My 6 month old sun conure biting

[TARA479]

I recently bought a 6 month old sun conure from a local breeder. The only problem I noticed when I bought him was one of his toes was broken/dislocated. I took him to the avian vet and was informed that the bird did not seem to be in any pain, and it was too old to have it set. Basically let it be. But my little one "cracker" will not come out fo his cage and if I try to stick my hand in, he violently attacks it. I don't know what to do. I don't want to scare him tring to get him out of his cage, but on the other hand I feel really bad not taking him out so he can run around and play. I love this little guy a lot and I need some advice on how I can help him, or what you think I should do. So far the tricks the vet told me are not working.


Thank you so much for any help.

[CathyBogart]

It just takes patience. I would recommend taking him out on a T-perch, taking him into another room, and working on "step-ups" from various surfaces. Be consistent...even if you are essentially grabing him up (gently of course!) at first, every time he ends up in your hands tell him "Up!". Maybe twice a day for ten/fifteen minutes, then do other fun stuff with him before putting him back.

Once he's got that down, work on step-ups in the same room as the cage, then from on top of the cage, then lastly from inside the cage. Let him know that biting is never acceptable by saying "ouch!" in a loud voice when he does, and shaking your hand a bit to unsteady him if he's on your hand.

I would invest in "The Guide to a Well-Behaved Parrot". It is essential to any bird owner, IMO....I LOVE that book!

Congrats on your new buddy BTW! I love Sun conures, I just can't handle that much noise!

[Giselle]

Was he handfed? If so, I'd go to another avian vet. Are you positive the vet you went to is a certified Avian vet? There was an anecdote in Guide to a Well Behaved Parrot (I think) about a cockatoo with a leg problem. He was obviously in love with his family, but nobody could ever touch him. They went to another vet, who diagnosed the Too with a leg problem and they fixed it. After that, the Too was back to 'normal' and he became an instant cuddlebug.