Are your parrots potty trained?

[Fantur]

Hello.

I will be a first time bird owner in a few weeks. I definitely will make every attempt to potty train my parrot (an Indian Ringneck or a Senegal Parrot) as my wife would soon divorce me if there is bird poop everywhere.

Are birds easily potty trained or is it unrealistic of me to regard this as I would for a cat or a dog? Will I always have poop on my couch and carpets?

Sincerely,
Fantur

 

[Aquila]

Birds poop much more frequently than a dog or cat. Average of around 20 minutes for a small-medium bird, though some go longer and will hold it. My Amazon has never pooped on me and will hold it, and both conures are pretty good about it, but it's not like birds just fly around and poop everywhere, I promise!

For your first bird and potty training it, you'll have to learn to recognize the signs that they have to go, and without experience it might take a little longer, so don't get frustrated.

 

[goalerjones]

Training is based upon observing them closely. Watch for signs of your bird looking for a place to poop. My Hahn's starts to get agitated and will even nip my ear when he has to go.

When he goes we give him a simple word we are not embarrassed to use when company are around. We use the term, "shake it". Then once we get the feel for his pooping cycle we can recognize the symptoms easier, take him off our shoulder and place him over the trashcan, his newspaper, or some other appropriate place and use the "shake it" term. Then, even if he hasn't given me signs, I know he has to go and can be proactive. We also make a big deal out of it when he poops so he associates the reward with the action.

As for pooping all over the house, thats handled by designating certain places he can be, and prepping the area underneath.

 

[antoinette]

Potty training is probably one of the most simple things to teach a bird.
Instead of using newspaper for the bird to poopie on, rather use a potty in the very begining.
When taking the bird out the cage, place the bird on a potty, for a minute or two.
Touch his tail, and say poopie please. Wait a few seconds, then touch the tail again, saying poopie please. If there is no re-action, remove the bird from the potty and try again in again about 10 minutes.
Observe the birds body language, when a bird begins to wiggle his tail, and makes a squating movement, he probably needs to releive himself.
Each time when taking the bird out the cage, place him on the potty, he will soon catch on.
Make sure when he does poopie in the potty, praise him, offer him a treat, let him know he has achieved something which makes you happy.

When Mishka my AG (now 5 years old) began to master the step up technique (2 months old) I began potty training him.

When walking around the apartment these days, when he needs to relieve himself, be pushes the potty towards me, his way of telling me he needs the potty.

 

[Fantur]

Does this work 99,9% of the time like with a dog or a cat or will there always be accidents? Meaning have you grown tolerant to the fact your couch and carpet will most likely never be the same?

 

[antoinette]

Does this work 99,9% of the time like with a dog or a cat or will there always be accidents? Meaning have you grown tolerant to the fact your couch and carpet will most likely never be the same?

Works most of the time with Mishka. Accidents do happen, depends on the circumstances. For example, if Mishka is far away from the potty, he tries to hold on for a few minutes, if I am unable to get it to him on the potty time, he does it where he is standing.

We have tiled floors, easy to clean if necessary. If you are worried about staining the couch or carpets, place a towel, where the bird will be.

You mentioned: my wife would soon divorce me if there is bird poop everywhere
Please think very carefully before becoming a guardian to a bird.
There is a lot more than mess, than just poopies, many birds also manage to poopie from inside their cage, and it lands up on the floor, below the cage. Consider how much a bird messes even when in the cage, throwing food out, food landing on a close by wall.
The list is endless, hopefully other guardians will shed some light as well.

 

[Kiwibird]

Hi. Parrots poop about 20-30 times a day, and even the best trained bird is bound to have the occasional accident. Fortunately, parrot poop is not smelly, is sterile since their "urine" is also in it, and is VERY easy to clean (let it dry and you can just lift it up without staining, cleaning while wet will smear it and stain).

