And so it starts.........

hey heres a plus...birds dont have the the right kind of mouth/beak to bite off your fingers, or any kind of body part. Well actually they can but it would be very hard for them and it would be way more convenient for them to just brake your fingers. So you can never lose a finger from a bird. ...
So the worst they can do is break your fingers.
............... Wait was that a positive comment or negative comment.... hmm........

its funny your should say that.
I know im not dealing with beaks the size you guys are, but I reckon Skippah knows how to break a finger bone if he wanted to.
I swear he grabbed me the other day with every intention of NOT nipping me, but holding my little finger bone in the back of his beak and applying pressure that told me he just had keep pressing to break it. No blood, or even nip marks, but he had hold of my finger at the joint like he had a plan. Now this is a 6 month old Corrella, not a limb eating Amazonian masterpiece you speak of, so Im sure if your fella wanted flesh, he could have some. Do you sense a mood in the air sometimes when you prefer to not handle him?
My biggest problem would be NOT showing how intimdidated I would feel. like going into a yard with a Rottweiller you dont know well. Does your bird play with your emotions/fears?

Yep, im sure a too' could brake a few fingers.

Oh another thing, you know the amazon at the petstore i was talking bout the one named Elmo, well anyway the petstore almost got sued because some little kid put his finger in the cage the zon who is very territorial about its cage went and bit the little kids finger and i dont think broke it but hurt it real bad i know. So now they have a huge sign stating 'CAUTION ELMO CAN BITE! DO NOT PLACE FINGERS IN CAGE" so im sure your not the only one with an evil 'zon, Minzer.

Once you've been bitten real bad by any animal, I think there is a little fear, we all know we shouldn't show it, but we do tend to. At the moment he hasn't quite got the finger breaking bite........ Yet, and while I'm not showing fear or pulling away, its more of a "Im gonna get you scared of me" kinda thing. Trying to fight for the head of the flock.

I think every bird has the potential to do some damage, Our Linnies have given me quite a few bites which have been nastier than I've ever had from Bucc or Kito.

but I reckon Skippah knows how to break a finger bone if he wanted to.

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Thats the thing with most birds they could do this "IF THEY WANTED" I think.

not a limb eating Amazonian masterpiece you speak of, so Im sure if your fella wanted flesh, he could have some. Do you sense a mood in the air sometimes when you prefer to not handle him?

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I like the description, lol, it's perfect! Anyway, he has gotten flesh in the past, which is part of the reason we are not getting along.

And there is always a mood in the air it seems Last night I was getting his water bowl changed and I was the near victim of a semi-aerial attack...luckily I have reflexes like a cat, lol. That's the problem, I feel like there aren't usually any signs anymore, because he's always being excitable/potentially aggressive.

Lets hope the behaviourist can come up with some soloutions to this.

Tex- I dont understand how you can tell her to step up to it when you have itty bitty birdies... LOL I tell you I gave Cricket a chicken bone and it makes you think about it a little as you watch her crack that sucker to peices.
I would let both your two chew on one of my fingers at the same time before I would stick my hand in a disgruntled grey's cage, let alone an amizon

to be honest, I really only time come up against excitable/potentially aggressive birds is in nigh clubs and discos, so I will defer to your better judgement.

darkchi said:

Tex- I dont understand how you can tell her to step up to it when you have itty bitty birdies... LOL I tell you I gave Cricket a chicken bone and it makes you think about it a little as you watch her crack that sucker to peices.
I would let both your two chew on one of my fingers at the same time before I would stick my hand in a disgruntled grey's cage, let alone an amizon

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Did you not see this post Chi?

TexDot33 said:

I've been "tagged" by a B&G and a Timneh before (Mac and Hamlet are NOTHING compared to these two) ... I know it's painful, but really, it's part of being a bird owner/handler...

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I know what you are talking about ... I wouldn't say anything if I hadn't been there ... I know that they hurt, I am also aware that Hamlet and Mac have nothing on this guy, but part of Minzer's issue is that she isn't the flock leader ...

Lol, you guys are too funny, thanks for trying to stand up for me Chi! Tex, you sound like the Dog Whisperer "You must be the leader of the pack" Iggy was pretty good tonight, let me nap for 3 hours, didn't try to eat me, but did eat his dinner, almost pooped on the cat (but I moved him just in time), and went to be nicely. It's funny, when Chase puts him to bed, he won't climb up to his "bedtime perch", but if he even hears me talking from the next room, he'll climb up right away...wonder what that means. Anyway, today was ok, hopefully tomorrow will be the same. I just don't know how not to be afraid of him, it's something I have to work on, but I'm still waiting to see if my fingernail is going to stay attached after last week's bite on Monday...

I am going to add this, and then be done with it ... if you are playing with your cat, or your dog, or any of your other animals and it hurts you in some way shape or form do you stop playing with that animal? No, not usually. If your cat scratches you do you run out and have it declawed (I know I know, we are NOT starting on this subject) no you don't ... you try to figure out what you did to 'cause the behavior and you try not to repeat it ...

