Sierra is biting

Stephen777

Stephen777

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Parrots
Sierra - Sun Conure
So my Sun Conure Sierra is biting, everyone, kinda hard. Not as bad towards me and I can usually just point and say no bite and she lets go but others...not so much. What am I doing wrong and what should I be doing?
 
yes to comform with Scott a bit more info would help. Conures can bite for so many reasons and knowing as much info as possible really helps to narrow down the 'why' which could be something minor or inconsequential but is a big deal to Sierra. Then we can help work out if it's something you can simply change or something that requires training her up a bit extra
 
I agree...There are MANY different reasons why tame pet birds start biting, such illness/pain, hormones, environmental changes, not getting enough interaction/out-of-cage time, diet, toys/items in their cage that are causing hormonal and/or territorial issues, etc. So some general information such as age, gender, how old Sierra was when you brought him/her home, how long you've had Sierra, how many prior owners, was Sierra hand-raised/hand-fed, etc. will help tremendously...

Also, do you take Sierra to a Certified Avian Vet or Avian Specialist Vet for Wellness-Exams on a regular basis, and does she have routine blood-work done at least once a year, Fecal cultures, etc.? And what is Sierra's regular, daily diet?
 
Agreed with others, we need more backstory to help.

I can offer some advice in how I dealt with this issue with my Skittles, but every sun is different and so is every situation, but I could at least give you some tips. But I'd feel more comfortable with more info.

In the meantime, the most common reasons why suns bite (hard) is because they see/sense danger, are being touched and they don't want to be or even if you are setting a limit or addressing a behavior they don't like.

Bottom line is, "hard biting" is not normal sun behavior and is likely the result of something environmental (though with molting, thats biological) and can easily be addressed like others said. But without more information, I'd be afraid I'd give you bad advice.
 
Bird age?
How long have you had him/her?
What is the sleep schedule?
How is diet?
CAV?
Any snuggle huts or dark spaces to which bird has access?
Any changes in routine?
How much light does he/she get daily?
How much out-of-cage time?
How do you touch the bird when petting it (head, vs all over)?



The list of questions goes on. As others have said, there are so many possibilities, that without details, it is hard to answer your question.
 
Skittys_Daddy said:
Agreed with others, we need more backstory to help.

I can offer some advice in how I dealt with this issue with my Skittles, but every sun is different and so is every situation, but I could at least give you some tips. But I'd feel more comfortable with more info.

In the meantime, the most common reasons why suns bite (hard) is because they see/sense danger, are being touched and they don't want to be or even if you are setting a limit or addressing a behavior they don't like.

Bottom line is, "hard biting" is not normal sun behavior and is likely the result of something environmental (though with molting, thats biological) and can easily be addressed like others said. But without more information, I'd be afraid I'd give you bad advice.
Click to expand...
I agree. Biting is not really a normal behavior for a sun conure. I have 3 different types of Conures and my sun is the only one who didn't go though I biting phase. The only time he really bites me is if he's "displacement" biting. Meaning he wants to bite his little sister but bites me instead if I happen to be holding them both. This happens rarely but I thought I'd mention it!
 
I want to first apologize for not responding sooner, was very disrespectful of me. Sierra is around 6months old. Little more info; she is loosing feathers, not a fast pace and she has been acting like a wood pecker, she pecks things with her beak. Her housing, once we or if we hang up a toy and she moves it or chews it down, we do not use that toy in that location. She has a large cage; base of it would probably be 2’ x 3’ and a heighth 4’. It has a seed catching and is lifted on wheels. But we never close the door and she has a playground on top with a perch very high compared to other things in the room. She is my only bird and I do not know the sex. Feed, I buy her this fiesta big bites by Kaytee I believe it is. She picks through it, very messing but she enjoys it. When I get the container down she runs to her food bowl.
 
Well regarding the shedding feathers, thats completely normal in your situation. She is 6mo old and thats when they start shedding their 'juvenile' coat (full green) and grow in their adult coat of feathers.
As for the beak tapping, that's also completely normal. While there doesn't seem to be a 100% sure answer on the reasoning, it is 'generally' believed they do this for one of two reasons. One, they are exploring the texture of the object or they are saying "I like this, this is mine".

