Senegal of quils..

[ParrotsinHAWAII]

Aloha,

my sene is ok with me, even goes on my shoulder. Used to bite even me, now after a bit of training, talking, re enforcement etc, she is calm with me.

she attacks the cage when other walk by, and bites everyone else.

most recent bit my wifes face while she was handling our african gray (or grey for you Brits =))

thank fully the bite was not deep, and was more of a violent pinch.

help.

 

[thekarens]

Hopefully someone will have good advice. My sennie loves me, but if the dogs get anywhere near me when I have her she will give me a good pinch. It's the old saying, "if you can't bite the one you want, but the one that's closest."

 

[Thatdude596]

If a bird bit me in the face it's no longer going to have the chance to do it ever again. I look at it no different than a dog biting someone. My bird has never bit me and I don't think it ever would. Yes training has some impact but it's considered tame and them
Bites you it's time for birdie to go.

 

[thekarens]

If a bird bit me in the face it's no longer going to have the chance to do it ever again. I look at it no different than a dog biting someone. My bird has never bit me and I don't think it ever would. Yes training has some impact but it's considered tame and them
Bites you it's time for birdie to go.

You obviously have no clue about birds. You can't compare birds to dogs. Every bird has the potential to bite and if you feel that way chances are your bird will end up in another home.

 

[Captsteve]

If a bird bit me in the face it's no longer going to have the chance to do it ever again. I look at it no different than a dog biting someone. My bird has never bit me and I don't think it ever would. Yes training has some impact but it's considered tame and them
Bites you it's time for birdie to go.

That my friend is a weak statement. You might want to go ahead and start looking for a new home for your bird. It's not if, It's When!!

 

[Thatdude596]

No I don't all that much, never said I did. I guess my question is to you guys why do you keep birds that bite. Birds that can do damage if bitten . Would you keep a dog or cat that bite all the time, or once a week/day? I'm having a hard time what makes that cool and fun. Heck most people put the animals down if they bite. I
Understand a dog is smarter loyal and more tame but again why own an animal if you know it's going to bite.

Poisonous snakes are beautiful looking and will bite. Doesn't mean I'm going to have one as a pet. Yes you can have antivenom on hand and won't die. Alligators and wolfs are beautiful animal smart animal too but why have them if they bite.

I dunno maybe you guys are wrong, maybe right but mine hasn't bitten anyone ever. I don't think he has a mean bone in his body and much of that comes from breeders like any other animal. It's all about quality not quantity

I would have done the same thing as the op of anyone In the family got bit in the face

 

[Birdman666]

Hopefully someone will have good advice. My sennie loves me, but if the dogs get anywhere near me when I have her she will give me a good pinch. It's the old saying, "if you can't bite the one you want, but the one that's closest."

It's called displacement biting... there are training protocols to reduce that.

 

[Birdman666]

If a bird bit me in the face it's no longer going to have the chance to do it ever again. I look at it no different than a dog biting someone. My bird has never bit me and I don't think it ever would. Yes training has some impact but it's considered tame and them
Bites you it's time for birdie to go.

I agree. Pretty ignorant statement. How many large parrots have you owned? Macaws, amazons, and large toos certainly can and will under the right circumstances, without being startle trained...

Ranks right up there with why would you get a puppy if it pees on the floor? The first time the puppy pees on my floor, he's gone! (Or you could just train him not to pee on the floor...)

THIS IS A TRAINING ISSUE... any bird that does not get handled does not stay tame.

A lot of birds don't come socialized, they have to learn to allow people to handle them, or they will bite. A lot of pair bond species, i.e. conures, macaws, and amazons if they only get handled by "their person" they will bite anyone who is not "their person."

A bird that is biting needs to be handled MORE, not less. The more they get handled, the more they get used to it, and the less they bite. This is a TRAIN THE HUMANS thing as much as it is a train the bird thing.

