"If your parrot is too bonded to you, you might try leaving him with a trusted friend for a bit." ~ Random Parrot Blog
The friendlier Gandalf gets with me the less friendly he is with others. I use the term "friendly" generously as he allows me to scratch his head for a bit and the biting has become a soft nip. As his behavior towards me has softened, he no longer allows anyone else to handle him. We were trying to address this new challenge.
Unfortunately, Hurricane Harvey hit my parents' home pretty hard so I needed to go down to Houston for a few weeks. This seemed like a good time for John to become the primary parrot caregiver and he was up to the task ~ or so we thought.
I had to talk pretty quickly on that video to capture The Beak with his nipper of Jack Daniels. In my haste, I forgot to include these additional "treats" that John tried. Some birdie bonbons and something that looks suspiciously like rodent poison.
Alas, nothing worked (no, he really didn't give him a shot of bourbon) and both of them struggled through the two weeks. While I think it was worth it to capture this shot, I don't think John would agree.
And yes, Mad Max is still on the job. Stalking The Beak has become his only purpose in life.