Bite pressure

[autum_howard]

Okay so yesterday i posted about sweet pea letting me give her scritches, and how she had been letting me rub her beak while she gently chewed(for lack of a better word) on my finger....today this kinda escalated into a game i don't want to play, she has been biting down really hard on my finger, she will even grab my finger with her foot to hold it there so she may continue to try to crush my bone lol....it doesn't feel good for sure, my problem is i'm not sure how i should react, i don't want to stop all together and not be able to touch her, and i also don't want to make her think i'm scared of her and make the biting worse. I have been saying "eh eh" which seems to work for most things ie when she is chewing up something that she is not supposed to, its not working here, i try to stay calm and slowly move my hands away which was a challenge a few times bc she is reluctant to let go.....what do i do?

 

[SandyBee]

Well what I do with my Bosley, is actually say too hard with some inflection or be nice, pull my finger away but then give it right back.
That way he learns what is acceptable and what isn't

 

[autum_howard]

k, good i have been giving my finger back, except when she starts displaying...she has done that a few times today after i have taken my finger away as well, i just let her calm down and give it back....needless to say my fingers are a little sore lol

 

[SandyBee]

LOL, You will learn to take them away a little earlier.

 

[autum_howard]

lol, yea i guess maybe i should, but i'm telling you when she grabs me with her foot she has quite a death grip...i was just nervous about pulling back to fast and letting her think she one upped me, i have heard lots of stories about birds who bite because the reaction is funny, even birds who bite and then laugh and say ouch

 

[SandyBee]

True that could happen, but if it were me, then she wouldn't get my finger anymore LOL
Bosley can have quite a death grip too, I just get my finger away from his beak and if his foot is still attached that's ok.
In most cases I've heard amazon's aren't too bad for that particular reaction. I have heard a lot about African Grey doing that though.

 

[autum_howard]

yea, i really need to take sweet pea in and have her nails trimmed, and then maybe the foot wouldn't be so bad....she has a concrete perch but its just not keeping them filed good enough, i was told its probably the way she is climbing onto it....her nails are getting pretty sharp

 

[Mattroma]

Birdman666 had a good explanation of bite pressure training in the thread "soon to be B&G parent with a few questions" . He also talked about some of the games he plays to teach bite pressure with his birds.
I've been using a safety pumice perch for my macaw. I had it out his cage for a few weeks when I tried out a heated perch, and his nails became little needles. Switched back and the tips a dulled out. I haven't heard any cons to using it so that is my perch of choice for nail conditioning.

 

[autum_howard]

will definitely be looking into getting one

 

[BirdyMomma]

I have a young Military Macaw, who is learning what acceptable bite pressure is.
He LOVES to have my fingers/hands/wrist in his beak. I will let him beak me, but I scratch his head at the same time, which he LOVES. As soon as the pressure starts to get a little strong, I say EASY! If he continues to apply pressure, I say NO and stop scratching. He will immediately lighten up, and I will resume scratching. It's working pretty well so far.