How many tricks does your parrot know?

[Michael]

How many tricks does your parrot know? If you have multiple parrots, don't combine the number but vote for the biggest number and then explain in discussion.

For the purpose of this poll, a trick is a distinct behavior that can be cued (with reasonable reliability). If your parrot "dances around" just for the heck of it, this is not a true. However, if you can do something that will get it to dance like if whenever you start dancing, it joins in, then it can be considered a trick.

How difficult have you found it to teach these tricks? Does it get easier or harder with quantity? Do your parrots have a limit to the number of tricks they can know at any one time? Does learning more tricks make them forget other ones? For the poll, please vote based on tricks your parrot knows right now and not over all time. So if you taught 10 tricks but the new one always replaced the old one (the parrot forgot the old ones and couldn't do them) then vote only based on the tricks that can be cued now.

[marie83]

Would you count behavious such as step up and target as a trick though? Although they are cued behaviours I wouldn't have counted them as "tricks" really?

[Michael]

Would you count behavious such as step up and target as a trick though? Although they are cued behaviours I wouldn't have counted them as "tricks" really?

Personally I never counted step up but target yes. You're right that step up is cued but it's also so standard almost like "eat." Would be silly to say that putting food in front of the parrot counts as a cue to the eat trick. Target is specifically taught though with training intention so I always count it as the first trick. The only way I would call step up a trick is if your parrot doesn't step onto your hand when presented until exactly when you say "step up." That would make it specifically cued as opposed to just coming over because it wants to be with you. It's up to you though.

[marie83]

In that case not including step up and an uncued lying on his back (in my hand or on the sofa/rug) so far he knows 5 things, I need to introduce a cue for lying on his back as I want him to play dead but I'm not sure how to go about getting him to willingly roll himself on his back but he is quite happy for me to put him in that position, I've tried to roll him myself but he doesn't like that plus I would rather it be "his choice" rather than forced.

[cml]

Stitch knows this on cue (I dont count step up as a trick, nor any other taming excerise):

* Flight recall
* Targeting
* Shake
* Wave
* Turn around
* Fetch
* Wings
* Tube (works a lot better now!)
* Flip a card (does it everytime, succeeds about 80% of the time)
* Dance (new trick but he learned it very quickly, caught him dancing to lady gaga, then I just added a cue for it )

I was unsure of whether to include flight recall or not, but with it, that makes it 10 tricks! Stitch has always been very easy to train, many of the tricks he learned in a couple of sessions, with wings and tube being the hardest tricks to master for him. He doesnt forget the old tricks, and even though some of the later tricks have been the hardest to train, I think thats because they are more complex. Wings took about 3 weeks to get the wings to open fully, which I think is pretty fast. The hardest thing is the tube, which still might spook him until he remembers how good it is to go through it to earn a treat ^^.

Leroy knows:

* Flight recall
* Targeting

He is in the process of learning turn around, but things are much slower with him. Before coming here he had little if almost any contact with humans, but was an aviary bird. He is an AWESOME bird for being as brave as he is, and with all the things that has happened since he came here with his crash, and then his nail injury, I am amazed by how well he is doing. Even though he is learning tricks slower than Stitch, he is a cool parrot, and we are working with taming a lot more, which is necessary.

[liz]

Only the ones they pull on me.

[vitna]

My lovebird Paulie know target, retrieve, turnaround and "go throught a tube"...this trick was very easy to teach...only the retrieve i had to teach in more than a training session

[Sparky]

I voted 3.

Sparky does flight recall, dances on cue and plays birdy-soccer with his balls.

He'll pick up a small one and use it as 'defense' to bump away a bigger one rolled to him, he also loves to just fling them around the floor and chase after them, or shake one up and down to jingle the bell.

Oh and he says 'pretty boy' and 'hellooo'

[Cage Cleaner]

Gl

[Wiki]

Wiki knows:
* Target
* Fetch ball to hand
* Basketball
* Counter fetch to a tub
* Bat
* Turn
* Wave
* Hop over (the best he can do for flight recall at this stage)
* Slinky run
* Bowling

They've been incredibly easy to teach, I think I've been lucky! Wiki is naturally curious.