Kizzy: the Flying Toddler Stage

[Ladyhawk]

The baby stage is over. My petite BFA (eleven weeks old as of today) is eating pellets and veggies on her own with only one hand-feeding in the evenings. Kizzy would now rather play than cuddle. Even though this development was not unexpected, I am a little saddened the cuddly stage is over. Last night, she let me pet her for a long time (for an Amazon), but there will be no more intense hours-long cuddle sessions under my chin. I chose an Amazon because they can entertain themselves for long periods of time. Just now, she spent quite some time dismantling green beans, allowing me to rest. She is slowly turning into an Amazon.

Now if only she would entertain herself inside the cage! I made a mess of introducing her to the cage, so now I have to desensitize her and it's going more slowly than I thought it would, as is harness training. Kizzy is sensitive, so I must accept there is no timetable for cage and harness desensitization. We're on Kizzy time now. Give me strength.

Harness training will be finished when Kizzy is ready for it to be finished. All I can do is put in the time. But she absolutely has to be socialized. Now. Not later. In order to do this, I'm going to have to take her to the park in her carrier and perhaps visit people in their homes. My mother has a lot of friends who could do me a solid by letting us visit.

I've been so busy training my flying toddler, I haven't had much time for taking pictures and making videos. I had planned for this stage to be much easier than the baby stage. Surprise!!! :8_grim::19_indiff:scared01: So much for my best-laid plans. I will need all the stamina I can muster to make it through this stage of Kizzy's development.

Cover me. I'm going in.

 

[SailBoat]

I have been pondering the Harness thing and although I have never Harness trained, I have come to the belief that the process maybe wrong.

I am thinking that like anything, it needs to slowly find its way into the Amazons World. Once accepted as a side feature, it needs to become 'something like' a toy, i.e. the Parrot is comfortable with it being set next to them and than on them. Kind of like a hind and seek or peek-a-boo toy that blocks ones view for a moment. Then a set-on Parrot's back toy, kind of like a 'dress-up' baby thing. And after all of that with the Parrot semi comfortable with 'kind of wearing it,' its time to slip on the straps. Starting with the straps just seems backwards to me! Let me know if my ramblings work.

I was traveling this morning and a goodly part of the trip was highway driving in light traffic, so I had a moment or two (well more like a couple of hours) to think about re-introduction of a cage! Over the years, I have assembled more than a couple of Parrot Cages! What I have found really works well as part of introducing a new cage to one of our Amazons is to let them be part of the assembly! Yes, this really slows down the process, but in each case, the Amazon was fully moved in before the final items where installed. The process seems to support their owning it, because they approved and was part of the assembly and placement of the adornments.

Yes, this would involve the taking apart of a perfectly good cage, the dangers of losing parts and yes, the time to do all of this. But, with your interest and your BFA's interest, it is just as likely that your toddler will take to the project like my older Amazons have! Let me know if I was daydreaming a bit too much!

 

[Ladyhawk]

I have been pondering the Harness thing and although I have never Harness trained, I have come to the belief that the process maybe wrong.

I am thinking that like anything, it needs to slowly find its way into the Amazons World. Once accepted as a side feature, it needs to become 'something like' a toy, i.e. the Parrot is comfortable with it being set next to them and than on them. Kind of like a hind and seek or peek-a-boo toy that blocks ones view for a moment. Then a set-on Parrot's back toy, kind of like a 'dress-up' baby thing. And after all of that with the Parrot semi comfortable with 'kind of wearing it,' its time to slip on the straps. Starting with the straps just seems backwards to me! Let me know if my ramblings work.

I was traveling this morning and a goodly part of the trip was highway driving in light traffic, so I had a moment or two (well more like a couple of hours) to think about re-introduction of a cage! Over the years, I have assembled more than a couple of Parrot Cages! What I have found really works well as part of introducing a new cage to one of our Amazons is to let them be part of the assembly! Yes, this really slows down the process, but in each case, the Amazon was fully moved in before the final items where installed. The process seems to support their owning it, because they approved and was part of the assembly and placement of the adornments.

Yes, this would involve the taking apart of a perfectly good cage, the dangers of losing parts and yes, the time to do all of this. But, with your interest and your BFA's interest, it is just as likely that your toddler will take to the project like my older Amazons have! Let me know if I was daydreaming a bit too much!