As for the chewing, conures are MAJOR chewers and 'safe' chew toys should always be provided. If they don't have them, they'll chew on things they shouldn't. In fact they likely still cause if it can be chewed on, they'll chew it so supervising that activity is important. I have the receipts to a $30 lamp & $80 winter coat I had to replace as well as proof on my $200 office chair. I normally have a 'protective' cover blanket over the top of my Serta office chair but it happened to be in the wash and I forgot to put something to replace it temporarily and Skittles just couldn't resist chewing on the top of the fabric.

As for the housing, the cage size meets the minimum suggested cage size for a sunnie and having the playtop is a big plus.
 
#1 Diet
#2 environment

If they eat too much sunflower seeds and peanuts and in that kaytee junk and don't get a good nights sleep, maybe there is some noise they don't like, maybe drafts, they can get crabby. Also maybe your bird is in pain? A stuck blood feather, a sore wing or is ill.
Maybe time to visit a good avian vet for a physical and blood fecal exam?
 
I think it's probably at least partially the diet. I've heard of some birds who have a bad attitude and bite ect and then the owner changes their diet to a high quality pellet with veggies and limited fruits and they're attitude changes nearly overnight. The sleeping situation is also a huge factor...as even my kind very tame parrots who rarely bite me will be cranky if there is something that has interrupted they're sleeping and this is why we have a room upstairs with sleep cages and a sound proofed door so that they're not disturbedat night. However, the odd storm or loud noises outside can still interrupt them and I can definitely tell the difference in their attitude and general well being.
 
So there are a few things probably at play here with her current behavior...Her cage sounds great, and as long as she has at least 6-10 different types of toys to play with at all times she's got a great set-up. It's also awesome that she is usually out of her cage, that is very important to their health.

Does she have access to any small, dark, warm places that she can get into, such as a "Happy Hut", any tents, boxes, or anything she can get inside of inside of her cage?This is extremely important, especially if she has any type of "Happy Hut", "Snuggle Hut", tent, or boxes inside of her cage...Or if she often goes underneath furniture like the couch or easy-chair, or underneath entertainment centers, etc., any place that is small and dark...But especially anything inside of her cage, on top of her cage, or attached to her cage like a "Hut", a tent, a hammock, or a box.

***At 6 months-old, Sierra is approaching puberty, and whether she is a male or a female doesn't matter at all, her sex hormones are starting to kick-in. Sun Conures usually hit full-on puberty around a year-old, but it can happen earlier, it can happen later, for example, my Green Cheek Conure, Bowie, hit full-puberty around 9 months old, but his hormones were noticeably kicking-in at 6 months-old, which is usually pretty common for the smaller Conures like the Green Cheeks, the Suns, Jendays, Nandays, etc.

***The other thing that is happening right now is that she is starting her very first molt, which is the largest one she'll ever have in her entire life. This is the one where they molt for months typically, and where Sun Conures colors change quite drastically. So that's why her feathers are "falling out", and they are going to continue to do so for a good couple of months...So while that's normal, it's also another indication that she is probably going to hit full-on puberty a bit earlier than a year-old, and she's already got her hormones raging. So this is very much a part of her sudden biting of everyone.

As already mentioned, biting due to hormones is a "Behavioral" issue, not a medical/health issue, as some people seem to think it will just go away after puberty ends. However, that usually isn't the case, because if they learn "biting" as a regular, normal behavior during puberty, they often just continue to do it from that point forward. So it's extremely important that you start "Training" Sierra to not bite starting right now, and it's imperative that you NEVER use any type of punishment or "Negative-Reinforcement" when she bites or does anything else that is wrong either, because parrots do not respond to punishment like dogs or cats do. Instead, you need to you "Positive Reinforcement" when Sierra does something that you want her to do,
and when she does an unwanted behavior, such as biting, that you NEVER punish her,
NEVER, ever yell or scold her for it, NEVER "spank" or hit her on the beak (doesn't work and will end badly if you do this), but rather you show her right now that biting of any kind will not be tolerated at all, and if she bites she is going to lose the things that she holds dearest to her, and she will not be a part of the "Flock" any longer. All parrots are "Flock" animals, and all Conures are "Velcro-Birds". So this combination makes a great opportunity to curb unwanted behaviors, and the method is simple and works extremely well, sometimes they learn the first day you use it. It's called "The Shunning Method", and it is by-far the best solution to a biting parrot that I've ever seen, whether it's being caused by hormones/puberty or by any other cause. It particularly works tremendously well with Conures.

