Very aggressive Conure, might have to give away.

IlikeBirb

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Jul 23, 2022
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GreenCheekConure
I have had my GCC for a little bit over a year now. hes less than two years old, but he is super aggressive. Everytime he sees my mom, he goes after her, and bites her extremely hard to the point of ripping chunks out of her skin. this behavior is specific to my mother, despite her doing nothing wrong to the conure. recently, he started biting at everything in the house. he bites wires (he bit through my fish heater wire and shocked and burned himself over Christmas), he randomly takes keys off of my keyboard, and he will often fly to the kitchen and "forage" which is basically him going through the trash or quiet literally flying in the fridge and taking out food. Ive tried the time out method, I have tried holding his beak, tried the shaking method, tried everything I know how. I think he is extremely spoiled and at this point I have no idea what to do because almost everything leads to him biting. I spent quiet alot of time with him, playing with him, I let him eat with me, sometimes he showers with me, and everytime he makes a mess everywhere he goes. hes out of the cage from 11 in the morning, to 10-11 at night. I dont know what other information to give but im happy to answer any questions about him.
There are times where he will come over to me and roll over and wait for me to pet him only for me to get bit the second I put my finger near him, but the bites are not aggressive, so I know hes playing.
I am being pressured rightfully to give him away because of what hes doing with my mother, and there are times were he will fly to her shoulder and bite her face, he almost bit her eye before.
How do I stop him from being aggressive and messy? If I cannot stop this behavior, where would I sell him?
 

zERo

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I have had my GCC for a little bit over a year now. hes less than two years old, but he is super aggressive. Everytime he sees my mom, he goes after her, and bites her extremely hard to the point of ripping chunks out of her skin. this behavior is specific to my mother, despite her doing nothing wrong to the conure. recently, he started biting at everything in the house. he bites wires (he bit through my fish heater wire and shocked and burned himself over Christmas), he randomly takes keys off of my keyboard, and he will often fly to the kitchen and "forage" which is basically him going through the trash or quiet literally flying in the fridge and taking out food. Ive tried the time out method, I have tried holding his beak, tried the shaking method, tried everything I know how. I think he is extremely spoiled and at this point I have no idea what to do because almost everything leads to him biting. I spent quiet alot of time with him, playing with him, I let him eat with me, sometimes he showers with me, and everytime he makes a mess everywhere he goes. hes out of the cage from 11 in the morning, to 10-11 at night. I dont know what other information to give but im happy to answer any questions about him.
There are times where he will come over to me and roll over and wait for me to pet him only for me to get bit the second I put my finger near him, but the bites are not aggressive, so I know hes playing.
I am being pressured rightfully to give him away because of what hes doing with my mother, and there are times were he will fly to her shoulder and bite her face, he almost bit her eye before.
How do I stop him from being aggressive and messy? If I cannot stop this behavior, where would I sell him?
Hmm sounds like he's becoming sexually mature. Giving birds free rein of the entire house all day is generally going to become a problem. Is his cage in the living room? Sometimes its better for their cage to be in a bedroom and perhaps they have a tree stand or playground in other rooms of the house. He should also get 10-12 hours of quiet sleep.
What's his diet like? Too much sugar, even in some veggies can cause hormones to rage. Does he have access to any dark places that could feel like a nest? Only pet him on his head and neck, petting anywhere else could trigger him hormonally.
As far as his relationship with your mother, fixing that could take some time. You should put him in his cage, or before you let him out in the morning, let your mom hand him a favorite treat, eventually he will learn that good things can come from more than one person. Green cheek conures have a tendency to become one person birds.
Have you tried target training him? Or trick training? This can work wonders with some birds, especially targeting.
As far as safety concerns in your house go, get a lid on your trash can, if there was say, raw chicken in there, that could make you and him very sick. For exposed wire, you can run it through a pvc pipe or other covering, a shock could very easily kill your bird. You must watch him while he's out, try very hard to not let him in the fridge as well, he could get a mouthful of a dangerous food like avocado.
Don't give up yet, many of these problems can be fixed with your determination and hard work.
Hope this helps :)
 
