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I need a bit of help

Discuss the methods and techniques of clicker training, target training and bonding. These are usually the first steps in training a young parrot.

I need a bit of help

Postby skeetersunconure » Wed Dec 08, 2010 8:05 pm

I need some help. My family when they walk in my room or strangers and skeeter is out if his cage he immediatly flys to them and he does not want to get of! he goes for their jewlry and if they try to get him to stop biting earings or neckleces he bites them! also he doesent stay put for long this is somewhat annoying. My family sure would like skeeter alot more if I could train him these things. any suggestions? Thanks soo much!:) :sun:
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skeetersunconure
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Re: I need a bit of help

Postby Kathleen » Wed Dec 08, 2010 9:19 pm

1) Make where ever you put the bird more reinforcing than flying to these people (top of cage, perch, play gym, foraging tree, play area, etc) with toys, foraging toys or treats that take a long time to eat
2) Teach these people how to handle the bird and what to do if it flies onto them so they can avoid bites and not teach it to bite more
4) Keep the door to your room closed when you have the bird out and tell your family, friends, or strangers that if your door is closed, then that means the bird is likely out of its cage
5) When the bird is out, be ready to keep it occupied.... maybe only taking it during training times and limiting other time out without something for the bird to be doing
6) If you haven't already, teach it flight recall as a way to get it off these people, and try to recall it if it flies to them or lure it back to you with something very reinforcing (toy, treat, etc)
Kathleen
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Re: I need a bit of help

Postby entrancedbymyGCC » Thu Dec 09, 2010 8:46 pm

IMO, it might be very hard to make something that's always there more inviting than the fun new person. What is your main goal, that he doesn't fly to the new person and land, or that he doesn't molest the person once there?

Has anyone taught "Stay" to a parrot, analogous to how a dog is trained? This might allow enough time to come and retrieve the bird before he flies to a surprise visitor.

I think Kathleen's suggestion of training flight recall is good, you may not be able to stop the landing, but you should be able to get him to come back to you reliably. And of course the suggestion of having him caged when you expect company is also one way to avoid the situation altogether.

You could also try enlisting reliable people as training partners, and either training a cue equivalent to inverse flight recall for "get off me", or perhaps trying to find a way to reward quietly sitting on a person rather than "getting busy". You could try to teach a cue for a cute trick that is incompatible with biting and exploring, like "wave". You could also try to get a training partner to discourage landing by wearing sticky tape on the shoulders, or creating an "earthquake" but all the caveats that go along with "punishment" apply. And unless you have a lot of friends you can use this way, you might wind up just solving the problem for the one person who was available to help you.
Scooter :gcc:
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Re: I need a bit of help

Postby guybo » Fri Dec 10, 2010 1:19 pm

Put a sign up on your door saying to knock and that a parrot is on the loose. When they knock, you can hold Skeeter or cage him.
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Re: I need a bit of help

Postby zazanomore » Fri Dec 10, 2010 3:12 pm

Einstein is the exact opposite! Whenever someone comes in, he scrambles to get to me.
Bonnie - :budgie2:
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