How do you train a blind bird?

[squinky]

Earlier this year there was a massive storm in my area. A week afterwards, I was walking past a tree when i heard the chirping of a bird. I recognised it as a cockatiel, and I realised it was coming from in the tree next to me. It took me awhile, but after calling out to him for some time and listening to his answers, I spotted him at the top of the tree. He must have been desperate because as I kept talking to him, eventually he launched himself off the branch and landed at my feet. Only a few nips as I picked him up, he was so skinny and exhausted. When I got him home he went straight to the food dish, then fell asleep. I made several posts on different local sites about finding him but no one claimed him. About 2 days afterwards, we noticed his eyes were quite milky. We don't know if the cataracts are caused by age, or physical damage, but we named him Bocce (pronounced Boh-chee) after Andrea Boccelli, the blind opera singer, because he sings his little heart out when he's happy. The problem is, he has a bad temper, and sometimes he'll come to you quite readily, other times he won't let your finger near him. And he has a very sharp beak. I'm unsure how to go about training a semi-blind bird who can't see your fingers till you're right up close. Any tips would be greatly appreciated, it makes me really sad when he bites me, because he loves to have a scratch, he just won't get on my finger.

[Michael]

Well since you say he isn't completely blind, I would say the training methods would be much the same way as with any normal parrot. Check out the taming/training guide for more information about basic training techniques. The only thing you might want to do differently is to stay in closer sight and do things slower. Definitely take your time and don't move in too quickly. Good luck.

[rebeccaturpeinen]

i dont have much experience but how about using your voice a lot, like teaching him a specific word that tells him your finger is on its way so he doesnt get shocked every time? i think it is great that you rescued this poor little bird and are taking the time and effort to help him

[entrancedbymyGCC]

I am by no means the expert Michael is, but I wonder if being very careful to pair any physical action with a verbal cue might not also be important here. Like picking a verbal for approaching with the finger before saying "Step up".

[Michael]

I'm no expert. I've just trained a few parrots and read a bunch of stuff. I just verbalize what I've discovered and share it to help others. I have no experience with blind birds at all but that is what I would try. I agree that coupling visual with verbal stimuli is a good idea but I usually recommend doing that for all parrots anyway just because it gives them more to catch on to. The reason it is important to move slow and not touch the bird too much is because if it can't see well, then it is probably more scared of stuff cause it has less time to react.

[squinky]

Thanks guys, I'll let you know how the training goes