TehLizardKing
Sitting on the front steps
A couple of months ago, I brought my first GCC, Darcy, into my life... Apart from Mr Darcy, all of my fids are cockatiels, lovies, budgies, etc... dare I say it, they are definiely 'parakeets' as opposed to large parrots (this is in no way meant to be criticising or detrimental, it is merely an observation: my lovliest fid by far is Utsukushi the cockatiel).
Darcy, on the other hand, is by no stretch of the imagination a 'keet; frankly, I unerestimated him.
From the moment he came home, I'd realised just how different he was. I expected a snuggly 'parakeet' (don't really like that term) with a higher then average level of intelligence, but what he turned out to be was a large parrot in a small body. He dominates both the aviary and the house with his puffed-up comical swagger, and when trick-traning time comes around, it is genuinely amazing to see how much he concentrates on getting that high-five just perfect. New things are inspected with vigour as opposed to flown away from, and his penchant for trying new foods really makes everything much easier.
My only 'problem' with the dear fellow is his incessant habit chewing on my hands! His beak is always busy, and whether it be full of food or human flesh, he is not content unless there is something to be chomped. Don't get me wrong, this isn't biting out of spite or frustration... he just really loves chewing. The answer is most probaly no, but is there any way I can combat this? I dont mind him chewing me at all, no matter how much it hurts... but once he breaks the skin and slices in deep, that's where I drop out. I really would not like to use negative reinforcement, but I'm at loss here. He wants to snuggle, so I snuggle him: He chews me simply because he likes simultaneous chewing and scritching... and so I have to stop snuggling him to avoid yelling/jerking away and reinforcing the chomp, and he gets frustrated because I'm not snuggling, so he nips me more to get my attention, and it just escalates from there. I've tried ignoring it, but honestly it is impossble. It ALWAYS breaks the skin, and boy, is it deep. He also loves the taste of blood, too, so when he's bitten, I have to remove my cut from the vicinity and plaster it quickly for fear that he'll start biting just to vampirise me!
Any help would be much appreciated guys! Whatever happens, I'll carry on loving the dear chap... but if there is no chance of it ever lessening, even slightly, then I'm going to have to get him a mate and spend less one-on-one time with him (not my favourite option
)... It's just impossble to bear.
Thaks y'all!
Darcy, on the other hand, is by no stretch of the imagination a 'keet; frankly, I unerestimated him.
From the moment he came home, I'd realised just how different he was. I expected a snuggly 'parakeet' (don't really like that term) with a higher then average level of intelligence, but what he turned out to be was a large parrot in a small body. He dominates both the aviary and the house with his puffed-up comical swagger, and when trick-traning time comes around, it is genuinely amazing to see how much he concentrates on getting that high-five just perfect. New things are inspected with vigour as opposed to flown away from, and his penchant for trying new foods really makes everything much easier.
My only 'problem' with the dear fellow is his incessant habit chewing on my hands! His beak is always busy, and whether it be full of food or human flesh, he is not content unless there is something to be chomped. Don't get me wrong, this isn't biting out of spite or frustration... he just really loves chewing. The answer is most probaly no, but is there any way I can combat this? I dont mind him chewing me at all, no matter how much it hurts... but once he breaks the skin and slices in deep, that's where I drop out. I really would not like to use negative reinforcement, but I'm at loss here. He wants to snuggle, so I snuggle him: He chews me simply because he likes simultaneous chewing and scritching... and so I have to stop snuggling him to avoid yelling/jerking away and reinforcing the chomp, and he gets frustrated because I'm not snuggling, so he nips me more to get my attention, and it just escalates from there. I've tried ignoring it, but honestly it is impossble. It ALWAYS breaks the skin, and boy, is it deep. He also loves the taste of blood, too, so when he's bitten, I have to remove my cut from the vicinity and plaster it quickly for fear that he'll start biting just to vampirise me!
Any help would be much appreciated guys! Whatever happens, I'll carry on loving the dear chap... but if there is no chance of it ever lessening, even slightly, then I'm going to have to get him a mate and spend less one-on-one time with him (not my favourite option
)... It's just impossble to bear.Thaks y'all!
for ya...
