Nasty bite ... I don't want him anymore.

[Love My Zons]

OH never are my lips anywhere near my birds beaks as are my eyes. My Fiance has a scar on his cheek where again Hoosier bit it due to jealousy and being over excited while Kazoo was around. The scars of love I suppose. I think People who offer their lips for beak kisses are surely asking for it, these are wild birds, just imprinted beings not domesticated dogs and cats.

 

[webchirp]

Hormones more than likely and a good vet visit to rule out possible illness is not a bad idea especially if your little birdie displays something never displayed before. I have been bitten by all of mine at one point or another. Zia will bite lips but she displays and gives me warning signals that she's mad. Kari on the other hand is sometimes hard to read but I try not to give her kisses or turn my face towards her if she is on my shoulder. If she thinks another bird is displaying a love look towards me, she will lip lock bite. Hurts like a sob, my eyes water and run over and I set her aside from me at least for the day. I do not make any decisions during this time and always give myself a day or two to recover my hurt feelings and sore lip. Just remember that this little one you have loved for 8 years may not end up in a good home unless you are extra careful. If you are unhappy enough to take that chance, I hope a good AA home can be found. Oh I remember a phase Happy went through. When it was getting dimmer at night and if the lights weren't bright in the house, he would all the sudden wig out...fluff up completely, eyes pinning and stalk me to bite the ever loving crap out of me. Since it happened around 8ish every night most often, I started putting him to bed before that would happen.

 

[Sadieladie1994]

There are a couple of issues. •. •Birds get older and they change. •We don't always see the subtle changes that they are getting older. •We become comfortable with each other and your bird becomes more comfortable so felt a need to correct you regarding food. •Many animals guard food and if they feel threatened, even casually, they will defend. •Your bird has confidence in telling you off. •Now you need to make a change as that is what will make a change in your bird.

1. •Back to reading body language and reevaluating each other
2. •Change where and how food is served.
3. •Continue interaction but in different ways such as using a piece of cloth when playing with your bird rather than hands.•
4. •Reassess being bitten. •This most certainly was severe and a larger bird would do more damage. •One often lets little birds get away with things those with bigger birds don't allow. •It is not manhandling but rather setting limits.

Hugs to you in your time of confusion and hurt. •Birds are adaptive so looking at yourself and relationships with your bird may give you insight how you might change. •You shared part of the situation as that is what is important to you now. •Go back and look at the whole picture and we might have additional suggestions.

 

[lupe]

Oh, he bites me regularly. But not bad bites. This bite was different. Looking at the adorable pics of Zia reminds me of the good times ... but my lip still hurts.

I may be wrong, but it sounds like your feelings hurt more than your lip. If all bird owners would
would have there feelings wounded with every bite, we would not have birds to begin with.

Eight years is a LONG time, give the little fella another chance. This time, change YOUR behavior.
BTW: IF your feelings are hurt, its probably because you love him?? just a thought

 

[zuzanqa]

I have no advice to offer because everyone before me has said a lot of relly helpful, insightful stuff.
I am just a little bit sad for that little boy because after 8 years together, I think he deserves a chance.
And maybe there is still something you don´t know about him, that you could learn. I understand you´re upset.
I got bitten by Ananda once or twice and even though she has a tiny beak, it hurt more than I expected.
I love her to pieces though. She´s Ananda, and there´s only one of her in the world. And of Petey, too.

 

[Vega]

I fully agree with getting him to a vet for some bloodwork. My Harvey had been acting a bit differently for a few weeks, more distant than normal. The night before his passing I looked at him and said "are you ok baby? Maybe we should take you to get a check up". I initially thought a fall from his perch caused a seizure which caused his death. Lookin back I wish I would've picked up on the minor changes and gotten him to the vet, it may have saved his life and me the world of pain I've been feeling since losing him.

Also, please think carefully about rehoming. You've had 8 YEARS without a major incident. I can relate to your pain. Gypsy got my nose once. I seriously considered rehoming her. The members on here talked me through my emotional pain and distrust of her. It took time on my part to rebuild that trust. I'm so grateful that I did!!! Now our bond is even stronger. So much so that she even cuddles with me now, something she hadn't done prior to our incident.