Regarding the harness, I used it in our long cuddling sessions to get her used to it. She's not afraid of it. The problem is getting it over her wings. I've never known an Amazon who liked his or her wings touched, so the desensitization is geared toward Kizzy letting me manipulate her wings. Unfortunately, I think she now has some negative feelings toward the harness because it got tangled up when I was trying to slip it over a wing. I'm using the next size up, but I'm starting to wonder if it might work for her. If / when she starts accepting it, I'll take a pic and ask the makers if they think it's too big for her. Her head barely fits through the next size down, but will fit better around the body.

And I do appreciate your daydreaming. Kizzy spends lots of time on the cage playtop. I keep hoping she's going to get curious about the dishes and toys inside, but so far, no joy. She's starting to get into things (not good), but that might mean she's ready to check out the cage (good). If she doesn't make much progress in the next few days, I will consider dismantling and rebuilding the cage and letting her supervise.

 

[Ladyhawk]

Kizzy is learning 1) how to fly longer distances, 2) how to land on a variety of targeted sites and 3) how to eat solid foods so Mom only has to hand-feed once a day.
Kizzy is eleven weeks old as of today, July 17, 2017.

[ame="https://youtu.be/TprQl88Qfwk"]Kizzy the Baby Blue-Fronted Amazon: Target Training - YouTube[/ame]

 

[AmyMyBlueFront]

Amazing how fast Kizzy has grown from a little baby to a full sized flighted BF Again thanks for sharing her remarkable growth.




Jim

 

[Kiwibird]

She's doing well! Baby or rescue, I guess they ALL put us humans through the wringer to make sure we're worthy of their love

 

[Kiwibird]

I have been pondering the Harness thing and although I have never Harness trained, I have come to the belief that the process maybe wrong.

I am thinking that like anything, it needs to slowly find its way into the Amazons World. Once accepted as a side feature, it needs to become 'something like' a toy, i.e. the Parrot is comfortable with it being set next to them and than on them. Kind of like a hind and seek or peek-a-boo toy that blocks ones view for a moment. Then a set-on Parrot's back toy, kind of like a 'dress-up' baby thing. And after all of that with the Parrot semi comfortable with 'kind of wearing it,' its time to slip on the straps. Starting with the straps just seems backwards to me! Let me know if my ramblings work.

Maybe it's just Kiwi, but his harness training has been going much better since hubby took over. He decided it was time he wore the dang harness, takes him in the office, dims the lights and on it goes! He is now wearing it for longer periods and becoming more comfortable with it, despite squirming and protests at first. Dimming the lights really seems to help in getting him to sit still enough to put the dang thing on. Now it's just an adjustment to something being on his body, which is a new concept, but he is starting to realize it's not the end of the world. We have yet to clip on the leash but that'll probably start soon too. We went with the less popular, but easier to get on and off "feather tether" and I think the way it buckles on has been another key to success. I used differed colored embroidery floss to color code which buckle went to which ring and now it's simple to get on and off quickly and he doesn't have to stick his head through anything. I think even at the end of his harness training, we will still all prefer the pak-o-bird for excursions, but if Kiwi starts flying in the future, being harness trained will put him one step ahead of the game for wearing a flight line and flying outdoors

 

[Ladyhawk]

I have been pondering the Harness thing and although I have never Harness trained, I have come to the belief that the process maybe wrong.

I am thinking that like anything, it needs to slowly find its way into the Amazons World. Once accepted as a side feature, it needs to become 'something like' a toy, i.e. the Parrot is comfortable with it being set next to them and than on them. Kind of like a hind and seek or peek-a-boo toy that blocks ones view for a moment. Then a set-on Parrot's back toy, kind of like a 'dress-up' baby thing. And after all of that with the Parrot semi comfortable with 'kind of wearing it,' its time to slip on the straps. Starting with the straps just seems backwards to me! Let me know if my ramblings work.

