Kentuckienne
Supporting Vendor
- Oct 9, 2016
- 2,747
- 1,648
- Parrots
- Roommates include Gus, Blue and gold macaw rescue and Coco, secondhand amazon
Today I refurbished an old stand that once belonged to our BF, and it's had me thinking about him a lot. May I share a couple of stories?
:smile015:
Back when Oliver was hating me most of the time, he never hated me so much that he wouldn't accept treats. I used to hold the treats way far away so that he had to stretch out for them. That way I could be sure the treat, and not my finger, went into the beak. His favorite treat was the Cheez-it cracker, and there was a cookie jar of them on the kitchen counter.
One morning I held the Cheez-it out just a bit closer, and he stretched for it, then at the last instant turned his head slantways to nip at my hand. I was watching and pulled back in time. He sat on top the cage and glared at me. I thought a second, then held the Cheez-it up in front of my face. We stared at one another's eyes. Then I slowly put the Cheez-it in my own mouth and ate it, saying UMMMM...
Oliver's beak fell open. He danced from side to side. His eyes were wide. He did not look at all angry - he was shocked, surprised, astonished. I continued to chew up the cracker, and it was NASTY - old and stale - saying UMMMM. Oliver quivered in disbelief. When I finished the cracker, I went and got another one out of the jar and walked back to the cage. I looked at him, he looked at me, and it seemed like something clicked in his brain. I held out the cracker, really pretty close to him, and he took it very nicely. He never tried to bit me like that again. He understood exactly what was going on, and that if he wanted a Cheez-it he was going to have to be nice about it, and he really wanted those Cheez-its. I made sure to go out that day and buy a fresh supply, by the way.
The other Cheez-it story: Oliver had a perch that stuck out from the side of the cage. One day I was holding the Cheez-it - and making him reach, just in case. I was holding it a bit far out and he over-reached, and fell forward. He was hanging on to the perch upside down, so he reached around the back and pulled himself up with his beak. I made SUCH A FUSS. Told him he was a good bird, good bird, gave him a cashew nut piece. His eyes were pinning, he was excited. I held out another Cheez-it too far, he reached, pulled back, reached, pulled back, then fell forward again. GOOD BIRD! Reward reward! Within five minutes, I kid you not, he learned to "flip" for treats. He never forgot it, and it was pretty easy to get him to do it.
When we moved into a different house and he started hollering more, especially if I was in the kitchen, I would look at him, and then go back to work. When he would be quiet, I would go over and get him to flip, then give him a treat. He learned quickly that hollering was no good, but flipping would bring reward. Sometimes I would be working away, and hear this sort of quiet rattle, and look over to see that he was flipping and flipping and flipping. Oh man, treat quick! He learned to either whistle or flip if he wanted something and the yelling really decreased.
Sometimes if he wasn't near a perch he would try to flip as best he could on the cage bars, keeping his feet in about the same place and making a circle with his body. Rewarded.
All told, the mighty Cheez-it was the greatest help I ever had in making friends with Ollie. Maybe all Amazons are so food motivated? Seeing him learn two things so quickly - don't bite, and flip - really changed my opinion of him. He became much more than a pet animal - he showed that he had intelligence, and decision making ability, and the capacity to communicate. Man, what a wonderful bird.
:smile015:Back when Oliver was hating me most of the time, he never hated me so much that he wouldn't accept treats. I used to hold the treats way far away so that he had to stretch out for them. That way I could be sure the treat, and not my finger, went into the beak. His favorite treat was the Cheez-it cracker, and there was a cookie jar of them on the kitchen counter.
One morning I held the Cheez-it out just a bit closer, and he stretched for it, then at the last instant turned his head slantways to nip at my hand. I was watching and pulled back in time. He sat on top the cage and glared at me. I thought a second, then held the Cheez-it up in front of my face. We stared at one another's eyes. Then I slowly put the Cheez-it in my own mouth and ate it, saying UMMMM...
Oliver's beak fell open. He danced from side to side. His eyes were wide. He did not look at all angry - he was shocked, surprised, astonished. I continued to chew up the cracker, and it was NASTY - old and stale - saying UMMMM. Oliver quivered in disbelief. When I finished the cracker, I went and got another one out of the jar and walked back to the cage. I looked at him, he looked at me, and it seemed like something clicked in his brain. I held out the cracker, really pretty close to him, and he took it very nicely. He never tried to bit me like that again. He understood exactly what was going on, and that if he wanted a Cheez-it he was going to have to be nice about it, and he really wanted those Cheez-its. I made sure to go out that day and buy a fresh supply, by the way.
The other Cheez-it story: Oliver had a perch that stuck out from the side of the cage. One day I was holding the Cheez-it - and making him reach, just in case. I was holding it a bit far out and he over-reached, and fell forward. He was hanging on to the perch upside down, so he reached around the back and pulled himself up with his beak. I made SUCH A FUSS. Told him he was a good bird, good bird, gave him a cashew nut piece. His eyes were pinning, he was excited. I held out another Cheez-it too far, he reached, pulled back, reached, pulled back, then fell forward again. GOOD BIRD! Reward reward! Within five minutes, I kid you not, he learned to "flip" for treats. He never forgot it, and it was pretty easy to get him to do it.
When we moved into a different house and he started hollering more, especially if I was in the kitchen, I would look at him, and then go back to work. When he would be quiet, I would go over and get him to flip, then give him a treat. He learned quickly that hollering was no good, but flipping would bring reward. Sometimes I would be working away, and hear this sort of quiet rattle, and look over to see that he was flipping and flipping and flipping. Oh man, treat quick! He learned to either whistle or flip if he wanted something and the yelling really decreased.
Sometimes if he wasn't near a perch he would try to flip as best he could on the cage bars, keeping his feet in about the same place and making a circle with his body. Rewarded.
All told, the mighty Cheez-it was the greatest help I ever had in making friends with Ollie. Maybe all Amazons are so food motivated? Seeing him learn two things so quickly - don't bite, and flip - really changed my opinion of him. He became much more than a pet animal - he showed that he had intelligence, and decision making ability, and the capacity to communicate. Man, what a wonderful bird.
