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Re: Aggressiveness
Posted by Cheryl on 8/14/06

> First - the food. My bird has never liked fresh food. He
> tears it up and throws it but has never eaten it. The
> expensive mix I was purhcasing at the bird shop was a tropical
> mix full of dried fruit and seed. He never ate the expensive
> dried fruit.
>
> Now - regarding the aggressive behavior! My friend came over
> on Saturday morning. She has not met my bird before. He was
> on the outside of his cage when she started walking up to him.
> I told her not to go to him because he would bite her and yes,
> even attack her. She did not listen and put her finger up to
> his beak - he did the natural thing and attacked her - he put
> two large puncture wounds in her index finger. He has been
> really freaked out ever since. My friend and I went out, and,
> when I came home alone later in the day, I let him out of his
> cage. He climbs to the top and I always ask for a kiss to
> which he sweetly kisses me on the mouth - well, this time he
> bit my lip and put a nice slice in it! That really hurt and my
> feelings were really hurt too. He won't go near me now - when
> he is out of his cage, the only way to get him back in is to
> throw a towel over him to pick him up. I'm afraid of him now
> too. I'm giving him all the space he needs so he can calm
> down. Help me! What can I do to get back my sweet little
> birdie!
>
1. As far as the food goes, you need to keep offering the fresh
stuff, whether or not you think the bird is eating it. Playing
with it is good for them, it keeps them busy as in the wild, and
your bird just may ingest some of it while playing! If your
child asked for nothing but popsicles for dinner, would you let
him? As far as the "expensive mix"...A seed mixes are seed
mixes...Doesn't matter if they have everything but the kitchen
sink mixed in the bag...They are still just seeds...

2. Most Poicephalus parrots go through a phobic phase, which is
what your bird is doing now. One thing to remember is that a
birds cage is their castle, and many birds get extremely
protective of their cage...In addition, when a bird is on top of
the cage, they are usually at a higher eye level than you, and
that makes them feel like they are dominant over you. NOT good.
Leaning in for a kiss fron a bird hanging out on a cage top is
asking for a bite, especially from an adolescent aged parrot.
Nuturing dominance needs to be practiced from day 1, and remember
too that no matter how sweet a baby bird is, they do all grow up
and sexually mature...With proper training, the differences
should be minimal. If you show the bird your fear, handle the
bird less/not at all, keep the bird caged more (hanging out ON
the cage should not be an option)then this will do nothing but
make matters worse, often resulting in a bird sold to someone
else or a bird who is cage bound/fearful/lonely. Oh, by the way,
birds are not like dogs...strangers cannot just come up to a bird
that is unfamiliar with them and expect to be greeted in a loving
and friendly manner...Your friend acted in a very irresponsible
manner...She invaded the bird's personal space, and deserved what
she got!

Posts on this thread, including this one

• Aggressiveness, 8/10/06, by Sherry.
• Re: Aggressiveness, 8/10/06, by Elizabeth.
• Re: well said Elizabeth, 8/11/06, by mark.
• Re: well said Elizabeth, 8/11/06, by Elizabeth.
• Re: Aggressiveness, 8/14/06, by Sherry.
• Re: Aggressiveness, 8/14/06, by Cheryl.