Rescued Green Cheek - behavior problems

I rescued a green cheeked conure about 5 months ago. I don't know much about him or her including how old. The only thing I know is that I'm at least his 3rd owner. They told me his name was Crayola but the previous owner called him baby. I went out and bought him a huge new cage and all new toys and treats. He seems to love to be talked to through the cage but doesn't like a hand in the cage or to be touched. I have been trying to work with him every day and every once and a blue moon I can get him to get up on my finger for a minute but I can tell he is VERY nervous about it. He is a biter! I have some scares on my hands and wrists now from him by just putting my hand in the cage to give him food and water. He has his moments when he tolerates a quick scratch on the head buy then he will try and bite. I know he loves the attention as long as you don't try and touch him. I'm at a loss.......will he ever like to be held or scratched? He doesn't touch any of his toys...he acts more afraid of them than anything else. I leave the cage door open when I'm there with him and he will come out and climb around it but won't fly. When my husband walks by and is too close to the cage he trys to reach out and bite him. When I am closing the cage door he trys to bite my fingers through the bars. He flew once (his wings are not clipped - maybe they were at one time but they are grown out now) because he thought I was leaving and landed on my head. Then I had the hardest time getting him off! I know he likes me because he has certain calls to get my attention. He will say "BABY!!" , "Hi little birdy" or "pretty bird" and makes the sounds I make to him when I'm not in the room. Its like he is calling for me and waits for me to call back or come back and vist him. We have lots of conversations and he loves to repeat stuff I do and say. But he can be very loud at times too. I have no clue about his past but I'm never going to give up on him. Even if he never gets any better than he is I still love him. I have a juicer that I make a veggie and fruit juice for him every morning and he drinks from the glass. He even pulls the glass up because he wants me to tip it up for him. He loves sunflower seeds and pizza crust so I try and get him to come up on my finger for it. I can sometimes get him to climb up on me (rarely but it does happen) but he gets very nervous and ends up biting me. He won't get off my hand unless I put him in the cage. I've tried to put him down somewhere else if he bites but then he just attacks my hand. I have bled on several occasions and he is deathly afraid of the glove and I have given up trying to use that. I feel so bad for my Crayola....I wish I knew more about his past. I don’t know what I’m going to do when its time to clip his toenails or go to the vets!

It sounds like somewhere along the line he developed a fear of hands. He may have been grabbed by someone. It also sounds like he likes you and is starting to trust you. I'm glad you don't plan to give up on him. I think with more time, you will get farther.

My conure doesn't like my hands in her cage either. It's best for me to open the cage door and let her climb down and then step up onto my finger. She isn't cuddly either and most of the time doesn't want to be petted. Some birds just don't.

Thank you roxynoodle! I wish I could get im to play with his toys. Everyone tells me they love to play with toys but Crayola hates them. He stays far away from them in the cage. The only things he likes to bite are fingers!! He does love to take baths though! I put luke warm fresh water in a large container in the bottom of his cage and he goes right in and splashes all around. He looks so funny when he is done. He also makes the cutest little purring sounds when he likes what he is eating. He loves food! He likes to nap on the top perch next to his big mirror and he likes to use the stone I have for him to file his beak as a scratchig post and rubs his head on it. He has gorgeous colors for a GCC and that is why he was named "Crayola". I just want him to be happy and when I hear all these stories about other GCC being so affectionate and playful I just wonder if Crayola is happy. I wish I knew how to help him be less nervous. On occasion when I have goten him to step up....I have to make sure no one walks by. A few times this has happened and Crayola freaks out and bites. I think he is biting to say "put me back in the cage NOW!". Like I said, if I try and put him down anywhere else he goes into attack mode and bites me like a wild dog over and over. It HURTS!!!! OUCH!!!

I am sorry but it sounds to me like this behaviour has been taught to this little guy from his very first carer. Probably the reason he has been passed on a few times. With time & trust it can be fixed. There is a but though it is also possible that this little guy is very happy the way things are. Although the cage aggression would be hard for me to handle. I have just stopped one of my birds from being cage aggressive by positive reforcement but i stopped it pretty much before it got out of hand.

