Biting and squaking... help

ZeeksMommy

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Jan 17, 2012
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1st off let me start buy saying we have had Zeek since he was about 4 months old. He is 1 year and 5months old now. We got him from an amazing bird shop. He was hand fed and handle a lot there so he was used to people. He was great the 1st year. Now, he squaks like crazy unless you are holding him or his cage is covered. He squaks a LOT when somebody is in the kitchen with the light on or if the light is just on. He used to never be like that. He used to let almost everyone hold him, he was a little picky if he didnt know you very well. Now, he only allows my husband to hold him. Sometimes. If anybody does hold him, he will get a hair up his butt and bite. Hes broke skin but doesnt all the time. Im not sure what to do. We try to let him out of his cage every day but it is kinda hard when he wont let anyone pick him up. Ive never owned a bird before and I was learning to hold him and such and as well as our 4 year old daughter. I wont hold him nor allow her to hold him because he is biting. Help.. please :( I just want my loving bird back
 
You never mention what kind of bird Zeek is???
 
Knowing which species could help right now. If he is a Green Cheek or other smaller conure I wonder if this could be hormonal. If he is a larger conure, he's a little early probably. Nandays, Suns and Jendays begin reaching sexual maturity at around 2 years old, and Blue Crowns and other larger conures are around the 3 year old mark.

Anytime you see such a change in behavior though I would consult the vet. Maybe he doesn't feel well or something is hurting him. That should be ruled out first.

Once you've taken him in to the vet, let us know if anything was found and we can go from there.
 
They mentioned in their first post that zeek is a gcc :)
 
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Im sorry!! I thought I put what kind of bird he is. He is a Green Cheek Conure.
 
Hormones is probably kicking in right now. Part of the reason I always suggest parakeets or cockatiels as your first bird as they are not likely to have issues such as this. Is he molting right now too??
 
Ok, then yes, it could be hormonal. And some birds do get grumpy during molting. All 3 of my birds are still molting to some extent right now.

How long has the behavior been going on? I'm only used to female conures, but they are/were hormonal for a day, then they would be back to normal for a bit, then hormonal again, then back to normal. I didn't think male conures were as bad as some of the larger birds as far as it going on nonstop for months or even years in a row.
 
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This is my 1st bird.. but my husband has had many birds including some ones that were bigger than Zeek.
Im not sure what molting is..
He's been biting for about 2 months and squaking for 1 month.
 
Molting is when the old feathers fall out and new ones come in.

The squaking going on for that long makes me think something is wrong with him. Honestly if it were my bird, I'd take him in to the vet.
 
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He doesnt squak constantly... but it is a lot. If he starts squaking and I say something he makes this noise almost like he is saying 'what?' stops then goes back to it. I will see if I can get a video of him doing it. Right now he is being quiet and preening himself. Nevermind.. spoke too soon.

I think Im going to take him to the vet.
 
A few years ago my BC started squaking like something was hurting her. It wasn't normal so I took her to the vet. It was due to not having full spectrum lighting and not processing her calcium well enough. At first though the vet just said, "Birds scream you know." And I said yes, I know, but I've had her several years and this is new. I think she is in pain. I think her skin hurts her. Sure enough we even found bruises where she had bitten herself. I got her the full spectrum lighting and within a month she was quite a bit better and in the next few months totally back to normal. Now all my birds have it. I just hadn't realized they weren't getting sun through the windows. But, they are newer windows and good quality and block out at least 90% of the UV rays.
 
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^ I think this may be whats possible wrong. His is not so much of a painful cry though.. it is a Im going to get your attention NOW kind of thing. I will get the light and see what happens.

also, what can I do about the nipping???
 
Well, the nipping may stop when his hormones subside or he feels better. I would first try to find out if he has any physical issues including hormones. If the nipping continues after anything else that might be wrong is addressed, we will come back to that, lol!

Conures can be nippy and bossy though. They do need boundaries set. Right now, if he starts nipping, give him a little time out. Put him back in his cage or on his play gym and ignore him totally for a few minutes. Some also recommend wobbling your hand, but my Nanday actually liked that. Then she would bite to get an "amusement park ride". With her it was really a matter of establishing that she could only be with me if she was a good girl.
 
