# To glove or not to glove



## MrsCoffee (Oct 30, 2012)

Well, Disco has gotten to the point of figuring out the perfect places to dig in and rip chunks of skin out of my hand. Would it be okay if I gloved my hand? Is it going to make much difference to him? Other than the fact that he can't eat my hand. 
He also has figured out he likes to hiss. He'll go in between wolf whistling (picked up from muah!) and hissing at me. In the shower he let me scratch his neck!! Afterwards he decided to not even go near me. He runs to the corner of his cage and hisses. It's like our progress is going way backwards... instead of forwards.


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## Bird Junky (Jul 24, 2012)

Hi. No gloves try this....B.J. 

A Biting Bird 

To prevent upsetting the bird. the preferred type of both water & seed containers should be of the tube type, which can be refilled without opening the cage door. In the cage provide a basic seed mix, water, iodine block & cuttlebone. 
All the other foods birds enjoy, ie, fruit, veg, hard boiled egg, nuts, biscuit etc, are used as treat foods. 
The birds should be fed the treat foods in small portions through the bars of the cage, with the aid a pair of tweezers or chopsticks to protect your fingers. 
Change the type of treat at each feed so your bird gets a good mix every day. The smaller the treat portions, the more often the treat feed visits & your arrival means nice things to eat. 
As the bird gets used to being fed treat foods this way, very gradually over the next few days. 
Move your fingers closer to the treat food as you slowly build up a bond of trust between you.
If your bird shows any attempt to bite, remove the treat food until he settle down & move your fingers further back up the tweezers, away from the food before you re-offer the treat......Do this as many times as it takes. 

Don't allow yourself to get angry, impatient or even mildly annoyed with your bird. He will sense this & will react accordingly. This treatment reinforces the fact that he is not the boss. You supply the goodies so you dictate the terms of your relationship.
A step in any training program takes as long as it takes. 
Expect a few set backs, birds like people, have good & bad days. Don't be in a hurry, only when your bird is happy to eat from your fingertips through the bars for several days, are you both ready to move on to the next 
step of hand feeding treats inside the cage. 
Use a hanky fixed to the bar above the door with two clothes pegs to act 
as a safety curtain to prevent your bird escaping via the open door. 
Offer him a favourite treat food by holding a small piece between your finger & thumb so your bird can reach it. 
If he appears in anyway disturbed. Remove your hand & allow him to calm down. 
Re-offer the treat, hold your hand still so he can eat. 
Remember offer it don't try to force it on him. If he doesn't eat withdraw & try again later, repeat until he does . 
Keep trying, offer him different small treat foods as often as you can over the next few days. 
Your aim is to build up a strong bond of friendship & trust between you. 
After a day or two of successful hand feeding. Your bird should be ready for step-up.. 
For their own safety birds should be confined to their cages until step-up has been mastered. 
Chasing & catching a bird can undermine any bond built up between an owner & bird......B.J.


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## bjknight93 (Nov 13, 2011)

Bird Junky said:


> To prevent upsetting the bird. the preferred type of both water & seed containers should be of the tube type, which can be refilled without opening the cage door. In the cage provide a basic seed mix, water, iodine block & cuttlebone.
> All the other foods birds enjoy, ie, fruit, veg, hard boiled egg, nuts, biscuit etc, are used as treat foods.


Actually, I do not recommend silo type feeders. Occasionally, the food will get stuck, and if you're not home the bird will go hungry until you're there to fix it. Also, if you are not able to remove the dropped seed hulls and poop from the bowl part then the bird will be sifting through its own excrement and seed hulls trying to eat. Same goes for putting pellets in those type of feeders.

And to put water in those silo waterers I also would not recommend because bacteria and mold can build up in the tube and in the bowl part of the waterer. And if there's poop in the bowl? You'll have to bother the bird even more to unsnap the darn waterer from the cage bars.

We recommend washing food bowls daily to keep things clean and mold/bacteria free. The way BJ is asking does not allow this.

And if you do feed biscuits, feed them very very sparingly. Biscuits often have butter in the mix and some biscuits become gummy when they moisten in the crop and can possibly cause crop compaction.


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## roxy culver (May 27, 2010)

To be honest, I used a glove with Screech. Its probably gonna freak him out, I'm not gonna lie. Its scary to have this hand come at you that now has something on it. But Screech wanted nothing to do with us, no matter how long I sat with my hand in his cage. After two weeks of the glove, he realized biting wasn't doing him any good because he couldn't get me to let him go (carrying him to the shower for baths, putting him to bed, etc). So he doesn't bite anymore, but he's still not keen on people. He'd rather just be with his mate. So unless its dire that you handle him right now, I wouldn't go with the glove.


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

If you're using the glove so you can change out the food and water bowls without getting shredded, that's OK. If you're using the glove so you can grab Disco, it's not good - forcible methods will reinforce the distrust that he already has for you.

He may already have a strong fear of gloves from having been handled with them previously, so watch his reaction and do what you can to avoid frightening him.


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## MrsCoffee (Oct 30, 2012)

My issue is trying to get him off my shoulder and in his cage or trying to pick up gizmo


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## meaggiedear (Nov 20, 2011)

Where long sleeves shirts when you handle him. You can pull the sleeves down to protect your hand, and it becomes an extension of your arm rather than a big scary hand covered in a big scary thing.


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

It's actually a wonderful sign that he's so passionately attached to your shoulder. Instead of trying to get him off with your hand, ask him to step up on a perch that you're holding in your hand. Many hand-shy birds feel less threatened by a stick and are willing to step up on one, and there's no harm done if he bites the stick.


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