Biting

[Valorous]

Hello I desperately need help.

I got my first bird (a male Hahns macaw of 6 months) about 4 weeks ago. He was the sweetest, friendliest bird... up til four days ago. Now he bites all the time and really hard too.

He bites my fingers and my face and clings on, it has bled 3 times.

He gets into a kind of bitey mood as if he is overly energetic and hunts my fingers, just going crazy flapping wings and stuff. He definitely isn't afraid of me as he will step up without hesitation and let me check wings and claws and everything and (at least I thought) is bonded to me, following me from room to room and preening me and stuff.

I don't know what to do when he does bite, and I don't know how to make him stop.


I've tried yelling like a bird would do when he bites, as that is what the breeder told me to do.

I've tried ignoring it completely.

I've tried holding/flicking his beak and saying no.

I've tried putting him in time-out in his cage.


Nothing works and it's gradually becoming worse. I feel so beat down because of this and my mental health is spiraling because I feel like I'm doing something wrong.

 

[cosmolove]

First thing I would do is stop letting him near your face. Birds biting and faces never mix.

Secondly, we really need to figure out why he's biting rather than focusing on the punishment. Birds rarely (if ever) bite for no reason at all. Most likely the bird was giving you warning signs that maybe you missed or were very small warnings before the bite.

Based on your post it seems you know when he's in a "bitey mood" when he's like that don't set yourself up for failure. One big thing I try to do is redirect. So rather than the punishment you've done in the past if the bird bites I would try to get them to focus on something else. I know a lot of people have had success by trick training their birds. This way when the bird starts to act like that you can redirect the energy into doing tricks for a treat.

Please do not punish the bird by flicking and yelling Now that I have bigger birds that bite, trust me I know there are some times where you need to step away. I recently had my grey latch onto my thumb and wouldn't let go. When she did that the only thing I could do was kindly get her beak off me and put her down. Then I had to walk away. Some birds love the reaction you'll give them. So I try not to react. In the case I needed to compose myself, although I wanted to yell and jump around because of the pain I had to just walk away. Once I had my composure I came back and I tried to keep working with her. You never want to end any "training" on a bad note

 

[Valorous]

Hm yeah I see, but he likes to lay on my neck when we watch tv hmmmm it's only recently that he's bitten, maybe a temporary no face policy is needed.

Yes. I really have tried to pin-point and it's most often when he is around toys (bottle caps, straws, plastic things etc). Just now my brother "triggered" it by picking up a piece of string that he likes to play with and held it to him. That got the bird super hyped up and he went for my hands. I can't stop playing with him? or?

Hm I have tried to trick train him a bit (he knows to fly to my hand, spin around on a perch and almost to speak on command) but I don't know how I should do that when he is actively going after my hands... Maybe use the point trick thing? where you train the bird to touch a specific thing (a stick or some) with its beak? he is really good at that thing and since it's a stick, not my fingers, I won't get bit and maybe he will calm down???

Ok I will not! I was told to by some people on a facebook page ah it's hard when everyone is giving you different directions! I will try to walk out the room but I know that he will come after me. He always wants to be in the same room as me.

Thank you for the reply!

 

[sunnysmom]

He could be hormonal. How many hours of sleep does he get?

 

[cosmolove]

He's starting to grow out of his baby phase so its not uncommon for them to get nippy for a bit. It sounds like he's being protective of the things he likes. I wonder if its hormones like what sunnysmom mentioned.

 

[Valorous]

I put him to bed at 20:00, then I go to bed at like... 22:22 (and his cage is in my room) and then we wake up at about 8:00 (or maybe a bit earlier)...

 

[Tiel Feathers]

Maybe if you can tell when he's getting all hyped up, you can put him in his cage to calm him down before he bites. Targeting, like you mentioned, is a good thing to train.

 

[Valorous]

I don't know, it really doesn't take much for him. It can go from 0 to 100 from the smallest thing. I really do hope it's hormones. Also, he is molting so that could be a factor?

 

[sunnysmom]

Molting can definitely be it. Most birds are cranky when they molt.

 

[datlamb]

birds can be extra cranky when they mold so they have a shorter fuse.

try to pay attention to warning signs if he gives you any before the bite.
does he fluff up his feathers? maybe only at the back of the neck?
does he open his beak or lunge at you?
does he eye pin? ( fast paced changing of the pupil's size)

even though the examples here are for smaller parrots these pictured guide can be attributed to all parrots : Little Feathered Buddies General Information

and this can also be helpful: Bird Body Language: How to Understand What Your Parrot or Your Other Bird is Trying to Say


when he gets really worked up from the toys, does he also "attack " the toys or only you when you get closer to him? maybe he's afraid play time is over

 

[Valorous]

He attacks the toys as well most of the time. Thank you very much I will read those articles asap!

