Hello all! This is my first post on this forum, but surely not my last!
A little under two weeks ago, I got an 8 to 12 week old green cheek conure from a local, very reputable bird store. Hand fed and all that good stuff. He came right up to me in the cage along with his brothers and sisters, and fought them all off so he could have my undivided attention. We took him out and he was very gentle and sweet. I took out one of the others, just to be fair and see how they were, and it was bite city! Ouch! I spent about an hour walking around the store with him, giving him some formula in a syringe, and generally getting a feel for him.
So we left with "Charlie" in a little cardboard box where he gently nibbled my fingers and allowed me to pet him on the ride home. The first few days were great. Charlie steps up like a pro! He enjoyed being scratched behind his head and on his chin and closed his eyes in little bird ecstasy. He loves to come out and hang out on mine or my girlfriend's hand. For being brand new to us, he's great.
Let's fast forward a little bit so I can get to the problems he has been developing: he has become increasingly prone to biting. Petting his little head is no longer an option as he will "falcon scream," as I call it, and try his best to avoid my hand or bite it. It's not a scream of fear or alarm, but rather a quiet, eagle-like scream of "get the hell away from me!" His bites have become increasingly hard, breaking the skin for the first time today. Any time you do something he doesn't like, which is impossible to predict, out comes the scream and the bite.
I see countless videos of people with their little conures, kissing them, loving on them, petting them, handling them, and generally just being adorable. There is no way I can do any of that with little Charlie! I know that it takes time to build a bond with a bird, and I definitely didn't expect to bring home a perfect angel. It's his backwards progression that is bothersome to me. He seems to get worse daily and I have no idea why.
To summarize: he loves company. He loves to be out of his cage. He has no fear of us and steps up great, even when he flies onto my girlfriends head to play with her hair or on my shoulder, where he is not yet allowed. In fact, he is sitting in the crook of my elbow right now as I type this. He just HATES being pet and his "don't love me" attitude seems like it's now branching into other things. For example, I gave him a sunflower seed as a treat today and he took the seed, unleashed his inner falcon, and bit me hard on the finger. Why did I deserve that? I was only rewarding a good "step up" session.
There is SO much conflicting information out there about how to properly curb his behavior. The "earthquake" method is rarely applicable, because he very rarely bites the hand he is perched on. Only those that come towards him. Some people recommend a time out in his cage. One breeder recommended that I grab him and hold his little head in my hands and say "NO" and hold him firmly until he relaxes, but I worry that this will teach him to dislike hands coming at him even more than he already seems to. Other people say ignore the biting completely and only react/reward desired behavior. What the heck and I supposed to do? (Since typing this paragraph, I began to pet Charlie on the back of his head as he sat in my wrist. His feathers puffed up like they do when he is enjoying it, he turned his head to allow his chin to get rubbed, and then... FALCON BITE! Back to the perch.)
Charlie is, generally, good. He is quiet and enjoys being social. I just want that little loving conure that I see in all the videos. I know he's only been here about 12 days and that he is young, but I want to start a good foundation with him and be consistent. I have no problem being patient with him, I just want to be on the right foot and as his confidence in our apartment has increased, so has his apparent desire to say "I don't want you loving on me! Get away!" It's really impossible to determine what he wants or what he gets out of the biting.
On a side note, if he is wrapped in a towel (which he enjoys after his daily bath) or cloth of some kind, I can pick him up and rub him and pet him all over. I can roll him onto his back. He gets angry at HANDS and seemingly little else.
Can anyone help me out and help me make sure I am not raising a demon? I miss the potential of the little bird we had last week! I am home all day and I just moved to a new state, so my girlfriend and I did a lot of research and determined that Charlie would be a good little companion for me while I work from home. He was for 48 hours. He bit my girlfriend so hard last night that she cried, not from pain, but because "he hurt her feelings."
Any advice is welcome, obviously.
Charlie and I thank you for your time.
A little under two weeks ago, I got an 8 to 12 week old green cheek conure from a local, very reputable bird store. Hand fed and all that good stuff. He came right up to me in the cage along with his brothers and sisters, and fought them all off so he could have my undivided attention. We took him out and he was very gentle and sweet. I took out one of the others, just to be fair and see how they were, and it was bite city! Ouch! I spent about an hour walking around the store with him, giving him some formula in a syringe, and generally getting a feel for him.
So we left with "Charlie" in a little cardboard box where he gently nibbled my fingers and allowed me to pet him on the ride home. The first few days were great. Charlie steps up like a pro! He enjoyed being scratched behind his head and on his chin and closed his eyes in little bird ecstasy. He loves to come out and hang out on mine or my girlfriend's hand. For being brand new to us, he's great.
Let's fast forward a little bit so I can get to the problems he has been developing: he has become increasingly prone to biting. Petting his little head is no longer an option as he will "falcon scream," as I call it, and try his best to avoid my hand or bite it. It's not a scream of fear or alarm, but rather a quiet, eagle-like scream of "get the hell away from me!" His bites have become increasingly hard, breaking the skin for the first time today. Any time you do something he doesn't like, which is impossible to predict, out comes the scream and the bite.
I see countless videos of people with their little conures, kissing them, loving on them, petting them, handling them, and generally just being adorable. There is no way I can do any of that with little Charlie! I know that it takes time to build a bond with a bird, and I definitely didn't expect to bring home a perfect angel. It's his backwards progression that is bothersome to me. He seems to get worse daily and I have no idea why.
To summarize: he loves company. He loves to be out of his cage. He has no fear of us and steps up great, even when he flies onto my girlfriends head to play with her hair or on my shoulder, where he is not yet allowed. In fact, he is sitting in the crook of my elbow right now as I type this. He just HATES being pet and his "don't love me" attitude seems like it's now branching into other things. For example, I gave him a sunflower seed as a treat today and he took the seed, unleashed his inner falcon, and bit me hard on the finger. Why did I deserve that? I was only rewarding a good "step up" session.
There is SO much conflicting information out there about how to properly curb his behavior. The "earthquake" method is rarely applicable, because he very rarely bites the hand he is perched on. Only those that come towards him. Some people recommend a time out in his cage. One breeder recommended that I grab him and hold his little head in my hands and say "NO" and hold him firmly until he relaxes, but I worry that this will teach him to dislike hands coming at him even more than he already seems to. Other people say ignore the biting completely and only react/reward desired behavior. What the heck and I supposed to do? (Since typing this paragraph, I began to pet Charlie on the back of his head as he sat in my wrist. His feathers puffed up like they do when he is enjoying it, he turned his head to allow his chin to get rubbed, and then... FALCON BITE! Back to the perch.)
Charlie is, generally, good. He is quiet and enjoys being social. I just want that little loving conure that I see in all the videos. I know he's only been here about 12 days and that he is young, but I want to start a good foundation with him and be consistent. I have no problem being patient with him, I just want to be on the right foot and as his confidence in our apartment has increased, so has his apparent desire to say "I don't want you loving on me! Get away!" It's really impossible to determine what he wants or what he gets out of the biting.
On a side note, if he is wrapped in a towel (which he enjoys after his daily bath) or cloth of some kind, I can pick him up and rub him and pet him all over. I can roll him onto his back. He gets angry at HANDS and seemingly little else.
Can anyone help me out and help me make sure I am not raising a demon? I miss the potential of the little bird we had last week! I am home all day and I just moved to a new state, so my girlfriend and I did a lot of research and determined that Charlie would be a good little companion for me while I work from home. He was for 48 hours. He bit my girlfriend so hard last night that she cried, not from pain, but because "he hurt her feelings."

Any advice is welcome, obviously.
Charlie and I thank you for your time.