MomtoPercy
New member
I say "suddenly" but it's been going on for a month. He adores my mom and she has been his fave since two weeks after he came to us four months ago. However, recently he would call for her very insistently and each time, without fail, when she holds out her hand for him, he grabs on with one foot, "lies down" on his side, across her hand and bites her. Not hard enough to draw blood but quite painfully. Eventually he will sit with her (because he still insists that he wants her to pick him up) start nibbling her softly but the nibbles turn progressively harder. When she tries to put him down then, he clings on for dear life and really goes into bite mode. Mom is finding this all very distressing because (a) she's very fond of him and (b) because of her age and some medical issues, she bleeds very easily and naturally, each bite leaves a substantial bruise.
Why would he ask, even beg, to be picked up only to bite her?
Here are some facts that may have bearing on this problem :
*we moved his cage from my son's room to the family room a month ago to ensure he gets more company and interaction with the whole family
*at roughly the same time, our new pug puppy moved in. He is very boisterous and yappy which, at first sent Percy into a flapping frenzy but no longer seems to bother him at all.
*because of the puppy being around, Percy's freedom has been somewhat restricted for his own safety. He still gets loads of "out of cage" time but he is kept high so that the puppy can't reach him. The puppy has been well trained and doesn't try to attack Percy but I can't take chances. As a result Percy has "lost" his previous favourite spot - the backrest of the couch. But he does have his playgym now and he spends most of the day on it.
Could all these changes be what is making him bite my mom, his favourite? Is he trying to protect her from the puppy? If so, how should we handle it? I tell her time and again NOT to shout and perform whenhe bites but I can understand why she can't help it. Also, with him clinging on so determinedly, she struggles to extracate herself from the situation, which gets her even more upset. I have told her to entice him into the cage with a nut which is working well now but I wish he would stop biting her every time!
Any tips for us on how to handle this?
Why would he ask, even beg, to be picked up only to bite her?
Here are some facts that may have bearing on this problem :
*we moved his cage from my son's room to the family room a month ago to ensure he gets more company and interaction with the whole family
*at roughly the same time, our new pug puppy moved in. He is very boisterous and yappy which, at first sent Percy into a flapping frenzy but no longer seems to bother him at all.
*because of the puppy being around, Percy's freedom has been somewhat restricted for his own safety. He still gets loads of "out of cage" time but he is kept high so that the puppy can't reach him. The puppy has been well trained and doesn't try to attack Percy but I can't take chances. As a result Percy has "lost" his previous favourite spot - the backrest of the couch. But he does have his playgym now and he spends most of the day on it.
Could all these changes be what is making him bite my mom, his favourite? Is he trying to protect her from the puppy? If so, how should we handle it? I tell her time and again NOT to shout and perform whenhe bites but I can understand why she can't help it. Also, with him clinging on so determinedly, she struggles to extracate herself from the situation, which gets her even more upset. I have told her to entice him into the cage with a nut which is working well now but I wish he would stop biting her every time!
Any tips for us on how to handle this?
his spring is wound a little tighter so he needs more intensive play time to wear him out more. Parrots can bite also from over-enthusiasm and excesses of emotion. Making a big deal out of it only intensifies the problem. When you bring a new animal/baby or whatever, you actually have to ramp up the attention a bit so the bird doesn't feel left out. It might be good for everyone to give him a little one-on-one separately, especially your mom. He'll adjust and this should pass and hopefully with very slow careful introductions he can be on friendly terms with the dog. 
