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Archive for the ‘Training’ Category

By Sunil Tanna

Sometimes a pet bird may misbehave, and it may be necessary to punish the bird. However, you need to do so in such a way that the punishment is effective without being cruel.

First of all, you must keep your cool, and avoid not do use any inappropriate form of punishment:

• -Do not take away its food or water because your bird would not deem it as punishment for wrongdoing, this is animal cruelty which can cause physical damage to your bird.
• Do not shout at your bird because your bird would love the drama and will misbehave again just to get you to shout again.
• Never hit your bird even if it has become so exasperating you can hardly bear its presence. It wouldn’t understand and just turn against you.

When your pet bird misbehaves, you have to tell it to stop first, and then use facial expressions to show that you are upset or angry with your pet. Birds are very intelligent creatures and can tell when facial expressions change.

If your bird still does not cease its misbehavior, that is when you will have to mete out a punishment. The best punishment is simply put to your bird in his cage, lock the cage and leave the room. You can also take out its toys before leaving, and perhaps even cover the cage up. Be gone for exactly 10 minutes, no more, no less.

When you go back to your bird after punishing it, you will need to pay it a lot of attention so that it knows that you are no longer punishing it. Positive attention is very important because birds are very sensitive creatures. Not showing enough positive attention can affect your bird emotionally.

Hopefully if you follow this plan, and be consistent with your punishment methods, your bird will soon start behaving appropriately.

Article Source: Sunil Tanna

By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Manuel_Rose]Manuel Rose

If you want to properly interact with your parrot, you’ll need to train it.

We train our dogs and cats so they don’t become unruly; parrots are no exception.

Of course, with parrots, we have an added bonus; they can talk.

If your bird was hand fed by humans when you purchased him or her, training will be much easier than with a bird that was raised by its parents.

The first thing you need to do is to gain your bird’s trust.

Once you get your bird’s trust, you must work hard to keep it.

Never hit your parrot, even if he does something wrong.

If your bird misbehaves, scold him by giving him the evil eye, and sternly telling him “NO”.

If your parrot starts screaming for no apparent reason, cover its cage for a while.

The most important command you should teach your parrot is “UP” or “STEP UP”, it could save his life in an emergency.

Slowly approach the bird.

Place your hand in its cage and keep it there for a while.

Your bird may run away, complain, or even attack you, but keep doing this for a few days.

Before long he will calm down and accept you.

If you still have problems after a few days, try using a stick for a perch instead of your hand.

This may take a few tries.

Gently, but firmly press your fingers under the bird’s belly.

The bird will instinctively hop on your fingers.

As you are doing this, say, “STEP UP” or “UP”.

Before you know it, your parrot will associate the “STEP UP” command with what you want him to do.

Once your bird is on your hand, you can teach him the down command.

Simply tell your parrot “DOWN” as you put him down on his perch.

Keep doing this every time you put your bird down.

Maybe one of the reasons you purchased your parrot in the first place was because of its ability to talk.

Don’t be too disappointed if your parrot doesn’t talk.

Not all parrots can talk.

Most parrot species can mimic sounds they hear, like whistles and doorbells.

The best age to train your bird is between 4-6 months old.

Start with a simple word like “Hello”.

Pronounce the word slowly and clearly.

Use plenty of repetition.

Make sure you’re in a quiet room with no distractions.

Keep your training sessions short and sweet.

10-15 minutes a day is plenty of time for your parrot to learn.

After every training session, give your parrot time to relax or play.

If You Find This Article Helpful, Please Link To It!

This article only touches the highlights of living with a parrot.

For much more detailed information, pick up a copy of our new DVD “Parrots-The How-To’s Of Caring, Understanding, And Training” available at http://knowyourparrot.com/

About The Author

Manuel Rose has researched and owned parrots since childhood.

He spent years reading several books and speaking to many avian veterinarians.

