bird hates me.

[hsb_birds]

we have a severe macaw here at the resort named malakai. and the problem is, she hates me. legit, she wants to kill me every single time. she's bonded with the other handler, who's able to hold her and love on her and such. i'm just curious how i should start bonding with her and gaining her trust so she knows i'm not a threat or wanting to harm her.

 

[Birdman666]

Don't get me started on Severe macaws and overbonding issues...

I LOVE macaws... but these are my least favorite bird to work with.

Severe macaws are THE WORST OFFENDERS when it comes to one person issues. Bottom line, this bird needs to be socialized with multiple people or, FORGETABOUTIT!

There is a disfavored person thread that I have posted. This one involves the favorite person taking the bird into a training perch and leaving the room. The disfavored person then comes in and does the step up and touching exercises. Then the favorite person comes back in and takes the bird back...

With an overbonded Severe? Watch your fingers, and have a towel at the ready! And what ever you do DO NOT BREAK EYE CONTACT!!! I have a scar (four stitches) on my thumb from one of these little guys slicing me open to the bone...

Once you get the bird to the point where 2 or 3 people can handle it, you start playing a game of pass the birdie, and the circle game. Both are training posts I've already detailed on this site.

Those are the hardest overbonded birds to work with. The best way to deal with this problem is to socialize them to the Nth degree to begin with and not allow them to overbond!

It's not that they are bad birds, it's that they are pair bond birds. And they are fiercely loyal to "the one." To the point of driving others off... (sometimes rather forcefully!)

That's the dynamic here.

http://parrotmusings.blogspot.com/2009/01/my-thoughts-on-severe-macaws.html

http://www.birdsnways.com/wisdom/ww45e.htm

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/pic/article.cfm?c=5059&articleid=2250

http://animal-world.com/encyclo/birds/macaws/severe.php

Every one of these articles says in some way, shape or form, that these birds tend to have "one person" issues. And my experience with them, with two noteworthy exceptions, has been the same as that expressed in the birdsnways article, and the blog. My perspective is somewhat different, as I was the one working with the "dumped" parrots. (Now you have a one person bird, without his one person anymore, who is angry at the world because he wants to be back with "his person" not with you clowns... "RE-SOCIALIZE THIS!")

With THIS MANY experienced people, seeing the same things I see... well, I'm not making this stuff up. And there was really only one species of mini-mac that got dumped, and they got dumped in short order.

Severe macaws are not necessarily bad birds. BUT they do require a higher than usual amount of socialization work, or they will bond with one person, and then it's a major pain (usually in the fingers) to rehab the bad behaviors. People don't do the work. Then no one else wants to get bit reversing the process, and the bird festers...

That tends to be the pattern.

 

[Birdman666]

I don't know what happened to my disfavored person behavior mod, but it is pasted into this post:

http://www.parrotforums.com/conures/1151-my-conure-hates-everyone.html

What you are also dealing with here, with overbonding, is a bird mate issue:

http://www.parrotforums.com/training/48616-types-biting-behavior-mods.html

Touch training behavior mod:

http://www.parrotforums.com/training/48598-touch-training.html

Lastly, here is the "pass the birdie" behavior mod:

http://www.parrotforums.com/training/48648-socialization-game-pass-birdie.html

 

[hsb_birds]

Thanks so much for all the advice. Sweet Malakai, actually let me pet her the other day, when it was just the two of us, though once the other (preferred) trainer was back in the room another day, she got all grumpy again. Is there a way to ... I don't want to say "break the bond" ... but extend it perhaps? I'd love to handle and hold her as well, so I'm hoping to show her that I don't want to hurt her or anything either.

 

[Birdman666]

Thanks so much for all the advice. Sweet Malakai, actually let me pet her the other day, when it was just the two of us, though once the other (preferred) trainer was back in the room another day, she got all grumpy again. Is there a way to ... I don't want to say "break the bond" ... but extend it perhaps? I'd love to handle and hold her as well, so I'm hoping to show her that I don't want to hurt her or anything either.

CLASSIC SEVERE MACAW BEHAVIOR!!! Hit the nail on the head this time!!! (Like that was a tough one...)

No, the trigger for the biting IS the favorite person. That's why the disfavored person training takes place outside of the presence of the favorite person. When that person isn't around, you should be able to work with him.

And what has to happen is enough people have to handle this bird away from the favorite person first...

AND THEN... PASS THE BIRDIE... WITH THE FAVORITE PERSON... and the favorite person intervening if the bird attempts to bite! (That's the test, right there. And don't expect the bird to agree to it on the first attempt either... This part could take weeks.)

We have turned them around, but it's usually with great difficulty. And the second the bird gets to ONLY deal with the favorite person again, IT'S BACK!
So, a lot of people have to handle this bird, or no one but that one person will be able to. They can also be very sweet once you get them past this... but getting them past this is a lot of work!