My new Conure!

[Roanoke]

I've got big news! The owner of soon-to-be-my GCC called me and said we could come pick him up this morning!
We loaded up the cage (Which barely fit in the minivan) and since we had no time to prepare, the little guy had to ride on my shoulder. He did good.
Once we got home, we hung around inside for an hour or two with him. Surprisingly, he hasn't bit at all. I thought he would, considering my first time meeting him. Thinking back, he was quite stressed and definitely gave me some warnings before biting.

I thought for sure that he'd want to sit in a quiet corner for the first couple days like all the books say, but no! This little guy loves shoulders and actually flew to mine when my sister scared him unintentionally. He sat with me during lunch and demanded ramen noodles and plum flesh. Almost jumped into my bowl.
While I was washing his bath, he decided 'now is a good time to get soaking wet' and inched down my arm before stepping right into the bath (Which I had been scrubbing).
Positively adorable.
He loves being stroked and is a total sweetheart. I even got some kisses when I was blowing warm air on him. (Which he loves).

I got the cage set up, so he's been hanging out on/in it for a while. It's a really nice one, with a playtop and removable grate.
He's making 'sunset noises' right now. I think. Hopefully he'll quiet down after sunrise/sunset times. We'll see.
(Note- Don't worry about the lack of toys and scant perches. I'll be going on a shopping spree as soon as he's settled in. These are his old ones.)

Oh, almost forgot! He talks! I can't quite deciper what he says but I've heard "What's up" and "Hey Teeko". Updates will come when I catch some more phrases

As some of you may know, I had previously decided on the name Draco, because when I first met him he was an ornery little bi-otch.
However, after getting to know him I think it would be best to just leave him with his original name. Teeko. It fits quite well.

Thank you all so much for helping me and answering questions! You've all been very helpful and caring. I hope to learn much more as me and Teek bond!

 

[sammmy]

congrats he's so adorable! looks just like my mr skittles!!!
i hope you're enjoying his company already!!!!

 

[CFellows]

What a cutie!

 

[EAI]

Teeko is absolutely adorable! I'm so happy to hear that his arrival was smooth and non stressful. (And glad to hear there were no bites involved).

 

[LeaKP]

Love Teeko! Congratulations!

 

[4dugnlee]

Aww...Teeko is beautiful! Congrats!

 

[Allee]

Wow! Teeko is a very pretty bird, congratulations.

 

[Roanoke]

Thanks everyone! :smile015: I agree, he is very beautiful.
This morning was my first 'morning chorus' and wow, is he loud! Everyone talks about the volume level of parrots as compared to other parrots, but nobody ever mentions how loud they are compared to normal sounds!
Anyways, he seems relatively okay in his cage. Eats, drinks, rubs his neck on the acrylic branch. He came out to shred some paper towels and sit on my shoulder. However, he's been calling out for his owners since we woke up. (As expected) Poor guy. When do you think this'll stop?

 

[LeaKP]

Give him time. Spend time with him, treats, training, hanging out, let your hands become Disney World with the goodies he loves. He's having separation issues which you can help minimize with time and things to do. I'm sure he will settle well.

 

[Roanoke]

We spent a good hour out of the cage after church this afternoon. Fed him grapes, nuts and tiny pieces of a cracker. He's feeling more lively today.
Lively enough to run across the table and attack my dad's hand, leaving a bleeding mark. Ouch.
The previous owner said he prefers women, never mentioned that he attacks large men though. Teeko is fine with my much skinnier brother, even climbed up to his shoulder without reason.
I do have an idea of how to condition him to tolerate my dad but I'm gonna wait a few days.

He does give me a nip if I try to put him in the cage before he's ready, but I figure that if I give him treats for going in nicely when he doesn't want to, he'll get over it.
Does that technique sound like it'll work? Anyone else have suggestions?
I know I should be focused on bonding but I'm afraid of getting bitten.

On another note, how easy is it to pressure-train feisty conures? Teeko really wants to play but he does bite. I banished him to the cage after the incident, is this an effective method?

 

[RavensGryf]

Congratulations! Cinnamon are so beautiful! Teeko sounds pretty well adjusted for just coming home. Maybe down the road you'll get another and name him Draco.....

I don't think he needs a time out in this situation... Sounds like he only wants to play. I use time outs for example when they realize they're doing something bad and try to get away with it anyway. Griffin is the guy who usually needs time outs here, but his cage really isn't a good place to do it, because he likes it in there with his favorite toys!

I agree Teeko needs to know how hard is too hard. If he is just getting so "wound up" and full of energy that he's really starting to bite, just stop and remove your flesh and take a break. This is what I do with the biting... When he's more calm and biting too hard, try catching the beak between your thumb and index finger so he can't clamp down any more. Use your cue word whatever it may be (too hard, no bite, etc). They're very smart. He'll start to get it. When he turns to beaking at an acceptable level, praise him well .

 

[Roanoke]

Thanks for the advice, RavensGryf. I'll keep it in mind. He hasn't bit me since that time, though while preening he did try and help trim my nails- there's a bite-size chunk missing from one!

He was screaming on and off since I got home today, he clearly wanted attention.
I got closer to him or talked to him when he's quiet, and turned my back or left the room when he screamed. We did this for about 15-20 minutes. He started talking instead of loudly squawking, so I caved and took him down. Is this method going to work, or is there something else I should be doing?

 

[Roanoke]

Daily update! (Apologies for double posting)
Teeko is doing great. He hasn't screamed much today, only when we got home and when my sister started singing loudly. I do have a question though-
When Teeko was out and on my knee, my dog walked in and came right up to me. Of course Teek runs up to his nose and bites it, giving me some choice little nips as I whisk him away to safety. What I'd like to know is if that could be displacement biting, or is he trying to get me to flee the dangerous predator? He also nips me when my dad is too close for comfort.
(Note- I am fully aware of the dangers of allowing dogs and birds in the same room. All interactions are supervised carefully and the dog is usually restrained.)

 

[critterman]

Roanoke.....Teeko is absolutely beautiful. Glad you got him. Give it time and lots of patience and he will adapt and come around. The biting might get better. Congrats and enjoy.

 

[Abigal7]

Your conure is beautiful. To be honest Teeko sounds well adjusted but a spirited bird. This might be something some green cheek conures are prone to. I had a green cheek conure who would bite anyone that was not me. And he would bite them very hard to draw blood. My hahns macaw prefers to avoid situation and unlike that conure does not try o bite down hard.

 

[RavensGryf]

Thanks for the advice, RavensGryf. I'll keep it in mind. He hasn't bit me since that time, though while preening he did try and help trim my nails- there's a bite-size chunk missing from one!

He was screaming on and off since I got home today, he clearly wanted attention.
I got closer to him or talked to him when he's quiet, and turned my back or left the room when he screamed. We did this for about 15-20 minutes. He started talking instead of loudly squawking, so I caved and took him down. Is this method going to work, or is there something else I should be doing?

I think like Abigail said, he might just be a 'spirited' bird. I know my Griffin is. It might also be his young age. The training is essential, but not all birds will obey 100% of the time. It's something you may have to constantly be on top of for the rest of his life. Also, the longer you 'know' your bird, you will over time start to just know how to avoid bites most of the time.

Sorry about the screaming... Fortunately I don't have attention screamers, but sounds like what you're doing should get your point across, such as rewarding him when he is just talking.
Take a look at this link. There might be some good tips for Teeko... http://www.parrotforums.com/training/48649-screaming-behavior-mods.html