Bird Anxiety for a Second Chance?

Hello all! I've been browsing this forum for some time now but only decided to make an account now seeing I've run into a slight issue.

I'll explain my back story, if it's too boring I'll put my questions on the bottom.

Growing up I never had birds, we had cats, fish, rodents, frogs, everything BUT birds. And my father and I loved them, parrots and wild birds alike. Both of my parents had many animals growing up, my mother never had birds but my father had a cockatiel his family loved dearly.
It wasn't until 5 years ago when I was diagnosed with severe anxiety that my doctor suggested I got a personal pet for therapy. I adopted a little blue parakeet, seeing they were recommended for bird beginners, and fell in love. About a year later I adopted my current yellow parakeet and then a year after rescued my grey one (the blue one had passed away unexpectedly a year after I adopted him).

I've always been very curious about other kinds of parrots and spend much of my free time either reading or researching about them either online or at aviaries. My aunt had everything under the sun and my father was constantly talking about getting a green cheek. I had been given the opportunity to foster a cockatoo and a cockatiel but passed on both.

Recently I was given the opportunity to foster a jenday conure and was super excited about it. She's now mine (the owner unexpectedly passed away) but I have some anxiety about this bird and I feel guilty.

The conure is 17-years-old. When her owner got sick she plucked out all of her feathers in sadness and is in the process of growing them back. She LOVES peanuts and bananas. She's very loud (which was expected) but a very lovable bird and I'm eternally grateful that I have her sharing a space next to my parakeets.

This is where my doubts come in to play.

I never found out if she was okay with being handled. When we tried to move her from her travel cage to her massive home she tried to bite. She hasn't tried that since but when I sit and talk to her or hang out in my room she comes over and clings to the side of the cage or hops onto the floor bars and walks over to me. She has plenty of room to fly (most of her feathers have grown back) but opts not to. I'm so scared of her plucking again or biting me, I think I have established a trust with her now but I don't want her to draw blood or get nervous and bite me when trying to get her to "step up".

Is it wrong of me to be nervous about giving this new bird a chance? Should I just go for it or are there signs I should look out for?

Thank you!

Here's a photo of her from Tuesday. Little poof feathers!

I'm excited for you! I think chances are excellent that with time and love, it will work out. I have reduced biting to almost zero over the decades... not because I've changed the bird, but I have changed me. And a lot of that has involved giving up on a lot of my desires/expectations. After years of battle, I surrendered. I don't do stuff that gets me bitten. I don't scratch his head much, ever... tail is okay. I NEVER do stuff that makes him mad... I don't touch others when he's out; I rarely try to get him to step up onto my hand first. Hand-held perch first, then hand. In some ways, I swallow my disappointment at having such a little monster for a pet, but he is what he is. I ALWAYS wear my hair down when he's on my shoulder, so all he can bite is hair.
Since he's fully flighted, the ONLY way I get him into the cage is to toss a chile pepper in and he flaps in after it.
So I guess what I'm saying is... wherever the dust settles... after you have followed all the best advice... please let it be okay. Don't do stuff that gets you bitten... take whatever ridiculous precautions needed and just love your little maniac. My darling is kind of a worse-case scenario, but we have it all worked out between the two of us. Bad as he is, I think I love him all the more for his badness. I know he loves me with all his heart, even though he's a demon, and that's plenty for me.
Now let's wait for the experts to show and give you some expert advice. I'm only an expert of the Rickeybird!
P.S. BEAUTIFUL little POOF FEATHERZSZSZ! Thank you for rescuing such a bird-in-need.

Hi, Being nervous is a good thing, a positive. Unfortunately bites happen, it is how they communicate with you, as one gets to know the bird the less the bird needs to show by biting. It is part and parcel of being a parront.

You need to potentially do some research and with that in mind have included a link re diet as that ensures your bird is and stays healthy.

http://pets.thenest.com/can-jenday-conure-eat-11762.html

http://www.parrotforums.com/parrot-food-recipes-diet/

http://www.parrotforums.com/general-parrot-information/

Do you know if she has had a health check, recently, ever? May be something to consider?

Links enclosed for you to have a read. Wish you luck with your sweet little Jenday.

I came to this forum because I wound up with a GCC and he was a serious biter.

Asking questions led me to learning that the problem wasn't the bird, it was me. I wasn't listening to him. He was telling me things but I didn't know how to understand them so I'd do things that he felt were threatening or frustrating and he'd bite me. Once I realized that I started paying attention to how/when he'd bite and what led to it.

The deal is, these guys are sensitive little critters. When they bite it's them telling you "Hey, this aint COOL!" Those first bites were because he was scared. He went from people he knew and a home he was comfy in to a new place with new people and nobody asked him if that was alright!

It sounds like you've let him settle in and get to know you. You might still get bit once in a while but if you pay attention you can learn, and teach him, how to not do that. Also, the bites hurt... but they're not going to kill you. They certainly aren't fun but you'll survive I promise!

Hello, and welcome to the Parrot Forums family!

Feeling nervous is natural. Just don't let that nervous energy rule you. Birds are very sensitive to body language, so your conure would likely pick up on your nervousness. Thing is, though she might be adept at perceiving it, she may not understand it. She'll just see that a large, potential predator is on edge and approaching her. At that point, it would likely seem prudent to bite.

You want to approach in a deliberate and non-threatening manner. Speak in soothing tones. And try using a treat to entice her onto your hand. The important thing here is not to rush her. It might take some time to earn her trust, but it will be time well spent.

Here are some links that may help with some of your concerns.

Stepping Up:
http://www.parrotforums.com/training/57538-not-stepping-up-doesn-t-understand-stepping-up.html
http://www.parrotforums.com/training/48810-need-help-step-up-training.html#post435993
http://www.parrotforums.com/training/53152-used-step-up-perfectly-but-now-will-not-do.html

Bite Avoidance:
http://www.parrotforums.com/training/57935-brainstorming-biting-parrots.html

Bite Pressure Training:
http://www.parrotforums.com/training/63988-bite-pressure-training.html
http://www.parrotforums.com/questions-answers/58911-bird-bites-always-2.html

As JBassset mentioned, bites may happen. Sometimes it's part of the learning curve when first attempting to pick up on the subtle clues provided by body language that birds expect you to know already. But she's right, they're not going to kill you. In fact, I actually found the worst bite I ever received rather helpful.

You see, much of the fear is apprehension of the unknown. And I used to have quite a bit of nervousness about being bitten. But one day, my first ekkie's brother (who was still in the store at this time) took away the mystery by going to town one day on my hand. Now, ekkies are capable of far more damage than conures. Left a big, nasty gash that hurt like heck! But it was concrete and solid. No longer a thing of the unknown. The worst had happened, but my fingers were still attached. Took the edge off of the nervousness for sure.

Obviously you're not looking to get bitten. But getting the living daylights bitten out of you won't be anywhere near as bad as what your fears are likely building it up to be. Just take your time and go at her pace. Focus on building a rapport with her, and let everything else just fall into place.

Another approach, this little guy will not remove a finger! Everything else will heal! And that is really the extreme! You are no where near that point! He is as afraid of you as you are of him! More so! You may eat him! He may bite you! Who has the most to loose?
As said, for now, use a hand held perch until you don't mind the occasional bite.
Remember, any love is an exposer to hurt! But so worth it!