits you (must be sharp and quick - the ah or ar noise like you would make to a dog doing the wrong thing is very like the noise they use against each other when they are not happy with the other bird) and use your other finger as a beak to gently bop his beak, making the noise when you do so. If he lunges to that finger lift it up over his beak, and higher if needed, so that he is sitting with his head up, beak pointing up ..... that way he can't lunge at your finger. Once he is like that, gently bring your finger down to his beak. If he bites, bop him; if he nibbles, congratulate him. But whatever he does, continue to give him your attention and affection. Don't use a glove.
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Post by ffiscool on Apr 16, 2015 14:00:59 GMT
Bailey went through a long phase of biting me for fun. nothing I tried made any difference, but he stopped.. so I felt just going through a stroppy phase... hopefully yours will not last too long either
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Post by criswell on Apr 16, 2015 14:06:51 GMT
OP - Thanks. I should have said in my post that he was biting in his cage In the first couple of weeks we had him he would bite if I moved my hand towards the door so I know he was biting because he was frightened that I might try to get him out of the cage so I was careful not to move my hand while he was sitting on it. I think he does still bite sometimes for that reason but the new round of biting has started when my hand is no where near the door. Hezz - Thank you so much for the advice on how to deal with the biting. Criswell lives in a piano 6 so it's not the easiest to get 2 hands near him but I'll work out how best to do that. This morning I made the ahah noise when he tried to bite my finger and he stopped what he was doing instantly and just looked at me. He tried to bite a couple more times so I made the noise again and then he let me stroke him on the top of his head which I've never been able to do before He seemed to enjoy it. After that he had a little nibble of the back of my hand and I praised him for it. It's definitely going to be easier to work with him in the mornings as he's nice and calm them. He gets very boisterous and playful once he's been awake for an hour or 2 and he is much less likely to listen to me. He'll probably listen to me in the evenings too when he has quietened down again. This afternoon we've been practicing stepping up onto a willow stick and he enjoyed the game. We did that a few times during the course of the afternoon. The last time he just settled down on the stick and preened for 5 minutes and didn't mind if I moved him around the cage. So I feel like we are making progress. I've put in a order for some supplies from the Natural Bird Co so I can make some shredding toys for him which I think he'll enjoy and it will keep his beak busy. He is such a sweetie he will definitely continue to get lots of attention and affection. Once we have the biting under control the next step will be to get him used to coming out of his cage but one step at a time. And the longer term plan is to get him a new bird friend too.
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Post by criswell on Apr 16, 2015 14:19:31 GMT
Thanks ffiscool - I think Criswell is enjoying the biting too. Hopefully once he's got more toys to bite he will enjoy biting them instead of me.
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Post by Hezz on Apr 17, 2015 0:16:27 GMT
Very good first day, there, then, criswell. I was going to say that I thought he might have been afraid you were going to take him out of the cage, but I didn't know exactly if this were true. Poor little fella; he really is going to need to be worked on gently. He obviously doesn't like change very much and his life certainly has had plenty of that. But no biting, little bird; not allowed, no excuses!
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Post by criswell on Apr 17, 2015 0:43:21 GMT
Thanks Hezz We had a bit more progress this evening. He stepped up onto his stick and then walked along it to the end so he could nibble my hand which was outside the cage. He was actually calm. We stayed very close to the cage and he was between me and the cage and he didn't panic. He did bite a couple of times as he was nibbling but not hard so I just didn't react as I didn't want to send the wrong messages and make him think that it's not ok to come out. He was only out for a minute or two and then he hopped back on to the doorway of the cage and sat there for another minute before properly going back in. I'm so proud of him. I wish I knew something about his past and what bad experiences he's had. His tail feathers were very short when he arrived and looked liked they'd been cut or broken off or something. He's been moulting and now has 2 lovely long tail feathers. He's still got some of the short scruffy ones to replace but it actually looks more like a proper tail now.
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Post by Hezz on Apr 17, 2015 1:03:11 GMT
You are both doing so well. There might just have been something that set him off, maybe remembering something not so good in his past, possibly that has kicked this all off; you wouldn't know, without knowing everything about him. Using the stick and allowing him to come out of the cage on his own terms seems to be working for you both, I am so pleased for you. Hopefully the biting will ease off with his new-found confidence and you will both have happy days ahead.
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Apr 16, 2015 8:34:55 GMT
Billy's Dad
Normal Green
Posts: 443
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Post by Billy's Dad on Apr 17, 2015 10:39:07 GMT
I don't think he is afraid of your fingers, Spyro does this with me sometimes - mostly it is a "leave me alone" sort of thing. Don't stop doing what you are doing with him when he starts to bite, but do discourage him from doing this. I use my other hand, index finger to become another beak, if you like. Give him sharp sounds such as ah, ah, or whatever suits you (must be sharp and quick - the ah or ar noise like you would make to a dog doing the wrong thing is very like the noise they use against each other when they are not happy with the other bird) and use your other finger as a beak to gently bop his beak, making the noise when you do so. If he lunges to that finger lift it up over his beak, and higher if needed, so that he is sitting with his head up, beak pointing up ..... that way he can't lunge at your finger. Once he is like that, gently bring your finger down to his beak. If he bites, bop him; if he nibbles, congratulate him. But whatever he does, continue to give him your attention and affection. Don't use a glove. Great advice Hezz, Billy went through a phase a couple of weeks ago of really biting hard and this same method worked for us.It's almost like you're fighting back against them
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Post by criswell on Apr 17, 2015 13:55:30 GMT
It is working with Criswell too. Thank you for the advice and the support Hezz. This morning Criswell let me stroke his head and then he gently nibbled my hand. He's eaten seeds from my hand without biting too - first with him sitting on his perch and then he sat on my hand to eat some. That's the first time in a week he's sat on my hand without biting me. He was a bit bitey this afternoon though but we are definitely making progress
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Post by Hezz on Apr 18, 2015 0:07:16 GMT
Well done, Criswell! I do hope this was just a little whoopsie within himself, and between you you have nipped it in the bud before becoming established.
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