GCC pecks curiously at my eyes

bright_eyes · Jun 6, 2018

My conure does bite me quite a bit, but never aggressively. It's usually playful or a warning to stop touching her, and usually is pretty light. She's bitten me hard out of fear a few times, never otherwise.
Her playful biting is annoying and I have to get her to quit it, which is another problem, but much worse than that, sometimes when she is sitting on my head (which she loves to do), she will purposely slip down my front bangs towards my face so that she is almost hanging off of my hair. She gets curious/playful, and as if she is beaking something curiously, comes down with her beak which very often lands right near my eye, and I'm just on time with scrunching them up really tight.
It's really frightening. I can tell she's not doing it on purpose but that's the problem- she seems to be oblivious to what she's doing and to the fact that I still need my eyes. She comes fast but not with aggression, it's only because her neck muscles are quick.

I also generally can't get her off of my head when she's dead set on being there.

What can I do?

EllenD · Jun 7, 2018

Green Cheeks will get very, very nippy if allowed to. The first thing I suggest to you is that you never allow your bird to be on your head, as that's putting him up higher than you! That's giving him the control of the situation, and that's why he's doing what he's doing. Your shoulder should be as high as he can go, and if he bites you while on your shoulder then do not allow him up there at all either, being on the shoulder is a reward...

As far as the biting/nipping goes, the best thing you can do (and you must follow this every single time he bites you) is to immediately just put him down on the floor, or on his cage as soon as he does it. You can say something like "No Bites" as soon as he does it, but that's it, don't say anything else, then immediately put him down and turn your back on him (be sure to put him down somewhere that he'll be safe, as for this to work you must ignore him totally for 5 minutes after putting him down). So put him down, turn your back, don't say a word to him no matter what, and keep this up for 5 minutes before you talk to him or even look at him again. They really hate this, when you won't even make eye-contact with them, and he'll get the picture very quickly...

bright_eyes · Jun 9, 2018

EllenD said:
Green Cheeks will get very, very nippy if allowed to. The first thing I suggest to you is that you never allow your bird to be on your head, as that's putting him up higher than you! That's giving him the control of the situation, and that's why he's doing what he's doing. Your shoulder should be as high as he can go, and if he bites you while on your shoulder then do not allow him up there at all either, being on the shoulder is a reward...

As far as the biting/nipping goes, the best thing you can do (and you must follow this every single time he bites you) is to immediately just put him down on the floor, or on his cage as soon as he does it. You can say something like "No Bites" as soon as he does it, but that's it, don't say anything else, then immediately put him down and turn your back on him (be sure to put him down somewhere that he'll be safe, as for this to work you must ignore him totally for 5 minutes after putting him down). So put him down, turn your back, don't say a word to him no matter what, and keep this up for 5 minutes before you talk to him or even look at him again. They really hate this, when you won't even make eye-contact with them, and he'll get the picture very quickly...

Thanks a lot. When I turn my back, if I am in the same room as her, she will relentlessly come back and fly onto me and act like she's registered no difference. This can go on for half an hour (and then I get tired and give up). Is putting her in her cage an ok alternative?

wrench13 · Jun 9, 2018

What Ellen is talking about is called shunning and it occurs inwild flocks when a member does not follow the flock rules. Since she is flighted the cage is your only choice unless you have her clipped for a while . If she can just fly back too you she is still in control of the situation. Salty is not flighted so when he misbehaves it's the chair back for him. I dont like to use his cage for anything negative like shunning since thats his safe haven and he can climb into it via ceiling chains anytime he wants to nap or play in there. Shunning only works if you ahdere to it EVERYTIME she breaks the rules. Doing it only once in a while will only confuse her and possibly make things worse. Consistency is the key to training parrots to do anything.

And birds on heads - unless they are strictly poop trainedUgh who want to wash birdy poop out of your hair? ANd as Ellen said it puts them in control.

MonicaMc · Jun 17, 2018

Birds on my head don't bother me! They'll happily step back down from my head, too!

From the sounds of it, clicker training/positive reinforcement training will be your best bet.

GCC pecks curiously at my eyes

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