Well, the nipping may stop when his hormones subside or he feels better. I would first try to find out if he has any physical issues including hormones. If the nipping continues after anything else that might be wrong is addressed, we will come back to that, lol!

Conures can be nippy and bossy though. They do need boundaries set. Right now, if he starts nipping, give him a little time out. Put him back in his cage or on his play gym and ignore him totally for a few minutes. Some also recommend wobbling your hand, but my Nanday actually liked that. Then she would bite to get an "amusement park ride". With her it was really a matter of establishing that she could only be with me if she was a good girl.

I would advice against putting him back in the cage as a form of punishment. This can lead to your bird associating the cage with being a bad place to go, and eventually biting even harder to resist being placed there. It happened to me and I had to work hard on reinforcing Guava every time it was time for her to be put back into her cage. Ideally, you want your bird to associate their cage as a happy/fun place to be and not some bad place they get taken to against their will for being naughty. Selecting a neutral place (e.g., the floor, table, etc) might work better as a timeout location.
 
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He just bit the day lights out of my cousin and broke skin. Im thinking this was his way of saying he does not like him at all. My dad held him just fine, and my dad also put him on me and he decided I was a new 'jungle gym'. He's also being quiet. Very quiet. And yes, he has major small man syndrome.
 
He just bit the day lights out of my cousin and broke skin. Im thinking this was his way of saying he does not like him at all. My dad held him just fine, and my dad also put him on me and he decided I was a new 'jungle gym'. He's also being quiet. Very quiet. And yes, he has major small man syndrome.

We have to learn to read their body language very carefully. Green cheek conures are free willed birds and will bite when their boundaries are crossed (if you fail to read all prior warning signs). I've learned to respect my bird and give her space when she's not in the mood to be cuddled or picked up, etc.

As Roxy suggested, talk to your bird often, mimic her and play games with her. Reinforce her (either verbally or with a treat) every time she does something desirable (steps up on your finger, for example). Step up training also does wonders to strengthen the bond between you and your bird, so spend a few minutes each day doing this.
 
You also can't expect them to like everyone either. Birds just hate some people and make an instant decision on that for reasons we can't fathom. Sometimes there are generalizations such as hating men or women, hating or loving redheads or blonds, hating or loving glasses or facial hair. And sometimes it's just that individual and only the bird knows why. So, yes, watch your bird's body language and if it is negative, that person probably shouldn't try to hold the bird, or at least not right away.

Rowdy is generally pretty friendly with new people, but they can't go right up to her. They need to sit down, act normal, talk in a reasonable tone, and let her see they are not a threat. Then she will step up for them. Ok, if it is a man that she thinks is good looking, he might be able to approach her right away, lol! And if he has facial hair and will let her groom it, that's a bonus.
 
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My dad was holding him when my cousin tried to hold him. There was no body language. Just went straight to bite him. Before and after he bit him.. He was perfectly fine like nothing happened .
 
Yeah, it's hard to guess what he didn't like about your cousin. My BC hated my ex bf. He was probably the only person she down right hated, too. I don't know why. He never yelled at her or did anything to her. He gave her all her fruits and veggies each day in our effort to get her to see he wasn't evil. But, she hated him the entire 3 years we were together. Once his daughter and bf were passing through the area on a weekend trip they took. They stopped to visit and she talked to them about 10 minutes after they came in. I think that felt like a slap in the face to him though.

They just really aren't like dogs or cats though who will be friendly with anyone who is kind to them. They chose people and sometimes actually hate others.

Now my other conure loved my ex, and probably would have tried to be his mate if he had let her.
 
Ok, now that I think about it, too, my ex just wasn't a "bird" guy. I think it bothered Bri that he didn't answer her when she spoke. If she said hi or hello, she expected a return greeting. If she asked, "Whatcha doin?" she expected you to tell her what you were doing. When he was home from work, he just wanted to watch TV all evening and didn't talk to me much either. I always answer the birds when they talk to me. Even if Bri asked what I was doing 25 times in a row, I answered her.
 

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