>This morning, I coated my hands with Bitter Apple and held her in my lap
>again, but the smell of the Bitter Apple really seemed to agitate her,
>and she didn't want me to hold her. She kept trying to get away. I want
>her to realize that being held and petted is a pleasant thing, but it's
>kind of a catch-22 -- I don't want to get bitten, and she doesn't want
>me to hold her when I've got Bitter Apple on my hands. And actually, I
>don't know if the Bitter Apple would have stopped her last night -- she
>was just going totally ballistic and had only one thought in her little
>mind: ATTACK!
>
>...I want this to work out, and I am willing to train them not to bite,
>but since there's no warning when they do it, and no discernable
>provocation, I'm not sure how to proceed.
Hi Staci ~
My little Jazzy girl was a biter when I got her. She was 8 weeks old,
and had been in a cage in the pet store for about 4 weeks. The first
couple of times I was alarmed. But I figured with being away from her
mommie, in a pet store, and now here on the farm, she was just protecting
herself. Plus she was still a baby to me. So, I kept my hands away from
her by limiting picking her up until she came to me, and just was very
watchful. I did not use bitter apple, because I handle other animals. I
did a lot of talking to her. I know animals may not react to words, but
they do react to tones of voice. It's been 9 months and she is a little
love. She needed that time to come to me on her own. I did use 2 flower
essences on her: snapdragon (for biting), and mariposa lily to assist her
bonding with me. Now her biting is just a play holding of my finger in
her mouth with no pressure.
Calvin who is a shelter adopt, would come up to me at first and literally
bite my ankle. It took me awhile to figure it was his way of saying
'hi." So we had a discussion on how that hurt. I would say loudly
"owwww" and he would release. He has figured I like a hi much better
if he jumps in my lap or gives me kisses.
Warmly ~
Mary
Herbalist
The Conley Farm - organic herbs
Online Classes ~ [log in to unmask]
[Posted in FML issue 3969]
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