Nose Biter!

[Irish]

Nancy/Outlaw suggested I bring this thread here so that the resident expert can address it, so, herewith:

I love my crazy U2 lady, Gracie. She is just over 4 years old, female, in perfect feather and health. She has never nested, mated or laid eggs. Gracie is fun, athletic, constantly on the go, sassy and has typical cockatoo attitude. It doesn't bother me, and I handle her naughtiness well. She may sass or offer to bite, but I'm persistent, and she always decides to be a good girl in the end.

But today, as my spouse walked by the perch she was on, she jumped off of it and on to spouse's shoulder, whereupon she quickly reached around and bit the nose hard enough to make it bleed. Spouse is a bit of a "drama queen", and screeched--I went over and calmly and quietly removed Gracie from the shoulder and put her in her cage.

Keep in mind that we don't allow Gracie on shoulders--this was something she took advantage of FAST, as my spouse walked by--she simply hopped about a foot from the perch to the shoulder, reached around and bit the nose before my spouse even had time to react to the fact that Gracie had jumped onto the shoulder. She has a history of biting faces, which is why she came to me gratis--she attacked someone pretty badly in the store she was on consignment in. Literally pierced the guy's nose. So, shoulders are off-limits to Gracie. Now, of course, my spouse is even more nervous around her than before, and I'm sure it'll scare my daughter when she hears about it.

Any advice on what to do, now? I don't know if the screeching from my spouse will encourage her to repeat her actions (not that I blame spouse--it had to have hurt pretty badly!). I'm inclined to treat her as I always do--cautiously, respectfully, but with love and trust (excluding the bit about keeping her off shoulders and away from faces) within the limits set by her personality and species. She moves fast by hopping and/or climbing everywhere, will chase toes/shoes on the floor, and will come when called--sometimes biting when she arrives. Her wings are clipped, and she doesn't even try to fly. She plays hard, is a total clown, and trusts me more than anyone in the house. I don't know that she loves me as much as my spouse or daughter, but at least I can handle her with minimal damage. Any ideas? She is not in danger of losing her happy home, no worries :-). Thanks.

[KimBear]

What you've described can be a common problem for cockatoo owners, and sometimes it's a symptom of a major meltdown in the cockatoo's rules and limits (the bird has been "spoiled" and is able to do whatever he wants, for example). But in your case, I'd guess it'll just take some minor adjustments in where Gracie is allowed to go when other people are around, at least for a little while. Most cockatoo owners who let their 'toos on the floor end up regretting it. And some people have problems when their birds are on their cages or playgyms and certain people pass too closely. You've seen examples of both!

She may need to be reigned in a bit, and have her comings and goings limited so that you can re-establish some "law and order" for her. Think of it as restricting some privledges that she can earn back later through good behavior. Just as you've learned that shoulders and faces can be a problem for her, for now, she probably shouldn't be allowed on the floor and she should be closely supervised if she's on top of one of "her" play areas. When you can predict an unacceptable behavior, you have a better chance of manipulating it.

Sometimes just adding a bit more structure to an active bird's out-of-the-cage time is all it takes to bring them back around. It's as if they need a little reminding of the rules, or perhaps it's a matter of reminding the owners that their birds should have rules and limits in the first place. Playing games, teaching tricks, i.e. giving your bird a "job" or some "school", can help keep her focused on behaviors that are appropriate rather than letting her come up with stuff on her own. Cockatoos are so bright, and can get bored easily, so they tend to be constantly on the lookout for ways to shake things up. If we provide them an outlet for their mental and physical energy where we maintain some control over the situation, they tend to respond well to that.

If you need some ideas about how to get your wife's confidence back where Gracie is concerned, let me know.

[Irish]

Thanks for your advice and suggestions, KimBear. Yes, Gracie is a bit spoiled. I've had her since February 12th, and I was told at the time that she had never had any training or rules to live with. In our household, she has more rules than before, and has taken fairly well to certain restrictions she wasn't used to (after some "conversations" between us about who is the boss--sassy girl with big beak, or unafraid human with the power to move sassy girl into and out of the cage), but has still been allowed certain freedoms that she enjoys (supervised out of cage time, and allowed to be on the floor--also supervised). I have also started training her with little games--she has learned to come when called, mimic body movements, do some acrobatic tricks on command, etc. I let her out of the cage a few times/day, for up to an hour or so at a time because I want to keep her busy, happy, and have variety in her world (and I don't want her to start plucking, for example). She also has about a million zillion toys of all varieties, but she especially loves chewing and puzzle/interactive toys. They are rotated up to weekly.