Training Parrots isn't so much about training the PARROT, it's more about training the HUMAN. Do Hamlet, or Bucc, or what ever birds are potty trained know that play stands are for pooping instinctively? No, we watched, we learned and then we placed them there when we saw the signs that they needed to poo .. the birds then learn that when they are on the tree stand and they pooped they got scrithces, cuddles, treats or whatever which was good for them.

Minzer you have a wonderful piece of equipment in your head, it's part of your brain that's called the Cerebral Cortex, it's used for many different logistical issues ... I know that the rest of that brain of yours functions well (Tufts Vet School doesn't let just any ol' riff-raff off the street into their classrooms) this issue is going to be something simple that can be changed in a matter of days ... you just need a different set of eyes to see the situation and to give you a second opinion!

~ :50:

TexDot33 said:

I am going to add this, and then be done with it ... if you are playing with your cat, or your dog, or any of your other animals and it hurts you in some way shape or form do you stop playing with that animal? No, not usually. If your cat scratches you do you run out and have it declawed (I know I know, we are NOT starting on this subject) no you don't ... you try to figure out what you did to 'cause the behavior and you try not to repeat it ...

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Well Tex, you cant exactly go to the vet or wherever and say you want to 'De-Beak' your bird, or I'm sure many people would 'De-Beak' their bird.

But i see what your getting at. lol

something simple that can be changed in a matter of days ... you just need a different set of eyes to see the situation and to give you a second opinion!

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Yea, that's what I'm hoping, and that's why I'm paying at least another $100 to hire that second pair of eyes.

if you are playing with your cat, or your dog, or any of your other animals and it hurts you in some way shape or form do you stop playing with that animal?

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If it is thirsty for my blood every time I go near it? Yes, I would most certainly stop playing with it!

I understand your point Tex, and I hope that you're right about the few small things I need to do differently. I will let you all know what the behaviorist thinks in a few weeks.

Ok you know what smilie we need here? The one that goes, Bla blah bla bla.

I think with training a pet, of any kind, you’re going to have your easy and your more difficult pupils. All I can say is I don’t blame her for backing off every time she gets bit. Its not like training a dog where you can grab him by the neck and put him in a submissive position. Matter of fact any where I have read about parrot training talks about how all neg. behavior should be ignored, aka putting him in his timeout place and leaving him there. But it isn't always as easy as it seems. Most people who have to deal with the problem cant even begin to explain how upsetting and hard it is to have a pet like this.
I can tell you that before most of you new people came that I used to have a very very hard time with my little one... I had really thought I had purchased the devil bird its self. I too wore gloves and was afraid to do much with her because of all the pain and blood and frustration, and I was working with a baby... I mean "baby" lol
At some points in time I thought I had a bird that wouldnt ever be people friendly and would live out her days being treated like the evil spawn she was.
Now knowing the potential evilness my little bugger can have a lot of gratitude for every head scritch I am aloud to give her, every time she steps up with out drawing blood and when ever she coos at me out of love (yes she coos LOL).
Minzer might be doing something wrong, but I am not going to blame her for not holding strong, because at one point you just wear thin and cant take it anymore. If anyone remembers right she came to us with the intent of giving away her baby because she was at wits end. So I say she is holding strong because most people wouldn't have taken this much grief, they would of let there babies go, and she hasn't. And for that I give her two thumbs up.
:40:

you just need a different set of eyes to see the situation and to give you a second opinion!

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Thats exactly it. We can't always see just what we are doing wrong, those second set of eye will, hopefully.

I can tell you that before most of you new people came that I used to have a very very hard time with my little one... I had really thought I had purchased the devil bird its self.

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I remember it well, poor little thing was never called Cricket, always "the devil bird" so funny now when you look back at it and then see how she is today

I also say Well done Minzer, yeah a lot of people would just have given their bird away and been done with it. Yeah I can see what Tex is saying, but I think I might think differently if mine were biting all the time, for no apparent reason that I could think off.

Bucc is very cage aggressive, hates it when anyone goes in his cage for anything, (he even hates it when I take the food and water out, and I don't have to go in he will give me a little peck to let me know he is there and watching) but I know that I have to be very careful. He will allow anyone in the family to touch or move him when he's on the cage, just hates anyone going in.

Thanks guys, that really means a lot to me. I realized at some point the other day what a huge hole Iggy would leave in my life if he lived somewhere else, and it made me even more determined to try to work something out. I'm really hoping that this behaviorist can see something and help me out, I really want the old Iggy back.

I can't believe that Cricket used to be so bad...from your pictures and your posts, she seems like an angel bird! I wish Iggy was like her Anyway, hopefully my story can turn out like yours, Chi...that would be amazing.

Thanks again for all of your advice and support everyone, if I hadn't come here I honestly don't know that I would still have Iggy at this point.

These behaviourists are amazing people, they can see things that we can't. Follow his advise however silly it may seem.

Oh blimey you should go check out some of Chi's earlier posts its amazing the difference in "Cricket", no more the "Devil Bird"

Christy said:

nice try Peta. Think about how Bucc would feel if Kito came to our house.

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Hey thats no problem Christy, Bucc can come too.
Just a thought.

Hmm...what about Clicker training? Maybe something to discuss with the behaviorist.

I've read a little bit about it, but I don't think I could be very consistent with it, so I've decided against it