Teaching a Parrot to Walk Backwards

[idlepirate]

Do you think this is trainable or just a random parrot behavior which some parrots do on their own. Id imagine you just have your parrot on a table and make him back up somehow and click?



also there's this other one walking backwards : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6HXalx4ZR_A

I don't want to use the phrase moonwalking as its too taky but yea....

[iknowwhatiknow]

I've no idea, but it's a neat trick. I'd love some ideas.

[MandyG]

You should be able to capture the behaviour with clicker training. If your bird takes a few steps backwards click and treat. Once it starts consistantly displaying the behaviour for treats start waiting for it to go a longer distance before you c&t. Start to add in a cue and once the bird catches on only c&t when the bird displays the behaviour after you have cued it.

Should be relatively easy if it's something your bird already does, but I'm not really sure how you could encourage the bird to walk backwards if it doesn't usually do it already. With some experimenting you should be able to figure it out though!

[Michael]

First off I don't think this could be labeled a trick because the bird isn't responding to a cue (I had to watch without sound so if they are saying something like moonwalk and then it does it, then it is a trick). Teaching it is really easy. Any parrot can backup if required but they generally don't like to. To shape the behavior, just push your arm toward the bird (but without opportunity to step up or turn around)... naturally it will have to backup. Click and reward when it is walking backwards. Always say/show the cue and the bird will learn. Eventually you don't have to push it back but make a motion with your arm/hand that would push it back (and like wings) the bird will continue the action on its own without being touched.

[idlepirate]

awesome thanks for that, just wanted to also make sure its not an unnatural behavior or something as I dont usually see alot of birds walking backwards.
should be fun to train

[zazanomore]

First off I don't think this could be labeled a trick because the bird isn't responding to a cue (I had to watch without sound so if they are saying something like moonwalk and then it does it, then it is a trick). Teaching it is really easy. Any parrot can backup if required but they generally don't like to. To shape the behavior, just push your arm toward the bird (but without opportunity to step up or turn around)... naturally it will have to backup. Click and reward when it is walking backwards. Always say/show the cue and the bird will learn. Eventually you don't have to push it back but make a motion with your arm/hand that would push it back (and like wings) the bird will continue the action on its own without being touched.

I'd still consider it a trick. I mean, a lot of birds sing songs or mimic sounds without cues, and I still consider that a trick.