Good Morning all, my name is Mel (Melissa) and I joined today after receiving what seems like the hundredth nasty bite from my IRN. He is less than 2 years old and I know I have a lot to learn still, otherwise I wouldn't still be getting bitten so frequently.
About Tiko - my little green buddy who knows how to push my buttons.
So, we purchased him from a 'breeder' in Guelph Ontario about 4 months ago. He had belonged to his niece who was leaving for college. In hindsight, we should have done a lot more research on this breeder because Tiko was expensive, came with no papers and has a deformed nail/claw. We love him and would not trade him for another bird because what kind of owners would we be if we did not commit to our little guy, train him and love him?
Anyway, our biggest issue is biting. He is flighted, and obsesses over a spot in our kitchen right next to the stove. We put him in his cage when we cook as a result, because we have no door on the kitchen and he is far too interested in the stove itself. Our current solution to that is to put a door up eventually. However, once he gets to this spot he loves so much, only my husband can get him off it without getting bit. And these bites are hard, and always draw blood. But at this time, without the door, we can't let him out of his cage without him flying straight there.
We are starting from the ground up with training. We are working on step up because he only really does it when he feels like it. To some extent I understand that - he has never been rewarded for stepping up (from us) so that combined with the clicker for an event marker works when we are doing a little training session. However in the mornings, he won't have any of that. I am also working on targeting and my husband is working on stationing.
My biggest question is what to do when he bites hard, other than not reacting, what can I do!? He draws blood and it darn well sucks! I know I have created this behavior somehow, and there have been times I've pushed him back when he bit hard only for him to bite harder. I end up pulling away eventually, so I am basically re-enforcing him to bite harder to get rid of me. He only bites like this from that spot in the kitchen.
His cage is 6 feet tall by 4 feet with lots of new toys regularly. His bedtime is 9:20 sharp with a dark cage and he knows when its time to go to bed, and does so happily. He gets fruits and veggies daily, seed, and pellets.
About Tiko - my little green buddy who knows how to push my buttons.
So, we purchased him from a 'breeder' in Guelph Ontario about 4 months ago. He had belonged to his niece who was leaving for college. In hindsight, we should have done a lot more research on this breeder because Tiko was expensive, came with no papers and has a deformed nail/claw. We love him and would not trade him for another bird because what kind of owners would we be if we did not commit to our little guy, train him and love him?
Anyway, our biggest issue is biting. He is flighted, and obsesses over a spot in our kitchen right next to the stove. We put him in his cage when we cook as a result, because we have no door on the kitchen and he is far too interested in the stove itself. Our current solution to that is to put a door up eventually. However, once he gets to this spot he loves so much, only my husband can get him off it without getting bit. And these bites are hard, and always draw blood. But at this time, without the door, we can't let him out of his cage without him flying straight there.
We are starting from the ground up with training. We are working on step up because he only really does it when he feels like it. To some extent I understand that - he has never been rewarded for stepping up (from us) so that combined with the clicker for an event marker works when we are doing a little training session. However in the mornings, he won't have any of that. I am also working on targeting and my husband is working on stationing.
My biggest question is what to do when he bites hard, other than not reacting, what can I do!? He draws blood and it darn well sucks! I know I have created this behavior somehow, and there have been times I've pushed him back when he bit hard only for him to bite harder. I end up pulling away eventually, so I am basically re-enforcing him to bite harder to get rid of me. He only bites like this from that spot in the kitchen.
His cage is 6 feet tall by 4 feet with lots of new toys regularly. His bedtime is 9:20 sharp with a dark cage and he knows when its time to go to bed, and does so happily. He gets fruits and veggies daily, seed, and pellets.