How on earth do I get Tweetie back to being a nice tame bird?:devil:

Lately she has been biting and actually drawing blood on my ears, eyes and cheeks and neck:angry:. She is in a heavy moult also very hormonal, her cere is almost chocolate brown.

If you could see me now, you would all run a mile, I actually have the arms of my glasses in cotton gloves to deter her, but she just crawls under the loose finger and gets a beak full of flesh.

Have tried blowing on her face, but she gets in such a position I cannnot get to her face to push up her beak.

Any help for 'war victim'

Cindy

First you need to analyse why your budgie may be biting. Did you change anything recently? It could be, like you said hormones.

But if you are completely exhausted of solutions, then read this:

http://forums.budgiebreeders.asn.au/index....10033&hl

Edited June 22, 200619 yr by Sailorwolf

Thanks Sailorwolf, but that has been tried several times, and all it does for her, is that she flies to the other side and bites twice as hard. Nothing has been changed to her enviroment.

It is getting to that stage that I feel like finding a new home for her - only problem is I'm too attached.

Cindy

I think it may be do to hormones, have you reduced the time of light she gets during the day? This will help reduce the hormone effects and in turn hopefully the behavior. Also moulting especially heavy can't be fun just think of how irritable us women get 1 a month .

 

Peronally I wouldn't let her crawl all over me biting I would remove her from me and put her on top of her cage or where ever you can to start working on rewarding behavior. Work on the positive when she is behaving reward her with a treat..what does she enjoy? Sometimes it is millett others times it could just be seed in your head for her to eat or a certain veggie?

 

Make sure you keep her below eye level not above, is her cage at eye level or up higher? Do you have a play gym for her outside of her cage to entertain herself with? I noticed you have 10 budgies, does she play with them?

 

Getting rid of her is giving her problem to someone else that is really not fair to her or another person. It doesn't give her a chance for anything. The issue would just continue with someone else since it is not a bird to bird related issue more of a human to bird issue. So I would reconsider that solution.

What I do is I set aside one cage for discipline/sickness and use that. Anyway, put her in another cage with no food and water for half an hour, covered, and then bring her out with the other birds again--in a quiet place. Use a timer so you won't forget you have a bird in seperation for a short period of time. That way she knows she won't be rewarded or encouraged to keep biting. My Woodie is starting to show some hormonal changes too. Her cere is turning tannish-brown, and hasn't yet gotten to the irritable stage. But that is what I recommend otherwise the bird will continue it's behavior. Showing her that biting is a no-no and that she will be separated from the others for it lets her know that that behavior is not right.

Maybe in the wild it's normal for the birds to bite, but when a human is caring for them, it's important to train her to do acceptable behaviors. Time outs work...they do for mine and they hate being separated.

 

:rip:

What I do is I set aside one cage for discipline/sickness and use that. Anyway, put her in another cage with no food and water for half an hour, covered, and then bring her out with the other birds again--in a quiet place. Use a timer so you won't forget you have a bird in seperation for a short period of time. That way she knows she won't be rewarded or encouraged to keep biting. My Woodie is starting to show some hormonal changes too. Her cere is turning tannish-brown, and hasn't yet gotten to the irritable stage. But that is what I recommend otherwise the bird will continue it's behavior. Showing her that biting is a no-no and that she will be separated from the others for it lets her know that that behavior is not right.

Maybe in the wild it's normal for the birds to bite, but when a human is caring for them, it's important to train her to do acceptable behaviors. Time outs work...they do for mine and they hate being separated.

 

Thanks WoodieCloud315, I do put her in her sin bin, but I had water and seed in ther, so I'll remove those and see how she goes. Funny thing is that she does not bite any visitors, just kisses them ever so gently.

 

Oh by the way Karen, I would not give her away, even though I feel like it at times.

She does not play with the otherr 10 as they are out in the Aviary. But when new babies come along she has play time with them, teaches them all her tricks etc.

I have tried several mates for her but she did not like any of them. Maybe she has a colour preference which we have not yet found.

Cindy

Moon dose the same thing- it may be hormonal. Her nose is already very brown and she is biting more now than when she was younger. Right now I am just ignoring her bites with a glove and presuming training with her. It is working to some effect... but she still bites, but not as much and not as visciously.