***If you use "The Shunning Method" consistently, meaning every single time Sierra bites anyone at all, then the biting will stop very quickly and will permanently be gone...It's important though that you understand the difference between Sierra actually "biting" someone and Sierra using her beak, because you cannot use the "Shunning Method" when she is simply using her beak. This is very important. So if Sierra uses her beak on your hand to climb-up, for balance, or if you're playing with her and she's "beaking" you a little bit, or just "nipping" in a playful way, then you should not try to stop that behavior...However, if Sierra lunges at anyone with her beak like she's obviously going/trying to bite someone, or she does actually bite someone hard (you should be able to tell the difference), that's when you have to use the Shunning-Method every single time. And it's important that EVERYONE IN YOUR HOUSE does the Shunning-Method every single time Sierra bites them or anyone else. It can't be a wishy-washy thing that you guys do sometimes. Sierra needs to know that biting just isn't going to fly in her house and with her "Flock". And you and the rest of the people who live in your home are "her Flock".

***So, the "Shunning Method" is easy, and all it does is put the bird in the position they dislike the most, and takes away the one thing in the world they want the most: the attention of their "Flock". So here's how you guys need to start handling it every single time Sierra bites anyone from now on:

Wherever in your house you are, doesn't matter, and whomever Sierra bites, doesn't matter, this is what you are going to do...The second that Sierra bites someone you need to immediately say out-loud to Sierra the same verbal directive every single time when she bites. It needs to be something short and to the point, usually people use "No Bites!" or "No Biting!", because it is telling the bird directly what the specific bad behavior they did...It extremely important that when someone says the verbal-directive after Sierra bites that they do not yell it at her, because again, yelling/scolding or even raising your voice to a bird doesn't get you anywhere but bitten again. So you need to just say the verbal directive in a firm, straight-forward voice, and make sure that everyone in the house knows what the verbal-directive for "biting" is (you can use the Shunning-Method to correct any unwanted behavior, but each different unwanted behavior needs to have a different verbal-directive so that the bird knows exactly what they did that was that specific unwanted behavior)...
 
***So, Sierra bites you...You immediately say "No Bites!", that's it, that's ALL you say, and then you immediately put Sierra right down on the floor, no matter where you're at in the house you put her right down on the floor, and then you and EVERYONE ELSE WHO IS IN THE ROOM immediately turns their backs to Sierra. Literally you all turn your backs to Sierra...What you've just done is #1) You've put the bird in the place/position they dislike the most, on the floor, so that they are the lowest thing in the room and they lose all sense of dominance immediately; and #2) By literally turning your backs to the bird, you are physically and visually "shunning" the bird, and taking away the one thing that the bird loves more than anything in the world: the attention and acknowledgement of their "Flock". When I say that you and everyone else in the room must "turn their backs to Sierra", I mean it...Literally turn your backs to her...So now Sierra has lost all sense of dominance/control by being the lowest thing in the room, and she's also been "shunned" by her entire Flock. This period of "shunning" where everyone has their backs turned to Sierra MUST LAST FOR 5 MINUTES TO BE EFFECTIVE! If the "shunning-period" lasts any less than 5 minutes it won't have the effect necessary to mean anything to Sierra, and if the shunning-period lasts any longer than 5 minutes then Sierra will lose interest. So a 5-minutes shunning-period works very, very well.

