Chesters new habit!

[becsta]

Hi all,
Question about our Conures most recent annoying habit!
Chester (green cheek), now 4 months old has started over the last 2 days to pinch (for want of a better word) our skin, Mainly he/she likes to go for our neck but is happy to dig into my hands and arms, It's not enough to draw blood but I liken it to a large mosquito bite or getting an injection! It's more of an annoying pain than anything. Can anyone relate to this or have some idea what he/she is trying to do?

Thanks in advance for your help.

 

[weco]

You're going to have to establish limits for him, much like we do for young children.....our feathered friends need to know when they are pushing their boundaries & you are displeased.....

I posted the following info on clicker training to a couple of other members looking for more info for similar situations:

From: What is Clicker Training

"Clicker training" is a slang term used to describe a way of training animals that has become increasingly popular in the last decade because of its gentle methods. The scientific term for it is operant conditioning. As you'll see, clicker training has been successfully used on a variety of animals.....

While there are books explaining/teaching clicker training, you can find everything you need on the internet free, as well as videos on youtube.....the training sessions are not long in duration, anywhere from 5 to maybe 15 or 20 minutes at a time., so, I think my crystal ball sees some reading in your future.....

Good luck.....

 

[becsta]

Thanks for the info, but, I guess what I really want to know is what this behaviour means, Is it something they do for a particular reason? Until I know why I guess the remedy is only a guess.

 

[weco]

It's a new bird's coming out party...if you've heard of a honeymoon period with new birds, Chester has just declared your over & he is testing his boundaries and will keep pushing & overstepping until you start establishing some firm limits & teaching them to him.....birds don't know how hard their beaks bite, but they do know they usually get a reaction from us when they bite.....it would be nice, but most birds do not come pre-trained, so human interaction is needed.....

Good luck.....

 

[MonicaMc]

Think of him as a little feathered puppy... you know how much puppies love to chew and explore with their mouths, right? Well, that's basically what Chester is doing! Chester is curious and thinks your skin is intriguing! Human skin is, after all, quite a fascinating thing! It has bumps, moles, zits, scars, hairs etc on it!

Suggestion? Get a bunch of foot toys and interesting things for Chester to play with rather than your skin! Beads, craft sticks, yucca pieces, leather strips, bottle caps, etc! Anything to take his attention away from your skin!