Help! My Conure Won't Stop Biting!

[CheekyChip]

Hello! Recently purchased a hand reared GCC. He's 6 months old.

He's very friendly, lets us stroke him and takes food from us without biting.

Today he stepped onto my hand, on his own accord, while I was stroking him! I was very pleased until he started chewing my finger . I put him back on his perch and left him for a few minutes.

I later let him out of his cage and he wouldn't stop chewing on everything he landed on, including me and my girlfriend

We never react to the biting, I tried the earthquake technique once on a particularly bad bite which didn't seem to work.

Is this behaviour because he is young? Should he grow out of it? Any advice or personal experiences appreciated!

Thanks

 

[T00tsyd]

He is probably just testing, he needs to learn what is good behaviour. If he is always going for your hands then use a piece of perch instead.

I wouldn't overload the sensations straight away. eg. if he is on your hand make that do until he seems ready for more in terms of cuddles or stroking. If he is biting he is telling you 'I'm not comfortable' so backtrack until he shows he is ready for more.

Like all young creatures his mouth tells him more than anything else who and what you are. If once you have back tracked he still continues to bite then put him down and ignore until he comes to you for attention. He cannot expect you to be his friend until he shows that he can be a good friend to you.

I should just add that a firm 'NO' will gradually teach him as he associates the sound with the ignore. Don't expect fast progress it takes time and patience but they are lovely birds once they start to get the hang of these mad humans in the flock.

 

[LordTriggs]

I'm going to diagnose you with a case of "conure" haha

It sounds to me like he's exploring more so than biting. Think of their beak as a multi-purpose tool. It's both a hand, hair brush, can opener and of course a mouth! (deep shock at the final use) like a human child chewing things gives a lot of info of what the world is.

I keep a very simple set of rules when it comes to beaks. They can use their beak however they want as long as it doesn't hurt. If they do bite or nip too strong or even just put more pressure on you when beaking then they get a stern no (no shouting) and then put on the floor to be left to their devices for a minute or so. It can take time but you'd be surprised how quickly they learn. Really bite training is the one and only thing I find birds and dogs are similar with. They both need telling what hurts and what doesn't so they learn to control their jaw muscles, a bird you just train them in a different way

 

[clark_conure]

Yep, playing is ok, if he bites too hard put him on the floor and make him come back to you, he will be super sweet when he comes back and the period of time he has to think about while he's on the floor sinks in better than an earthquake shake or beak holding or whatever quick fix, they don't learn from that.

 

[jm0]

Try to avoid situations where he might bite you, he is a young bird and is just learning what human hands is. The best advice i can give is to keep him occupied while sitting on your finger with something acceptable to chew. So when he tries to bite, show him an object, I used pieces of cork for my bird when he was the same age. Continue to distract him with things to chew on, he will think it's fun to do, and he will eventually stop biting your fingers. When he bites really hard and draws blood, leave the room for 5-10 minutes. He will learn.

 

[clark_conure]

Avoidance is good but there is no avoidance when he's on your shoulder and out of the blue he's like, hmm, I'm bored, lets play.....(a little to hard). When he does bite put him on the floor and make him walk back. Trust US. it works.


Also if it's just a little nip that doesn't hurt, don't over-react, his beak is basically his hand, you can use words like "gently" and all that, and they will learn, if it's aggression...put him on the carpet.

 

[LordTriggs]

yes you should try to avoid a situation in which he will bite. Less avoiding his actual beak and more avoiding what makes him bite. but you will get bitten, it's better to teach correct biting when they're younger IMO. It's better that they learn biting is bad and what they're allowed to do with their beak whilst young. A good behavior learnt young is an incredible thing to have, hence why stepping up and harness training are amazing to teach when young so they have those lessons deeply ingrained into their behavior it's almost an instinct

 

[LuzrovRulay]

I just got a Pineapple Conure myself and Maple does a lot of the same thing. She usually nibbles right now, so there's no pain, but that makes it easier to teach her. The ignoring method or putting her back didn't seem to be working for me, and it was a little distressing. (I tried setting her on the floor too and she just dive-bombs my legs until she works her way back up and it tends to resume.)

Recently, I've discovered if I tap the top of her head or gently push her beak away from whatever she's nibbling and say "No!" firmly, she generally stops and has figured out that's not okay.

Keep in mind: We're talking one finger touch here and gentle, very gentle! Like booping a baby's nose. (So soft...!)

Though I generally only do this if she nips enough to add pressure, but if she just absently nudges or chews on my nails, that's okay.

 

[LordTriggs]

I just got a Pineapple Conure myself and Maple does a lot of the same thing. She usually nibbles right now, so there's no pain, but that makes it easier to teach her. The ignoring method or putting her back didn't seem to be working for me, and it was a little distressing. (I tried setting her on the floor too and she just dive-bombs my legs until she works her way back up and it tends to resume.)

Recently, I've discovered if I tap the top of her head or gently push her beak away from whatever she's nibbling and say "No!" firmly, she generally stops and has figured out that's not okay.

Keep in mind: We're talking one finger touch here and gentle, very gentle! Like booping a baby's nose. (So soft...!)

Though I generally only do this if she nips enough to add pressure, but if she just absently nudges or chews on my nails, that's okay.

nibbling is something a conure does and it should be encouraged. It's how they explore, think human baby shoving EVERYTHING in their mouth. Only when pressure is added should the time-out come into effect.

I know the first couple times my conure would try to fly back at me immediately, I opted keep my hand over him and that very quickly taught him that he had to wait to calm down. Now if the light push works go for it, although I'd be worried about later in life if they decide they don't like that boop