 

[Nicole726]

If hes be acting funny lately maybe his feelings are hurt or he wants more attention. If hes the only bird maybe he is lonley. Im sure he didnt mean to hurt you as bad as he did. The lips are very soft and tender I bet if he bit your finger like he bit your lip it wouldnt hurt nearly as much. Your feeling are hurt now too Im sure its not just the lips but also your heart. I would suggest forgiving him and trying trust building activities. talk to him. My cockatiel bit me hard in the face on my nose when I went on vacation for 4 days and he went to grandmas... he was angry at me and I was trying to snuggle him once I got him home. My feelings hurt worse than my nose... once we spent a few hours hanging out again he was back to his normal snuggly self. Just like you would forgive a friend or family member forgive him and then make the descision after careful thought. Once re-homed you might miss him and regret it. But the choose is yours and only you can make the choose to try and fix things like your relationship with him or give him away. People make mistakes, birds make them too. All animals bite out of fear. Im sorry you both fear eachother now.

 

[Anne & Gang]

I urge you not to give up on him, especially after eight years..please follow everyone else's advice.

 

[Wasabisaurus]

I think most of us, when we get that first bite from our very first birds think, WHOA! Rotten bird! What was I thinking! Then we question our decision to get a bird. (I sure did! I still ask myself, Terri, what in the h!LL were you thinking, fool?!) But I love the monster dearly. I have not had him even 8 years. My one tiel has bitten from the first day we got him. Still bites. We've had him 12 years. He'll bite the next 12 (or more) years too.

IA with the others that your feelings are hurt and maybe you're a little offended or embarrassed. Don't be embarrassed. Bites happen, as sure as water is wet. Almost everybody is bitten sometime. Even the most talented bird people are bitten.

I think the key thing here is now to manage every single situation where a bite may happen. i.e. no shoulder sitting for birdie. Stop things from progressing to where a bite may occur.

Have to have a little faith in yourself that you can get past it. I think you can. You have expert advice here, and us wounded warriors, we are here to help you. Have a little faith in your conure too.

You can do this. Deep breath. Start fresh.

 

[crazyanimal]

Please do not give up on him. If deep down in your heart, you've cared for him but never really wanted him the last 8 years...then maybe it is time to rehome him and never get another bird...but if you truly love him and are just emotionally hurt from his bite then just take a step back. Many of the above comments are dead on as far as what could have triggered it.

People fail to realize that birds are wild animals. Their only form of communication to us is biting. They have bad days just like humans do...they shouldn't be punished for that. Having a bird means you adjust your life to them...they should not have to adjust their life to you. I have quite a few in my flock who cannot be handled and I've taken many serious bites from them...but in most cases, I have triggered the bite or breeding season or molting. I have one guy that hates women but he has already been homed over and over and I will NOT do that to him again. He will be here until he passes no matter how many bites I take from him. He is happy with his good food, toys, freedom and just allowing to be himself.

Stepping back and thinking like a bird will often help many situations.

 

[Birdasaurus]

I have a black-capped conure who bit me real bad in the lip too, so I also do not trust her...I get where you're coming from. That being said, I just don't let her near my face! She can sit on my knee, the top of my head, my computer, etc. Absolutely no shoulders. Everything has been just dandy since

 

[Love My Zons]

I think most of us, when we get that first bite from our very first birds think, WHOA! Rotten bird! What was I thinking! Then we question our decision to get a bird. (I sure did! I still ask myself, Terri, what in the h!LL were you thinking, fool?!) But I love the monster dearly. .

I don't want to sound like a psycho but I was mad after Hoosier bit me and wanted to kick him like a football but since I love this little feathered but you know that would never happen but still! This was the worst ever he gave me his all and he meant it.

 

[Monica]

I almost got a 2 year old green cheek conure for that very reason! Well, the daughter bought the bird for her mother, but the green cheek had already bonded to the daughter, so she couldn't be held by anyone else without her biting! And she even bit the owner on the lip! Daughter moved away to college, left birdy at home, and she is then in a family that no one can handle her! They were afraid to!

