Hyper 10 wk old sun conure

[SnowB]

Hello everyone I have a 10 week old Sun Conure who has suddenly gone from well behaved and overall calm to extremely hyper about 3 days ago! I’ve been trying to click train him but he doesn’t respond to the clicker. The only things he responds to are my commands but the clicker just does nothing for him. My breeder instructed me to click the clicker every time I open the cage door and before each spoon I feed him and then gradually increase the distance between my bird and I so that when he hears the clicker, he flies to me for his food. I’ve been doing that with no success. He won’t stay still and he flies to me as soon as I put him down. He understands “Come here” and he comes to me even from different rooms in the house but sometimes he will deliberately ignore me and chirp back when he doesn’t want to come. Then when I walk away and leave him he comes flying after me. He is also starting to bite but most of the time it seems like he’s being too playful and other times it seems like he bites to hurt me when he doesn’t want to do something. People have suggested that I put him away in his cage for a few minutes for bad behavior but he freaks out when I put him in his cage and even started chewing his feathers. My vet said not to associate the cage with negative things because he’s still struggling to adjust to his cage. He has never liked his cage. It’s a large flight cage that can fit my whole self inside with PLENTY of different types of toys that my vet approved of. He’s just extremely clingy with me and the only time his is okay in the cage is when he is sleepy. I put him in there to nap and also to sleep through the night of course. I also put him away in there for an hour or 2 during the day and sometimes he eventually calms down but other times he won’t stop squeaking and flying crazy in the cage. And now that he has become hyper, training these last few days has been SO DIFFICULT. He was doing so good and now he’s a bit feisty and too energetic to pay attention. I encourage him to play with his toys and he has foraging toys to keep him busy but he loses interest in them after a few minutes then flies on top of my head and refuses to get off. I really need help Is this behavior normal for his age? Also, he still needs 3 feedings of baby formula a day and I’m not sure if this is normal still? I have been giving him plenty of vegetables and a little bit of seeds and I reward him with treats for good behavior. He does eat the vegetables and seed treats I give him but not enough to satisfy his hunger and he relies on me to feed him. He always has food easily available to him but he isn’t weaned yet. Is this okay for a 10 week old conure? If not, how can I fix the issue? I would really appreciate some suggestions on training too. Are sun conures usually hyper at this age?

 

[SnowB]

@Zara @Laurie

 

[Laurie]

I think your bird it totally normal for a baby. You seem to have many expectations and I am sure many of them will be fulfilled. I think it is common to research birds and fuse everything you have heard about possibly hundreds of birds into one idea of what a bird should be. All that is needed is to slow down and take your time and let your own bird's personality blossom.

If he is still hungry then three feedings a day are fine. Weaning takes time and can be very gradual. I always say that babies figure out that food is fun and tasty so they eat but it takes a bit longer to make the association with the idea that when they feel hungry they can go and eat and be satisfied. It's whole life he has been given food when "mom" thought he was hungry, he has never had to fend for himself.

Also, instead of well behaved, misbehaving or bad think more in terms of behaviors you like or don't like. I don't think there are really any misbehaving birds, everything they do serves a purpose to them and is correct in their eyes. If you find a behavior you don't like try to set up the environment differently, change how you do things to get a different reaction or lastly try and bribe your bird to do something else you like better. When you want to teach him to do something else don't just think about what you want him to stop doing, think of what you want him to be doing instead. Birds (all creatures actually) are always behaving it is MUCH easier to teach an alternative thing you want him to do rather teach him to not do something.

Try a drop or two of apple juice from a syringe as a treat. This usually works well for babies who are handfeeding, be sure to do it when he is not hungry or he may be too distracted. Personally, I don't use a clicker, I just say "good" in a happy voice rather than clicking. It works the same way but frees up a hand.

All birds will resort to biting when you do something they do not like. It is best to learn how to read any body language they are giving before the bite so you can avoid pushing them to the point of biting.

You mentioned many, many things, try and work on them a bit at a time an also allow your baby bird to go through all the changes needed to go through for a growing baby. I know some people like to have unweaned babies but it's a lot when you don't know what to expect. You'll get through it.

 

[SnowB]

Thank you! This makes a lot of sense. About the biting though, he bites randomly. I could be just sitting there and he’ll move down my arm to nip at me suddenly and won’t let go. I try not to react most of the time but sometimes he punctures my skin and I can’t help but scream ouch! I think I am good at reading his body language when he is not comfortable so I know I’m not provoking him into biting. The biting is mostly just out of nowhere! He likes to fly on people’s heads and not everyone likes that and he gets angry when I take him down and he’ll nip at me. He understands “get down” but he doesn’t always respond especially when he wants to socialize and fly on people’s heads. Those are the times he bites me because he doesn’t like what I’m doing but I don’t know what else to to but to scoop him off someone’s head. He also tries to fly to the stove (from a completely different side of the house) as soon as my door opens and it’s so dangerous! I live with other family members so someone is always in the kitchen cooking. I immediately follow him as fast as possible and take him back to my room when he does that and he bites me like crazy and screams. I don’t know what to do I also agree with you on the clicker. I personally do not like it because he responds to verbal commands better than the clicker. He is extremely smart and understands a lot. The only reason why I tried to use it in training was because I’ve been repeatedly told that I’m supposed to :/ Do you have any tips on how to deal with the biting? It’s getting out of hand (I’m bruised and cut everywhere) and he’s not an aggressive bird. He bites even when he’s happy or hyper and I don’t understand why he bites me until I bleed He could be on my shoulder totally fine and then I get a sudden snap on my ear. My other bird is older and untame so it’s like you said, I don’t know what to expect from an unweaned baby. I truly don’t mind all of the hard work, time, and patience he needs but I just want to make sure his behaviors are normal and that I’m doing things right I just need some help

@Laurie