The link below may help.

Site Name - Articles - Behavioral - The Importance of The Cage Territory

roxy's spot on with he needs to come out of the cage

i have a perch on the cage door so when i let nut out she gets on that an will get onto my shoulder or just climb to top of her cage

i never put my hands into the cage when she is in it, and have only recently put them in to change bowls etc when i can tell she is relaxed outside of the cage (i've had her over a yr, and she use to fly an attack me, bite me drawing blood and bruising me)

it might be easier to have his wings clipped, was not an option i had with the nut, as no vets near me would, and i was very anti clipping, but now after reading the benefits, in the short term flightless but long term less of a fight

also where is his cage?? and what kinda toys has he got, nut wont go near a new strange toy, peanut butter straws work i put a cut one into new toy

he lands on your head as he feels its the safest place for now, nut did same with me, an i have dents in my scalp to prove it lol but she is more then ahppy on shoulder or hand now

I should add my conure is much better about my hands in her cage than she once was. In fact if I'm giving her a new toy, she often runs up and kisses it. And I can clean the insides of the bars these days without getting nipped. But, oh boy, if a stranger starts touching her stuff, look out! But, I've had her more than 11 years now.

How many toys are in the cage? I think removing the mirror might help as many birds get attached to that bird in the mirror and can be less friendly to people. You might want to try just 2 toys right now. Maybe he is feeling overwelmed by them. My amazon is afraid of toys as well because he never had any. It can take a long time for me to be able to put it in the cage. I have to start with it sitting next to the cage, then hang it outside the cage near the bottom. Then slowly move it up each day until it's been near the top for awhile. Right now he is afraid because I replaced the wood parts on a toy he loves. But, he chewed them all off, lol, and needed new ones. I wasn't expecting that and now I'm going to have to go do something with it. He has been hiding at the other end of the cage most of the day. Last time I replaced the parts he was good with it, so I wasn't expecting him to be scared of it today.

I live in a smaller house. He is actually in the dining room that is really an extension of the kitchen and is a pretty open room. It is between the kitchen and the living room so he can view both rooms and we walk by his cage frequently. But the cage is in the corner so he has a little bit of privacy if he wants. He can also see me sitting in the living watching TV or watch who is in the kitchen. He loves when I sit in the living room. I feel like that is when he is the most relaxed. He usually naps while I'm there but keeps one eye on me and if I move...he opens his eyes to see what I'm doing.
I notice he is extra cranky at night when I go to cover his cage or in the morning when I'm uncovering him. He makes all these gargling noises like he is swearing under his breath and walks along the bottom of the cage. It’s pretty comical actually. Yes, the top of his cage opens up and there is a bar across that he can sit on and hang out. He sits up there sometimes but he mostly likes to crawl all over the cage itself and hang on the open door. He always looks like he wants to try and fly off of it but never does. I keep his cage open like that unless I'm out. I can't clip his wings because I have two cats and a dog. I would be afraid that he wouldn't be able to fly if he did decide to try one day and he would be hurt by one of the other animals.
Right now I only have 1 toy in his cage because he doesn't seem to like any of them. I have heard that they like to chew but I have never seen Crayola chew on anything but my hand. LOL!
I was told not to remove the mirror because he is probably lonely. The house I rescued him from...the lady had 16 birds! She had a house full of birds.....10 cats and 8 dogs. I guess she became ill and her kids stepped in and were finding places for the animals because she was unable to care for them. I can try removing it though. He does seem to love to nap next to his mirror.

corn on cob is excellent as a chew toy, scrap most of the corn of an freeze into portions these can be added to daily feed, on other days (as corn can be fattening for them) and then stick the cob in a kabob, canbe cooked or raw (nut likes cooked)

he is happy in his space, but if he thinks his got company in the cage (thanks to mirror) his not going to want it elsewhere, you already says he likes you, so remove mirror and see how he behaves

and thank you for taking on this bird and being sooo patient with it!