I went over to their house, fully expecting that I'd have to take this little green cheek home with me! Of course, deep down, I was hoping not to! I observed the behavior between owner and bird. The owner couldn't get the little GCC out of the cage, so I tried a different approach. Took a little longer, but it worked! I used sunflower seeds to motivate this little green cheek conure to come out of her cage and onto my hand! I had never met her before, so I didn't know how she would react to a stranger, but she did well! Once I got her out of the cage, I showed the owner how to work with her using food as a way to motivate her! Wiston (GCC) is highly food motivated so I was able to get her to turn around on my hand for a reward. The owner had problems getting Wiston off her shoulder, so I purposely put this 'strange bird' onto my shoulder, and I successfully got her to step down without a bite or a nip!

She did give me a nice good bite on my hand, but this had nothing to do with me being a stranger or something startling her, but had everything to do with the fact that I was restraining her with my left hand as I was trying to unhook her overly large leg band from one of her toes! If not for that incident, I doubt I would have ever been bitten!


I gave Wiston's owner new hope! And with a different approach to training, they have formed a stronger bond! It went well for several weeks and she did end up getting a bite (actually, that's when she got bit on the lip), but she stuck it through! And now the two are closer than ever before! Bites and nipping have been taken to a minimum.



The worst bite I've ever received was from Noel, my cherry headed conure (RIP). He bit me right in the webbing between my thumb and forefinger. It hurt, and it hurt A LOT! I hate to admit it, but the first thing that rushed through my head was that I wanted to bite her head off. Obviously, I didn't, but I felt horrible afterwards, for having that thought! I never thought about rehoming him after that, because I knew that he had no trust in humans. He bit me because I pushed him too hard in trying to earn his trust. In time, we did come to an understanding of each other and I learned when to expect bites, and I learned why they were happening. He was a special case though, because if I tried to teach him not to bite, I'd end up getting bitten more! He had stability issues, and he learned to bite to ensure that what he was stepping on was a stable perch. He only bit when he was unstable (usually because he tripped over himself, causing the instability). For normal, healthy birds, my recommendation is to avoid getting bitten!

Easier said than done, I know, but the only bite that can't be rewarded is the one that never occurs! If you haven't already, I would highly suggest clicker training, starting with target training. With a target, you can teach a lot of behaviors for your conure to do that are hands off, and if you give him direction and things to do, he may be less likely to bite. Also, through clicker training, you can learn how to better understand your bird and learn how to better communicate with him!



The media & blogs by Barbara Heidenreich, Lara Joseph, Susan Friedman and Melinda Johnson can all be great materials to help you!

 

[Dartman]

Lurch gets touchy about food too, he want to fly onto our shoulders when we are in the kitchen becuase he knows cool things happen there, BUT as soon as we're working with something he likes SMACK! on the back of the neck. He see's us with food or water he wants and gets frustrated when we don't offer imediately. I have several welts on my neck from him and if I'm getting food or snacks now I take him to the chair or shake my shoulder to get him to fly away as I don't like bites either but it's what they do from time to time when they get possevive or don't know how to ask. The first night he was here he was getting a scritch and just swung around quick and peeled a bunch of skin off my finger. I thought about strangeling him but thought maybe it wouldn't be such a great idea after just paying 300 for him and not even knowing him yet. We have started to come to a understanding after almost 4 year and I know he's fond of us now but he still has his moments and triggers and we have learned to read him better and respect his pissy times. He has bit me on the lip too but it was my fault as we weren't buds yet and I got too close to his area while bending down to pick up a treat he dropped, and yes it hurt my feelings but we moved on and I fully expect to get many more small nips and bad bites in our career together.
I am trying to work on teaching him a better way to ask for treats and I think eventually he'll get the idea nipping is not the way. He also will get snappy when I offer a treat he doesn't want, even when he was just happily accepting the same thing before so things to watch for. He doesn't tend to bite when he's on the chair beside me or hanging out on my knee either but the shoulder always gets him going.

 

[Bridgette]

I'm going to take a different approach as most of the other posters: go ahead and *responsibly* rehome this little baby. Here are my reasons:

1. You obviously see the relationship as tarnished, perhaps beyond repair. If you are so hurt/scared by this baby, his life will be pretty pitiful. He will probably end up cage bound, only getting food/water/cage cleanings. If he does become cage bound, he will probably develop some other undesirable behaviors, such a screaming and/or cage aggression, which will further drive the wedge between you.