Manuel currently owns 3 parrots, his favorite a 13-year-old Blue and Gold macaw named Samantha, which he weaned as a baby.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Manuel_Rose http://EzineArticles.com/?How-To-Train-Your-Parrot&id=1135436

By Trond Kristiansen

One of the pleasures of owning a pet bird is to teach him or her tricks. However, the purpose of teaching your bird is not just for entertainment. Training will create a better behaved, more social and happier animal.

Most birds are very smart, and if taught correctly, will be able to learn a wide range of tricks. You should set a specific time to work with your pet each day. If at all possible, try to stick to that time. Birds function well with a schedule and will even come to look forward to their training time. Plus, if you practice on a regular basis, your bird will pick up the skill you are teaching much faster.

The training area should be safe and secure. Eliminate distractions so you will have the bird’s full attention. Close doors, draw curtains and turn off any music. Use a room that is brightly lit, colorful, quiet and away from its cage.

You should start the training session by socializing with your pet. Just like humans, birds learn much more quickly if they are engaged and enjoying themselves. For your bird to have fun, you shouldn’t work with him or her, if you are in a bad mood or overly tired. Your attitude will negatively affect the bird and your time together. Begin by talking with your bird in a cheerful, but calm voice.

Smile and don’t make any sudden or fast movements. You can also choose to offer your pet a small treat right off the bat to signal that this is an enjoyable time. To keep it fun, it is important to not tire the bird by an overly long training session. Young birds, even ones that look fully mature, often tire more quickly than adults. You should only work with young birds for about five minutes. Older pets can usually take 10 minutes.

If your bird is untrained, the first trick you should teach him is “step-up.” This is a relatively easy one to learn and will make moving and transporting your bird must easier. Before you teach this maneuver make sure you have followed all the above recommendations.

When you are ready, slowly move your hand towards the bird. Then you should softly press your pointer finger to the bird’s lower stomach and say in a friendly and calm voice, “step up.” (If the bird is too large to perch on your finger, you can use your arm). In most cases, the bird will automatically step up onto your finger. Eventually, he or she will come to recognize your words as the cue to step onto your hand or arm.

When your bird completes this trick or any other trick successfully make sure you praise them! The reward that they receive is what teaches birds that they are doing what you want and it gives them motivation to continue to follow your commands. Besides verbal praise, you should offer your bird a treat. You can use a special food such as a piece of fruit or vegetable, or a favorite toy that is reserved especially for the times when the bird has learned a new trick. If you give your birds lots of praise and encouragement, then he will learn quickly and be eager for the next lesson.

Once a trick is learned, you should regularly ask your bird to perform the trick so that it is not forgotten. You can use daily activities to sneak in practice. For example, when you are cleaning the cage, ask your pet to step up onto your hand, instead of letting him just pull himself up on the bars.

If you remember to follow all of these guidelines and exercise patience, you will be sure to have a pet with an impressive set of tricks.

This article is one of many featured at [http://www.parrotsite.com]Teach Your Parrot To Talk training course A website dedicated to the world of Bird Lovers. Want to learn about how A Revolutionary Speech Training Method Will Change How Bird’s Learn To Talk.

Copyright © 2006-Present Parrotsite.com. All rights reserved. – This article is available for reprint on your ezine, website or ebook. You MUST agree NOT to make ANY changes to the article and the RESOURCE BOX MUST be included.

Article Source: Trond Kristiansen

By Zevs Borealis

Does your parrot scream or bite? These are two very common and very annoying behaviors. Especially when company is over! If you are at your wits end, give clicker training a shot. Since we can not reason, or sometimes beg, with our pets, we must communicate through other means. Clicker training helps bridge the communication gap and be quite successful in ending bothersome behaviors. 

You don’t have to be a professional trainer to teach your pet. Owners have successfully trained their parrots to hold their wings out for feather trimming and hold out their toes for nail cutting. Can you imagine your bird holding still while you put a harness on it in order to go outdoors? And the joy of a veterinary examination without biting! Bring on the clicker training.

