Going outside

[Kacey]

Hi. I have some questions about taking my bird outside. My year old parrotlet hates going outside. She gets very afraid. I recently got a 3 month old brotogeris, however, that I had hoped I could take outside on a harness if I started with her while she was young. She has made great progress with the harness training but she also seems terrified outside. Should I just keep taking her outside for short periods until she gets used to it? I read that when it comes to harness training, the fun of getting to go outside is part of the positive reinforcement, but clearly this is not the case for my bird. Thanks in advance for any advice!
Kacey

[marie83]

I'm no expert cuz mine aren't even fully harness trained yet but I would start by taking her out for extremely short periods, literally a few seconds to start with and if she has a favorite treat offer it to her whilst she is outside. Take her straight back in and let her relax again. Repeat several times til she relaxs and then you can gradually work on the period of time she is outside for gradually extending it and (if she is interested in food whilst outside) rewarding her for being there.

Another idea is getting her used to being outside with a travel cage so she doesn't associate the harness with a terrifying experience, just make sure you use the travel cage inside for positive experiences too like getting meals so she wants to go in and doesn't become fearful of the travel cage. To be honest I would probably go with this idea first until she is used to being outside as it may make her feel more secure and it will be a hell of alot easier to retrain her to go in her travel cage than retrain her to wear her harness.

Other people may have better ideas though. Good luck and will you update any progress made please?

[Kacey]

Thank you! I will give this a shot and definitely keep you posted.

[Grey_Moon]

I would suggest also that you start off slow.

Take her outside for enough time for her to experience it (maybe 15 minutes) but it also extremely extremely important WHERE you take for those fifteen minutes.

My 13 year old TAG just this summer started wearing her harness. The first time she let me do it---we went outside on the front porch and sat under the awning. I didn't bring her anywhere, she got to sit still, see a relatively unchanging environment and just soak it all in. The second time we went out on the back porch and sat in the sun---again, calm quiet place. The third time we went for an early morning walk to get her used to moving within the outdoors. The fourth time (and this was a big leap) we took her in the car---this we discovered is actually is easier for her than walking outside as she feels safe and 'covered' so to speak in the car.

Just a little while ago we took her into the pet store with us---she seemed to have fun.

The idea is to start them off slow and then push them bit by bit.

The result is that although my grey is NOT crazy about putting the harness on---she tolerates it---because she knows it means she gets to go outside/in the car--and usually the whole time we're out she's beak-grinding, slow-stretching and tail-wagging (I get smacked in the face with wings and buttfeathers ). She even wants scritches sometimes.

Good luck

[Kacey]

Thank you, grey moon. I just wanted to make sure that not all birds love going outside right away. Glad to hear it's a process for most. I've learned a lot of patience keeping parrots. Everything must be accomplished very slowly. I appreciate the advice.

[liz]

If they do not like being outside there is less chance of an escape when the door is open.

Rambo does not like being outside. One time he was knocked out the front door because my guests leaving did not see him on the floor. He ran circles between their feet until he found an opening to get back in.

Myrtle would probably love to fly outside but we have red tailed hawks. I have taught her that only people and cats go through the door. When I go out back to take care of the boxers I tell her stay. She will get off me (which is where she is most of the day) and watch me out the window.

They have all the freedom they want inside and I don't think they need to be outside.

[Shelby]

I don't think they need to be outside.

You can only get vitamin D from being outside. The UVB rays your body synthesizes it from can't pass through glass and only a very small percent gets through screens. You can't properly absorb calcium without enough vitamin D. This is why so many people harness train and get aviaries.

[Grey_Moon]

Actually Shelby---thats not true.

Amounts of Vit D3 can be obtained from certain mushrooms, beef liver, fish oils, various fish and (this is a frequently enjoyed source of food for companion birds) egg--specifically the yolk. As well it is also present in alfalfa.

[pennyandrocky]

i don't only take mine out for sunlight but for mental health. outside there's always somthing new to see so it's a great way to keep them from getting bored.

[brohandy]

How do most birds know to come right back when they fly out? I understand that they're like any pet, but is it something of protection or feeding that birds can just understand?