Biting amazon. Jealous?

Question
Hi -
I have a 4 year old yellow crowned amazon that I've has since he was weaned from hand feeding. When I first brought Max home there were 2 springer spaniels in the house.  He seemed to like the older one and delighted in frightening the younger one.  He was happy to step up, talk, sing and be a happy, active bird.  Two years ago the older dog died and this summer I got a field spaniel puppy.  Max seemed to be VERY curious about the puppy and flew on to his crate and sometimes flew down on the floor to strut around the puppy.  When the puppy barked or whinned, Max needed to be louder and he started screamming, then making a dreadful sound that would scare off any potential predator. He enjoyed flying free and hadn't been truly confined to the inside of his cage since he was about a year old.  I haven't had his wings trimmed in over a year now and he enjoys following me everywhere and then perching on my shoulder.  He was well on his way to being poop trained.  
Max has always been a one person parrot and I was clearly his person. A new puppy in the house gets quite a lot of attention and at first I thought it was going to be a perfect match.  However, when the puppy reached his 4th month of life, he got a little bolder and tried stepping on Max's tail when he flew down near him.  One day, Max was not quick enough and the puppy caught him by his wing and then let him go.  It was about that time that Max started to bite ME!  It was not the kind of bite where he tries to warn me of an oncoming threat, it was deliberate.  He would fly on to my arm or shoulder and then take a chunk out of me ... all the while saying "no bites!" It is very hard not to react reflexively, especially when he flys onto my shoulder and bites the back on my neck several times in a row.  I have been telling him "bad bird" and locking him inside his cage immediately after he bites me, but as soon as I let him out after several hours have passed, the whole cycle starts again. I am now terrified when he flies toward me because I know I'm going to get a series of bruise forming bites. He just refuses to let me handle him, to let me help him preen, to take treats from me -- I have become him #1 enemy and this is so sad for me.  I absolutely love this bird and at the same time am starting to hate him and, worse, be fearful of him.  Any advice would be appreciated.

Answer
Hi, Caroline.  Thanks for posting!

One thing I do want to say is that you should NEVER trust your dog(s) with your bird (and vice versa).  They might be friends to each other when you are watching them, but they are natural enemies, and it only takes 1 time when you are not supervising them for an accident to occur.  I've known this to happen time and time again.  

You have several things going on in your home with this bird.  First, Max probably grieved the first dogs passing.  This was his friend and Max missed/misses this dog.  So this was 1 major change that affected Max.

Bringing the new puppy in was another.  You showered this new puppy with your attention (rightfully so), and I'm sure Max became jealous (and probably still is).

Third major problem - The bird was nearly lunch for the puppy!  At least this is likely how Max sees it.

As a result of the above, Max is upset with you for allowing all these things to happen.  He has lost his trust in you and seems to be frightened.  This is why he's biting.  Biting is his defense against what he perceives as threatening situations/threatening "things."  It's hard to say exactly what's going on in his mind, but it's obvious he's unhappy with you.  I understand why you put Max in his cage when he bites, but I'm not sure this is the correct thing to do at the present time.  You don't want to add to the list of things Max can dislike you for!  

I understand exactly how you feel about your bird.  It's like losing a family member when their behavior changes like this.  One thing is for sure...you need to keep the puppy and the bird away from each other!  Max may continue to behavior negatively as long as the puppy is around because he's afraid of the dog.  And Max probably thinks you are in cahoots with the puppy!  I recommend you make some changes in your home where perhaps Max doesn't see and/or come into contact with the puppy at all.  Try this temporarily and see if Max's behavior changes.  It may take some time and patience, but I really think the puppy in the picture is the crux of the problem, as long as Max gets along with the other dog.  I'm not suggesting you get rid of the puppy, but some boundaries need to be established.  Perhaps puppy can take timeouts in a cage or separate room/outside during the time Max and you interact with one another.  You'll definitely need to prevent the puppy from accessing Max at any point.  I think the biting might be Max's way of telling you to do something, since you two were pals before puppy arrived!  Max may have gotten along with the puppy if puppy hadn't tried to get Max.  

What you need to be aware of is that Max might "take advantage" of this new found power he has and bite you just to get his way any time you want him to do something he doesn't want to do.  For example, now that Max knows you react to being biten (I don't blame you one bit!), he could use this behavior from now on say when you try to put him in his cage when he doesn't want to go.  He'll just bite you so you'll put him down and he won't have to go in the cage.  Your reaction should be, even if you do get biten, is to put Max in his cage anyhow (when/if he bites you, put a bandaid on the bite and make Max go into his cage).  You CANNOT let Max know that his biting affects you the way it does.  You may have to find another way of reacting to his negative behavior, such as ignoring him completely when he's bad instead of putting him in his cage for a timeout.  You don't want to make matters worse than they already are, but you have to set boundaries for Max, as well as the puppy.

Also, as long as Max is above your eye level, he thinks he's king of your home!  He's the dominant one when he's higher than your eye level.  Key would be to keep him at or below your eye level so you're the alpha bird in your home.  What would you think about trimming his flight feathers?  This would not be a good idea if puppy can get to Max and cause physical harm to Max.  This will be difficult, but you should try to not let Max know you are fearful of him.  Actually, parrots (and most animals) can "feel" your blood pressure from several feet away, so if you're afraid of Max, he'll be able to sense your fear even when you aren't up close to him.  

I have many large parrots, and I'll tell you I respect them because they can inflict serious damage on a person if they want to with their bites.  However, the best way I've found to act around them is to just go about my business as I need to (cleaning cages, feeding, etc.), respecting (not fearing) them.  It's when I hesitate that they seem to take advantage.  In other words, I just go ahead and stick my hand in the cage to get that feed dish.  I might wait for that big beak to move away from the front of the door, but the fact that one might bite me if I stick my hand in their cage can't stop me from doing what I need to do.  If one decides they want a bite out of me, they can go for it!  I may pull away for that moment, but my hand will be right there a minute later.  If a parrot learns they can frighten you, they will continue to use this against you!  Parrots are excellent psychologists, just like our 2-year old children!  We have to be smarter than they are.  You've lost Max's trust and your goal should be to regain his trust.  It won't happen overnight...you'll need much patience.  Take one little step at a time.  ALWAYS reward Max for positive behavior, but NEVER reward him for negative behavior.  For a parrot, eye contact is a positive reward, you saying "bad bird" is a positive reward, etc.  You could actually be rewarding Max for behaving negatively by your reactions to how he behaves.

I've spouted a lot of information...I hope you aren't confused.  Come back with any questions or if you need clarification.      

Chrys