Now what do you do during the 5-minute shunning-period? Well, what you don't do is say a single word to Sierra or about Sierra. You and everyone else in the room need to make it like Sierra doesn't exist and never did exist. So it's extremely important that you totally ignore anything and everything that Sierra says or does during the 5-minute shunning-period. You cannot acknowledge that Sierra is in the room at all. Sierra is going to do things like talking to you, screaming at you, etc., but you cannot say a word or make a single sound. You and everyone else in the room must be absolutely silent...Sierra is also going to do things like walk around you so that she's facing you, climb up your leg, fly to your shoulder, fly to her cage or a perch/stand, etc. So here's how you handle all of these things, basically there is one rule to follow: If Sierra leaves the floor, she must be put back on the floor, but SILENTLY! So if Sierra walks around you so that she's facing you, you simply turn your back to her again without saying anything or making a peep, and the others in the house do the same thing, they must always turn their bodies so that their backs are to Sierra. If Sierra starts to climb up your leg from the floor or she flies to your shoulder or she does this to anyone at all, all you do is SILENTLY, DON'T MAKE A PEEP WHILE DOING THIS, quickly put Sierra right back down on the floor again without making a sound, and then again turn your backs to her. If Sierra flies to her cage-top or onto a piece of furniture, etc., anytime she leaves the floor at all, you SILENTLY walk to wherever she has gone, get her, and put her right back down onto the floor and turn your backs to her again....When Sierra flies onto her cage or starts climbing up your leg, etc., it's always going to be your first inclination to say something like "No Sierra!", but you don't EVER want to say a single word, because any word that you say is paying attention to Sierra, she gets what she wants, and she wins. So make sure that you and everyone else in your house thinks of the 5-minute "shunning-period" as being completely silent time, and a time when no human being present can make a peep or say a word. If you and everyone else remembers to never, ever say a word at all during the 5-minute shunning-period, then this will be very successful much more quickly than if you continually break the rule and keep saying things. So think of this like a game, where the human's goal is to keep Sierra on the floor and keep everyone's back to her face, and keep totally silent, all for the full 5-minutes, and you win...If someone says anything to Sierra, if Sierra leaves the floor and no one silently goes and gets her and puts her right back onto the floor, or if anyone fails to keep their back to Sierra the entire time, then Sierra wins...Also, the way that I've found to handle a particular situation the best, is if Sierra ever flies-off to another room, no one make a sound, everyone stays silent, but one person silently goes to the room Sierra has flown to, gets her, silently walks with her back into the room where the "shunning-method" was started, and they put Sierra right back down on the floor and turn their backs to her again. I've found that if you keep the bird on the floor in the same room you started the "shunning-method" in and you don't just go to a different room that the bird may fly to and put them on the floor in that room for the rest of the 5-minutes, it's much more effective. I think this is because by continually putting the bird right back onto the floor in the room where the "shunning-method" was started that this is making the point to the bird that they have zero dominance in this situation, and they are not going to be allowed to make ANY CHOICES at all, including flying to a different room...And most-importantly, STAY SILENT THE ENTIRE TIME!!!

***Also, two other FYI's: #1) If you are sitting in a room with Sierra and there are other people in the room sitting down, and Sierra bites you or any of them, EVERYONE WHO IS IN THE ROOM must immediately stand-up and turn their backs to Sierra, even if they weren't the one who was bitten. You can't have one person who remains seated and facing Sierra. That won't work, as Sierra needs to know/see that her ENTIRE FLOCK is "shunning" her....and very important #2) If Sierra bites you, you do the Shunning-Method once, and then Sierra bites you immediately again after the 5-minutes is up, then you must do the whole thing over again for it to be effective!!! So if this happens you once again say "No Bites!", put Sierra on the floor, and turn your back to her. The first day you start using the Shunning-Method, you may very well do it a dozen times in a row, which is required for it to be effective and for Sierra to get the point. So while this can be very frustrating the first day, I've not ever seen any other method work as effectively and as quickly as the Shunning-Method, specifically with Conures because they value their attention/interaction and relationship/bond with their person/people and their flock so very much, and they also HATE being the lowest thing in the room.

