My conure is a biter- apparently

[krudd3]

Hi there I just got a baby conure. he/she is about 10 weeks old. and i brought him home yesterday and he nipped a bit but i thought "he just had a huge environment change once he gets settled and calmed down he'll be alright" and he was he was all snuggly and fine. I had taken him out this morning for at least 15 minutes before i went to work. when i got home and took him out he just kept nipping me. and grabbing and holding on. So i keep saying no biting and i've taken him back to his cage to let him sit in it. and he really hates going back in his cage and when he comes out he's fine but then gets nippy and it hurts and i'm not sure what i should be doing to break this new found habit before it starts. I have had birds in the past and none of them have ever been biters or gone into a biting stage so i'm unsure what my steps should be to train him that biting is not ok but beaking is ok.

If anyone can offer some helpful advice i'm willing to give it a try.
Thanks!

 

[quintinp]

Hi there I just got a baby conure. he/she is about 10 weeks old. and i brought him home yesterday and he nipped a bit but i thought "he just had a huge environment change once he gets settled and calmed down he'll be alright" and he was he was all snuggly and fine. I had taken him out this morning for at least 15 minutes before i went to work. when i got home and took him out he just kept nipping me. and grabbing and holding on. So i keep saying no biting and i've taken him back to his cage to let him sit in it. and he really hates going back in his cage and when he comes out he's fine but then gets nippy and it hurts and i'm not sure what i should be doing to break this new found habit before it starts. I have had birds in the past and none of them have ever been biters or gone into a biting stage so i'm unsure what my steps should be to train him that biting is not ok but beaking is ok.

If anyone can offer some helpful advice i'm willing to give it a try.
Thanks!

I think that for a bird you've only had for a day, you are expecting too much from it. I remember bringing home my 2nd quaker Verde, and I let him stay in his cage for a couple of days. He didn't bite, but he didn't like leaving his cage in the beginning. So, when I was home I would leave his door open and let him get out (if he wanted too.) It was when he was comfortable getting out of his cage (on his own) that he would let me touch him. I avoided wrapping my hands around him if he didn't 'step up.' If I was trying to get him off the top of his cage, I would stick my fingers between his legs, until he had no choice but to get on my hand, and then I would place him back in his cage. I tried to be the least confrontational in the beginning with him. Verde is a nice bird now, he loves getting out of his cage, and has a new found love for watermelon as well. He also loves getting scratches on his head, and will sometimes even preen my hair. He is also talking up a storm. I have had him for about 2 1/2 years now.

I would guess that your conure is biting because it is still scared of it's new environment, or you may have been holding it awkwardly, causing it to feel uncomfortable, or scared, causing it to bite you.

As for my 3rd quaker, Cody he didn't want to be touched for a long time. I have never had a bird like him, but he also has a splayed leg, and probably feels threatened by anything because of his disability. He still to this day doesn't like to be handled. On certain occasions, he will let me scratch his neck, and head. But those occasions are few and far apart. He does like my mother though. I guess he is a classic case of a bird that chooses what gender they like. Cody still bites me when I try to handle him. He is a bird that likes to bite and hang on, instead of nipping. I have had Cody for about a year, and a few months now.