Before you can teach Polly how to fly around freely and come when called, you must first teach her what the clicker is. So, what is a clicker? A clicker is a small, hand-held devise that makes a “clicking” noise when pressed. You can purchase a clicker at any pet supply store. Now, just going around clicking is not going to do anything for your bird. The next step is to teach her that the clicker is good.

When beginning, don’t make your parrot do too much to get a treat. In fact, they need not do anything at all. For the first session or two have your treats ready and hand them out freely. Good treats are nuts and seeds. For about 5-10 min just press your clicker and then give your bird a treat. The idea here is for the bird to put the sound and the treat together. “Click-Click” means “treat-treat.” Birds are smart and it won’t take long for the connection to be made.

Once the sound and treat mechanism is established, try to get an actual response from your bird before pressing your clicker and handing out a treat. Trainers use what they call a “target.” This target is some sort of object that the bird can touch and then get rewarded with the click and treat. Often, your bird will accidentally touch whatever you choose as the target. Who cares?! Click and treat. Soon your bird will figure out that to get a treat he needs to touch the target. You do need to take care when picking a target. After your bird is trained to look for the target, you can then use it to lead your bird to another target. And it’s definitely wise not to use their perch. Once you get the basics down, there are a myriad of tricks you can teach your parrot. It all depends on what your end goal is.

Training your parrot truly doesn’t take terribly long. Birds are smart and you will be quickly rewarded with the time you spend together. Remember to have fun, your bird will sense it and be even more responsive to your training!

By: Zevs Borealis. This article is one of many featured at http://www.parrotsite.com – A website dedicated to the world of Bird Lovers. Revolutionary Speech Training Method Will Change How Bird’s Learn To Talk. – Available for reprint on your ezine, website or ebook. You MUST agree NOT to make ANY changes to the article and the RESOURCE BOX MUST be included.

Article Source: Zevs Borealis

Eclectus parrots are not only highly social, intelligent, fairly neat, and quiet, they are also fairly easy to train, as long as you use some measure of patience and repeat  things over and over again. Training your Eclectus parrot, however, will prove to be an enjoyable experience for you and the bird.

Without proper training, the Eclectus parrot probably won’t behave very well. You may experience things such as excessive chewing, pecking, nipping, and general naughtiness. They can even start to pluck their own feathers out, without the proper guidance. Think of your Eclectus parrot as a toddler.

Sometimes, the owner needs to be trained. For example, if your Eclectus parrot is excessively chewing items that you would rather he didn’t chew you need to provide him with more appropriate chew toys. Then, when you find him chewing on items you don’t want chewed redirect him to the acceptable items. Consistency is key here. If your Eclectus parrot is a biter, this is definitely a problem that needs to be addressed quickly. If your Eclectus parrot bites you, put him in his cage. Do this every time that he bites you, and eventually, he will get the message.

Aside from guiding him away from negative behavior, and reinforcing positive behaviors, you can teach your Eclectus parrot to talk. This is done by talking to him, and repeating what you say over and over. Start with easy words that have the ee sound in them, without too many syllables, and work your way up to longer words, phrases, and eventually songs.

You can teach your Eclectus to perform various tricks as well. For example, he may come to your shoulder when you whistle. He may even be trained to play dead if you really invest some time in him. Again, the key is repeating what you do, along with the command you give him, and giving him a little treat when he pleases you. It’s really no different than training a dog. Eclectic parrots can even be potty trained – in a way. You can discourage them from eliminating all over the house by moving them to the place where they are expected to do this immediately. Eventually, they will start going to that specific place when they have to go.

Training may take a while. There is much to learn. Think of this as time invested in your pet, however, and remember that the more you work with your bird, the more he will trust you. From this trust, love will grow. Also, realize that as that trust and love grows, your Eclectus parrots greatest desire is to please you.