***Another important tip is how you should handle it when the 5-minute shunning-period is up...You should ever just go and pick Sierra up or start talking to Sierra as soon as the 5 minutes is up. That tends to negate what you just did. Instead, everyone who is present just needs to not say anything at all to Sierra when the shunning-period is over, they just need to go back to what they were doing prior to the biting. Go and sit down on the couch or a chair, start talking to each other again BUT NOT TO SIERRA right away. She'll most likely be left standing in the middle of the floor by herself, which is good. LET SIERRA COME TO YOU AFTER THE SHUNNING-PERIOD IS OVER! And don't just start coddling her right away, let her come to you, let her climb up onto your lap or shoulder, and then silently just start petting her again, and then start talking to her normally. TREAT IT LIKE THE SHUNNING PERIOD NEVER HAPPENED. And if by chance she immediately bites you again, just say "No Bites!" again, everybody stands up, put Sierra on the floor, everyone turns their back to her again, and everyone is silent and keeping Sierra on the floor for another 5-minutes. And so on, until she stops biting you...And if she doesn't bite you for another 2 hours, then that's great, but the second she bites you or anyone else again, it's "No Bites!" and on the floor again for 5-minutes...While it can be frustrating the first day or two, I have seen this exact "Shunning-Method" stop a constantly biting pet parrot from biting anyone in a matter of one day and about 12 "shunning-periods" throughout that day. That's how effective this is with most hand-tamed, pet parrots. And it's also important that if Sierra stops biting completely but then a month later she bites someone, that you and everyone else immediately does the Shunning-Method again; it must be done every single time Sierra bites. She will slip-up from time to time after she initially learns not to bite, so it's on you and everyone else in your household to follow the rules every time Sierra does bite anyone. It works tremendously well when used consistently and done correctly.

***Something else that is extremely important that you need to address ASAP is Sierra's diet, as already mentioned above by a few other members...I don't believe that captive/pet birds who are on an all-seedmix diet are necessarily in a bad situation diet-wise, HOWEVER they need to be on a healthy, varied, low-fat seed-mix if a seed-mix is going to be their staple-food. And unfortunately Kaytee Fiesta and most-all Kaytee seed-mixes are full of fat, sugar, carbs, etc., and quite often result in the bird developing nutritional deficiencies, but more importantly and most-commonly the end-up developing Fatty Liver Disease and Kidney Disease very early in life, and they also usually die long before they should...
 
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So I'm not going to pounce on you about how you need to switch Sierra over from a daily staple of seed-mix to a daily staple of pellets, because #1 that's not usually an easy thing to do and it's almost never something that will happen quickly, sometimes it takes months and months to years, and honestly a lot of commercial pellets aren't any better than the seed-mixes...I've found at the Avian Rescue I work at that the diet plan that we have started implementing with any birds that come in to us that are on an all-seedmix diet, which is most of them, has made it possible to immediately improve the bird's physical health, immediately started the reversal of Fatty Liver Disease, Kidney Disease, Diabetes, and the nutritional deficiencies that these birds being fed a junky seed-mix as their staple diet usually have, and after making the immediate change to the brand/type of seed-mix they are eating and immediately improving their diet/physical health drastically, THEN we can start working on a gradual transition over to a natural-pellet staple diet. So the best thing that you guys can do for Sierra's overall physical health right now, ASAP, is to immediately switch the seed-mix you've been feeding her to a seed-mix that is low in fat, low in sugar, low in carbs, high in protein, fortified with all necessary vitamins/minerals/amino acids/digestive enzymes, etc., and one that is also "varied" in it's ingredients to also enrich Sierra's psychological health. It's a fantastic time to make this change from a junky, high-fat seed-mix to a healthy, low-fat, varied seed-mix as Sierra's daily staple diet, because she's only 6 months-old right now, and not too much damage has been done at this point to her liver, kidneys, etc. Also, she's just starting to go into puberty, and if Sierra is a female bird, then it's going to be crucial that she is eating a daily staple diet that is going to provide her with all the nutrition she needs to support an active, female reproductive system.

So unfortunately most seed-mixes sold for parrots contain 3 things that make them extremely high in fat and low in protein and overall-nutrition in-general. So what you need to do is choose a high-quality seed-mix for Sierra that contains NO Sunflower Seeds at all, NO Peanuts or any other Nuts of any kind, and NO Dried Corn Kernels or Dried Cracked Corn. Those are the 3 ingredients in most seed-mixes that are responsible for a very high percentage of captive/pet parrots suffering from Liver and Kidney Disease, Diabetes, Obesity, etc. There are a good number of seed-mixes available at most pet/bird shops that are inexpensive and that contain No Sunflower Seeds, No Nuts of any kind, and No Dried Corn of any kind...And just as important is that whatever seed-mix you choose DOES CONTAIN a varied-mix of healthy, low-fat seeds, grains, legumes, dried herbs, veggies, and fruit. And most of these much healthier seed-mixes are available to buy at any Petco...

