Hi everyone, I need some help from you Indian Ringneck experts, please! ;)
I just got my very first Indian Ringneck yesterday, I have lots of other birds (cockatiels, lovebirds, cockatoo, ect.) but this is my first Ringneck..
Anyhow, ever since I first saw her and went for visits over to her breeder's house, she always seemed to have this bad habit of "nibbling" (I call it that so it sounds nicer -- in reality she's just biting) on things, especially fingers. Not just to me, but she did this to her breeder as well, my boyfriend, anyone. Aside from the biting, she's probably one of the sweetest birds I've ever seen. So this is something I definitely want to get under control as early as possible. She's currently about 2 months old, so I do realize she's probably just biting on things to test everything out given she's still a baby. I try gently pushing her beak back up when she's grabbed onto my finger, and saying "no". Then a second or two later she'll just go right back and chomp on my finger some more. Again -- I know she's still just a baby and probably doesn't know better, but I'd rather know a better way to go about training her not to bite, as I don't think my method is going to get me anywhere.
So my question to you lovely people is;
Do you know of any good, successful methods of teaching an Indian Ringneck not to bite?
Any suggestions would be GREATLY appreciated. Thank you! :)
My Baby Ringneck + "Nibbling"
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Re: My Baby Ringneck + "Nibbling"
The way you train now will greatly affect your birds future so I am very glad you came to the forum for help. Ringnecks popularly go through a stage called bluffing. I personally believe this stage can be avoided most of the time. There are exceptions of course. Now is the time that you want to enforce positive biting behavior. Yes, I said positive biting. All young animals go through a stage of testing. From puppies to humans. It's in the way that you respond to that testing that matters most. When your young bird starts to bite on your finger, you replace it with a hard toy. You don't want to correct the biting, but rather what he's biting on. I would also add chunks of veggies and fruits to his play area for him to chomp on. Keep his beak so busy with positive things for him to chew on and your fingers will become a lot less interesting 

I am owned by my birds...and I wouldn't have it any other way 


