I would like to start this thread by saying thanks to everyone on Avian Avenue. I wasn't sure whether I'd even make a new thread on birdtricks because everything I wanted to say was already said on the other thread. But I did want to share my new opinion on them, and how grateful I am to everyone who pointed out so many obvious facts that I had missed.
I also want to take a quick moment to apologize for being arrogant. Not sure if anyone could tell through the writing, lol, but I assume I was very obnoxious.
WANRING: If you don't like long posts this thread is probably not for you. Proceed with caution.
I always try to assume the best before the worst. I always try to see the good in people. This was probably why I just pushed aside the fact that TOP's pellets were nearly exactly the same as the Birdtricks's pellet, but in the end this was one of the main turning-points for me. It's not that there's anything wrong with repackaging TOP's, but why wouldn't you say that it's the same? Why would it be more expensive than the TOP's pellets? Why would they pretend they've come up with the recipe?
And another sneaky thing I noticed is that they don't often say things, instead they imply what they mean. For example, I was trying to find out if they use weight management, because I've watched their channel forever and I've never heard that term. Well, it so happens that they made an entire video about weight management- only, they didn't say weight management even once throughout the entire video. But that's exactly what they were talking about. I am too dumb to figure out links, but if you want to watch it, it's titled "BirdTricks Tuesday: Food Motivation & Putting Tricks on Cue"
As mentioned in the other thread, they also change the language. "Power Pause" instead of "Systematic Desensitization". However, I've heard "Target Training" and "Touch Training" from them, so I'm not sure if that's a good example. In the beginning of all this, I really didn't want to believe that they were tricking me for money. And it's still possible that isn't true. It is possible that they are changing the language for righteous reasons. For example, "Power Pause" makes more sense than the proper term, if you're an average or below-average person, like me. Birdtricks is simplifying the language, basically. Which could be a good thing in some areas, but overall it creates a huge disconnect. At least, it did for me. Trainers and bird-people can't be speaking two different languages or they can't understand each other. If one trainer uses "Systematic Desensitization" and the other uses the "Power Pause", neither will know what the other is saying, even though they are talking about the same thing.
However, it could be for good reason that they say power pause instead. Because they might be simplifying things to help people and reach more people than to get more money and seem intelligent and creative. I like to believe the best first, but I cannot get over their arrogance any more. They make it seem like their way is the only way, and idiots like me believe that. But there are many ways to take care of birds that are better than their ways to do it, as Avian Avenue has showed me. The stupid thing that I did was come onto Avian Avenue thinking I knew more than everyone here, even though I'd only owned budgies and everyone here has had many birds, including rescue birds with serious trauma and disabled birds. Isn't it ironic how when you think you're so smart, you end up being an idiot? Anyway, I don't blame Birdtricks for that fully, but they did influence my bad behavior by making it seem like everyone who doesn't follow their methods are bad or stupid people, and everyone who did was smart, like them.
And they are smart. Because they are making a lot of money. It isn't a coincidence that their video was the first thing that popped up on my screen. They are studying the algorithm and pushing these cheap, sneaky sales tactics all over the place. I ignored their "buy this" and "buy that" and that was my mistake. Everything they do is to get you to buy their things. And there isn't anything wrong with making money off of something you love. It's when money becomes all you love that there is a problem. I'm not sure if they actually think they are smarter than everyone else, or if they are pretending so that people like me would buy their overpriced crap. Confidence goes a long way in selling things. It could all be a facade, how do I know? I still like to think they have good intentions, but the end result is the same, so it doesn't matter much anyway.
And the thing is, I would probably buy their stuff and enjoy their videos if they weren't tricking and lying. If they presented themselves as entertainers with lots of experience in training birds, I would trust them. There would be no need for arrogance and "my way or no way" approach because they would be a lot like their viewers: learning and trying their best for their birds. However, if that were their approach, they wouldn't be selling so many courses and things because they would know they have no right to. Instead, they should be pushing professionals' advice and telling people to buy their things. But they could still make a decent amount of money with their cookbook and their magic shows.
I think that the only thing worth buying from them is that cookbook. Even though we can find cheaper or even free advice on what to feed a parrot, the cookbook is convenient and useful. It's not for everybody, but it's amazing for some.
In the last thread there were a lot of alternatives for Birdtricks, which I liked and found extremely useful. In case some people can't find that thread (and because I'm stupid with links, lol) I would appreciate it if we could also post a bunch of better bird trainers here. If there are Youtube channels worth watching, that will also be helpful for the visual learners. I was sucked into Birdtricks because I am a visual learner and they appeal to that audience by showing what to do and not to do and what it looks like. I have no problem with reading. I love reading. I just find it easier to learn by seeing what to do.
