sunnysmom
Ripping up the road
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I am not sure what is going on with Elvis but he is biting/attacking the fiancé. It's been going on for about 4-5 weeks. I was really hoping to have the problem under control and not have to write this thread. But I don't, and I need help. I know your first thought probably is that it's because he doesn't like the fiancé and is bonded to me. I really don't think that's it.
When we first got Elvis, Howie, the fiancé, was his favorite. I knew that going into this but thought that maybe Howie should get a chance at being the favorite since I was Sunny's whole world and I think Howie sometimes felt excluded. And Elvis liked me well enough. Just given the choice, he would sit with Howie, etc. rather than me. We've had him for 10 months about and he's never really bitten until now.
I really think it started as play, but I'm not sure. Elvis would dig under the throw blanket if Howie was laying on the couch looking for his fingers. Somehow that evolved to him biting through the blanket to get his fingers. Then he started attacking his feet. Literally, dive bombing them. Then he started biting his hands without the blanket. But he does it randomly. He still likes Howie. He still wants scratches and wants to be with him. 75% of the time, he still chooses Howie over me if given the choice. And he bites Howie whether I'm there or not. So, I really think this has nothing to do with me. Last night, I got home later than usual, and Howie was telling me that Elvis drew blood twice. While we were sitting there, Elvis swooped down and bit his hand good. Probably the worst bite yet.
I made Howie go to a parrot class this past weekend to help give him some ideas on what to do. And it helped, I think. Although it was suggested that we clip Elvis's wings for Howie's sake. I really don't want to do that. Elvis loves flying and has become a much more confident bird since he's been flighted. However, Howie is getting to the point where I think he's seriously regretting that we got Elvis. I don't want their relationship to deteriorate to the point that he wants nothing to do with Elvis, especially since Elvis likes him best. Since Sunday, we started working on distracting Elvis with toys if started digging in the blanket looking for Howie's fingers. And we started pointing him back in his cage if he bites. (We had stopped giving him time outs a few months ago but I don't know what choice we have again.)
I am also trying to increase his hours of sleep. It's hard because his cage is downstairs. I've decided that I have to get a sleep cage for upstairs. But I need to clean out the office and buy another cage. So it won't be happening immediately. And as of yesterday, I've starting using a white noise machine at night for Elvis because the past week he's been screaming at night again.
Any thoughts as to why Elvis is doing this and suggestions on how to make it better? Elvis is so unbelievably gentle with me. It's hard to believe that he can be so vicious with Howie.
When we first got Elvis, Howie, the fiancé, was his favorite. I knew that going into this but thought that maybe Howie should get a chance at being the favorite since I was Sunny's whole world and I think Howie sometimes felt excluded. And Elvis liked me well enough. Just given the choice, he would sit with Howie, etc. rather than me. We've had him for 10 months about and he's never really bitten until now.
I really think it started as play, but I'm not sure. Elvis would dig under the throw blanket if Howie was laying on the couch looking for his fingers. Somehow that evolved to him biting through the blanket to get his fingers. Then he started attacking his feet. Literally, dive bombing them. Then he started biting his hands without the blanket. But he does it randomly. He still likes Howie. He still wants scratches and wants to be with him. 75% of the time, he still chooses Howie over me if given the choice. And he bites Howie whether I'm there or not. So, I really think this has nothing to do with me. Last night, I got home later than usual, and Howie was telling me that Elvis drew blood twice. While we were sitting there, Elvis swooped down and bit his hand good. Probably the worst bite yet.
I made Howie go to a parrot class this past weekend to help give him some ideas on what to do. And it helped, I think. Although it was suggested that we clip Elvis's wings for Howie's sake. I really don't want to do that. Elvis loves flying and has become a much more confident bird since he's been flighted. However, Howie is getting to the point where I think he's seriously regretting that we got Elvis. I don't want their relationship to deteriorate to the point that he wants nothing to do with Elvis, especially since Elvis likes him best. Since Sunday, we started working on distracting Elvis with toys if started digging in the blanket looking for Howie's fingers. And we started pointing him back in his cage if he bites. (We had stopped giving him time outs a few months ago but I don't know what choice we have again.)
I am also trying to increase his hours of sleep. It's hard because his cage is downstairs. I've decided that I have to get a sleep cage for upstairs. But I need to clean out the office and buy another cage. So it won't be happening immediately. And as of yesterday, I've starting using a white noise machine at night for Elvis because the past week he's been screaming at night again.
Any thoughts as to why Elvis is doing this and suggestions on how to make it better? Elvis is so unbelievably gentle with me. It's hard to believe that he can be so vicious with Howie.