2. If you are so apt to rehome him after one small incident, chances are the "bond" was never that strong to begin with. Find him a home that wouldn't part with him, regardless of what happens.

Kiwi bites me a lot. He is hormonal and rather miserable at the moment, so I have been getting quite a few nips/bites. I am savvy enough to realize it's not me, it's the time of year and he doesn't mean it - it's instinctual.

Kiwi and I went through a little stint where he would attack and bloody my face if he saw me using a straw or wine glass. I came to realize that he attacked when I used a straw because he plays with straws and saw me "stealing" his toys. I deduce the wine glasses scared him and, by attacking me, he was warning me of certain death by stemware. When I looked at the reasons, I thought his bites were justified and almost sweet - in one instance, he thought he was saving my life. How cute is that?!?

I'm not trying to be mean but, if you don't love him anymore, by all means find a home that does.

 

[Mrcrowley]

Hey raising hand here have 4 GCC in family now and the sweet boy that got me turned onto bird Sweepee my wifes GC set's off easy now I am the bird whisper and I do not see it comming from him . He bites and holds onto my lips,ear lobes, finger if he is on his cage. He is a male and he is mean to all the other GC all other GC's are female. So my best gues is he is hormonal this time of the year and molting so he is unpredictable . If he is on you and you can see him getting hyper or angry put him on his cage . AND make sure he has plenty of shredding toys for what ever makes him mad turning his attention to a toy is better than your lip . Your a good Parront do not let this set you back now you know better. In a month or so he will calm down he will come back...

 

[JosienBB]

I'm going to take a different approach as most of the other posters: go ahead and *responsibly* rehome this little baby. Here are my reasons:

1. You obviously see the relationship as tarnished, perhaps beyond repair. If you are so hurt/scared by this baby, his life will be pretty pitiful. He will probably end up cage bound, only getting food/water/cage cleanings. If he does become cage bound, he will probably develop some other undesirable behaviors, such a screaming and/or cage aggression, which will further drive the wedge between you.

2. If you are so apt to rehome him after one small incident, chances are the "bond" was never that strong to begin with. Find him a home that wouldn't part with him, regardless of what happens.

Kiwi bites me a lot. He is hormonal and rather miserable at the moment, so I have been getting quite a few nips/bites. I am savvy enough to realize it's not me, it's the time of year and he doesn't mean it - it's instinctual.

Kiwi and I went through a little stint where he would attack and bloody my face if he saw me using a straw or wine glass. I came to realize that he attacked when I used a straw because he plays with straws and saw me "stealing" his toys. I deduce the wine glasses scared him and, by attacking me, he was warning me of certain death by stemware. When I looked at the reasons, I thought his bites were justified and almost sweet - in one instance, he thought he was saving my life. How cute is that?!?

I'm not trying to be mean but, if you don't love him anymore, by all means find a home that does.

Word. Couldn't have said it better myself.

I think the problem is you took his bite personally, and that's one thing you shouldn't do. Birds are wild animals, and their thought process is vastly different from ours. He didn't do it to be mean. To be honest, if you've had him for eight years and this is the first time you've had a more serious bite, I'd say he's actually a darned well behaved bird.

I'm reading back your old posts and one you made in about December, you said you wouldn't part with him for the world. Read that again and see if you still feel that way. If not, I would suggest the rehome route. Birds will be birds, but if you can't handle that, they're probably not for you and it's better in the long run.

 

[Mrcrowley]

I'm going to take a different approach as most of the other posters: go ahead and *responsibly* rehome this little baby. Here are my reasons:

1. You obviously see the relationship as tarnished, perhaps beyond repair. If you are so hurt/scared by this baby, his life will be pretty pitiful. He will probably end up cage bound, only getting food/water/cage cleanings. If he does become cage bound, he will probably develop some other undesirable behaviors, such a screaming and/or cage aggression, which will further drive the wedge between you.

2. If you are so apt to rehome him after one small incident, chances are the "bond" was never that strong to begin with. Find him a home that wouldn't part with him, regardless of what happens.

Kiwi bites me a lot. He is hormonal and rather miserable at the moment, so I have been getting quite a few nips/bites. I am savvy enough to realize it's not me, it's the time of year and he doesn't mean it - it's instinctual.