As for potty training, it's completely possible, but not something you can jump right into as soon as you bring your bird home. You have to build your birds trust first before any training, and even then, you have to first train them basics like stepping up, not to bite and not to inappropriately vocalize (scream) before you can move onto more advanced training. It took about a year to train Kiwi with the basics of being a good pet, and another year to get him potty trained, and potty training him was difficult. Unlike a dog or cat, you can't just rub a birds nose in it to teach them, they are more like potty training a toddler where you need to catch them beforehand and move them where it is ok to go potty so they learn. It was very difficult, but well worth it. Kiwi signals us now by lifting his foot and crouching down, so it's easy to tell and move him to his cage/perch. The only time he has an accident if is WE don't pay close enough attention to his signals. And we were quite lucky he picked it up, many bird owners never succeed with potty training, as some birds just never get the picture. Many bird owners resort to keeping the bird on a t perch while outside the cage, or have better luck training them to wear a specially designed bird diaper.

 

[JerseyWendy]

I whole-heartedly agree with Ant about poopie being a VERY minor "thing" that may end up on your couch/wall/furniture/clothing. Bird poopie is completely odorless (in a healthy bird), and the easiest thing in the world to clean up.

Birds can be VERY messy. Many LOVE flinging food, and even the best seed catchers may not catch it all.

I'm assuming your bird will be fed a diet, which will also contain fresh fruits and veggies. Believe me, you will be cleaning the wall(s) regularly, as fruits and veggies can stick to wall quite easily.

Did I mention yet that many parrots can be quite destructive? They love to chew on things, and if left unsupervised they WILL get into things that are not meant for them to shred/chew/destroy.

But all of the above mentioned things are something bird guardians deal with effortlessly, without complaining, often bearing a grin, because it's just a fraction of the "fun" of being owned by one of those feathered babies.

 

[lotosha]

Hello.

I will be a first time bird owner in a few weeks. I definitely will make every attempt to potty train my parrot (an Indian Ringneck or a Senegal Parrot) as my wife would soon divorce me if there is bird poop everywhere.

Are birds easily potty trained or is it unrealistic of me to regard this as I would for a cat or a dog? Will I always have poop on my couch and carpets?

Sincerely,
Fantur

I red in some place that potty training is not very healthy. If you train your parrot to poop on a sign, than it'll wait for your order to do so. Now if you are absent for a long time than it could be a problem.

 

[antoinette]

Hello.

I will be a first time bird owner in a few weeks. I definitely will make every attempt to potty train my parrot (an Indian Ringneck or a Senegal Parrot) as my wife would soon divorce me if there is bird poop everywhere.

Are birds easily potty trained or is it unrealistic of me to regard this as I would for a cat or a dog? Will I always have poop on my couch and carpets?

Sincerely,
Fantur

I red in some place that potty training is not very healthy. If you train your parrot to poop on a sign, than it'll wait for your order to do so. Now if you are absent for a long time than it could be a problem.

It could become a problem only if the guardian makes it a problem. The guardian must not be pushy and persistant. Most birds that refuse to poopie in the cage, after being potty trained, have been frightened, and shouted at.....
When placing the bird on the potty, make it a fun "chore", making sure not to stress the bird.

After placing the bird back in the cage, after about 15 minuest, tell the bird to poopie, if not successful at first, try a again in a few minutes.
Reward the bird with a treat, he deserves it.

Mishka has a doggie bowl in his cage, underneath his food bowl.
When I was potty training him, and placed him back in his cage, on his doggie bowl, and said poopie please. He immediately thought this is his second potty. That is where he poopies, most of the time now.
I was petrified he would try to eat food that had dropped in the doggie bowl. I sat with him for 3 days, each time he attempted to eat the fallen food, I told him uhhh uhhhh no no. It took many hours, but I was patient and it has paid off.

If many more guardians were more patient with their birds, I am sure many many "problems" would be eliminated.

 

[DanNic]

You seem to have an issue with bird poo before you've started.

Firstly, it's not like seagul poo and not really like wild bird poo.
IRNs poo is about half the size of your small finger nail.
Generally most birds go before flight, to lighten the load.
You asked me in another thread about Ollie being flighted and him pooing.

If he out of his cage for more than 15 minutes he'll go, he'll also lighten his load before flying himself back to his cage.

Its going to happen.
Buy some baby wipes.

You can try potty training, you'll need to be dedicated but I still think its more successful in larger parrots like Congos and macaws.

 

[JerseyWendy]

If many more guardians were more patient with their birds, I am sure many many "problems" would be eliminated.

