Depressed Macaw With Biting Problem! Somone Please Give Me Answers!!!

[BeccaB00]

ok, so just recently I had to rehome my cockatiel and 2 parakeets due to it getting really expensive to care for them. I only kept my lil hahns macaw. Now that he's the only bird, he's became depressed and developed a biting problem..what do I do for him? Macaw bites REALLY hurt and I don't want anyone to get hurt. He's takin peices of skin of my fingers and hands...I spend extra time with him but after a while of playing with him he starts biting for no reason. I always make it clear im going to touch him before i do, and give him NO reason what so ever to bite. He's just..lonely. should I get another bird? or try and help him feel better?
thanks.
Becca

 

[Sir Birdaholic]

If you can't afford small birds like a cockatiel or parakeet, I wouldn't get another. They are smart birds, so when he bites you, pinch him,or her. That's the way a buddy trained his Amazon. It worked & quit biting in a matter of a few days.

 

[BeccaB00]

Thanks :] But what do you mean by pinching him??

 

[BeccaB00]

Also what do I do to help his depression??

 

[Knock Kneed Hen]

I don't recommending pinching a bird. (Sorry, but that is rotten advice.) You can leave a radio on when you're not home. You should also provide your bird with toys. Spend time with it when you're able. If you reach into his cage to take him out and he bites you you put him back immediately...only let him come out when he gets on your hand without biting. He will soon learn that you only reward good behavior. You can follow this up by giving a treat once he's outside of his cage.

Birds are flock animals and companionship is good for them. You have taken away his friends and he's not happy. He's responding out of frustration. Some birds will bite their owners, others will begin attacking themselves, sometimes pulling all their feathers out. This is called misplaced aggression.

Look for different ways to stimulate him. Give him an enriched environment. Make him work for his food (hide his food and treats in toys that make him work to get it out).

 

[crtrlovr]

Quote:
He's not biting for no reason; he's biting for a reason you don't yet understand. He may very well be depressed and missing his birdie-buddies, but as for the biting, you need to REALLY watch his body language. It may be that as you're spending extra time with him, his tolerance level for the extra play time is not as high as yours. Watch his posture, watch how he interacts with the toys you use during playtime, if any, and most of all, WATCH HIS EYES! If you see the pupils go from dilated, nice, round pupils to pupils that start "pinning" (meaning getting smaller, then bigger again, and then staying small in pinpoints,) that is a WARNING and if you don't heed it, you are about to be bitten. It's best to have a time of interaction and then put your bird back in/on his cage BEFORE he bites or gets to the point where he's about to -- if you put him up immediately after he bites, there is the possibility that it will encourage him to bite whenever he wants to go back to his cage. It will take patience, persistence, and LOTS OF KEEN OBSERVATION on your part to determine what exactly triggers the aggression, and then deal with it. I have been working with an African Gray for a couple of years now. Things are much, MUCH better, but I still have to watch him closely sometimes. I know those bites hurt -- I have the scars and some nerve damage to prove it.

Good luck

 

[Sir Birdaholic]

He wasn't pinching it to hurt it, he was showing it that when it bites, he bites. He would pull the feathers on the side of it's neck. I'm not condoning this or shunning this, but it worked for him, so.... MORE POWER TO HIS TRAINING ABILITIES!!

 

[Akane]

The only type of discipline I've seen approved for birds is to make them do something. The most common being repeating the up command and making them step from finger or arm to the other repeatedly as a show of control. It doesn't apply too much to our budgies but I was looking in to it for my husband's parents who have a senegal. They tried a similar tactic to what was mentioned about pinching the bird. They only accomplished it twice before the parrot responded by latching on and not letting go. It held a grudge for months and couldn't be taken out of the cage without risk of injury to someone. New toys, extra treats, and "laddering" have mostly gotten it back to normal. This is one of the good articles I found http://www3.upatsix.com/liz/articles/biting.html

 

[BeccaB00]

Thank yall all so much for the info! He does pin point his eyes but only when he talks. He knows how to say hello and when he does he pins his eyes. The other day he scared me to death as he tried to bite my 9 year old cousin. She forgot he was out of his cage and she proped her hand against the cage, and it's like he was just waiting. He came EXTREMELY close to biting her. I know he was just scared or threatened but He just seems...stressed. Though I allow NOONE in my room, turn the radio on, and open all my curtains so it's bright in the room, he always seems stressed. If I don't allow him on my shoulder, he bites. This bird knows tricks that I've taught him, he knows how to give kisses on comand, and he is very good at learning. If anyone else has any other suggestions let me know!

 

[the-bird-man]

after working with rescue parrots for years i have taken tons of bites so i feel your pain. but you must NEVER punish a bird, its not the birds fault it bit you, its yours because you did not watch the body language. the bird warned you but you just did not know how to read body language. what i do when a bird bites me is say "be soft" or "no biteing" another thing is do not react to the bite, yes it hurts but if you teach your self not to react then the bird does not get a reaction out of you. good luck and if you have any more questions just ask away