I have a lovely male lorie who is very friendly and a joy to have around, but lately he has started biting to the point of drawing blood. He readily hops out onto my hand and rubs his beak against my hand in an affectionate manner, but a few seconds later he bites, sometimes more than once. Help how can I correct this behavior before it becomes a habit? Am I doing something to cause it?

-- Bev from Ontario

We are first-time owners of this beautiful little five-month-old greencheek conure. She and I got along just fine at first, but I believe she has now bonded with my boyfriend. Being the first one up in the mornings, I change her water, food and give her treats and she always cuddles with me for a while at that time. But she also now seems to enjoy just biting me whenever she can. She will be sitting on my finger or arm and will just reach down and start biting. I try the "earthquake" rocking of my hand or arm when she bites, while telling her "no bite", but quite often it just makes her madder and she bites me again while making fussing noises. The session ends with me putting her back into her cage. My boyfriend has backed off handling her until she and I get this resolved. I am getting extremely discouraged.

-- Sharon Haresh

I just received a 5-year-old severe macaw from people who were moving and could not take him back east. I've been working with Jade every day. I can get him on my hand by saying "up," and for a second or two he's okay, but then watch out - pow! He bites through welding gloves. Jade has attacked my three dogs, two cats and my 3-year-old daughter on the foot. I really love this little guy but he is a brat!

-- Heather

BITING IS ALWAYS a tough one to deal with. First of all, I don’t think there is any such thing as unprovoked biting. There is always a reason and there is always a warning. We just don’t always pick up on it.

There seem to be two schools of thought. One is that if you have a parrot, eventually you will be bitten. The other is that you should never be bitten by your parrot. The truth is this: Parrots rarely, if ever, bite each other in the wild. Even if they do, they never draw blood. So why would they do it in captivity?

The reason is simple, actually. We humans aren’t always as attentive to what our birds are telling us as other birds are. For instance, before I try to take my bird out of his cage, scratch him on the head, or interact with him at all, I assess his body language. Those fleshy bald spots around his eyes tell me everything I need to know. When they are dark and puffy, it's no longer, "Look how cute I am," but "My, but those fingers would be tasty right now!" If he has that "look" I know all too well, I don’t even stop to say hello, because I think it is better to avoid a negative interaction than to have to correct it. However if he is bouncing up and down with his stubby little crest up, I know he’s ready to come out for some lovin'! (The same color/puffiness combo may not mean the same thing with other bare-eyes, so it really is about learning to read the individuals body language.)

Another mistake I think people make with their pets, including dogs and other animals, is to allow them to chew on them, even playfully. If lightly mouthing your finger is okay, and even slightly more pressure during energetic play is okay, then how hard is too hard and how do they differentiate? Wouldn’t it simply be easier for them to learn that fingers are not pacifiers?

Macaws with their great big beaks love to mouth things. They just seem to explore the world with their beak. Every cuddly little baby macaw I have seen has tried everything in its power to get my fingers in its beak but I never allow it. It may be cute now, but when he’s older it may be a huge liability. Why take the chance?

So how do we get the bird to quit biting? Positive reinforcement of course! Reinforce your bird for sitting nicely on your hand. Again this is with a scratch on the head, a sunflower seed, whatever works for your bird. At the first sign that your bird may bite, set him down or put him back in his cage. Again, avoiding the negative situation is easier than dealing with it afterward. What you are training the bird here is to sit calmly on your hand without biting. Any attempt to bite or even nibble lightly will be met immediately with him losing his precious time with you.

What if your bird has just bitten you? React, of course - immediately and appropriately. Don’t hit the bird, don’t throw the bird, and don’t scream bloody murder. Simply put the bird down on the floor immediately with no great fanfare. If the bird is flighted, then simply roll your hand and drop it. The bird bites, and it loses its perch and the ability to be with its person. (Never drop a bird with clipped wings on the ground. You want it to experience the consequences of its actions, not injure it.)

I have heard people say that you should simply sit there and show no reaction so that the bird will think, "Well, that didn't accomplish what I wanted." And it will stop biting. All I have to say is if you can tolerate that much pain, you must have nerve damage!

With time and patience, even the worst biters can come around. Just remember, reward the good behavior and make the bad behavior as undesirable to the bird as possible. And if you think you may get bitten in a given situation, don’t push your luck. Although your finger will heal fairly quickly, your relationship with your parrot could take longer to recover. For more reading on biting and parrots check out this article on the subject by Steve Martin.

ParrotChronicles.com

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