I have taken in birds that have been dumped for exactly this sort of thing, and with the right training, it simply stops... including three or four that have actually maimed people because they were never trained not to bite, and never trained to accept being handled or touched... and six weeks later were the tamest, sweetest, most trustworthy bird around... Their humans did not do the work and suffered the consequences because of it...

It's not the bird's fault. In the wild, you would never in a million years get close enough to a bird to pick it up, much less ever hope to touch it... They would fly off long before that happened. Those wild instincts remain. In captivity, a bird is quite literally TRUSTING YOU WITH IT'S LIFE when it allows you to handle it! (Who have you completely entrusted your life to lately?) That level of trust takes time. You are conditioning the bird to accept this, and showing him that he not only won't be harmed by allowing it, he will actually enjoy it.

And again, birds that cannot be trusted on shoulders should be trained to remain on a hand or an arm... (NOT DUMPED IN THE GARBAGE!)

And you don't get that privilege again, unless you stop biting.

A bird that is aggressive with people and biting gets wings clipped, and when he acts up, that's it, down to the floor you go, and you don't get up again, until you behave, and until you step up nice.

Sounds like this little guy just needs to be handled more, and by more people.

Attacking the cage bars when people walk by is a sign of territorialism. He is warning them to stay away from his space. What you want to do is have him invite strangers in. The easiest way to start this stuff is if complete strangers walking by his cage stop to talk to him, and then give him a treat. Strangers will then become less threatening... possibly even a good thing.

Also - and this probably comes as a news flash to you...

Sennie's have 'TUDE... and lots of it!

In order to handle them safely you have to have a bit of 'TUDE yourself. They get that!

 

[Kalidasa]

If a bird bit me in the face it's no longer going to have the chance to do it ever again. I look at it no different than a dog biting someone. My bird has never bit me and I don't think it ever would. Yes training has some impact but it's considered tame and them
Bites you it's time for birdie to go.

LMAO! If everyone was so cowardly and irresponsible as to get rid of a bird that has bitten someone, no one would have a bird. Parrots bite, it happens, and in no way could that be compared to a dog, or a venomous snake (lol, a snake, really?) it's hard wired in their genes to bite, chew, etc. it happens. Probably the most irresponsible statement or advice would be to immediately get rid of a bird after. The rescue centers are full if birds victimized by mentalities such as yours.

 

[Jayyj]

Birdman666, what a great post, you put it perfectly.

Any bird that bites all the time is doing it for a reason. We bring these creatures into our homes, and they bring us a huge amount of pleasure. The price of that pleasure is responsibility to make sure they are secure and comfortable in our homes, and a bird that bites or attacks is doing so because something is not right in its environment, or because it has learned that aggressive behavior is the way to get what it wants. Either way, figure out what the bird is trying to tell you and you have the beginnings of a constructive way forward.

The OP must be thinking he's opened a can of worms here! Hang in there though - this forum is an amazing resource for helping to understand why birds might act in an unacceptable manner, and how to address it. I'm sure we'll be able to come up with some good advice for you.

 

[Birdman666]

Birdman666, what a great post, you put it perfectly.

I taught birdhandling and training classes down at the rescue for 5-6 years or so...

In reading that post it kinda pressed my "hot" button (not the original post, but the one about dumping a bird that bites, just to be clear), and there is also a feeling that I've made this same speech a thousand times. Socialization is so important, and most folks never do enough of it. Then the poor bird doesn't know how to behave, and gets labeled or dumped as a "problem bird" for not knowing how to behave...

This sennie was only beginning to be comfortable with "his" person handling it. He needs to learn to be comfortable with everyone in the household handling it. He needs to know that no harm will come to him if he allows that to happen, and there is nothing to be defensive about. And he also needs to know that no one in the household is willing to put up with his B.S.
I'M NOT GOING TO HURT YOU BIRD, BUT I'M NOT GOING TO SIT HERE AND LET YOU BITE ME EITHER.

Once those things happen, and it takes time, usually a month or two, the biting stops.

 

[Birdman666]

Any bird that bites all the time is doing it for a reason.

