Niko, my first bird

[SgtNikola]

Hi! I just brought home my first bird last Saturday. He is a 4 year old yellow sided green cheek conure, Nikola Tesla. I picked him out 2 weeks ago, shortly after he was dropped off at the bird shop. The people who had him before needed to rehome him, and he warmed up to me pretty quickly. Before I met Niko, I hadn't even decided that I was definitely getting a conure, I had narrowed down my research to 4 different breeds, but the second she handed Niko to me I was sold.
During the week before I brought him home, I spent about an hour and a half a day at the bird shop handling him, at home I set up an area for him. The first day at home, he was in his cage and seemed to be happy exploring, whistling, and watching me. I let him out on day 2 and he was just as sweet as at the shop. We are on day 6 and he is still sweet, outgoing, and relearning how to fly. He is not afraid of anything, not even my dogs (who were a little nervous when they first heard him). He can be very sweet, but also very opinionated (which is one of the reasons I picked him).
I just need some help learning to read his body language. Ie: when he wants picked up, when he's nervous, and when he doesn't want to do something. Also, need some tips on making training fun for him. I'd like to master step up with him, and someday teach him to fly to me/his cage on command.
Any help is appreciated!

 

[Dona]

Welcome! It sounds like you're doing great! Nico is a handsome boy!
Be sure to post in the conure section of the board to find other conure parents who can be of help as you build your relationship!

 

[sunnysmom]

Welcome to the forum!

 

[pawfectly]

Welcome to AA.

Target training is always a success with birds. You can look up videos for it on Youtube.

If he’s comfortable enough, you could start teaching step up using your arm. If not, you can use a perch / stick first. Lots of treats should do the trick.

 

[iamwhoiam]

Congrats on getting Nikola. Love his name. I thought about naming one of my birds Tesla but I never did that.

 

[expressmailtome]

Welcome, and enjoy the site!

 

[Lady Jane]

@webchirp is good with Conure advice.

 

[webchirp]

Def look up posts by @Monica as she has put a lot of time into sharing training and such. Careful with dogs as an accident can only take a second even if they are locked in their cage.

They get nippy in varying degrees if you push past their boundaries or they don't want to do something. I always ask mine if they want to step up when I put my finger in front of them. If they really want you but don't want to make the effort to move, they will tip their head forward and flutter their wings at the shoulders.

Tail completely up with squeaking sounds is a let's mate behavior.

Strutting can be a sign of play or showing you they are big and bad.

Head bobbing that looks like dancing to the beat is their way of interaction fun...they love when you copy. Not the mating behavior though.

Head bobbing that brings up food in little chunks is regurgitation and is a mating behavior...just ignore that one.

You'll get there. Congrats!!

 

[SgtNikola]

Thanks for the info! I get so confused sometimes watching him, totally different than dog training but he's definitely worth the effort to learn. I'm trying to be very careful with the dogs, 'leave it' has been a must. As I've mentioned, my pups seem curious but cautious. They mean well, but they're bulls in a china shop. Not going to leave them unattended together... probably ever, but being able to spend time with both out of their cages would be nice. Baby steps though. Nikola doesn't seem to understand that his big personality does not mean he can handle the 60lb pibbles, but I like his attitude. Thanks for the heads up about the training advice, definitely going to check it out.

 

[Monica]

I had narrowed down my research to 4 different breeds

Species, not breed.

He is not afraid of anything, not even my dogs

As mentioned, please do be careful! Even if the other animals don't mean any harm they could still accidentally harm him.

when he wants picked up

He'll want to go towards you, maybe even put a foot up, do the "wing quivering" with head pointed in your direction.

when he's nervous

This is kind of hard to explain, but he may very well be looking for a safe place to go, might be his cage, chirp may change in sound/pitch, quieter, shivering, wanting to hide.... it's an obvious change in body language. He may also avoid you or others, wide eyed, feathers sleek... it can be many different cues here and there that say "I'm nervous" or "I'm scared".

when he doesn't want to do something

Open beak/bite is a pretty obvious one. The key is to figure out how to make them do what you want them to do. That is, giving them a reason to do what you want them to do.

need some tips on making training fun for him

Figure out what his favorite treats are, first off! And make sure those aren't in his diet. Second, keep the training sessions short and sweet! Two to five minutes is enough!

I'd like to master step up with him

Step up training should look something like this.... (can teach target training first, then incorporate the target training into teaching step up)

1. Reward your bird for looking at you.
2. Reward your bird for moving his head towards you.
3. Reward your bird for taking a step towards you.
4. Reward your bird for taking another step towards you.
5. If he doesn't run away, keep rewarding him for remaining where he's at. (if he runs/backs off, you may need to start over again)
6. Reward your bird for taking a couple more steps closer.
7. Encourage him to come closer yet again and reward him.
8. Reward your bird for touching you with his toe(s).
9. Reward your bird for putting a foot on you.
10. *JACKPOT REWARD* Give your bird lots of goodies for putting both feet on you!

teach him to fly to me/his cage on command

Pretty similar concept to step up, only changing the requirements just a tad!

totally different than dog training

If done right, it's the same as dog training! That is, using positive reinforcement training techniques. Not force/dominance/flooding techniques. It is different in the sense that you are working with a prey animal instead of a predator, so some thought differences, plus a bird vs a dog.... so there's the whole flight aspect as well.... but recall training is otherwise the same as it is with dogs! And many behaviors. Reward the behaviors you want to see occur more often.

 

[Cynthia & Percy]

welcome

 

[Zara]

Welcome to the forum

 

[Cynthia & Percy]

welcome

 

[EkkieLu]

Welcome Aboard! So glad you're here!