Bird Tricks?

[Pip's Owner]

Hey! I have an eight month female cockatiel who so far only knows two tricks. She knows how to hang upside on my finger, and to fly to my shoulder when I whistle to her. I noticed that she has a LOT of fun when training (even though she's really stubborn and food-driven ), so do any of you have suggestions on some beginner bird tricks I could teach her?

 

[Clueless]

Wave?

Turn on command?

 

[Pip's Owner]

Wave?

Turn on command?

Thanks for the suggestions! I have tried to teach her wave but she kind of confused it with step up, and is lifting both feet, so we are still working on that. For turn on command, that sounds great because it's pretty simple and she can kind of do it halfway already. Thanks again! We will be working on these now.

 

[Begone]

First learn her things that is important.
To eat from a syringe and a small spoon.
To hold up her feet so you can file them.
That she can come to you on command.
To get used to and to go in and out in a carrier.

 

[Pip's Owner]

First learn her things that is important.
To eat from a syringe and a small spoon.
To hold up her feet so you can file them.
That she can come to you on command.
To get used to and to go in and out in a carrier.

Yes! That's very important, she knows the last three very well, but it's a good idea to teach her to eat from a small spoon/syringe just in case. That's first priority in our training now, thank you!

 

[Tiel Feathers]

First learn her things that is important.
To eat from a syringe and a small spoon.
To hold up her feet so you can file them.
That she can come to you on command.
To get used to and to go in and out in a carrier.

Excellent advice! Also to get used to touching all over, lifting wings, to wear a harness, to eagerly get wrapped in a towel.

 

[Begone]

And here are some you can try after that.

 

[Begone]

Also to get used to touching all over, lifting wings, to wear a harness, to eagerly get wrapped in a towel.

Yes, yes, yes and yes!

 

[Tiel Feathers]

And here are some you can try after that.

Eloy!

 

[Pip's Owner]

Hi! Thank you for all of the great advice! Pip so far knows all the essential stuff that was mentioned, but she still won't let me lift her wings. Do you have any tips on how to train her? I try lifting her wings a little at a time and feeding her treats, but to no avail. She's pretty stubborn haha, any suggestions?

 

[Clueless]

Hi! Thank you for all of the great advice! Pip so far knows all the essential stuff that was mentioned, but she still won't let me lift her wings. Do you have any tips on how to train her? I try lifting her wings a little at a time and feeding her treats, but to no avail. She's pretty stubborn haha, any suggestions?

Does she lift wings when she showers?

It may be easier to "catch" an action.

 

[Pip's Owner]

Does she lift wings when she showers?

It may be easier to "catch" an action.

Yes! She does do that. I'll try to train from there, thank you.

 

[BirdManDan]

I would highly recommend taking advice from professional bird trainers. Below is who I have used and continue to use and they have a ton of free stuff on YouTube and their blogs. You can also order more detailed training programs.

Training should only be done when the bird is a little bit hungry so they will be more motivated to train and learn. We all need to be careful in how we respond to our birds behavior because sometimes we unknowingly re-enforce a bad behavior. These people have saved me from a great deal of frustration and saved my relationship with my birds. In my book they are life savers. They have a ton of things to help with just about any issue. I love them and would love to meet them some time. My dream would be to take their freeflight training for my two Macaws. When I first rescued them I couldn't even get close to the cage. They are my 2 favorite birds now thanks to Dave and Jamieleigh's training videos.

I have used several of their training videos. Training really helps you and your fid's bond. Check them out. The link is for overall training and understanding how and why to do it. It is a two hour video for only 29.95. It's not a specific detailed training program for specific problems. Dave & Jamieleigh performed with Ringling Brothers Circus and and Cruise ships. I think hey are tops in their field. You can be the judge of that though. It's not about the tricks you are training but rather the communication and bond you are building with your bird while doing the training. You can even face-book questions to them and they try to answer all of them or email info@birdtricks.com

The Family Friendly Parrot Formula

Some free you-tube videos that can help you out. You can also purchase more detailed training videos.
BTT Parrot Training 101 | The Basics of Training Your Parrot
https://youtu.be/jtzz8bdCpu8

Power Pause technique with a great explanation introduction
https://youtu.be/u4QW3wPNxUo

Power Pause technique clearer video footage no intro

Desensitize your bird to new things
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=7oSXpzi2YtI

Help with biting
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=g1A-fKA2Hog

Stop your bird from screaming
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=LpAIjJ6hjU0

How to bond with a bird you have pissed off
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=PyhPyPYDuso

Stop Random Biting

Stop my bird from Biting

Secrets To The Most Powerful Parrot Training Method
https://youtu.be/kl7x_CUvZe8

My Bird is Too Scared to Train! | Help
https://youtu.be/kbubH7P5sug

Picky Eating Birds | Help?!
https://youtu.be/h32qxRkrMIc

Refusing to Step Up Help
https://youtu.be/VdY1XlY-3VQ

How to Get Your Cockatiel to COME | Small Bird Training
https://youtu.be/t0tsnPoBnMU

