Hey so I apologize for how long this is gonna be in advance, I just want to be sure I covered everything. I'm a new mom to a baby IRN named Kiwi who just turned 5 months. I got him (not sure of the gender, but I refer to them as male) just a little over a month ago from a breeder who told me that he was just starting his bluffing stage. I've done a lot of research on bluffing long since before getting him and have accepted that, that was a stage he and I will get through together. The first week home, he was very nervous and didn't really want to be near anyone so I would just open his cage door and spend almost all my time home with him. He loves coming out of his cage and standing on top of it. I would talk to him a lot and after the first week, he was no longer afraid! But as soon as the fear went away, it made room for his bluffing to show, which sometimes I really wonder if he even is bluffing or not.
Not once since I've gotten him, has he let me handle him. He'll run away from perches and will bite if I put my hand near him (he's willing to take treats from them) Target training seemed like it was working at first, but he would lose interest after only a couple of minutes (the reason probably being that he's too comfortable walking around on top of his cage which I can't pick him up and take away from because of the biting) And since his cage is relatively tall (to me) on the rare occasions I try to "back him into a corner" he easily runs to the back and climbs over the side where I can't reach him. On the few times he's tried to fly off the cage if something startles him (wings are clipped and thankfully he's never been hurt) he will step up and let me take him back up, but even then he latches onto my fingers.
He does bite a lot, but the thing is, there isn't much lunging as if he's warning me to stay away. If I'm next to him and just happen to hold my hand up, his attention immediately goes to it. Most of the time, he'll just casually walk up to it and start biting at it as if it's just another toy. His main target are the fingers, if I hold my hand as a fist, he'll nip around looking for a soft spot but eventually gives up. I've tried discouraging it using different means:by not reacting, telling him "no" in a soft voice, blowing in his face and putting the index finger of my free hand on top of his beak to make him let go. He's only broken skin twice so far, but the indents he leaves hurt too! I know he can't be afraid because he's very relaxed most of the time and I know he doesn't truly hate me because he calls out every time I leave the room.
Is what he's doing bluffing or is it a behavior I somehow inadvertently created? I was just wondering if what I've been trying so far are the right moves or not? Since I didn't have him back before the bluffing started, I don't really have much experience handling him and since the biting is all I'm used to, I really can't imagine it ending as quick as night and day as some people say. What would be the best approach to start handling him and should I hold off on training and manners until it's passed?
Not once since I've gotten him, has he let me handle him. He'll run away from perches and will bite if I put my hand near him (he's willing to take treats from them) Target training seemed like it was working at first, but he would lose interest after only a couple of minutes (the reason probably being that he's too comfortable walking around on top of his cage which I can't pick him up and take away from because of the biting) And since his cage is relatively tall (to me) on the rare occasions I try to "back him into a corner" he easily runs to the back and climbs over the side where I can't reach him. On the few times he's tried to fly off the cage if something startles him (wings are clipped and thankfully he's never been hurt) he will step up and let me take him back up, but even then he latches onto my fingers.
He does bite a lot, but the thing is, there isn't much lunging as if he's warning me to stay away. If I'm next to him and just happen to hold my hand up, his attention immediately goes to it. Most of the time, he'll just casually walk up to it and start biting at it as if it's just another toy. His main target are the fingers, if I hold my hand as a fist, he'll nip around looking for a soft spot but eventually gives up. I've tried discouraging it using different means:by not reacting, telling him "no" in a soft voice, blowing in his face and putting the index finger of my free hand on top of his beak to make him let go. He's only broken skin twice so far, but the indents he leaves hurt too! I know he can't be afraid because he's very relaxed most of the time and I know he doesn't truly hate me because he calls out every time I leave the room.
Is what he's doing bluffing or is it a behavior I somehow inadvertently created? I was just wondering if what I've been trying so far are the right moves or not? Since I didn't have him back before the bluffing started, I don't really have much experience handling him and since the biting is all I'm used to, I really can't imagine it ending as quick as night and day as some people say. What would be the best approach to start handling him and should I hold off on training and manners until it's passed?