New baby green cheek biting hard

[EchoGCC]

Hi everybody,

I have a new 3 months old green cheek conure for 5 days now. He's almost 3 months old and he was hand-fed by the breeder.

The first few days went really well, he was beaky specially at my hand but he did it very carefully and soft. Just exploring. But since the last 2 days now I have three chunk out of my lip, on chunk out of my ear and many chunks out if my fingers (not he sides right next to my nails), all bleeding.
Every time when he puts more pressure with his beak I say a firm 'no' and grab his beak very gently. But the time in between him being very careful and soft to biting extremely hard is a tenth of a second and its very hard to see that coming and to be on time with the 'no' and avoid a bleeding finger.
So I don't know what to do now.
Maybe he's over stimulated? Do I have him out of his cage too often and too long?
I heard that it is good to have your new bird get desensitized and get used to new things, but maybe I want it too fast?
I'm getting afraid now to have him near my fingers, because I'm just affairs he will bite again.

 

[Tiel Feathers]

While I think it's good to have your baby get used to different places and things to a certain extent, I don't think it's good to just start desensitizing him like crazy without paying attention to his comfort level. Maybe he is over stimulated like you suggested, or maybe he is scared and trying to tell you. What happens right before he bites you? Is it only after he's been out for a while? Maybe you can put him back in his cage before he starts bitting. Just remember to never force him to do something, but always try to make it his choice. You don't want the biting to become a habit.

 

[EchoGCC]

When he bites me he's often just beaking and exploring my hand, and then suddenly he gets very excited or so. It goes very soft for a while and then 'chump'. Maybe I have been pushing him a little too much. I learned that they need to be desensitized and to be introduced to a new toys and environments, but Im autistic and I might have taken it a bit too literally and doing it too much. I do think indeed that I have to put him back in his cage a bit sooner. The thing is that he really doesn't want to go back into his cage. When I try to put him back into his cage, he climbs up my arm and sits on my shoulder repeatedly, until I take him with my other hand by his back and put him on a perch and close the cage very fast.

Also when I make it his choice, he would only be nibbling on my ear, hand or lip, until I introduce him another toy. But he always goes back to my hand, ear or lip, and that goes softly and carefully for while but always ends up in a hard bite that makes me bleed.

 

[WendyN]

 

[Mizzely]

I honestly think you grabbing his beak is reinforcing it. When my birds bite I immediately set them down (don't walk to put them anywhere, just down asap) and turn my back. It's body language they can understand. "Hey, I don't like this so I'm leaving".

 

[Lodah]

Green Cheeks are notorious for exploring everything with their beaks! Its how they learn! The unfortunate aspect is that they also learn that a bite gets a reaction and voila... you have a habit that gets reinforced!. Apart from the wonderful suggestions already, avoid the bites and look for body language that will inform you on an intending attack as such!

Green cheeks are a wonderful friend and will learn the right way to gain attention if you provide the correct training to obtain your desired result! Lots of great info here... One more thing, once your friend has bonded with you, the level of biting force diminishes greatly! But that doesn't stop them from always trying to get their way either!

Welcome to the forum!

 

[Monica]

Grabbing his beak and saying "No" may not help at all, and in fact may make it worse. For now, it may be best to not allow him up on your shoulder.

Have you tried foraging toys? Basically, toys that he can chew up and destroy for a food reward. These might help keep his interest longer while he's out with you. It may also be a good idea to keep interactions with him short - i.e. only take him out of the cage for a little while, then put him back in so he can eat, get some water or even nap.

 

[EchoGCC]

Thank you all very much. I get a lot of advice from people but also a lot of different advice. And I'm still finding out what works with my bird Echo. This morning it went totally wrong. I took Echo out of his cage. I let him step on my hand like I always do. He played a bit on his play stand and also with me on the couch with different foot toys. Every now and then he climbed on my hand and wanted to nibble I distracted him with a toy, and every time he started to nibble too hard I said in a firm way 'no' and he let go. I was constantly praising him for playing so sweet when he was playing really nicely, and giving him a treat every now and then. After a while he climbed back on my hand again and started to explore and nibble. When he did it too rough I said 'no', he stopped but shortly after that he bit me hard in another spot on my hand. I again said a firm 'no', and turned by back towards him. But he immediately flew on my shoulder and started to bite me in my neck and my ears. I kept saying 'no' but he started to bite everywhere he could reach. I tried to stay calm but it was hurting so much. While saying 'no' I tried to make him step up but he just bit my hands, and then hard in my neck again. It just wouldn't stop and I couldn't get him of me. Eventually I managed to get him on my hand but he kept biting me. Then I put him in his cage and went to another room to let my emotions out. I'm totally covered in bite marks and welts. I probably did a lot of things wrong but I really tried to follow everybody's advice. I think it might be good to have him clipped, just for now, so that he can't fly back to me when I put him down after biting me. It was probably wrong to put him in his cage also but I just didn't know what to do. It totally escalated.

