bitting

I just purchased a 6 yr old grey which has not had much time spent on him by his previous owner i havent had a great deal of experience with birds but i do have time for him and understand his basic feeding needs etc the problems with bitting i read somewhere u should never pull away so i didnt lol he drew blood so whats my next step any advice welcome thanks

Bah mine bites me also, but not all the time - i was told you should tap them on the beak & say NO clearly & firmly, im guessing that if you've just adopted him, then he doesnt know you from adam.

Give it some time, im sure in a few months once he settles in & gets used to you he will show alot of love & affection.

where gloves then u can not pull away without severe wounding.....

id avoid gloves, birds seem to hate them with a vengence - probably due to the breeders having them on.

id first start off with a couple days just talking calmly to him. just leave him in his cage and talk to him. use his name often when you talk to him. this is a great way to bond with your new bird.

find out what your bird loves to eat most and avoid putting this in his food bowl. he should only get it from your hands - nicely. him realizing that you are giving him is most favorite food/treat will make him come to like you more.

if you want to handle him without worrying about being bitten, i would use a wooden perch (a neutral one that hasnt been shown to him or even used in his cage). every time to tell him to step up, make sure he steps up. dont back away. insist by gently pushing up on the bottom of his stomach, near his feet. if he gets on the perch and starts going after your hand with an open beak to bite you, give the perch a little, BRIEF, shake - not too hard to make him fall off the perch, but enough to make him stop thinking about biting your hand and more on holding his balance - and say a firm short NO. if he tries again, do the same thing again. he will get the idea.

i had a problem amazon on my hands 2 weeks ago, and after working constantly with him - talking to him softly yet animatedly, using his name and saying "good bird" when he is a good bird, and showing i am a dominant person in this family - my amazon has stopped trying to lunge for my hand (although i still use a wooden perch to pick him up, never my hand...not yet anyways), he allows me to preen his head and neck, and he has come to trust me a lot more.

good luck!

yes i suppose but not the huge gardening gloves the woolen ones like ridding gloves.

but i think kates idea is better

it pays to train your parrot to step onto a stick in case it flaps on top of a cupoard or tree.