Grey started nipping

[Kamz]

Hi all,

ive had my grey (Mika) since he was 12weeks old and now he is two n a bit, 

he has been my best buddy from day one as he don’t get on with my wife lol. 

For some reason he has started to get very nippy with me and was wondering if this is the behavior of a two year old?

he has a big cage with a selection of toys, I have had him on a very healthy diet with all the vitamins which are needed. He is out of the cage every day without fail, most of the day when I get back from work. He has his own TV and UV light and I do give him a lot of attention but all of a sudden last week he has got a bit nippy with me which is very strange. He has not had a fall or anything like that so I’m kinda confused to say the least. 

Hope somebody can advise me please.....

[judygram]

Hello Kamz and  welcome to our family. Its typical for a grey to be more bitey when they reach the twos but be sure you are not trying to get him to do something he doesn't want to do for that is their main way of telling you they don't like something so respect his choice of what he wants from you. Also remember these birds are not domesticated animals but wild so they use that beak as we might use our hand. Even the best of buddies can dislike something and react with a bite. You need to learn to read his body language to know when to leave well enough alone, greys display body stance and even the eyes tell of their emotions so be aware of what they are and how he reacts and you can learn to avoid most bites.

Would love to see some pictures of Mika.

[Greytness]

Oh yes! Two is the famous 'terrible two's' stage for greys. Mine went through it for 6-9 months before he grew out of it. He was testing his boundaries, just like toddlers do!
I believe that Dave posted behavioral stages of greys somewhere in the forum. I found his words of wisdom invaluable when my was younger.

[Kamz]

Thank you for the reply’s. It did cross my mind that it’s probably “that” age as I’m not making him do anything out of the normal.

I would be playing with him on the bed and he would all of a sudden grab my fingers and give me a hard nip which is not normal for him, plus he would be on my shoulder all fine asking for a head scratch then a few seconds later just give my ear a nip lol. 

I probably think it’s that age thing but it just took me by surprise as he has never given me a nip in an aggressive way which it seemed to me.

i have tried to look up the behavioral stages of a grey but can’t seem to find a good source plus I’m new to this family of grey owners

[judygram]

This was created by Dan not Dave but its got all the info for the ages.

[Kamz]

Thank you so much, I have just been through it and to be honest it makes so much sense now. Mika is acting just the same as it’s said in the post. Thank you again and I’ll keep posting

[neoow]

Welcome to the forums!

Please do stick around and share your stories/questions with us! (and photos... hint hint!)

[Kamz]

Thank you to all who replied to my post the other day, excellent advice which has helped me learn a tad more about Mika. I did do a load of research before we brought him home a couple of years ago and still learning more day by day.

[Timbersmom]

Pretty bird!

[Acappella]

Mika is a good healthy looking grey. I can't offer much advice on the terrible twos because I got Dorian after he'd been through them, but do a search in the training room.  There's a thread in there about body language of a grey.  Maybe you shouldn't allow him on your shoulder for a while.

[Kamz]

Thanks for the reply. To be honest Mika has got back to his normal self, think he was probably having a bad week or so.lol. Completely the same affectionate and playful self. I have a feeling he may have got scared of something and blamed me for it.lol.

I had fallen asleep for a tad and was woken by him on the bed (he has a whole bedroom to himself with tv, DVD, UV lamp etc etc) wanting a head scratch and wanting me to play ball.....