Training Question

[04cobratorchred]

I was wondering if anyone has every used the "birdtricks" DVD training tape? I was thinking about getting it but wanted to see if anyone had any information about it or other good videos they have used. Thanks for any information.

 

[Lori]

I purchaced all the bird tricks before my bird got here and returned all of them don't waste your money. I spoke to several pople and most feel the same way. google arround online you will find all kinds of stuff most for free. Ill look for some for you what are you looking to do? potty training actual tricks?

 

[Auggie's Dad]

Is that the Chet Womach one? If it is I was looking into it for a while. I was a bit concerned as to their method of advertising, something about it screamed scam, like they'd take my money and not send anything. So I did a bit of research on the company.

As any business they had a couple minor complaints, but from what I found they seemed to be legitimately selling a useful product.

They also offer "deals" quite regularly and if you get a good deal it may be well worth it. I have found however most of the information can be found with a good internet search or a discussion on a forum (like this one.) Because of this I decided not to invest my money in the DVDs.

So, in other words, if you would like the convenience of having a video you can just sit down and watch and learn from it would be a good idea. However I doubt there are any miracle gems on the DVD that you couldn't get for free on forums.

 

[Auggie's Dad]

Seems Lori was posting at the same time as me ...

So yeah, there you go, doesn't sound like there's anything in the video you cant get for free.

 

[Lori]

Yes thats the one I got and found it not very useful. I got a deal and just around $200-300 I got like 5 or 6 vids and a bunch of e-mail. most was crap.
The reason I got them in the first place was the advertised how to keep your hand fed bird tame, I thought this may be useful with my hand fed baby that was coming. I watched all of them and sent them an E-mail? asking where is this info they said oh if you follow all the sessions that will keep him tame. That was not how it was advertised so I watched again and did not see anything I have not read online or in a forum. Most of the birds they used supposedly had biting issues but you never saw that by the time they show the vid these birds were tame and probably have been this way for a long time. I felt it was a huge waste of money and every e-mail was a short clip than said to get more purchase this, Well I bought the full set shouldn't that have meant I had all of it wrong again. I got my money back.

 

[04cobratorchred]

Thanks a lot for all your help guys. You just saved me 150 bucks. I have a blue african ringneck and i am just wanting to basic train him. once i get him out of the cage he will get on my hand but i can't rub his head or back at all.

some questions you may be able to help me with?

what is the best way to "pet" them?

How do i make him "step up" when he is in the cage?

What are some good website that teach potty training and some tricks.

Thanks a lot for the help you guys have been really helpful.

 

[Lori]

How old is he?
was he a baby or a rehome?

Potty training is all about body language my Sennie is 10 month and trained they tend to do a poop dance watch to see the body language and once you recognise it put him where you want him to go tell him go poop or something this will take time and they poop every 15 or 20 min.

everything with birds is time and patients and repeat.

try using a perch to get him out of cage when you want him to step up. if you ask for step up keep trying until he does than give a treat when you get the response you want. repeat

As far as petting work on step up when you get him to step up work on finger training. step up from finger to finger keep doing it make sure you say step up or up up every time and praise if the session goes OK dont forget the reward. After that is mastered you can try to hold a snack in you hand and pet once and let him eat it while you stroke him. If you bird is an adult this could take a long time you need to earn his trust dont push let it come naturally. good luck keep us updated on progress and other questions. you want this to be a good experience so go slow dont rush and keep each session short.

 

[Auggie's Dad]

Potty training: Lori pretty much hit it. The first step is observation, some common behaviors before 'going' are fluffing up and baking up, especially towards an edge. Not that every bird will do these, but they are common. Learn your birds behaviors prior to going, then right as they are about to hold him over an appropriate spot (garbage can?) and give a command such as "poop" or "potty".

In addition to stepping up on fingers some people use two sticks to practice stepping up, especially in the early days if you are nervous about being bit. Birds tend to pick up on anxiety, to them it signals that your hand is not a stable perch and they will tend to bite then. So stay within your own comfort level as well as his. Another advantage of sticks is that you can gradually "pet" him with the stick as you praise him if he is calm and doing well. From here you can transition gradually to fingers/hands.