The two that I've found that are the healthiest, lowest in fat, most-varied, and just the best nutrition-wise overall are #1) Higgins Vita Seed California Blend, and #2) Tropimix. I have fed both, but for the last year and a half I have been feeding Tropimix to my Senegal, my Green Cheek, my Quaker, and my Cockatiel because I also switched to the same brand of pellets, which is called Tropican (I feed my guys a staple of Tropican pellets daily, they always have Tropican pellets throughout the day to eat, but they also each get 1/4 cup of Tropican seed-mix every day as well; I did the same thing when I fed Zupreem Natural pellets and Higgins Vita Seed California Blend seed-mix)...Both of these seed-mixes are extremely similar in ingredients and nutrition, they actually visually look the same as well. They are both extremely varied and contain a vast mix of healthy, low-fat seeds, along with fresh grains, legumes, herbs, veggies, fruit, etc. The only difference between the Higgins California Blend and the Tropimix is that the Tropimix seed-mix actually also contains Tropican pellets in it as well, so my guys are not only getting a daily staple of Tropican pellets, but even when they get their portion of seed-mix every day they are getting even more Tropican pellets...And I have found at the Rescue that simply switching the birds from their junky seed-mixes straight to the Tropimix seed-mix gets them eating the Tropican pellets very quickly! Once we see that they are eating the Tropican pellets that are contained in the Tropimix seed-mix and not leaving them, THEN we start giving them a separate bowl of the Tropican pellets, and as they eat more and more of the Tropican pellets, then we gradually increase the amount of Tropican pellets in the separate dish and gradually decrease the amount of Tropimix seed-mix they get every day in the other dish. So while either of these seed-mixes are fantastic, low in fat, contain no Sunflower Seeds, no Nuts of any kind, no Dried Corn of any kinds, and contain a vast assortment of fresh, healthy ingredients, the Tropimix also provides them with a healthy pellet, and is a great way of introducing the Tropican pellets to your bird slowly, and a great way of encouraging them to eat the Tropican pellets while still eating a healthy seed-mix.

There are a few other really healthy, low-fat seed-mixes that contain none of the junky ingredients as well. The ones that come to mind are Higgins Safflower Gold, Zupreem Smart Selects (not the Zupreem "Sensible Seed", as it contains peanuts and other bad stuff), and Sunseed Vita Prima No-Sunflower. All of these are available at any Petco, and probably at PetSmart too (I don't have a local PetSmart, only a Petco, so I don't know what PetSmart carries), and are also all obviously available online at multiple places, with Chewy.com usually being the cheapest place by-far because they also have free-shipping...The Tropimix seed-mix comes in 4-pound bags for only $10.99 at Petco (for the Conure size, they have a Cockatiel size, a Conure size, and then larger parrot varieties, for a Sun Conure you want the Conure size obviously)...On Chewy.com they sell the Tropimix in 20-25 pound bags with free shipping for around $35-$40, so that's what I buy because I'm feeding 4 birds...With one bird you could freeze it and that would last you forever. And the same goes for the Higgins California Blend, I believe a 5-pound bag at Petco costs around $14, but on Chewy.com it's around $10-$12.

Regardless of what brand/type you choose, I'd say that switching from the Kaytee Fiesta seed-mix is probably the best thing you can do for Sierra's health overall, especially right now before she/he hit's full-puberty. It's unfortunate that Kaytee seed-mixes in-general (as well as their pellets) are just full of unhealthy ingredients, high in fat, low in protein, and low in all the other nutritional categories that captive/pet birds need every day...The problem is that obviously captive/pet birds aren't flying 10 miles or more a day like wild parrots do, so all of that fat (and sugar that is turned into fat) is just deposited right in the liver. So while you don't have to do a very drastic change to Sierra's daily diet right away, like switching to pellets immediately, you should really look into finding a healthy, low-fat seed-mix that contains none of the "junk food" in it...Food items such as Sunflower Seeds and all types of Nuts should only be fed to captive/pet birds as occasional treats, and if there is one that Sierra really loves above all else, then they should be used as her main "training treat/reward" only. And as far as Dried Corn Kernels/Dried Cracked Corn goes, there is no reason to have it in their diet at all...Giving them some fresh corn-on-the-cob as a special treat whenever you guys have it is totally different and is fine (no butter, salt, sugar, etc. of course), but not dried corn of any kind...
 
