Jolly's progress with color identification

Anansi

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Parrots
Maya (Female Solomon Island eclectus parrot), Jolly (Male Solomon Island eclectus parrot), Bixby (Male, red-sided eclectus. RIP), Suzie (Male cockatiel. RIP)
I'd long intended to do a follow-up video on Jolly and Maya's progress with fetch and color identification, but things got a little crazy and I never got the chance... until now!

I got video last night of Mr Jay working his special brand of color discerning magic, and I thought I'd share with my Parrot Forums family!

[ame="https://youtu.be/nzu8ant7KR8"]Red and Blue Rings - YouTube[/ame]

Jolly has so much fun doing this. Notice how he takes off the first time the instant I start to say the color? That's because I've been teaching him to wait until I tell him what I need BEFORE he takes off. Hahaha! He was straining the limits of his self-restraint just then. But I'm so proud of him!

Of them both, really. Though Maya still isn't flying, she's consistently fetching the rings for me. Still working on her color I'D accuracy, though. But she'll get there.

Here are past videos to show some of the earlier stages for learning this trick. (Most of these are in threads from maybe a year or so ago. We can call it Flashback Friday! Lol!)

[ame="https://youtu.be/Y37xJOZQP-s"]Jolly Blue Ring Placement - YouTube[/ame]
I'll point out one of my early mistakes, here. Things were going smoothly enough, but my command words were too convoluted. You can talk to them in a conversational manner, but there should be a consistent word for the command. I came to realize my error once I started teaching them to put the rings INTO the cup as well. Both showed initial confusion as to what I wanted, and that was on me. So I eventually course-corrected by using the command word "fetch" whenever I wanted something brought to me, and "put it in the..." whenever I wanted the ring put elsewhere.

I mention this so anyone reading can avoid making the same silly mistake. Because it takes a WHILE to fix it. Work out your command words before you start training, and then be consistent with them.

[ame="https://youtu.be/dNhnK5l6IVM"]Maya Ring Placement - YouTube[/ame]

[ame="https://youtu.be/htMxgQtYk3Q"]Messing with Daddy - YouTube[/ame]

And my personal favorite...
[ame="https://youtu.be/-i84_jXn00c"]Jolly Double Dip - YouTube[/ame]

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Ah Stephen that was wonderful, treat Friday LOL.

No wonder you have been quiet LOL. Well done to you, Jolly and Maya, lovely to watch them. Clever, clever birdies.

Thought I'd try Plum see if he would fly to me for a treat, No! Looked at me like I had turned daft, what you are not bringing it here?
 
Stephen this just warmed my heart. What an amazing job your doing with their training:) you really are an Elkkie whisperer!
 
So incredible and inspiring!
 
I

AM

STUNNED.

Wowwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!



Is this bird even in the same Order (Psittacines) as the Rickeybird????


You have a wonderful voice, Anansi... do you sing (I'm guessing "Irish tenor"?)
 
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Ah Stephen that was wonderful, treat Friday LOL.

No wonder you have been quiet LOL. Well done to you, Jolly and Maya, lovely to watch them. Clever, clever birdies.

Thought I'd try Plum see if he would fly to me for a treat, No! Looked at me like I had turned daft, what you are not bringing it here?

Thank you, K! And squawks of thanks from the Eclectic Duo as well!

Hahaha! Plum is of the aristocratic elite! He will not suffer such affronts to his privileged status! Lol! Love me some Plum!

Stephen this just warmed my heart. What an amazing job your doing with their training:) you really are an Elkkie whisperer!

Thank you, Chris! I'm just glad that they've been patient with me as I've refined my training process. That screwup with the command words was a doozy! Hahaha!

So incredible and inspiring!

Thanks, Piasa! I love that you found it inspiring. I made this thread partially because I'm just so proud of both my feathered kids, and like any proud parent I want to share their achievements with the world. But also because I want everyone to know how brilliant birds are and just how much they are capable of achieving. I honestly feel that this is the tip of the iceberg for them. As I continue to learn more effective ways to communicate with them, I believe they'll continue to surprise me.

I

AM

STUNNED.

Wowwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!



Is this bird even in the same Order (Psittacines) as the Rickeybird????


You have a wonderful voice, Anansi... do you sing (I'm guessing "Irish tenor"?)

Hahahahaha! Thank you, Abigail! I'm so glad you enjoyed! And believe me, I was quite impressed myself with the Rickeybird's rendition of J.Lo's "Big Booty"! ROTFL! I tried playing the song a few times for Jolly and Maya, but so far no takers.

And thank you, my friend! But no, I most certainly do not sing. I wouldn't inflict such an act of sonic violence upon another living being. Lol!
 
Stephen, WOW!!! That was absolutely amazing! I have to add that Jolly is literally glowing with health, my Friend. I agree with Chris, you truly are an Ekkie whisperer!
 