also when he is watching you, eat some corn on cob, play with some of his toys etc bet you already chat to him when ever you go by

oh perch train him rather then use your hands if you can

little steps are the best

I tried to use a perch to train him and he is terrified of it. He won't try and bite anything but my naked hand. If I have a glove on he just runs to the furthest corner of the cage to get away and is terrified. I will keep trying the perch though. I will try the corn on the cob idea too but I bet he is afraid of it. I do hand feed him all the time and he is fine if the peice of food is small. If its too big he is runs away. He loves drinking out of the shot glass I have for him every day with fresh veggie & fruit juice from the juicer machine. He loves when we sit in the dining room and eat....he likes to eat with us!
So he seems to like new people more than me! My sister came over, put her hand right in the cage and he stepped up. She carried him around the house and didn't seem to mind. If I did that he would FREAK! We tested it on my neighbor and the same thing! He went right with them and didn't seem to mind. He looked a little nervous but at least he wasn't attacking them. Now I am thinking he hates me lol

I don't give any of my birds mirrors. They can be the cause of cage aggression. In other words your bird could be trying to protect his mate. (the mirror) Instead of a mirror maybe one of those snuggle rugs that can be hug in the cage.

Usually the reason for cage aggession behavior is that the bird has learned that if he bites the hand that ventures into his cage it will be removed in a hurry. Mission acccomplished.

LOL I had the same reception yesterday from my GCC'S, was trying to put their fruit bowl in the cage & the hen bit me. On the weekend I had to rush her mate to the Vets to have his leg band removed, silly little bird chomped on it & squashed it on his leg, needless to say the foot started to swell. He was put to sleep so the vet could safely get it off so i kept him in a small cage until Monday to make sure he was OK. Now everytime i shove my hand in the cage she comes to get me. I figure she is protecting her mate.

Something else i usually preach about is the amount of foods we constantly feed our companion parrots. They are usually kept in top breeding condition & of course that explains a lot of their aggressive behavior in other words they are hormonal almost all year round. If we cut back on the amount of food we give our birds & concentrate on a good maintenance diet some of the hormonal behavior should subside.


If your feeding your parrot high protein foods, soft mash or cooked or warmed food & fruit! These need to be reduced or cut out completely. They should be getting a maintenance pellet, a little good quality small parrot seed & lots of sprouts, leafy greens, veggies, more dark green, yellow, red & orange veg, fruits & lessen the nuts. Fruit is high in sugar & high sugar food needs to avoided. Dehydrated fruit I avoid. All my non breeders are kept on a well balance maintenance diet, are fed in the morning & given a piece of fruit, some chillies & a raw almond each in the afternoon.

Anyway it's worth consideration & maybe even trial a good maintenance diet for a few months & just see if it helps. Off course we still have to work on the positive reinforcement.

On a final note GCC'S can be nasty little critters when they want to be but if we understand them & read their body language we should form a better relationship. Crayola's strut along the perch with his head feathers up means don't you dare, keep your distance.

Here is a great link from Sally Blanchard.

https://companionparrotonline.com/beakiness.html

Just wondering if you are nervous when you approach him because you think you are going to get bitten. The other 2 may have approached him more confidently?

Oh that is good to know about the strut along the pole with his feathers all puffed up becuase he does that ALL the time!! H always puffs his feathers way out including his tail feathers all spread wide open and does this dance (we thought). He seems to love music or when I sing to him. He comes really close and dances (without the feathers all puffed up). When I sing to him he looks like he is really paying attention and trying to make out what I'm saying. He seems to enjoy it anyway. I hope I can learn to understand him someday...but its only been about 5 months. All I got from the previous owner's children is that they said she thought he was a young bird.

Oh, when my conure is angry she poofs feathers out all over her head and face. Her head looks twice as big. She also runs at people with her beak open. I think it's really obvious that she is angry but the non bird people in my life don't seem to get it, lol!

I have noticed he does this yawn thing when he is annoyed, nervous or stressed. I've learned to walk away when he get mad but then he calls and calls for me like he wants me to come back. He goes through is entire vocabulary and makes all sorts of weird calls as soon as I'm out of his sight. If I call back he repeats what I'm saying. His vocabulary is amazing for a GCC I've been told.

Excellent advice Pedro as usual.