SOME BIRDS DO THIS FOR SPORT... BECAUSE THEY CAN!

You can also inadvertently train them to bite you.

You mean, all I have to do is bite you, and I get my way?! LIKE, this whole friggin' house belongs to me now?!

Yeah.. don't try that one with a dominant male greening!!!

I once did an intervention in a household being run by a dominant greening. He was actually chasing his owners around the house because they wouldn't stand up to MGHTY BEAK...

He tried that with me, and I pulled a cushion off the couch, back his little butt up into a corner, and made him sit there and think about it for a minute. Then I made him step up nice. (Had ahold of his beak when he did so he could not bite me.) When he tried to bite me after letting go of his beak, he found himself right back on the floor, and right back in that corner. After about three tries, he never tried to bite me again. Whole training took all of about 15 minutes... and when the other members of the household got on board and actually disciplined the bird instead of letting him run amuck... he actually turned into a decent bird.

It was harder for them to handle him than me. After that first day, he never even attempted to bite me again.

They will if you let them.

 

[thekarens]

Hopefully someone will have good advice. My sennie loves me, but if the dogs get anywhere near me when I have her she will give me a good pinch. It's the old saying, "if you can't bite the one you want, but the one that's closest."

It's called displacement biting... there are training protocols to reduce that.

You're right and that's something I should work on immediately while she's still young.

 

[ParrotsinHAWAII]

well if anything an interesting read...

 

[JerseyWendy]

If a bird bit me in the face it's no longer going to have the chance to do it ever again. I look at it no different than a dog biting someone. My bird has never bit me and I don't think it ever would. Yes training has some impact but it's considered tame and them
Bites you it's time for birdie to go.

I will only say this: With the above statement you surely opened mouth and inserted foot.

 

[mtdoramike]

If a bird bit me in the face it's no longer going to have the chance to do it ever again. I look at it no different than a dog biting someone. My bird has never bit me and I don't think it ever would. Yes training has some impact but it's considered tame and them
Bites you it's time for birdie to go.

Do you actually have a bird? I love it when people post that their bird has never bitten them. I don't buy it. I don't care how tame a bird is, they will eventually bite, whether it be from boredom, spite or mad, or because something startled them. It's easy to forget about those occasional bites or pinches that only happen every now and then when you let your guard down, especially when they have been so sweet and loving for awhile.

I also agree though, that depending on how badly or how often a bird bites me will depend on whether or not he stays or goes. Most people wouldn't put up with a biting dog, so I agree with that.

 

[Merlee]

If a bird bit me in the face it's no longer going to have the chance to do it ever again. I look at it no different than a dog biting someone. My bird has never bit me and I don't think it ever would. Yes training has some impact but it's considered tame and them
Bites you it's time for birdie to go.

I will only say this: With the above statement you surely opened mouth and inserted foot.

It's nice to see I am not the only one who does this.

 

[daniell]

Let me preface this by saying that I don't have a bird. I really know nothing about training them. I have had dogs. I have never been bitten by them.
I am entertaining the idea of adopting a medium sized older bird. At this point a young bird could easily outlive me.
I do have a fear of getting bitten however. I was wondering whether I could wear kevlar gloves while training the bird. Also, I have some fear being bitten in the face.

 

[mtdoramike]

Let me preface this by saying that I don't have a bird. I really know nothing about training them. I have had dogs. I have never been bitten by them.
I am entertaining the idea of adopting a medium sized older bird. At this point a young bird could easily outlive me.
I do have a fear of getting bitten however. I was wondering whether I could wear kevlar gloves while training the bird. Also, I have some fear being bitten in the face.

If you have any fear of getting bitten, a bird isn't the pet for you because you will get bit at some point even by hand tamed or hand raised birds. Both of my birds were hand raised and hand tame, but they both have bitten me to the point of drawing blood. The small isn't always the better when it comes to birds either. My Senegal is a small bird, but will give a good pinch every now and then. She gave my wife a bite last week that drew blood and my wife is her favorite person and can do just about anything with her.