new cockatiel

I bought my cockatiel at a pet store advertising it as hand fed but I tend to not believe it because it bit me and started literally chewing on my finger and wouldn't let go for about 20 seconds. It did this to my g/f as well. I don't know if it was just being a mean bird or was just wanting to chew and didn't know any better. Please any advise because after nearly having my finger taken off by a cockatiel it made it hard to not give up on him on the first day. P.S he made me bleed pretty good from the chewing/biting so he was doing it really hard. He sits on my hand so I don't think he is scared of me.

He made have been hand fed at one time but he isn't anymore. Any advice?

Wow, there's a family from Arkansas that picked up a baby Cockatiel from me this past Friday and they've been extremely happy with their bird. The handfed baby NEEDS to be socialized! Otherwise they will bite! You must tell him no biting, look up on some videos about doing clicker training and such. It's a lot for me to explain at this time at night...lol....Another thing is when they're young, they can be a bit nippy, they're new to everything and they test everything with their beak. That's another training issue...

Well I just stuck my hand in the cage to move a toy and he vocalized and stuck at me. My IRN i used to have was less socialed than this bird but wouldn't openly attack me like that.

There really any good way to "punish" him for this? Just to make it known not to bite?

When you breed birds,hand fed does not necessarily mean hand tamed. The good news is you have a cockatiel, they are fairly easy to tame.
why would you want to punish him??? you never punish a bird. reinforcing good behaviour will work best once he settles in.
Biting is a way a bird communicates when they don't like what you are doing, among other things that might upset them. they are just protecting themselves.If it's not stopped in a positive manner with training, then it just becomes a bad habit.
birdtricks.com has some very good tips when birds bite and why.
let him settle in first for a few weeks, just let him be. His world has been turned upside down with new environment,smells,lighting,sounds,food, etc...and is unsure about everything.
He doesn't trust you, or even know you for that matter, you also have to learn to read his body language. be patient, he will come around on his timetable, not yours.

crimson said:

When you breed birds,hand fed does not necessarily mean hand tamed. The good news is you have a cockatiel, they are fairly easy to tame.
why would you want to punish him??? you never punish a bird. reinforcing good behaviour will work best once he settles in.
Biting is a way a bird communicates when they don't like what you are doing, among other things that might upset them. they are just protecting themselves.If it's not stopped in a positive manner with training, then it just becomes a bad habit.
birdtricks.com has some very good tips when birds bite and why.
let him settle in first for a few weeks, just let him be. His world has been turned upside down with new environment,smells,lighting,sounds,food, etc...and is unsure about everything.
He doesn't trust you, or even know you for that matter, you also have to learn to read his body language. be patient, he will come around on his timetable, not yours.

Click to expand...

And I don't trust him after having my finger nearly chewed off......

I'm certain he feels the same way about you too... and I understand how you feel. Trust is a two way street when owning any animal.

I think the issue is the store stated he was hand tamed, if your not comfortable with him, then return him, but it is certainly not the birds fault. He has been conditioned over time to bite. Don't blame the bird, learn about him, give him a chance, he'll come around.
I have a lovebird here who bites like crazy!every time without fail.

I started clicker training him just this morning, in his cage.btw,never done this before either.
I held a sunflower seed thru the bars and he came over and bit my finger. I ignored the bite,clenching my teeth, and he took the seed...I clicked.
I waited for him to finish eating it, I offered another seed thru the bars, he came over this time, noticing the seed, bit my finger again, but took the seed a little quicker, I clicked.
the third time I offered a seed, he took the seed without biting me,I clicked!

It only took to the 3rd time for him to take the seed and not bite me.
I did this for 10 minutes, and now takes the seed thru the bars without biting my fingers.

look, it doesn't take much,baby steps.... just a little bit of your time.
I also own a Senegal who is starting to bite as well, you think cockatiels hurt, try a Senegal. I am starting to clicker train him today as well, he is hand tamed, but getting somewhat tempermental.

You will find other members on here who own the big birds, macaws,grays,cockatoos,alexandrins etc....who can really bite!!, they will offer you some advice as well, most clicker train their birds, you should look into it.

Yeah, the difference between when my IRN bit me and the cockatiel is the cockatiel is actually attacking with intent to hurt me where the IRN was biting because it is scared. I'm seriously thinking about trying to take it back though.

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Somebody on another forum got a hand-fed cocketiel a few months ago, and at first he bit hard. But eventually he stopped she and the rest of the family gained his trust.
If you don't want to deal with this bird, then return it I guess; but remember that if you, you never know what will happen when somebody else buys it. It could very well end up neglected, abused, mistreated, given away to a horrible home, or even thrown outside (yes this does happen).
If you show this bird love and patience, I'm sure he will come around. I would start slow, try not to give him an opportunity to bite you at all and just focus on letting him get used to you. Sit by the cage and talk to him, drop treats in his food dish, etc. Do not attempt to make him step up or have contact with you...let him set the pace for his taming.

Well I took him back and got one that was weaned not too long ago and it seems alot more friendly but we will see in a couple days. Leaving him alone for a couple days.

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