We will now supervise her more closely and keep her off the floor (you know how these 'toos are--they love floor foraging for toes!) and watch her more closely while she's on the perch. I'm pretty good at reading 'too body language, but my spouse was in one room (with Gracie), and I was in another, so of course I didn't see this coming. Unfortunately, no one else seems to be able to "read" her very well, and I don't really know how to teach them. Already Gracie knows that naughty behavior lands her back in her cage, pronto, but so far she only seems to realize that when it comes to her interactions with me (even though I move her to her "time outs" if she bites other family members, too). She is such a social girl, and I need to learn how to effectively balance the necessary rules to keep us and her safe with her mental and physical health needs so that she doesn't become depressed and unhappy....

Yes, I could use some ideas to help everyone in the household except me gain some confidence in their interactions (or lack thereof, because of fear) with Gracie. She truly is a fun, entertaining, intelligent bird who can be very sweet (she'll actually kiss me, for example, and loves to snuggle under my spouse's chin). I'd really like it if the rest of the family could enjoy this wonderful, crazy, over-the-top bird as much as I do.

[Yellow]

Do not worry Im sure your too is lovely. Sounds she wanted to investigate the nose it seems....

[KimBear]

When trying to build a stronger relationship with a bird you don't trust, it's a good idea to break things down into levels of interaction that you're comfortable with. Obviously this is pertaining to your wife and daughter, but for the sake of simplicity, I usually use the generic "you". I guess in this case I could just use "they".

Each person should start at the level at which they're most comfortable. Level one, just sitting by the bird while she's in her cage, is often the best place to start for some people. They don't have to do much at first, only what they feel good about doing, whether that includes talking to the bird, petting her through the cage, or just sitting there. Short, frequent sessions will usually yield the best results.

Treats and praise should be given to the bird whenever she shows interest in the person, but only if Gracie is calm and friendly. Even at level one interaction, a bird may feel the urge to intimidate someone, so the person needs to learn to sit calmly and confidently, and not respond to any threats the bird may make. They don't need to enter a staring contest, either. Some birds get more aggrevated when they feel they're being challenged, so to minimize any of that, the person may want to tone down direct eye contact if it seems to bother the bird.

If the person decides the session is over, she should wait until the bird is calm, if possible. As a general rule, any training session, no matter what level, should end on a good note. If you have to back up a bit to do that, that's fine. It's much preferrable to leaving the situation when both bird and person are angry.

Once the point is reached where level one interaction is easy and trouble free, things can move along at whatever speed seems appropriate. Perhaps next they would work on getting the bird out of the cage by having her step up. Or maybe it would be better if you put the bird in another room for them, and let them work with her separate from you, her cage, and other distractions. What they do in the "training area" can vary from just hanging out, or it can be more active with some toys and petting. They only need to do whatever they think they accomplish without Gracie showing too much attitude. Some days they may be able to do more than others.

Odds are Gracie won't be the same bird with your wife and daughter as she is with you if you're around, so much of their time spent with her should take place on their own, one person at a time. Each should work at her own pace, and realize that setbacks aren't the end of the world. They happen to everyone, and can even be learning experiences. Sometimes training is a lot of trial and error. The errors can be help teach a person a lot about what makes a parrot tick.

The more time they spend with the bird, the better they will learn to interpret her body language. It's not going to happen overnight, and some considerable effort may be needed to keep things moving in the right direction. Don't let them feel rushed, or feel they need to be at a certain point just because that's where they think they should be. It's not like there's a deadline or that anyone is going to evaluate your family based on how you all get along with the cockatoo!

You can sit down as a family and go over some of the "dos and don'ts" of working with Gracie so that everyone is on the same page in terms of what commands to use, the tone of voice, and so on. Parrots do best when people are consistant, and one person behaving one way while someone else does something different can be very confusing to them. Sometimes a confused parrot acts out in a way that's perceived as aggressive.

So my overall recommendation is to have your wife and daughter each pick a level of interaction that they feel confident with, even if it's starting from scratch. Let them work at that level for a couple of weeks, or whatever it takes for them to feel they can step things up a bit. It may be that neither of them will want to engage Gracie in romping games or anything that gets her really excited. They may need to have more confident handling skills before they're able to put up with her when she's in full-blown cockatoo craziness.

If at any time you feel some indivdual help is necessary, keep in mind I do phone consults at a reasonable price. Even if it's just a pep talk for your wife, that's okay!