 

[Monica]

Or... instead of clipping him, leave him in his cage for now. While Echo is in his cage, work on target training through the cage bars. Once he's able to target to anywhere within his cage through the bars, then work on target training with the cage door open, then with him on the outside of his cage, then away from his cage.

If you do it right, he does not need to be clipped. In fact, clipping doesn't stop the behavior. It may slow the behavior down, but it does not cure it.

Please, read over the links in the following thread.

Free Training Resources | Avian Avenue Parrot Forum

 

[Donna turner]

I know it's frustrating, but try not to take it personally. Easier said than done I know. My sweet gcc of 2yrs got mad at me because she didn't want to go in her cage and I had to get her off me by holding her. For a day and a half she attacked my hands every chance she got. I had to push her off me with a wad of tissues every time. I just kept things as nice as I could and she got over it and quit. I admit to having hurt feelings at the time, but I got over it too. Just hang in there.

 

[Tiel Feathers]

I think saying no is not the way to respond. Your bird can consider this response as a reward. Also, maybe Echo was getting overstimulated. How long was he out? Do you think he was hungry, tired, etc.?

 

[Hope]

I haven't read the replies, but keep in mind that at 3 months old he is still a baby. Parrots teethe too! He is learning how to use his beak and what it is capable of doing. He needs to learn about textures and how much pressure is too much when with his humans.

 

[Begone]

You can not punish him for biting you with cutting his wings. That is so wrong!

Learn his body languish instead. He is a baby, and the NO is his trigger to bite you.
Never use the word NO, you don't have a dog, negative reinforcement doesn't work with parrots. Only positive.
Don't put him in his cage when he bites you, do as Mizzely suggested. Put him down gently but as fast as you can, and then just leave the room and give him some minutes time out on his own. He will hate that. And every time he bites or shows bad behavior don't react at all. Just leave him, but not in an angry way. Angry and aggressive way is the opposite and it will only trigger more bad behavior. Trust me!
If you don't know what to do, don't handle him.
Let him go out of his cage himself. He don't need you to help him with that.
To cut his wings will only make him helpless, and that is not a feeling you want to give to a baby that you want to bond to you, isn't it?

 

[EchoGCC]

Thank you all very much for your responses. I know now what i did wrong. I was too much 'on top of him'. I learned that they need a lot of attention, and i took that very literally and did it too much. And that got him overstimulated. So I have to slow down and back off.
By the way, putting him down when he bites and walk away doesn't help, because he immediately flies towards me and lands on my shoulder.
I took him to my avian vet, who's specialized in parrots behaviour and she worked with him a bit and told me a lot about how to continue the next few weeks, and it has been going much better already.
Now he's on his play stand most of the time, playing with his foot toys. Where he has food and water as well. And I give him attention every now and then and invite him to play with me with his toys. I give him the choice though. So that he can get used to his new environment and to us. It's going much better already.

 

[Donna turner]

I'm happy to hear the vet helped and things are getting better. You'll have a good companion when he's comfortable with everything ,bonded to you, and hopefully he'll set boundaries. I love my green thing, but as bonded as we are she'll still bite me if I'm in the way of something she wants and I won't let her have it. Not hard enough to break skin though. Love her, nips and all.

 

[EchoGCC]

Thank you. Yeah, it's going much better. He's so sweet. Very cuddle as well. he loves to have his neck and head scratched

 

[Lodah]

It takes time for a GCC to learn what is acceptable behavior and it won't happen overnight either... Patience, knowledge and training are the key! Remember that they live for many, many years and you will reap the rewards, but later... rather than sooner! Hang in there... Its so worth it when it all comes together! For both of you!

 

[Dion]

This thread was very helpful. I was trying to find a good thread about this behavior and how to stop it. I now know with my loud "ouch" and "no" was probably reinforcing the behavior. I'm new and both of us need a lot of training, lol. Thank you.