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IlikeBirb

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Jul 23, 2022
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GreenCheekConure
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Hmm sounds like he's becoming sexually mature. Giving birds free rein of the entire house all day is generally going to become a problem. Is his cage in the living room? Sometimes its better for their cage to be in a bedroom and perhaps they have a tree stand or playground in other rooms of the house. He should also get 10-12 hours of quiet sleep.
What's his diet like? Too much sugar, even in some veggies can cause hormones to rage. Does he have access to any dark places that could feel like a nest? Only pet him on his head and neck, petting anywhere else could trigger him hormonally.
As far as his relationship with your mother, fixing that could take some time. You should put him in his cage, or before you let him out in the morning, let your mom hand him a favorite treat, eventually he will learn that good things can come from more than one person. Green cheek conures have a tendency to become one person birds.
Have you tried target training him? Or trick training? This can work wonders with some birds, especially targeting.
As far as safety concerns in your house go, get a lid on your trash can, if there was say, raw chicken in there, that could make you and him very sick. For exposed wire, you can run it through a pvc pipe or other covering, a shock could very easily kill your bird. You must watch him while he's out, try very hard to not let him in the fridge as well, he could get a mouthful of a dangerous food like avocado.
Don't give up yet, many of these problems can be fixed with your determination and hard work.
Hope this helps :)
Honestly I really appreciate this response, I feel like a terrible owner, but I been doing everything I thought was right. I did not know raw chicken was bad for my bird, as I would be cooking and he would fly up and take a bite, and fly away when I try getting him away from the chicken. I never noticed anything wrong with him.
I got a few follow up questions:
When I keep him in the cage and im not around he tends to get extremely loud to the point where sometimes I can hear him from outside, how do I stop this?
How long will the training take do you think? i know this is something you might not have a answer for, but I have a timespan of how long I have to train him before I have to give him away, (3 months) and I really like him and dont want to give him away.
I think im the one person he has bonded to, as when I am not near him he gets loud and seems to have seperation anxiety.
I feel like a bad owner, but this is my first time owning one of these birds and I really am trying my best to keep him happy.
 

zERo

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Honestly I really appreciate this response, I feel like a terrible owner, but I been doing everything I thought was right. I did not know raw chicken was bad for my bird, as I would be cooking and he would fly up and take a bite, and fly away when I try getting him away from the chicken. I never noticed anything wrong with him.
I got a few follow up questions:
When I keep him in the cage and im not around he tends to get extremely loud to the point where sometimes I can hear him from outside, how do I stop this?
How long will the training take do you think? i know this is something you might not have a answer for, but I have a timespan of how long I have to train him before I have to give him away, (3 months) and I really like him and dont want to give him away.
I think im the one person he has bonded to, as when I am not near him he gets loud and seems to have seperation anxiety.
I feel like a bad owner, but this is my first time owning one of these birds and I really am trying my best to keep him happy.
Owning a bird for the first time can be a harrowing thing especially if you aren't sure of yourself or maybe advice you have received on their care.
Does he have many toys in his cage? Foraging opportunities are very important for birds. Hiding their favorite food or just semi-enticing treats. If his cage isn't a fun and entertaining place he isn't going to want to be in it.
As long as you try and train him say, twice a day for 3-4 minute periods or as long as he is able. Many tricks and targeting can be achieved in 2 or so weeks, you have to maintain it though. If he is only motivated to train once a day for 3-4 minutes that's fine also, you should probably start out with one session a day.

We all make mistakes, all we can do is improve upon them and learn from them.
You could look into some Youtubers like ElleandtheBirds, BirdTricks, SoaringWingsFlock, TheBirdNerdSophie, or TheParrotTeacher.
All channels are very helpful, also this forum is one of the best places to come when learning how to properly handle these amazing creatures.
 

wrench13

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Sometimes, a wing clipping is indicated. especially if the parrot is dive bombing family members and getting into real trouble. Wings should be clipped to the point where the parrot can glide to the floor, not drop like a rock. THis is temporary, wings feathers do grow back.
 

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