 

[Lwalker]

It also sounds like you tried four things in four days. If there is a repercussion for biting....say putting him down and walking away (removing your attention), you would have to do it a few times, consistently for him to make the connection...when I bite, I lose his attention. I am not saying anything you are trying is right or wrong ( there are more experienced people that can weigh in on that) but consistency is key. Trying a whole bunch of different responses in a short time period will not work.

 

[JLcribber]

Here's another article you should read. He's not quite there yet but he's going to be. Better to be informed.

Site Name - Articles - Behavioral - Sex And The Psittacine

 

[Valorous]

#12 that is true. I guess I'm too eager to find what works but I'll keep it in mind thank you.
#13 will read! thanks!

 

[Monica]

First and foremost.... the only bite that can't be rewarded is the bite that never occurs.

This means learning to read your bird's body language, learning what makes them tick, and avoiding situations that you know will result in a bite. Rather than trying to figure out how to stop him from biting, why not think instead how you can approach a situation differently to avoid the bites? And what training can you do to get him more engaged? If he's got a toy in his mouth, he can't bite unless he drops the toy. Or maybe he's retrieving an object (i.e. fetch) for you.


I've gathered a bunch of resources together that can help with training and behavior.
Free Training Resources | Avian Avenue Parrot Forum

 

[Valorous]

First and foremost.... the only bite that can't be rewarded is the bite that never occurs.

This means learning to read your bird's body language, learning what makes them tick, and avoiding situations that you know will result in a bite. Rather than trying to figure out how to stop him from biting, why not think instead how you can approach a situation differently to avoid the bites? And what training can you do to get him more engaged? If he's got a toy in his mouth, he can't bite unless he drops the toy. Or maybe he's retrieving an object (i.e. fetch) for you.


I've gathered a bunch of resources together that can help with training and behavior.
Free Training Resources | Avian Avenue Parrot Forum

Thank you for the reply I will check the links out!

Yes I understand what you mean and I do try but as I've mentioned earlier, sometimes it just takes the smallest thing to get him "worked up".

Today has been much better though than earlier days, I'm not sure what I've done differently but I think it's because I've stimulated him a little bit more (put on music, brought in food, constantly given him chew toys etc.) and that keeps him busy.

Though he did enter a bitey mood just now because he flew over to my brother's shoulder when I passed by the kitchen and my brother didn't want him there because he was doing stuff so he asked me to remove Elsen and when I tried to get him to step up, he bit (he usually steps up very nicely but I guess he really wanted to be with my brother). That situation I think could've been avoided if my brother just gave Elsen a bit of attention which he wouldn't do

 

[Valorous]

He just bit again. My brother came downstairs to talk to me and Elsen flew over to him and sat on his shoulder. This time my brother said hello and scratched him on his head a bit and the bird was calm. Then the bird wandered over and started biting his ear and his fingers really hard. So I went over again to get him and he bit me. I put the bird down on a table and tried to leave the room and he flew after me. Now he is all "weird" and bitey again...... He seems like he is playing really rough/showing dominance with flapping wings slightly......?

 

[Familyof12]

Thank you for the great read! I found this super informative and forgot some of what I've read. I realize I have been ignorant of the whole third party coming in-between. Ha ha ha!!

Diablo likes to watch me sing and dance for Remi in the morning. I started doing this about 2 weeks ago. This is the same time Diablo would come forward on his own and really take interest. Now Carmen is cage aggressive. I will need to be more careful around my jealous friend to make her feel more secure around her mate. LOL.

 

[cosmolove]

He just bit again. My brother came downstairs to talk to me and Elsen flew over to him and sat on his shoulder. This time my brother said hello and scratched him on his head a bit and the bird was calm. Then the bird wandered over and started biting his ear and his fingers really hard. So I went over again to get him and he bit me. I put the bird down on a table and tried to leave the room and he flew after me. Now he is all "weird" and bitey again...... He seems like he is playing really rough/showing dominance with flapping wings slightly......?

I was going to say it seems like he rules the roost over there. I had a bird (ironically the one on top of my head in my profile picture) that ended up having a strict no head or shoulders rule. Out of the blue he would bit and latch on, sometimes even shake his head like a dog while he had ahold of you. After doing that to my lip twice after he flew to my shoulder all cute he got that rule. He was always a little more nippy than I would have liked but he was much worst when he was allowed on the shoulders.

Plus he can do a lot more damage up there.

 

[Familyof12]

Then the bird wandered over and started biting his ear and his fingers really hard. So I went over again to get him and he bit me. I put the bird down on a table and tried to leave the room and he flew after me. Now he is all "weird" and bitey again...... He seems like he is playing really rough/showing dominance with flapping wings slightly......?

Whether it is territorial or play behavior, it sounds like a bad accident waiting to happen if you are not careful! I'm sure sorry your birds and you are going through this confusing time. I can't imagine being bit by a bird that large yet. Mine don't bite and I've never seen any one of my birds ever open their wings and flap.

I hope you find the right "language" to bridge that communication gap. Please let us know how it goes!