Guest sagittariusgirl89 Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 Whenever i try to pet Ava she lunges towards my finger to bite it. yesterday i didn't sit her on her perch fast enough and she took a hunk of skin off my finger... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarasota Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 It's a terrible feeling. I'm so sorry. I'm constantly working with one of my birds on building trust. Here's one tip: some birds just don't like to be pet. It's not natural for them. Or some only like being pet on the head - or she might have pin feathers coming in that make it painful to be touched right now. There are so many variables when it comes to a bite. But in short, it means "back off." In any event, sounds like you just have lessen physical contact right now and build up the trust a bit. Do you ever video the interaction? Sometimes it's really helpful to see it from another point of view - maybe your hand is moving too fast, etc. I'm awful with always trying to stick food in my bird's beak. It's a bad habit I constantly work to break...and it can make my bird cranky to the point of a nip. I hope something I've said is comforting or helpful! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Posted July 31, 2012 Share Posted July 31, 2012 Another tip is to put your bird on the floor, and make her step up from there. When she does step up, praise her. Once she is on your finger, if she tries to bite you, jerk your hand down quickly, be very stern and say "NO BITE". This accomplishes a few things; Birds feel very vulnerable when they are on the floor, your finger becomes a place of safety, and by praising her for stepping up, it will reinforce being held by you is a good thing. I think most important, you need to be the boss, if you don't dominate them they will dominate you. If they sense the slightest bit of fear, they will take advantage of that. I think after a while she will learn to trust your hands, and not try to bite. After a while, you never know, you might get lucky, she might let you pet her. Like Sarasota said "some birds just don't like to be pet", but that doesn't mean you can't have a great relationship with her anyway. Hope that helps in some way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wingy Posted July 31, 2012 Share Posted July 31, 2012 (edited) Daniel a few things. First, moving your hand quickly can and often will hurt more than it helps for 2 reasons. You can cause injury to your companion and your companion can and will bite out of fright which defeats the purpose. Creating a distraction or offering a foot toy so the beak is busy is easy and far safer. Second dominating doesn't build trust. Only time, patience, compassion and commitment builds trust. You will have a much happier companion and a much better relationship if it is give and take. Behaving with the attitude of "because I said so", unless it is an emergency, won't leave you with a loving and trusting relationship. The only way to have that is to earn it. There are no short cuts. Please think about your own personal relationships and about those that are the most important to you. Chances are they are not because you were dominated or fearful. I am sure not everyone will agree with me but in my heart this is what I believe. Another tip is to put your bird on the floor, and make her step up from there. When she does step up, praise her. Once she is on your finger, if she tries to bite you, jerk your hand down quickly, be very stern and say "NO BITE". This accomplishes a few things; Birds feel very vulnerable when they are on the floor, your finger becomes a place of safety, and by praising her for stepping up, it will reinforce being held by you is a good thing. I think most important, you need to be the boss, if you don't dominate them they will dominate you. If they sense the slightest bit of fear, they will take advantage of that. I think after a while she will learn to trust your hands, and not try to bite. After a while, you never know, you might get lucky, she might let you pet her. Like Sarasota said "some birds just don't like to be pet", but that doesn't mean you can't have a great relationship with her anyway. Hope that helps in some way. Edited July 31, 2012 by Wingy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Posted July 31, 2012 Share Posted July 31, 2012 Daniel a few things. First, moving your hand quickly can and often will hurt more than it helps for 2 reasons. You can cause injury to your companion and your companion can and will bite out of fright which defeats the purpose. Creating a distraction or offering a foot toy so the beak is busy is easy and far safer. Second dominating doesn't build trust. Only time, patience, compassion and commitment builds trust. You will have a much happier companion and a much better relationship if it is give and take. Behaving with the attitude of "because I said so", unless it is an emergency, won't leave you with a loving and trusting relationship. The only way to have that is to earn it. There are no short cuts. Please think about your own personal relationships and about those that are the most important to you. Chances are they are not because you were dominated or fearful. I am sure not everyone will agree with me but in my heart this is what I believe. Sorry I don't agree. I've raised three birds from chicks. Ruby the oldest is 16 years old, they are the sweetest, cuddly, loving birds you will ever meet, so obviously I've been doing something right. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeffNOK Posted July 31, 2012 Share Posted July 31, 2012 (edited) I would have to say that you should take things very slowly. You mention that your bird tries to bite you when you try to pet her. I would suggest you don't try to pet her right now. Petting isn't something all greys enjoy. When she tries to bite she is saying, "Please don't pet me. I don't want that." My grey and I have a great relationship, but she doesn't like being petted. I touch her beak with my nose and she will step up and sit on my hand or shoulder, but if I try to pet her she resists and avoids it (she doesn't bite). You have had her for a very very short time. It takes months to bond. Focus on interacting with her in her comfort zone. I see slow but steady progress with my one year old CAG all the time, but when I rushed things at the beginning it set us back. My CAG did occassionally nip/bite when I first brought her home, but when I got to know her body language and she came to trust me, I discovered that biting disappeared. The worst thing Gracie my CAG will do if she doesn't want to be handled is use her beak to push away my finger. If it isn't a big deal, I just respect that. If I really need to handle her for some reason, then I just persist and say "step up" despite her objection and she complies. Remember life with a grey is a long journey. Good luck and keep us posted. I know we are going to hear stories of your progress together. Edited July 31, 2012 by JeffNOK Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarasota Posted July 31, 2012 Share Posted July 31, 2012 Well said, Jeff!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kins2321@yahoo.com Posted August 1, 2012 Share Posted August 1, 2012 Daniel... whats great about this site, is we can agree, to disagree! Yes... we are all always learning! I liked your floor idea, ( I did the same), but never tried jerking my hand away.I agree about the injury question. How did you avoid that possibility? I gently grabbed my birds beak, said " NO BITE". returned bird to cage, and tried again five minutes later. Nancy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katana600 Posted August 2, 2012 Share Posted August 2, 2012 I think Daniel is referring to the "earthquake" technique to break a bite in progress while you are holding the parrot. The word "jerking" means different things to different people so it sounds harsh but what I originally pictured mentally isn't likely what he is describing. If Ava is biting on approach to touch her, it could be so many things. Gilbert will attempt a bite on my sometimes because he is being cage aggressive, sometimes because he is in a bad mood and sometimes for who knows what. It is true that some greys do not want to be touched at all, some will only tolerate it under special circumstances with only certain family members. Watch Ava closely for opportunities to have positive interactions, giving her a treat etc. Greys are subtle and don't just naturally go to biting, it seems that is a strong reaction. However, what starts for one reason sometimes continues for totally different reasons. It is hard to get a "feel" for the situation through the internet. Do you have anyone you know with parrot experience? Is there a breeder in your area who could come and talk and watch the interaction to help give you some clues to what Ava is doing? If I recall, she is still young and it doesn't make sense to me that she is biting you. She may be oversensitive to her "zone" where she wants people to be or it could be so many things. Hope you can sort it out and have that loving relationship with her that you want so much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kins2321@yahoo.com Posted August 2, 2012 Share Posted August 2, 2012 I never heard of the " earthquake" tecnique. How interesting. I LOVE learning new things about our birds. Thanks for sharing. Nancy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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