The last thing I'll say, I promise, lol...I forgot something very important regarding Sierra's daily diet...

***The other thing you should start doing (if you don't already, you didn't mention it) is feeding Sierra a portion of fresh veggies and dark, leafy greens every single day...Sometimes it takes some time of trying different varieties of fresh veggies and dark, leafy greens to find which ones Sierra likes and doesn't like, but it's very important that captive/pet parrots get some fresh veggies and greens every day...Trying different "Chop" recipes is a great way to not only discover what fresh veggies and greens Sierra likes, but also a great way to make large batches of fresh veggie/greens mixes that can be put into single-portion sized baggies and then kept in the freezer, and then you just pull a bag out each evening/first thing in the morning and put it in the fridge so it's thawed by that afternoon/evening. I give my guys their fresh veggies/greens/Chop-mixes at my dinnertime each evening, so they eat their fresh veggies/greens/Chop-mixes with me while I eat my dinner...I give them their pellets and seed-mix first thing in the morning so that they have them throughout the day to eat...And they also get occasional fresh fruit along with their daily fresh veggies/greens, but only 3-4 days a week do they get fresh fruit because all fruit is very high in sugar, so it's not something that should be fed every day like the fresh veggies/greens...

And you can pretty-much try any and all varieties of veggies and greens as long as they are #1) Fresh and not canned (frozen veggies are okay, not great, but okay, but never canned due to the salt/sugar/preservatives and the fact that the vitamins/minerals/nutrition has been dissipated), and #2) Contain nothing from the Onion family, such as all varieties of Onions, Leeks, Chives, etc., as they are Toxic to birds...And the same goes for fruit, as long as it is always #1)Fresh, never canned, and #2) Contain no Avocado, as it is Toxic to birds...And go easy on any types of Citrus Fruit, such as oranges, grapefruit, lemon, lime, and tomatoes as well, as they are very high in Vitamin C, which enhances their body's absorption of Iron, and birds cannot process much Iron at all, and they end-up developing something called "Iron Storage Syndrome/Disease", which is fatal.
 
wanted to wait to reply till I had given your alls advice a fair run.
She is now on Tropimix and still makes a mess picking through it but didnt seem to mind the change. The shunning method works wonders. She still nibbles from time to time but most the time now she just rubs her beak on the back of my ear. She has one of those cuddle beds that I have in the far back of her cage and as high as possible to make it as dark as possible. I am thinking of getting another to connect them or butt them together that is.
Her last bed had a hard floor but soft sides, I think she is much happier with how this one is almost like hugging her or holding her.
 
Stephen777 said:
wanted to wait to reply till I had given your alls advice a fair run.
She is now on Tropimix and still makes a mess picking through it but didnt seem to mind the change. The shunning method works wonders. She still nibbles from time to time but most the time now she just rubs her beak on the back of my ear. She has one of those cuddle beds that I have in the far back of her cage and as high as possible to make it as dark as possible. I am thinking of getting another to connect them or butt them together that is.
Her last bed had a hard floor but soft sides, I think she is much happier with how this one is almost like hugging her or holding her.
Click to expand...


Pleaseeeee remove the cuddle beds altogether. These are very very dangerous and induce hormonal issues (among other medical dangers). This could be a huge part of your problem...remove them..they are unnecessary and harmful (intestinal blockages, egg-laying, entrapment, hormones..the works!)
For darkness, cover and uncover the cage on a schedule. The happiness you perceive when in the hut is likely not real happy, but .....you know...sexually gratified/motivated...
 