Maybe it's just Kiwi, but his harness training has been going much better since hubby took over. He decided it was time he wore the dang harness, takes him in the office, dims the lights and on it goes! He is now wearing it for longer periods and becoming more comfortable with it, despite squirming and protests at first. Dimming the lights really seems to help in getting him to sit still enough to put the dang thing on. Now it's just an adjustment to something being on his body, which is a new concept, but he is starting to realize it's not the end of the world. We have yet to clip on the leash but that'll probably start soon too. We went with the less popular, but easier to get on and off "feather tether" and I think the way it buckles on has been another key to success. I used differed colored embroidery floss to color code which buckle went to which ring and now it's simple to get on and off quickly and he doesn't have to stick his head through anything. I think even at the end of his harness training, we will still all prefer the pak-o-bird for excursions, but if Kiwi starts flying in the future, being harness trained will put him one step ahead of the game for wearing a flight line and flying outdoors

The whole outdoor flying thing both intrigues and frightens me and from your posts, it's obvious you feel the same way. I'm really excited for Kizzy to have such an opportunity, but I'm afraid of predators and thieves. Kizzy will never fly without a harness. This is a rural county. There are more hawks than people and the people here ignore leash laws. I met a lady on the trail I hike who was severely bitten on that very trail and still only about 10% of people I meet on that trail use leashes. The prevailing feeling: "My dog would never bite someone or attack another animal." Well, the statistics have to come from somewhere. I almost feel some kind of crackdown is in order. On that trail, Kizzy will be in her Pak-o-Bird and I will be armed with pepper spray. It isn't fair, but at least she'll be able to go.

My Pak-o-Bird should arrive tomorrow: gold with "Kizzy" embroidered in black. Because Kizzy is petite, the company generously included three different perches so I could choose the best one (or two). I am very much looking forward to my first walk in a very long time! I hope Kizzy loves that trail as much as I do.

As an aside: Kizzy looks bigger since her tail grew in all the way. She's currently at a svelte weaning weight of 340 grams. There is plenty of muscle on either side of her keel, so she's about the right weight for fledging. She eats pellets and veggies all day and then gets a hand-feeding at night. It's mostly for comfort. I squirt a little into her mouth and she seems to say, "OK, that's enough! Thanks!" and flies away. XD Once she's flown away, she won't accept any more no matter how hard you try.

How do you solve a problem like a Kizzy? a Kiwi? an Amy?

BFA's Forever!

 

[Ladyhawk]

If Kizzy is afraid of her cage, but won't stop landing on the ceiling fan, why can't I put the cage on the ceiling fan and let those two instincts fight it out?

 

[wrench13]

As you may or may not know, I worked with Salty and his harness every night for almost a year. We started with him just putting his head thru the head loop , using a set vocal command, slowly increasing the time his head was in there, and using a set command for him to pull his head out. Once he was OK with that (many months just for that), I started to drape the harness over his body and wings, again slowly increasing the time it was on him (more months). And it has only been within the last 2 months that we got the harness on, adjusted correctly and ventured outside. All of these actions were heavily rewarded with treats. Would this work with Kizzy? Each bird is different. And I am a patient man, who else would try 365 times to teach his parrot to do something very un-natural. Talk to Bummble's mom, she got her baby parrotlet to put her harness on pretty quickly.

About the cage, I got nothing. Salty sleeps in it and has his pellets and water in there. Other then that he never goes into his cage.

 

[Anansi]

Kizzy is beautiful!!! And your target training technique is excellent! She's responding very quickly, and is obviously enjoying your sessions together. Before you know it, she'll be rounding corners looking for you!

 

[Ladyhawk]

I thought Kizzy was going to be left-footed, but now she is using her right foot more often than not. When I was researching footedness in parrots, I came across an article that said babies go through an ambidextrous stage before choosing a preferred foot. Maybe. I'm hesitant to say Kizzy prefers one foot over the other because she already changed preferences once.

Kizzy is sensitive for an Amazon and sometimes acts more like a baby African grey than a baby Amazon. Maybe she'll be right-footed like most greys. Who knows? I certainly don't. I am learning Kizzy 101 as I go along. I'm getting good marks in some subjects, not so good in others, but I am willing to learn.

 

[Ladyhawk]

Kizzy's latest word: "Peek-a-boo!" She learned it from my mother.

 

[Ladyhawk]

Kizzy is beautiful!!! And your target training technique is excellent! She's responding very quickly, and is obviously enjoying your sessions together. Before you know it, she'll be rounding corners looking for you!

Thanks. Kizzy is extremely bright. She grasped the concept of a bridge word, a reward and a target in less than a minute. By the third short training session that day, she was already flying between perches and my arm. XD

As for rounding corners to find me, she was doing that before I made this video. XD She's a precocious little girl and I love her very much. I'm actually (mostly) looking forward to the challenge of raising her. I know much of it will be difficult, but wow! What a bird!

