Well I have been working with my budgie Angel everynight I can, trying to get her to bond with me. However while we have made small steps forward with the broccoli she still attacks my fingers. Even when I have food for her she seems to be torn between eating the food and biting my finger, it's like eat or bite, eat or bite.

 

Now while she has not been biting me hard and therefore me not really worried about thinking that she is trying to boss me about, last night she actually latched onto me and broke the skin. She had latched onto me so tight that when I moved finger away she came with it still attached hanging off my finger and (while you are all laughing picturing that :rofl: ) I dont mind saying that it bloody hurt and I am now thinking twice before putting my hand in her cage again. She is even trying to get to my finger when it is on the outside of the cage.

 

What I want to know is has anyone else had the same experiences and there bird has come good or should I move her into an aviary with other birds so that she is not alone? I am currently refurbing an aviary and should have it finished in a couple of weeks.

 

Thanks for your advise

Glen

well biting doesn't always mean that she is not bonding with you biting espeically if you find it more play biting, flirting biting if she is agressively attack biting you then yes I would be worried. How long have you been working with her?

I have had her for almost 2 months now, it has been in the last couple of days the she has really be going for my finger agressively. When I got home tonight I put my hand on the side of the cage and she tried to get at it.

Edited February 20, 200916 yr by Glen

Hormonal and moulting ?

Hormonal and moulting ?

That is what l'm thinking too.

 

Do you react, when she bites you?

Edited February 21, 200916 yr by birdluv

As hard as it seems, you have to not react when she bites you. If you pull your finger away/react when she does it, she will continue to do it. I know it hurts, believe me, but try not to move your finger. I have a hen in my aviary, who bites so hard and draws blood every time. When she used to bite I'd let her go.. she then learnt that if she bites I'll leave her alone. Now when I need to handle her, when she bites, I move my hand/adjust the way I'm holding her... she doesn't get her own way and I won't let her go until I've finished.

 

So... you best bet is to keep doing what you are doing... hopefully it's hormonal/moulting as others have said... and it will pass.

Usually I dont react to her biting as it is not hard or painfull. This time I did but slowly as not to scare her however she just kepted hold of me. She is currently moulting so hopefully she will claim down once it is over. I was hand feeding her again on the weekend and while she nibbled she did not bite me. I dont she is nibbling me out of affection as she still runs away whenever I put my hand in her cage, it is only after a little while that she see the food and will come and eat it.

 

I will just keep going with what I am doing hopefully she comes around. I have read that it can take up to a year to train some birds. So I will wait and see.

 

Cheers

Glen

Interested to read this Glen. I have two budgies, Charley is totally tame, wouldnt bite if his life depended on it, Maxie (hen) is totally aggressive towards me. They are in separate rooms and havent met. I can not get anywhere close to Maxie as she puts on that aggressive "i'm going to get you" pose, even if I pass my hand too closely to the cage. When I put my hand in she retreats to the furthest corner and if I get too close, she'll attack (definitely a "fear" thing I feel).

 

I have had her for almost 2 years and she has never relented so I have given up. I talk to her gently and sweetly, thats the closest we get to a "relationship". I put her aggression (fear?) down to the fact that she was petshop bought (Charley on the other hand was handled by his breeder) and that perhaps someone in the petshop, either owner or children, have imbedded a bad experience into her. How would you know what she's been through to make her this afraid and "angry" of humans. I still love her dearly.. but always from a distance.

 

Happily you sound like you are making progress with Angel! Dont give up. She sounds more promising than Maxie!!

thk, sounds like Maxie and Angel could be twins. My plans are to keep on trying for a 12 months if there has been no improvements then I will look at moving her to my Avairy so that she is with other birds. I think you are right in saying that although pet shop sell the birds as hand reared, I think that when the birds actually get to the pet they are either handled porrly or not at all, and with all the kids banging on there cage, I can see how they might get scared.

 

Anyway, in the future I will by my birds from a breeder that knows what they are doing.

 

Cheers,

Glen

thk, sounds like Maxie and Angel could be twins. My plans are to keep on trying for a 12 months if there has been no improvements then I will look at moving her to my Avairy so that she is with other birds. I think you are right in saying that although pet shop sell the birds as hand reared, I think that when the birds actually get to the pet they are either handled porrly or not at all, and with all the kids banging on there cage, I can see how they might get scared.

 

Anyway, in the future I will by my birds from a breeder that knows what they are doing.

 

Cheers,

Glen

 

I agree totally Glen and I guess it stands to reason that a budgie born into a "home" such as the breeders we see on this forum, who handle them and love them, becomes a lot more trusting than those in the pet shop cages where most often, the only hand they have contact with is one that is trying to catch one of them, quickly shove them into a little cardboard box for their drive to their new home.

 

This is how Maxie was purchased I'm sad to say. I bought Charley a few months later .. totally relaxed!! The breeder had him in his hand, quite happily, he handed him to me and said "here... you can hold him".. (he couldnt fly, he was clipped but already very tame at about 10 weeks old). I gently placed him into a temporary cage and was a little concerned how he would handle the drive home but he sat on his perch, front seat, seatbelt around the cage.. confidently looking out the window at the traffic going by. Obviously a very well adjusted baby!

 

He had his wings clipped last Saturday and the vet said he is just the most friendly and placid little guy they've met in a long time. I'm sure this is entirely due to his "loving" start in life!

 

Having said that, It might be a challenge but your Angel may have the temperament to gradually turn into a relaxed tame beautiful little girl!! Lets be positive!

***Update on Bonding with my Budgie***

 

Well after many more attempts at gettin my budgie to bond with me, I am now changing her name from Angel to MISS I AM GOING TO RIP YOUR BLOODY HAND OFF IF IT EVEN COMES NEAR MY CAGE !!!!!

 

The one good thing is that she does it to everyone who comes near her cage, so it is not just me.

 

I think she is going to be a budgie that I will enjoy looking at while she flys around in a bigger avairy with other bdgies and not a pet on my shoulder. Oh well just gives me an excuss to get more budgies and start building my flock sooner. My birthday is coming up soon so I might have put aside some birthday money to fund my expantion.

She obviously doesn't like hands. Cosmo is very tame, but still has a little fear of hands, sometimes he screeches when hands come at him from behind. I tamed him using a chopstick. Is there anything else you can use to bond with her without getting your hands near her?

 

With Cosmo, I taught him to step up on the chopstick, and I held the thick end, so eventually as he got more trusting, he walked up to the thicker end and ended up on my hand. He also let me scratch him under the head with the chopstick as you can see in my signature!

 

He was happy on my shoulder or arm way before he was happy on my finger or hand.

Edited March 10, 200916 yr by krosp

Interesting reading this...

The clutch from my 2 pets hatched recently, and the third baby (of 5) is showing signs of being like this.

The first 2 babies hatched after 2 weeks, 5 days. But this third baby took only 2 weeks, 2 days to hatch.

It seems like she's been early with everything! She was also the first one to start grabbing onto the nestbox opening, to sneak a peek at the world. She noses everybody else out of the way to get a look.

During nestbox cleanout we hold each of them, and she's the biter, from start to finish. I ignore her but this energizer bunny bites anything bitable and reachable.

Kaz had a great idea and I popped her into my bra while I held the others... she seemed happy and quiet even with my hand right there ... until I took her out! ouch!

Each of the other chickees are nothing like this, Stewart is unique!

short video of her here

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fzG1SuOJq4U