Why To Use a Clicker in Bird Training
https://youtu.be/KFCjjpuNik0

Clicker Training Made Easy
https://youtu.be/6z-yiDIjn2s

Clicker Training Tip | Birds Scared of the Clicker
https://youtu.be/3DMN0MG-hr4

What You Think Is Target Training May Not Be | Parrot Training Tips
What You Think Is Target Training May Not Be | Parrot Training Tips - YouTube

Conditioning Your Parrot to Allow Touch
Conditioning Your Parrot to Allow Touch | Macaw Training - YouTube

Socializing Parrot to Parrot, Parot to People, Parrot to other pets,
https://youtu.be/vXS_IeSFGSE

How to teach your birds to get along
https://youtu.be/Hv7Jyw8ggZU

Socializing parrots - How do you add a new bird?

Socializing Our Parrots - Arenas and Tour Members
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7mTWhYc7fKQ&sns=em


Some great blogs to learn from.
The Biggest Mistake We Make With Parrots
The Second Biggest Mistake We Make With Our Birds
The 3rd Biggest Mistake We Make With Our Birds
training parrots | BirdTricks | Parrot Training Blog
Your First Month With Your New Parrot – BirdTricks
BirdTricks Blog | Parrot Training & Care
Parrot Care Advice | by Jamieleigh – BirdTricks
Here is another link on clicker training.
A blog posting on clicker training.
Common Behavior Problems Easily Solved With Target Training
How To Get Your Bird Past A Fear Of Objects: A Step By Step Guide
Things I wish I Had Known When I First Got A Parrot

It's a lot of information but it's good. I hope it helps. It sure helped us.Birdmandan
I'm a vendor on AA check us out atWWW.BIRDMANDAN.COM

 

[Shezbug]

Oh I am so glad you have mentioned Dave and Jamieleigh Womach in such high regard. I absolutely love these people and the way they work with their birds. Lots of common sense and psychology seems to be used and everything they do just seems to work, they really know their stuff.

I have pre paid for some training lessons with them via skype, I can not wait for my bird to arrive and our lessons to begin.

 

[Shezbug]

Oh I also have purchased their recipe/parrot feeding guide books. Very good value for money, as are the other books and guides they offer for sale.

 

[Shinobi]

I remember a few years back on another forum that a large number of members actually hated birdtricks.

They were called scammers, con artists and fakes. They were accused of mistreating their birds by depriving them of food.

But I watched a few of their videos and found them to genuine and care for their birds deeply. They also have an ability to connect with birds.

 

[BirdManDan]

They might have been a little aggressive in marketing in the beginning but they do a great job in training and they truly love their birds. The notion that they starve their birds to perform is ridiculously false. They like to do their training first thing in the morning before breakfast when the birds are a little hungry so that they are more motivated to learn to earn treats. That's not starving them. Where do people come up with this stuff?

 

[TikiMyn]

Training should only be done when the bird is a little bit hungry so they will be more motivated to train and learn

I disagree. I train my birds with attention, toys and food as a reward. I am training one of my birds at this very moment by responding to vocalizations I find pleasant, and thereby increasing the chance he Will make those vocalizations again in the future. I do save sunflower seeds and millet for purely training/treats when being good. My birds always have spouts/chop/pellets available and seeds in their foraging areas, I never remove that for training and yet they are always very eager to train. Because they like it, they earn special treats, get loads of attention, do fun things, get Some exerises etc. And that is rewarding for them. When I point to their training perch they both fly to it as soon as they can. So I don’t think you should only train a bird when it is hungry, I think it is more beneficial to use special treats. There is nothing wrong with training in the morning but I disagree a bird has to be hungry. I have done at lead 20+ flight recalls with my birds after they had dinner, they only for a reinforcer when they flew from a spot I let them fly to to me, and sometimes I skipped a treat. The fun and attention is reinforcing enough

 

[BirdManDan]

I agree that there are plenty of things other than treats to use as rewards. They might be hungry for attention or food and I didn't say must be but should be (I should have been more specific). I think if they are not motivated by a reward (of any kind) they will not be as interested in training. I just find training works best for me anytime except right after eating a full meal but especially before breakfast. I'm sure we all have our own methods we like best. That's what makes freedom of choice great. To each his/her way of doing things that works for them.

 

[Peachfaced]

My birds are mostly food motivated. Sometimes Rupert doesn't want food, and I'll pet his cheek/head. I usually try to wait when there's a time slot between meals where they are interested in a snack, or before bedtime when I would normally give out snacks. Rupert's attention span is pretty short, so his sessions are kept short as well.