I would also like this thread to provide alternatives to the Birdtricks toys, since we know they are just as overpriced as everything else. We can get better for less!
And after all of this I still have to play a small game of devil's advocate. I don't like Birdtricks anymore. But I still want to be fair.
I don't watch Parrot Wizard. I barely knew anything about him. So I'm curious how everyone here seems to know that he was taught by Birdtricks? I watched the video that was linked in the other thread and I was astonished by how sad and hungry his birds were. I don't know how anyone could say his birds were healthy. Not sure if the vet was just an idiot or if he was only focused on money, but that whole thing was atrocious to me. The hunger of those birds gently brings me along to my next topic: Birdtricks starves their birds. I don't think they do. I haven't seen their birds do any baby-begging, and you can't see the bones the way you can with Parrot Wizard's birds. That doesn't mean I'm team Birdtricks. Because I think they aren't feeding their birds enough anyway, but that could be by accident. I read that if humans had to eat like birds, we would have to eat twenty-five large pizzas a day, every single day. In the wild, birds eat a little very often. They have to constantly move because of predators, so they don't gorge themselves and eat enough to fill their crops and then starve for several hours. Instead, they fill their crops a quarter of the way all throughout the day, and then their crop empties fully overnight while they sleep. So feeding birds twice a day with a few training sessions isn't healthy for them, even if they are getting enough food. It's just probably not a healthy cycle. That's my opinion, anyway, based on what I've personally observed with the songbirds in my area, lol. So anyway, even though I don't agree that they're doing the best by their birds, they aren't starving them, or so it seems. Someone said they counted the times Birdtricks's birds baby-begged for food, but I've never seen it. I'm not an expert on what starving birds look like. I'm just comparing Parrot Wizard's birds with Birdtricks's birds.
I would like to add that I think their videos are still worth watching. I'd like your opinions on this too. I find their videos very informative and useful, despite their language-changing and sales tactics. But taken with a grain of salt, it can be helpful for fixing small problems or teaching basic tricks, like targeting.
Jumping onto Avian Avenue was the best thing I ever could have done. I will no longer recommend Birdtricks. Instead I will strongly encourage everyone who loves birds to join Avian Avenue. You have all helped me so much and I couldn't be more grateful.
And finally, thank you all so much for reading. I'm sorry it was so long, but grateful that you made it to the end!
I also want to take a quick moment to apologize for being arrogant. Not sure if anyone could tell through the writing, lol, but I assume I was very obnoxious.
WANRING: If you don't like long posts this thread is probably not for you. Proceed with caution.
I always try to assume the best before the worst. I always try to see the good in people. This was probably why I just pushed aside the fact that TOP's pellets were nearly exactly the same as the Birdtricks's pellet, but in the end this was one of the main turning-points for me. It's not that there's anything wrong with repackaging TOP's, but why wouldn't you say that it's the same? Why would it be more expensive than the TOP's pellets? Why would they pretend they've come up with the recipe?
And another sneaky thing I noticed is that they don't often say things, instead they imply what they mean. For example, I was trying to find out if they use weight management, because I've watched their channel forever and I've never heard that term. Well, it so happens that they made an entire video about weight management- only, they didn't say weight management even once throughout the entire video. But that's exactly what they were talking about. I am too dumb to figure out links, but if you want to watch it, it's titled "BirdTricks Tuesday: Food Motivation & Putting Tricks on Cue"
As mentioned in the other thread, they also change the language. "Power Pause" instead of "Systematic Desensitization". However, I've heard "Target Training" and "Touch Training" from them, so I'm not sure if that's a good example. In the beginning of all this, I really didn't want to believe that they were tricking me for money. And it's still possible that isn't true. It is possible that they are changing the language for righteous reasons. For example, "Power Pause" makes more sense than the proper term, if you're an average or below-average person, like me. Birdtricks is simplifying the language, basically. Which could be a good thing in some areas, but overall it creates a huge disconnect. At least, it did for me. Trainers and bird-people can't be speaking two different languages or they can't understand each other. If one trainer uses "Systematic Desensitization" and the other uses the "Power Pause", neither will know what the other is saying, even though they are talking about the same thing.
