Biting- but only at the cage

[Lintini]

Heya

Rio has recently moved next to Petri, I think it's been 2 weeks ago now. My problem is now that Rio has been enjoying biting me as he waits to waddle onto my shoulder from the cage door. If I place my hand near him he says "step up" in his mickey mouse voice, backs up so he's hanging down the side of the cage away from me and then tries to bite. He doesn't draw blood but it really does hurt.

When Petri had a biting phase, I would set him on the floor or ignore him, try not to say anything, and it really did fix the problem.

But now I am unsure how to go about this since he's just standing on the cage and is being difficult.

Rio is sexed as a male, and I haven't sexed Petri, but they also don't really care for each other. Their main goal in life is to get to me. And also Petri tries to feed me and rub his bum on me which I thought meant he was male but I guess it doesn't prove that.

Rio was housed next to a CAG and an IRN in his other home so he could care less about Petri, but Petri is all about being dominant and will beak him so I have to be with them if they hang out because I don't know what Petri is up too.

Was making Petri his next door neighbor a bad idea? It's the only thing that I can think of that has changed but he doesn't even care about Petri so I just don't know.

When he bites me, I should just walk away and let him do his dance because what he wants is on my shoulder, and what I want is to not get bit constantly now. Are there any other techniques than just walking away?

Thanks for reading, and here are the devils

Oh also, where is a good place that I could send in Petri's feather for sexing?

 

[MollyGreenCheeks]

I'm not there to see exactly what is happening but from the way you explained it, it sounds like you may be hesitating when you go to pick up Rio. If you are quicker about it and you get your finger in their to scoop him up before he can back up to the side of the cage would that possible out smart him? Sometime if mine get nippy I find a way to change things up and it out smarts them. I'm sure there must be some hesitancy because those BCC beaks are SHARP!!

BTW, your birds are beautiful!

 

[Mudkips]

Just to confuse you, I'll suggest the opposite of MollyGreenCheeks.
I think that Rio doesn't like his space invaded while he's on the cage door. I suggest you hold your hand out to the cage a short distance away from him, and see if he makes his way over to you to step up, or if he ignores you and stays where he is.
His choice will go a long way about telling you how he feels about the situation.

Beautiful picture btw!

 

[Lintini]

Initially I was scared of him because his owner was using a perch to handle him so it made me not even really want to adopt him from her. When I got home with him I said here goes nothin, and he was fine on my hand and arm. He loves to grip on my chest and just licks my chin, so much that it goes numb in that area and I have to set him back on my shoulder. He's like an extreme taster or something.

I am probably hesitating and he knows, that's why he bluffs me now and will back up. I should try to get him to step up from going behind him?

He also hates my boyfriend..... when I first ever handed Rio to him, he promptly waddled up his arm and shoulder and pecked his eye.......sigh.

Mudkips, he wants to come out on the door and then wants right on my shoulder. He doesn't feel comfortable on my hand at all so instead of getting bit I just lean over or if I am close enough and not paying attention he will just hop onto me. But maybe him not stepping up from inside the cage is him telling me it's his cage and to not come in?

And thank you MollyGC

 

[Mudkips]

Ah so then I'm lead to believe that he dislikes your hands. Does he ever bite your fingers even when he's not on his cage (like if you go to 'step up' off your shoulder)? Or is it cage only?

If it is cage only, you can approach him with a small toy and use your hand to offer it to him first before trying to pick him up.
It does two things: It gives you a really good indication of his mood before you get too close to him, and secondly it puts something other then your finger in his beak first. He'll need to drop it if he decides to bite you instead, an advanced warning of sorts, so you can approach him without fear of getting bitten.

 

[Lintini]

Yes he does chew on my fingers and play with them with his feet. I just actually put him back in his cage because he started trying to feed my fingers. I did read that I needed to not let him play with my fingers because he will think they are toys. And yes he will protest me if I try to pick him up off my shoulder, the easiest way to get him back in his cage is if I just lean in there and he steps off.

 

[Mudkips]

Yeah I think he's treating your hands as separate entities from your body. Humans are so big compared to parrots that our feathered friends tend to treat each of our body parts as individual people. Rio loves your face and shoulders because he has memories of himself approaching them and receiving love and kisses. He has memories of hands and fingers approaching him, appearing quickly out of nowhere and swooping in a bit too close for comfort all the while asking Rio to do them a favor!

Thankfully, this is pretty easy to solve. When you get him to trust your fingers, he'll treat them exactly as he treats your shoulders.

I'd suggest trying to move your hands slowly and predictably around him every time you're giving him treats or picking him up (how fast have your shoulders and face ever got around him? ). Also hold your hand a bit further away from him and allow him to take a step forwards to your hand. It's kinda like letting your parrot choose between staying where he is or seeing whats going on where your fingers are.

Another small detail that makes a huge difference is how you hold your hand for a 'step up'. Hold it in a way that he will hardly have to make an effort to step up. For example, the top of Birdy's cage is flat so when I ask him to step up I hold my hand flat at the corner. Birdy doesn't even need to step up to "step up". He just walks straight off the edge and onto my hand.

With enough trust, Rio will associate your hands with the rest of your body, and it sounds like Rio loves to be with the rest of you!

 

[Lintini]

Thank you, I think you have just nailed the problem honestly. I haven't had him too long, and I know he gave his other owner a bad time, seeing that she used a perch to handle him. And also he had free range of the house. He got to do whatever he wanted, when he wanted. And wow were her kids so HAPPY to see him go.....brats. lol.

I will try moving my hands slower and see how he reacts to me changing my hand position. And it is more of "stepping on" than "up" when I try to get him on my hand.

Thank you thank you all!

 

[MikeyTN]

Like how I answered you from your message. Using a perch is NOT a bad thing! Something MUST of happened to him before when he is on his cage and someone used their hand to do something that upset him to the point he bites while at his cage. My Dixie is like that and I found out why she bites when you try to get her out of the cage. The previous owner told me the lady they got her from used to force grab her off the cage like a sac of potatoes. They had her for many years and we had her for 8 years, I tried and tried with the hand, it just doesn't work. Then I started using perch training, took a few days but it worked to get her out of the cage and then bring her towards me. She was fine and did not try to bite or anything. Just when you try to get her out of the cage with your hands is the only time she ever does it. She's 20 something years old and she's not about to change her ways at all.

To sum it up, you may never be able to get him off his cage with your hands, but you can do it with a perch. You can keep on trying with your hands but like I've said, IF it was something that traumatized him at one point, it would be hard for him to over come that issue. Sometimes you should push the envelope and just go with the flow since it works with a perch, why push it?

 

[Lintini]

perch or shoulder works, just not hands. He also isnt comfortable to just stand on my hands either, I feel like he doesn't grip enough and he flutters making it even worse.