Getting increasingly fed up with nippy conure

[Royboy1]

Hello all,

I recently adopted a fiery shouldered Conure baby boy who was apparently hand fed (3.5 months old) and I am trying my absolute best to socialize him but he's just an absolute menace. This isn't my first foray into parrots, I have owned Budgies and Cockatiels in the past, but this is my first experience with a Conure.

He loves being with me all day and he really likes to climb all over me, but he has a habit of nipping, and sometimes it really really hurts. Especially when he grabs a fold of skin on my neck or my ear and doesn't let go. This is not nipping when being picked up (although he does that too when he doesn't want to go back to his cage), it's completely random and has drawn blood multiple times now. Initially my reaction was to ignore it, my thought was no reaction = no excitement and he will stop doing it. That did not work. Next my reaction was to put him on the floor and ignore him for a few minutes to teach him that biting is bad and will result in no more playtime, but that did not seem to be doing anything whatsoever. Lately I have been putting him back in his cage when he does it, and still it does absolutely nothing the next time we interact. This has been going on for a month now that I have owned him.

I have tried to ban shoulder time, but he will fly up or climb up there no matter what. I am really starting to not enjoy being around him. I know he's a baby, and still experimenting with bite strength...etc but I am feeling extremely overwhelmed here. I feel extremely guilty for feeling fed up and I am trying my best to socialize him as best as possible but it's really difficult to be constantly bit all day and nothing I am trying is working.

Anyone have any tips or advice? Is this a stage he will outgrow? Am I doing something super wrong here?

 

[LaManuka83]

Welcome to the forums, @Royboy and your new baby! Please don't forget to tell us his name, will you?

Conures are a different kettle of fish altogether than cockatiels and budgies - that's what I had had too before I got my first conure, a green cheek called Baci (Italian for "kisses", and also the name of my favourite brand of chocolates!) They are fairly well known for being rather nippy, as you are experiencing, and often this stems from them being taken from their parents to be hand-raised before their parents had a chance to teach them some manners - such as not biting! Best remedy for this with a young bird like yours is the practice of "shunning". This involves whenever he bites, you put him down somewhere safe, like a table or the back of a chair. Not back on or in his cage as this might actually be where he wants to go, and not the floor which may be unsafe. You then turn your back on him for a minute, making no eye contact whatsoever. If he flies back to you and bites you again just rinse and repeat. This imitates what parent birds would do in a wild flock, where unsocial behaviour such as biting would not be tolerated. All young birds need to feel like they are part of the flock in order to be safe from predators, so "shunning" teaches them that there are certain rules they must follow to be part of that flock. I did not know any of this when I had my Baci, and my goodness he could bite VERY hard indeed, but when I discovered shunning it really did help. If there are other family members in your household they need to also be consistent in following this rule. Conures are very smart, and they will test for chinks in your armour, but eventually they do get the message. Shunning by no means eliminates biting altogether but it does cut it down by a LOT as it did for me.

Please do share some pics of your little guy, and I wish you all the very best of luck with him!

 

[DonnaBudgie]

I would wear a hoodie when he's on your shoulder to protect your neck and face.

 

[AMD73]

I would like to suggest that when he starts stressing you out, that you stop having contact with him. He will pick up on your frustration and that will increase the negative behaviour.

 

[Vampiric_Conure73]

I feel your pain! I have a green cheek conure named Quasar, whose nickname is Mosquito because he bites often. He's gotten better (I used to not be able to feed him because he would bite me just if I put my hand in his cage!)/ SHunning is a godsend in my case. And wearing long sleeves. Ignoring him, too, when he bites can be helpful, too.

 

[wrench1373]

I will amplify the 'shunning' technique. It must be done IMMEDIATELY when a bite occurs. 1 minute only, no longer or shorter. WHen your back is turned, no eye contact, no talking to him, or about the bite - NADA! To be effective, everyone in the household must observe this. Lastly, closely observe your parrot, because shunning works when the parrot is at fault. If you are at fault because he wants food or water, is frightened or upset, or not in the mood to be disturbed during play, or otherwise preoccupied studying his navel or what ever, then shunning is not appropriate. Know Thy Parrot and his body language, however subtle.

 

[Bradmtx32]

Well both my lovely ladies nip at times but, ever so gently for the most part. When booger nips most of the time it's because she wants to eat. Foxy on the other hand has the most gentle of nips as a matter of fact when I have my finger in her mouth her tongue is usually tickling my finger. On the rear occasion that booger does get out of hand I immediately put her in the cage.

 

[Bradmtx32]

My 2 girls can get nippy at times ( usually indicative of being hungry) and I usually have chain toy around my neck to keep them distracted.
Something similar to the attached pic

 

[Rody]

My 2 girls can get nippy at times ( usually indicative of being hungry) and I usually have chain toy around my neck to keep them distracted.
Something similar to the attached picView attachment 85396

That’s actually a really smart idea. I never thought of that as a distraction

 

[Donna196468]

I would wear a hoodie when he's on your shoulder to protect your neck and face.

I tried this with my ringneck thinking it would work but he quickly learned how find my face by hanging off the top of my hoodie and piercing my nose.
I think parrots like the interaction that the face gives them

 

[AlaskanBirbs]

A couple ideas I learned from my Caique: If your bird nips while on your hand or forearm, unsteady his "perch" by rolling forward slightly. That will unbalance him enough to both distract and correct.
If you use target training, such as giving a treat when he touches a stick, make sure to reward only when he touches, not grabs or bites the stick. This can be corrected by approaching with tip of stick from slightly above his head.