Kiwi and I went through a little stint where he would attack and bloody my face if he saw me using a straw or wine glass. I came to realize that he attacked when I used a straw because he plays with straws and saw me "stealing" his toys. I deduce the wine glasses scared him and, by attacking me, he was warning me of certain death by stemware. When I looked at the reasons, I thought his bites were justified and almost sweet - in one instance, he thought he was saving my life. How cute is that?!?

I'm not trying to be mean but, if you don't love him anymore, by all means find a home that does.

Bingo she needs to find that trigger and avoid it I really think she is upset and doe's not know what to do . She is new to this and she needs to get back to why she love's her birdie. If I had given up when I felt like her I would have never had Mickey or my two crazy Conure's I would not of had the reward of patience and understanding and I would of not been able to handle a 6 homed WC pio Mugsey who has transformed . I can not give up on her yet cause I have been there.

 

[leslieg]

Thank you all for your kind replies. You helped. You also put it back in perspective. I will try to work through it with Petey.

A few responses ... when does he generally bite?

• If I put my hand in his cage, or near his cage. This isn't a problem. He doesn't bite if I'm taking him out of his cage.
• When he's is molting - he often wants me to work his pinfeathers, and I do, but if I touch one wrong, he'll bite. I apologize and we continue.
• If he's out and playing with a tissue, toy, whatever, and my fingers get too close. It's his. I respect that and watch my fingers.
• He loves me but hates my husband.
• If he is out playing on me and one of the dogs or cats get too close, he charges over to attack the dog or cat. (They've learned to avoid him.) Not long ago, my hand was near his attack path. When the dog moved away, Petey bit me instead.
• When I put him back in his cage. I've worked around this -- he gets a favorite treat (almond, grape, strawberry) and I put him back when his mouth is full.
• If I try to remove him from me, and he doesn't want to go. He can sometimes be coaxed with treats. Other times ... it's easier to take my shirt off.

This list isn't unreasonable to me. Sometimes he's cuddly. I don't know what set him off the other day, but it could have been a combination of hormones, maybe, and he is molting. I'm anxious about getting bitten again - I'll have to work on that, too. He definitely frightened me and hurt my feelings. Hopefully he'll be nice.

Thank you again,
Leslie

 

[Monica]

Sounds like average/typical behavior to me! Conures can be feisty creatures! I would defininitely recommend some behavior training aka positive reinforcement training with Petey! I know a lot of people don't like "tricks" because they aren't "natural", but it really helps to bridge the communication gap and can be fun for both owner and bird! It's a way to bond! To give you an idea....


Getting Started: Clicker Training for Birds by Melinda Johnson (Amazon)

Find out just how smart, affectionate, and fascinating birds can be, with clicker training.

• Depressed birds regain their joy in life
• One-person birds warm up to other family members
• Scared birds learn to cooperate with simple care such as nail clipping
• Undesirable behaviors such as screaming and biting fade away
• Baby birds grow up to be outstanding companions
• Rescued and older birds learn to trust, love and play
• Birds win new friends with appealing tricks and games

And here's behaviors and training that the book goes over.

1. Targeting
2. Step Up
3. Climb a Ladder
4. Ring a Bell
5. Retrieve an Item
6. Basketball
7. Rings on a Peg
8. Pull a Toy Car or Wagon
9. Agility (Flight/Obstical Course)
10. Combining Behaviors
11. Big Eagle
12. Holding Out one Wing
13. Dance
14. Bow
15. Shake Head Yes/No
16. Flap on Cue
17. Wave with Foot
18. Talk/Sing on Cue
19. Shake Hands
20. Upside-Down Swing
21. Roll Over
22. Go to/Come from Cage
23. Potty Training
24. "Leave It"
25. Stationing
26. Grooming & Bathing
27. Harness Training
28. Syringe Feeding/Medication Training
29. Solving Feather Destructive Behaviors
30. Solving Screaming Issues
31. Solving Biting Problems
32. Training Birds Who Are Afraid
33. And solving other behavioral problems

The list of what you could teach a bird is limitless! Maybe skateboarding, raising a flag, running through a tube or obstacle course, or any other behavior you can think of that the bird would enjoy learning and performing!