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QUOTE EllenD: Happy Huts have killed literally thousands of birds, and it actually says "Not intended for use with Conures" right on the front of the packaging now because they have killed so many Green Cheeks, Suns, Jendays, etc. They have killed many other birds too, but Conures in particular love to snuggle up in things, and they sit inside and pick slowly at that purple or yellow felt, and over time it builds-up inside of their Crops and their GI Tracts, and then one day they are dead suddenly from an obstruction...Or they literally hang themselves by the neck or leg and die that way. So if you haven't removed it yet, please pitch it immediately!!! Now!!! Here's the link from one of the many pages where hundreds of people who have lost their birds to these things post their pain and stories http://www.parrot-and-conure-world.com/happy-hut-warning.html
The beds need to be removed altogether as a matter of urgency, not only because they encourage hormonal behaviour which can lead to biting and aggression, but because the birds can and do (unbeknown to you!) ingest the synthetic fibres which their gut cannot deal with, often leading to death by blockage of the intestinal tract. Birds do not need them to sleep in and are so much safer without them.
 
Yeah, if I had know that she had ANY TYPE of "bed" inside of her cage I would have told you that this is the #1 reason she has gone into puberty sooner than usual and why it's worse than usual. As I and everyone else has already said, YOU CANNOT GIVE YOUR BIRD ANY TYPE OF "BED", TENT, HUT, OR BOX AT ALL. Not anywhere, but especially not inside of their cages! This is why her puberty has been so rough on her. You're not helping her by providing those "cuddle beds" at all, you're actually doing her a disservice by actually causing her hormones to go crazy every single time she goes inside them.

And that is not the MAIN reason you need to remove the "Cuddle Beds" immediately from her cage and throw them in the trash (not exaggerating or being dramatic, please remove them immediately and throw them in the trash where they belong)...THEY KILL BIRDS EVERY SINGLE DAY! Whether the bird dies because they slowly, over-time pick little bits of the material off and swallow it until one day you find them dead in the bottom of their cage from a GI Blockage, or because a thread somewhere on it lets-loose and it hangs your bird or your bird gets her leg caught inside it and you find her dead, hanging by her leg upside down, it will eventually kill her one way or another...And in the meantime it's causing her constant hormonal raging.

Don't believe us? Happy Hut Warning

That is just one of the hundreds of websites where bird-owners go to talk about losing their birds to those things. There is a class-action lawsuit against two of the makers of them, and both major brands that make and sell them have actually had the nerve to put the phrase "NOT INTENDED FOR USE BY CONURES" on the front of the packaging they come in. That's how many Conures have died as a result of those things. But it's not just Conures, it's ALL species of parrots, it's just that Conures are the most effected by small, dark, warm places like those things create.

Please, please remove ANY AND ALL "cuddle beds", Huts, tents, hammocks, and any type of boxes/things she can get inside of/underneath right now, immediately, and throw them away. You have no idea how much of that fabric is already inside of both her Crop and her stomach/gizzard/intestines. She doesn't need any type of "bed" at all,
nor any type of cave or tent or box she can get inside of or underneath, it's only making the problem you're posting about to begin with much, much worse, and is absolutely the reason she went into puberty so early. I don't want to see you posting in the "Bereavement" forum here someday soon because you came home to find your bird dead in the bottom of her cage, just another casualty of those damn things. They need to be removed from the marketplace, and that's being worked on...

Your bird will sleep just fine on a perch, standing up, just like they do naturally. They don't naturally hide inside of tents, huts, boxes, etc., nor do they have "beds" or sleep on their backs or stomachs. She'll be just fine without anything like that inside of her cage, well, no, she'll be way better without them...

And also, just as an after-thought for you, the bed/hut has caused her to go into puberty early, so now she is capable of laying infertile eggs, and I guarantee you that if she has access to any type of bed, hut, tent, hammock, boxes, blankets, towels, etc.,
she is going to become a chronic egg-layer, laying clutch after clutch after clutch, as that's what happens to female parrots who are constantly in hormonal periods...And this is yet another life-threatening situation caused by those damn things, because her risk of becoming egg-bound is greater and greater with every egg she lays.

Remove all the beds, don't buy any more, and do not provide her with or allow her to go inside or underneath of any small, dark, warm spaces. Period. This will make your life a lot easier, and make your bird feel a lot better...And may just save her life.
 
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