Hi all.
Exactly a week ago my partner and I picked up our new Green Cheek Conure - Benji. We are first time parrot owners and would like to express our concerns and hopefully find some advice to what we are doing right or wrong.
Benji is 4 months old and we got him from a couple that unfortunately wasn't able to look after him anymore for their own reasons. We visited before picking him up and he was shy but still sat on myself and my partner - Dean.
We fell in love and got took him home a few days later. He gets fresh fruits and veggies 2 or 3 times a day. We clean his cage, give him spray baths. Filtered water with vitimins and minerals in and he's always got seeds whenever he wants during the day. He's got plenty of toys and calcium and iodine blocks. He goes to bed around 9pm and wakes up around 7am.
We try to let him out for a couple hours a day during the week and for the weekend even more time.
He's becoming more and more bitey every day. This starts off as explorative biting but then gets harder and harder. I know he's looking for a reaction out of us. We try to ignore the best we can and not pull away. Even roll the back of our hands around to stop him getting at our fingers. We try step up exercises but he's only been interested in doing it a couple of times. He sits on our shoulders and snuggles in our hair but as soon as he finds our skin he clamps down.
Last night he made my partner bleed on his wrist. Dean then picked him up around his body and wings very gently. Benji squawked and got annoyed for a couple of seconds until Dean stroked down his beak to calm him down and then put it back on his lap. Benji then started climbing over Dean again. Sitting on his shoulder and preening. Benji then returned to the same spot to what looked like to bite the same wound again. We had to put him back in his cage after that.
The previous owners say they have never experienced any biting with him before. They got him when he was very young - about 5 weeks old.
I know it's still early days and we're not expecting a bond anytime soon but we are super paranoid we are doing something wrong. I'm getting a clicker hopefully tomorrow to try help promote good behaviour.
We never shout at him or discipline him. We only try and reinforce good behaviour and show no attention to bad behaviour.
Any advice would be warmly welcomed. We love this little guy and we are not going to give up with him.
Many thanks I'm advance.
Exactly a week ago my partner and I picked up our new Green Cheek Conure - Benji. We are first time parrot owners and would like to express our concerns and hopefully find some advice to what we are doing right or wrong.
Benji is 4 months old and we got him from a couple that unfortunately wasn't able to look after him anymore for their own reasons. We visited before picking him up and he was shy but still sat on myself and my partner - Dean.
We fell in love and got took him home a few days later. He gets fresh fruits and veggies 2 or 3 times a day. We clean his cage, give him spray baths. Filtered water with vitimins and minerals in and he's always got seeds whenever he wants during the day. He's got plenty of toys and calcium and iodine blocks. He goes to bed around 9pm and wakes up around 7am.
We try to let him out for a couple hours a day during the week and for the weekend even more time.
He's becoming more and more bitey every day. This starts off as explorative biting but then gets harder and harder. I know he's looking for a reaction out of us. We try to ignore the best we can and not pull away. Even roll the back of our hands around to stop him getting at our fingers. We try step up exercises but he's only been interested in doing it a couple of times. He sits on our shoulders and snuggles in our hair but as soon as he finds our skin he clamps down.
Last night he made my partner bleed on his wrist. Dean then picked him up around his body and wings very gently. Benji squawked and got annoyed for a couple of seconds until Dean stroked down his beak to calm him down and then put it back on his lap. Benji then started climbing over Dean again. Sitting on his shoulder and preening. Benji then returned to the same spot to what looked like to bite the same wound again. We had to put him back in his cage after that.
The previous owners say they have never experienced any biting with him before. They got him when he was very young - about 5 weeks old.
I know it's still early days and we're not expecting a bond anytime soon but we are super paranoid we are doing something wrong. I'm getting a clicker hopefully tomorrow to try help promote good behaviour.
We never shout at him or discipline him. We only try and reinforce good behaviour and show no attention to bad behaviour.
Any advice would be warmly welcomed. We love this little guy and we are not going to give up with him.
Many thanks I'm advance.