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Aww, thank you, Terr! But maintaining my ekkies' healthy glow pales in comparison to the work you've done with rescues who came to you with a history of unhealthy diets and damaged and disheveled feathering. Watching their transformations into healthy birds with beautiful, glossy plumage always fills my heart. Hats off to you, my friend!
 
What you are doing with Jolly and Maya doesn't pale in comparison to anything:) They both look, and are, amazing!
 
Doc, I must have been near death's door to have missed this thread! BRAVO, Jolly and Maya, gorgeous and brilliant! The instructor isn't bad either! Doc, I'm amazed, it's always a treat to see Jolly and Maya, so beautiful and in perfect feather. I love the progress they've made with the rings. I had to giggle at Jolly trying for two treats for one trick and Maya making Daddy work for his reward. I am so impressed! Thank you for sharing! So inspiring, I may order a set of rings for my big white sloth, knowing Poppy, she'd use the rings for bracelets.
 
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Doc, I must have been near death's door to have missed this thread! BRAVO, Jolly and Maya, gorgeous and brilliant! The instructor isn't bad either! Doc, I'm amazed, it's always a treat to see Jolly and Maya, so beautiful and in perfect feather. I love the progress they've made with the rings. I had to giggle at Jolly trying for two treats for one trick and Maya making Daddy work for his reward. I am so impressed! Thank you for sharing! So inspiring, I may order a set of rings for my big white sloth, knowing Poppy, she'd use the rings for bracelets.

Hahahahahaha! Thank you, Huckleberry! Working with them like this is such a joy, so I'm more than glad to share.

And yes, these rings are a great purchase! I know Al got the same exact set for Salty as well, and already has him stacking the rings on their poles. (I haven't tried that with my Eclectic Duo just yet, but I will.)

I'm sure Poppy would get them figured out in no time! Though yes, she truly is big enough to use them as bracelets!

Sent from my SM-N900V using Tapatalk
 
Nice going there. Color recognition to a given word is a tough thing for parrots to learn.
Salty has progressed to where I put a pile of the rings, colors intermixed, on the table and I ask him to sort them out onto the right color coded poles.

He is starting to carry over the color recognition onto the xylophone playing, trying to hit only the blue keys or red keys , as i ask him to. This is a hard trick for him but he is slowly getting it.

Really nice job with your Ekkies!!
 
Ah Stephen that was wonderful, treat Friday LOL.
Hahahahaha! Thank you, Abigail! I'm so glad you enjoyed! And believe me, I was quite impressed myself with the Rickeybird's rendition of J.Lo's "Big Booty"! ROTFL! I tried playing the song a few times for Jolly and Maya, but so far no takers.

And thank you, my friend! But no, I most certainly do not sing. I wouldn't inflict such an act of sonic violence upon another living being. Lol!

I thank you for coming up with a suitable term which I have already co-opted to describe my wife's parrot's output. Sonic violence.
 
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Nice going there. Color recognition to a given word is a tough thing for parrots to learn.
Salty has progressed to where I put a pile of the rings, colors intermixed, on the table and I ask him to sort them out onto the right color coded poles.

He is starting to carry over the color recognition onto the xylophone playing, trying to hit only the blue keys or red keys , as i ask him to. This is a hard trick for him but he is slowly getting it.

Really nice job with your Ekkies!!

Thanks, Al! How consistent is Salty with the color sorting at this point? I'm definitely looking forward to teaching Jolly and Maya to stack the rings onto the appropriate poles sometime soon.

And I love that Salty's color recognition has transitioned over to the xylophone! He's one smart bird!

I thank you for coming up with a suitable term which I have already co-opted to describe my wife's parrot's output. Sonic violence.

Hahahahahahahaha! High comedy!
 
I've been meaning to watch these videos for a couple of days and WOW, I am impressed and slightly jealous of Mr. Jolly's eagerness to fly to get those rings! He really seems interested and having fun with training. Maya's level of enthusiasm/internal debate to play with it or to get the treat for handing it over is more on par with how Kiwi feels about learning his colors:p Both your birdies are beautiful and the level of care they receive shows in their impeccable plumage and interaction with you. Looking forward to more from them, especially Jolly, the next avian Einstein:D
 
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Thank you, April!

Yeah, there's nothing like the moment when the switch flicks on and they start to feel as invested in the training as you do. And it's amazing to see the differences in personalities and how those differences play out in terms of how they express their investment. They're every bit as unique as people. Some are the more energetic, get up and go types (Jolly), while others are the more laid back, chill types (Maya and Kiwi. Lol!).
 
This is too cool! The more I see, the more inspired I am :)

Watch this space - Bella is gonna be some fierce competition for your duo in the coming months! (Ok, maybe a bit longer!) :D

Congrats on all your hard work and efforts. I can't wait to see what you guys do next!

Thanks again for all the help you've given
 
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You're welcome, Violet_Diva! And I'm very much looking forward to seeing the fruits of your labor with Bella! I have a feeling it will be most impressive.
 

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