nipping

[rua]

swet pea my major mitchell, has finished he molt(sp), and for the fist time is nipping me, my arms are getting bruised, she will back off if growled at, she hates being "In the dog box", but as soon as things are back to normal its nippy time again, especially if i am holding something...one friend suggested sh wants to mate as she wiggles her tail end over seat arms or in a small bowl in her cage. can any one shed light on her behaviour, and what is the best way to deal with the nipping...she is two yrs old.

by the way i posted a short introduction, uncle tells me there were lovely replys, I have never been able to find these posts again , I would loved to have read them but as I said I have no idea how to find those postings...slly me rua

[bonnie]

Hello Rua! When you mentioned the moult and the nipping I thought maybe she did want to mate. From my experience that is just something we have to live with. Maybe someone will come by with better info for you than I can give.

this link will take you directly to your introduction and it's replies:
http://www.happybirdy.com/mainforum_happybirdy_com/showthread.php?t=57

[Don]

Hi Rua, I think you are being tested, she knew the rules with your Aunt, but now it's another person - time outs and/or being ignored may help - you can try letting her know, make her 'feel bad' for her actions - they do learn, but they can also make a game of it - you need to learn to 'read her' when that behavior starts, blow in her face to distract her - but not too closely, you can also quickly move your arm a little to make her feel unstable as a distraction too - :)

Don

[FoxersArtist]

Rua,
I totally agree with Don on this one (about causing a little birdy earthquake), though I have to ask...Is sweet pea biting more when you try to step her up from inside her cage or does she randomly bite you when you are holding her? Biting in the cage could be a territorial issue. If she is not biting until you have been holding her a while, it could mean that she is feeling a bit overstimulated. Either way, learning to read her body language every time you are near her will drastically help. If I had to guess, I would say that sweet pea doesn't want to bite you. She is likely trying to tell you what she wants/doesn't like but as humans, we don't always see what they are trying to say and so they resort to biting. Unfortunately, we can't allow them to think that they can get what they want by biting because then they will make a game of it and continue to use biting as their most effective form of communication. Let us know how it's going!
-Anna

[Julie]

It amazes me how something as simple as some dicipline can work wonders with our birds. Something as little as a "no bite" and putting them back in thier cage and turning your back can drastically alter thier behaviour. Just try to take it with patience, with a calm attitude, and a repetitive behaviour pattern Sweet Pea will pick up quickly. She is fairly young still, and still coping with your aunt.

Keep us posted.

[birdie]

Rua~
Sounds like mating behavior to me also.
You’ll have to pay close attention to Sweet peas actions, and watch for signs before the nipping, then put him in his cage before you get bitten. It took me a while to figure things out with Stella, but now I know what to watch for and put her in her cage so I avoid being bitten. This year we’ve been doing quite well. Last year I had a bad bite to my face. Uncle helped me to reason a lot of things out and what to look for that I was missing.
I have found that to control her when she gets overly excited, I step her up on my hand facing away from me, and place my hand around the base of her tail firmly but without squeezing and I can control her better while getting her into her cage so I don’t get bitten.
Try going to a different room to play if you can, a change of scenery helps some with Stella. Also shorter play sessions will give less stimulation to the biting.

Keep us updatedJ

[Dot]

Remember that drama is reward, so don't make a big deal out of putting her in jail. Just quietly walk over, incarcerate her, and leave the room. Try not to even shout "Ouch." That is hard one for me.

Also you need to be consistent. Determine how much of a nip is too much and always put her in jail for that. It confuses them if sometimes they are allowed freedom after a bite but other times they are put in jail.