 

[Ladyhawk]

Regarding footedness in parrots, I had a thought. Perhaps when a baby is still very clumsy, he or she uses the preferred foot for balancing and grasps with the other. As standing becomes easier and then second nature, perhaps the parrot is able to start manipulating objects with the preferred foot. Or perhaps this idea has no merit whatsoever.

I'm interested, so I'll probably end up researching the topic a bit more if I have time. Flying toddlers are time-consuming.

 

[Ladyhawk]

Kizzy knows when I tap my shoulder it means it's OK to fly there. She figured this out the very first time I did it, which means we have some kind of basic understanding of one another. Parrots are smart.

If she's going to land on me, I'd really rather she fly to my shoulder than land on my head, although I always make sure she feels welcome. Being with me should always be a good thing.

 

[SailBoat]

Regarding footedness in parrots, I had a thought. Perhaps when a baby is still very clumsy, he or she uses the preferred foot for balancing and grasps with the other. As standing becomes easier and then second nature, perhaps the parrot is able to start manipulating objects with the preferred foot. Or perhaps this idea has no merit whatsoever.

I'm interested, so I'll probably end up researching the topic a bit more if I have time. Flying toddlers are time-consuming.

I have been all over the board regarding Footedness. The one thing that drives the discourse is their switching-off when resting and/or sleeping as they control body heat and balance on one leg. They really need to have near equal strength to assure that they do not develop leg, claw and toe problems by use of mainly one leg use.

That all said, I have seen very specific use of one leg over another as a tool to 'push' away, 'request a Step-up or grasp items! Its going to be enjoyable to watch what comes out of your follow her development.

 

[Ladyhawk]

Kizzy Bird: In Search of...Socialization

So, today I went to a few places, looking for a place where I can safely socialize my flying toddler. She isn't harness-trained yet, so it has to be a place where she can't fly high and where people will be willing to handle her under my supervision.

I went to PetSmart, but the ceilings are too high and there are too many canines. Weirdly, the guy who takes care of the live animals there bought a blue front from Kizzy's breeder, so there's a good chance his bird is a full brother to Kizzy. Another guy who works there is the son of a woman who still has one of the greys I bred over twenty years ago. I live in a very rural area. There's always someone you know or someone who knows someone you know. Not many degrees of separation.

Finally, I looked in the library, which is quite close to where I live. I could walk there quite easily. A woman whose daughter attended the same grade school, junior high school, high school and college as me works there. (Again: very rural.) We went into a side room and Kizzy was a very well-behaved little girl.

I forgot to warn her about two windows in the room and she tried to fly through one. Luckily, it was only a few feet away so it didn't even phase her. She simply turned around and came back to me when I asked. The people in the room (especially me!)
were more upset than she was. (Note to self: Show Kizzy any windows first. Tap on them to make sure she knows they're solid. Think like your flighted toddler before entering into new situations.)

Other than the scary window incident, everything went very well. Kizzy climbed all over the librarians. I rescued their buttons and earrings as needed. Kizzy liked one of them so much, she flew over and landed on her shoulder. I read Kizzy's body language and just told the librarian to hold still if that happened and that Kizzy would likely land on her shoulder or on top of her head. (Note to self: Teach Kizzy that shoulders are preferable to the top of the head.)

Kizzy needs to meet lots of people in new situations and until she's fully harness trained, I have to make do. I also need to take into consideration the safety of given situations. I was looking for a room with low ceilings with a door that didn't lead directly outside and safe landing areas should she decide to fly. I forgot that windows between rooms are still windows. Whoops. Luckily, Kizzy didn't get hurt due to my negligence and taught me to look for one extra thing.

I think I'll go back there. If I tap on the glass, I don't think she'll try to fly through it again. Also, we'll be standing right next to it and she won't be able to build up enough speed to really hurt herself.

Having a fully-flighted bird is new for me and quite scary. I still think she will be happier and healthier if we can both make it through the training stage. Our next step is the harness, but only Kizzy can decide when training will be finished.

 

[Ladyhawk]

Also today: Kizzy spent a long time on her back in my hand, playing with one of her toys. As long as she has a toy to kill, she's content lying on her back in my hand.

 

[Anansi]

Socializing her well early on is a good move on your part. Makes for a much happier and well-adjusted/well-traveled bird later on. Remember to do the glass tapping thing repeatedly at first, especially since this is outside of your home and her sense of the familiar. Any bird is more likely to get spooked outside of the home, so you want to take extra precautions in that regard.