However, it could be for good reason that they say power pause instead. Because they might be simplifying things to help people and reach more people than to get more money and seem intelligent and creative. I like to believe the best first, but I cannot get over their arrogance any more. They make it seem like their way is the only way, and idiots like me believe that. But there are many ways to take care of birds that are better than their ways to do it, as Avian Avenue has showed me. The stupid thing that I did was come onto Avian Avenue thinking I knew more than everyone here, even though I'd only owned budgies and everyone here has had many birds, including rescue birds with serious trauma and disabled birds. Isn't it ironic how when you think you're so smart, you end up being an idiot? Anyway, I don't blame Birdtricks for that fully, but they did influence my bad behavior by making it seem like everyone who doesn't follow their methods are bad or stupid people, and everyone who did was smart, like them.
And they are smart. Because they are making a lot of money. It isn't a coincidence that their video was the first thing that popped up on my screen. They are studying the algorithm and pushing these cheap, sneaky sales tactics all over the place. I ignored their "buy this" and "buy that" and that was my mistake. Everything they do is to get you to buy their things. And there isn't anything wrong with making money off of something you love. It's when money becomes all you love that there is a problem. I'm not sure if they actually think they are smarter than everyone else, or if they are pretending so that people like me would buy their overpriced crap. Confidence goes a long way in selling things. It could all be a facade, how do I know? I still like to think they have good intentions, but the end result is the same, so it doesn't matter much anyway.
And the thing is, I would probably buy their stuff and enjoy their videos if they weren't tricking and lying. If they presented themselves as entertainers with lots of experience in training birds, I would trust them. There would be no need for arrogance and "my way or no way" approach because they would be a lot like their viewers: learning and trying their best for their birds. However, if that were their approach, they wouldn't be selling so many courses and things because they would know they have no right to. Instead, they should be pushing professionals' advice and telling people to buy their things. But they could still make a decent amount of money with their cookbook and their magic shows.
I think that the only thing worth buying from them is that cookbook. Even though we can find cheaper or even free advice on what to feed a parrot, the cookbook is convenient and useful. It's not for everybody, but it's amazing for some.
In the last thread there were a lot of alternatives for Birdtricks, which I liked and found extremely useful. In case some people can't find that thread (and because I'm stupid with links, lol) I would appreciate it if we could also post a bunch of better bird trainers here. If there are Youtube channels worth watching, that will also be helpful for the visual learners. I was sucked into Birdtricks because I am a visual learner and they appeal to that audience by showing what to do and not to do and what it looks like. I have no problem with reading. I love reading. I just find it easier to learn by seeing what to do.
I would also like this thread to provide alternatives to the Birdtricks toys, since we know they are just as overpriced as everything else. We can get better for less!
And after all of this I still have to play a small game of devil's advocate. I don't like Birdtricks anymore. But I still want to be fair.
I don't watch Parrot Wizard. I barely knew anything about him. So I'm curious how everyone here seems to know that he was taught by Birdtricks? I watched the video that was linked in the other thread and I was astonished by how sad and hungry his birds were. I don't know how anyone could say his birds were healthy. Not sure if the vet was just an idiot or if he was only focused on money, but that whole thing was atrocious to me. The hunger of those birds gently brings me along to my next topic: Birdtricks starves their birds. I don't think they do. I haven't seen their birds do any baby-begging, and you can't see the bones the way you can with Parrot Wizard's birds. That doesn't mean I'm team Birdtricks. Because I think they aren't feeding their birds enough anyway, but that could be by accident. I read that if humans had to eat like birds, we would have to eat twenty-five large pizzas a day, every single day. In the wild, birds eat a little very often. They have to constantly move because of predators, so they don't gorge themselves and eat enough to fill their crops and then starve for several hours. Instead, they fill their crops a quarter of the way all throughout the day, and then their crop empties fully overnight while they sleep. So feeding birds twice a day with a few training sessions isn't healthy for them, even if they are getting enough food. It's just probably not a healthy cycle. That's my opinion, anyway, based on what I've personally observed with the songbirds in my area, lol. So anyway, even though I don't agree that they're doing the best by their birds, they aren't starving them, or so it seems. Someone said they counted the times Birdtricks's birds baby-begged for food, but I've never seen it. I'm not an expert on what starving birds look like. I'm just comparing Parrot Wizard's birds with Birdtricks's birds.
I would like to add that I think their videos are still worth watching. I'd like your opinions on this too. I find their videos very informative and useful, despite their language-changing and sales tactics. But taken with a grain of salt, it can be helpful for fixing small problems or teaching basic tricks, like targeting.
Jumping onto Avian Avenue was the best thing I ever could have done. I will no longer recommend Birdtricks. Instead I will strongly encourage everyone who loves birds to join Avian Avenue. You have all helped me so much and I couldn't be more grateful.
And finally, thank you all so much for reading. I'm sorry it was so long, but grateful that you made it to the end!