Amen to that! 100% the truth!!

 

[ProbablyHarrison]

This is a great thread. Helpful tips, everyone! Thanks a lot.

 

[lotosha]

Hello.

I will be a first time bird owner in a few weeks. I definitely will make every attempt to potty train my parrot (an Indian Ringneck or a Senegal Parrot) as my wife would soon divorce me if there is bird poop everywhere.

Are birds easily potty trained or is it unrealistic of me to regard this as I would for a cat or a dog? Will I always have poop on my couch and carpets?

Sincerely,
Fantur

Meanwhile my AG tries to potty train me. Every time I leave her alone in the room she will poop just to show me how bad it was to leave her alone

 

[goalerjones]

I red in some place that potty training is not very healthy. If you train your parrot to poop on a sign, than it'll wait for your order to do so. Now if you are absent for a long time than it could be a problem.

The only time I have to use the "shake it" command is when Hahnzel is actually on my shoulder (or head). Then pooping when and where he wants is an issue. Otherwise he is left alone and the area is protected by paper, or towels, etc. It is much better to have it under control IMO unless you want to look like Radargast in the Hobbit, caked with droppings.

Meanwhile my AG tries to potty train me. Every time I leave her alone in the room she will poop just to show me how bad it was to leave her alone

My little guy tells me to "shake it" when I am in the bathroom. Makes me laugh every time.

 

[Fantur]

I honestly can't see that prefering your pet not to poop on you or your furniture is to much to ask for and makes me a potential bad "guardian".

 

[JerseyWendy]

I honestly can't see that prefering your pet not to poop on you or your furniture is to much to ask for and makes me a potential bad "guardian".

Nobody said it will make you a bad guardian.

I prefer for my dogs to wipe their paws before they come back inside if they are wet and/or muddy. <-- doesn't happen, I deal with it

I prefer not having to scrub my walls weekly from dried fruit.

You will have to deal with bird poop, no matter what - and I am pretty sure that WHILE you are potty training your future bird, there will be MANY accidents.

 

[DanNic]

Nah, they come out the box all trained and tidy. Just like kids....

 

[Grenage]

Aizen (GCC) naturally avoids pooping on the furniture, and will generally either fly to the cage or other perch to use the toilet. If he's been choosing to eat food high in water (or had a lot to drink), then he's not quite so awesome at holding it in - accidents will happen. I toyed with the idea of potty training him, but as he naturally doesn't poop on us or the sofa, I'm happy to let it slide.

As with most things - assume the worst, then be glad if it doesn't happen.

 

[LoryLover]

Hello.

I will be a first time bird owner in a few weeks. I definitely will make every attempt to potty train my parrot (an Indian Ringneck or a Senegal Parrot) as my wife would soon divorce me if there is bird poop everywhere.

Are birds easily potty trained or is it unrealistic of me to regard this as I would for a cat or a dog? Will I always have poop on my couch and carpets?

Sincerely,
Fantur

Yes, our Lory is potty trained. It only took a couple days. We got her when she was 6 weeks old and the breeder had already started to potty train her. We would place her on a folded paper towel and say "go potty". When she went potty, we showered all kinds of praise on her. Within a couple days she associated the word "potty" with the action. If we were holding her and we thought she may have to go, we'd ask her "gotta go potty?"... then we'd take her to a perch in her cage, set her on the perch and say "go potty". Be very consistent and kind in the training. She will now tell us when she has to go, by saying to us "gotta go potty". If she's in her regular daytime cage, she will potty at will - she knows it's okay to go in there, since that's where we set her sometimes to go potty. We also got some 12" diameter round plastic plant liners - the type that are made of hard plastic you can get at Lowes or even RiteAid. We would place a folded paper towel in the bottom, place her on the rim, with her tail pointed into the center of the plant liner, and say "go potty". At first she would just jump off of it, but we would say "no, get back on there and go potty"... after 2 or 3 times if she didn't actually go, we'd give it a rest and try again in a few minutes. Super quickly, she got the hang of it. Now, if one of those plant liners are nearby, and she's playing on the floor with her toys, she'll stop playing, run over to the plant liner tray - go potty in it and go back to playing with her toys.