You say he wont let you pet him. How do you try to pet him? And how does he react?

Also in addition to his age, how long have you had him?

 

[04cobratorchred]

Thanks a lot Lori and Auggie's Dad that was a very big help. The only problem is he won't take any kind of treat from my hand. i have been doing the "step up" and he is really doing great with that but i can' reward him with a treat as he won't take it from me and when he does he just drops it right away. What is that "clicker" do that you often see people selling for training birds? http://cgi.ebay.com/i-Click-Dog-Cat...220974582QQcmdZViewItem?hash=item120220974582

He is right around 14 months, i have only had him about two months and just starting working with him three days ago. i got him free when i bought a pair of greenwing macaws. Anytime i try to touch his head or back with my finger he just trys to fly away with his clipped wings.

 

[Auggie's Dad]

Clickers are wonderful. But for the time being it may make things more difficult than help.

A clicker is used as a secondary reinforcer, sometimes called a "bridge". The first step in using a secondary reinforcer is to pair it with a primary reinforcer (usually a treat). By doing that over and over again the click takes on the rewarding properties of the treat so you can deliver a reward quickly without interrupting the activity. Another simpler, cheaper of a secondary reinforcer is "good boy". For most basic training I'd recommend going with "good boy" - you dont need to buy it, you cant loose it, and it carries some inherent reward in itself if you say it with the common voice inflection.

Now, as far as how to reward him:

Does he like the treats? Will he eat them if they are in his cage?

Some people limit feeding to scheduled times then they do some training right before feeding so the bird is hungry. But if you have a good treat that should not be necessary for basic training.

The treat should be unique to training, some things you can try are sunflower seeds, grapes, peanuts. Be creative to find something your birds like.

One other note: if he will take the treats when left alone in the cage but will not take it from you it is likely that he doesn't trust you yet. If this is the case you can use a shaping technique. First set the treat down and back away, let him take it. Do this over and over each time backing away less and less. Eventually set the treat down in front of him but keep your hand close... with practice you should be able to hand it to him.

 

[Lori]

I would worry about clicker training last you dont want to get ahead of yourself.

you can buy a clicker at any petco or petsmart or most petstores. It is the same one they sell for dogs.
I did mean to tell you to start with perches than move on to fingers if possible. I get ahead of myself.

This is not a processes that should be rushed you have to earn his trust first. When giving a treat make sure it is something he likes and gets no other time.
I went as far with a Tiel I adopted to sit and remove all sunflower seed from his bag of food he wont eat nothing but seed. I try and try he is 8 and was not in great shape when I got him. Good luck.

 

[Auggie's Dad]

Oh, and as for the petting that is actually a good reaction for him to have. Patience is key. Trying to flee is a much better behavior for him to attempt versus biting. He doesn't want you petting him yet and he has very few options.

Only three days working with him... give it time. Let him get used to you holding him, let him learn you are not a threat. Give him treats through the shaping technique I described. You may be surprised that soon enough he'll come up to you with his head down to be pet. When it comes to petting I'd recommend you let him initiate it by inviting you.

 

[04cobratorchred]

Thanks a lot for all your help guys. It has really helped, i will give him some time and keep working with him and keep you posted on how he is doing. Thanks again.

 

[RSRosey]

Just a suggestion for when you are ready to move on to working on the petting. My Zon is a nervous nelly so I am taking it slow with him. But what I started with is touch. I let him know I was going to touch him, I started with his feet because he was less anxious about that, and then touched him for like a half a second, then told him "Good boy" and would sometimes give a treat. Then I moved on to touching other spots, keep in mind that anything coming from behind is going to scare him. This is working for me, maybe this or a variation of this would work for you.
Rhonda

 

[Alsquared]

04cobra, another reason your parrot might not take treats while he's on your hand is that he's not steady enough to take it by one foot to eat. My BGM is only 7 months old and still a klutz, so if she doesn't feel steady enough to eat it, she'll drop it. Also, I've found that if it's a new food, even if she's on a perch, she'll drop it too, 'cause she thinks its a boring toy. I've learned to put new foods in her coop cup(cup=food; go figure) so the next time Aruba sees it, it's an "A-Ha!" moment...