hi im new to the forum

[ceejay]

hello my name is ceejay and i live in nsw australia i am an american but i have been living in australia for almost 3 years now i own a galah aka red breasted cockatoo. i have had birds before cockatiel and parakeet but never a parrot so i need lots of help.

[Michael]

Cockatiels are parakeets and parakeets are parrots

[GlassOnion]

Welcome! Yes, the term parakeet means 'small parrot with long tail', Budgies and Cockatiels are both parakeets (parrots).

[ceejay]

ok thanks i wasent aware that they were considered parrotts i am posting a video i made of a training session if any one can point out anything that im doing wrong or any positive things that im doing i would appreciate it i want to to the best thing for sheldon. im all new to the training so any feedback would be great thanks ceejay here is the link to my youtube video thankyouhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WoFZ-C-JkfE

[Michael]

Looks like you're doing very well. I'd take things a bit further and keep the progress going. You're using the clicker wrong when you hold him on your hand for a while and then click. I don't think it makes it clear to the parrot that staying on your hand is the action. I would either click for the moment of step up and prolong delay till treat or not click at all. In other words clicking for the absence of something (not stepping off) is too confusing. Good job mixing up step up, beak, and scratch. Don't pull your hand away when he looks like he'll nip though. Pulling away does not discourage nipping. If anything it teaches the parrot that swinging its beak makes hand go away. Instead approach in steps but never back up once you reach a closer stage. If he swings, then just hold hand there and wait to stop before getting closer again until you reach point of no return (touch or bite).

Don't say no to bites. Also I think you hold your finger too high. Try holding it lower. Anything you stick in front of their beak they'll try to nip.

One thing I'd like to suggest is to teach him to bend his head down instead of back to accept scratches. It really helps reduce biting in the future. Take a look at videos of how Truman puts his beak in my hand to receive scratches.

At this point you need to do two things to continue and improve your progress. First off begin trick training. Second, begin to recede rewards for simple taming. Don't bother jumping to more advanced taming this soon yet. Taming is a slower and more long term process than training. A trick can be learned in a few days whereas trust is developed over weeks and months rather than individual sessions. So instead of pushing the taming (cause it needs time anyway), focus on tricks. In the process of learning tricks, the parrot will become more accustomed to being around your hands anyway so taming will improve. For example if he learns to wave, you can ask him to step up onto your hand to have the opportunity to wave to earn a treat. It makes rewards for stepping up more indirect and ensures he always steps up with or without a treat. Don't become too reliant on directly rewarding step up with treats all the time. Just enough to get him to start doing it but then reduce the treats for step up by making step up beneficial to the parrot in other ways (toys, attention, tricks, going places, etc).

[ceejay]

thankyou michael i did try to prolong the treat when he stepped up although its not in that paticular video but he will do like at the end of the video and start to move up my arm and then fly off. if he dosent get the treat when he steps up or he will just go directly back to the perch if i withhold the treat after stepping up. its frustrating but i will keep doing what you suggested. so how do i get him to lower his head for scratches? and i understand what your saying with me moving my hand i guess this comes from being worried about getting bit as when i first got him sheesh i got bit alot lol. he dosent bite me so much now but every now and then and its nowhere near as hard as he once did. ill try the tricks as you sugessted thanks for that advice. let me make sure i understand what your saying about the touching his back so in otherwords when im doing it dont stop just because he turns his head around keep going all the way down his back until he bites? as far as having him step up for toys ect (other than a treat) he has so many toys i have bought him and he will not touch one of them this i dont understand unless its because he was never given them to begin with and dosent really care for them. i have also tried moving away from the perch when he steps up like i saw in your videos when you took yours out of the cage and just started walking with him. this dosent work either he just flys off. also the perch you saw him on is the only place he will allow me to touch him. i have tried to sit on the floor with him even pick him up well tell him up from the floor coffee table ect he just runs from me any suggestions? as i was told chasing him will do more harm than good. so thankyou for the feedback you are a really great bird trainer i need all the help i can get. ill keep you posted also let me know of any new suggestions you may have thanks ceejay and sheldon