Blue Crown training tips?

My husband and I just got a Blue Crown Conure on Saturday. He is approximately 2 1/2 years old and we have named him Walter. He was supposed to be a breeder but the lady we got him from said he was too sweet and only wanted to be with people. He is friendly and "talks" to us in his birdy language when we're near his cage. He will take treats or food from our hands too. The only problem we have is when we try to get him to step up. He knows the command and will do it about 25% of the time with no issue, especially if he wants a ride on your shoulder. The other 75% though he tries to bite or backs away. He bit me yesterday pretty hard (drew blood). Today he hasn't really tried to bite down but just bumps our hands with his beak or backs away. We've mostly left him in his cage because we want him to feel safe and get settled before we start more invovled training. I wouldn't have taken him out at all yet but once or twice a day he will come to the door of the cage and want to get out and see us. He steps up nicely at these times. After about 15-20 minutes though he seems to be afraid of us again and doesn't want to be touched at all.

My question was this: Are we moving too fast for his comfort level or is it okay to do a couple 15-minute out-of-the-cage visiting sessions so soon after bringing him home? I've never had a bird of my own before, so if I'm doing it wrong go easy on me. I'm here to learn as much as I can so I can take the best care of our new little guy.

If he is hesitant it most likely due to not having alot of out of cage time. Birds get very comfortable being in their cage when they are left in a cage too long. If he was supposed to be a breeder, it is doubtful anyone really took the time to socialize him. What he is doing is a behavior he is familiar with, but not necessarily comfortable. Give him a few days of coming to the cage door and asking to come out. When he is ready to go back in his cage, allow him to go home. If he is letting you take him out for 15 minutes at a time he has established a trust with you, but still isn't comfortable doing so. Evidently he wants to be social or he wouldn't allow you to hold him at all. Talk to him alot whenever he is in his cage. It not only helps with his speech, but if you talk to him in a soft, low voice it helps calm him down. If he isn't willing to come out of his cage, then continue to talk to him anyway. Don't turn away from him too quickly as he will view this as rejection and not be interested in interacting with you. Offer him a treat through the bars, then offer him a treat with the door to his cage open. Birds associate food with comfort and he will eventually recognize that coming to the door and stepping up politely gets him lots of attention and treats. I don't advocate giving a bird sunflowers, but blue crowns seem to absolutely love them and find them irresistable. Allowing him three or four sunflower seeds a day will not harm him in anyway, it is when they are fed sunflowers in abundance that it causes trouble. I used to breed blue crowns and mine always loved sunflower seeds, sweet potatoes, raisins, dried cranberries, bananas and pasta as treats.

Thanks for the helpful info! I think you are right, he wasn't given a whole lot of attention before so he's just not used to it yet. I've been giving him treats through the bars and with the door open so he will associate me being near him with yummy things. He LOVES apples and sunflower seeds too. What are some good techniques to stop him from biting? I realize that once we build more of a trust bond with him this behavior will lessen but what should we do until that happens? So far we have just been telling him firmly "no bite" when he tries and praising him with a "good boy" or "good bird" and a treat when he lets our hands close without going for a finger. I've heard that your not supposed to pull your hand away because this just gives them what they want (you going away) and reinforces the behavior. I tried but it's really hard not to jerk my hand away especially after being bitten so hard yesterday. Those little beaks are sharp! Is it okay to wear gloves until he stops trying to bite or is that not recommended?

Also, he really likes getting out of his cage and sitting on top of it. However, he really doesn't like to come down and this is when he bites the most. Should we not allow him on top of his cage until the biting behavior has lessened? I kind of think if his only out of cage time was sitting with my husband and I he would bond with us more quickly but I could be wrong.