A Way of Handling Your PET BIRD

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Bird trainers have developed skills or techniques, and become experts in understanding the behavioural nature of the parrot.  Several books, manuscript, and guidelines for promoting the positive angles to be on the winning side in a behavioral conquest of the bird have helped a lot of amateurs and pet owners.

Parrots are the most misunderstood birds in existence.  It's up to you to get thru better relationships with your bird, for it is, what you make it so.  Before knowing it, at the slightest trait overlook, this bird in your cage could create havocs of anxiety and frustrations in your life.  Basically, parrots need real training, otherwise, you will one day find out, it becomes an undesirable annoying character stealing away every bit of your peaceful, chaos-free moments.

Basics in training start with the bird's character traits and instincts. Your first approach is to notice its biting habits and screaming. These are inherent to parrots especially if it seemed likely to be ignored.

Like humans, they develop into an emotional outburst, and their tendency is to find an object to throw out their fits.

Instinctive biting and screaming loudly distract. Try to find out what causes such behaviour.  Every bit of undesirable action could be a reaction that actually comes from its surrounding environment, either from your very self or from anyone among your companions inside the house.

Behavioural Aspects of Training

1. Let us deal with terms similar to psychology in humans.

- Operant conditioning, a situation in training, on other domestics or your bird pet; reacting well in order to gain something positive, or to evade something negative. Example:  Directing your bird to whistle, if it mimics the action, you hand in its food.  Next time, the instinct to eat allows impulsive choice to obey, whatever you want it to do, a whip of your finger, or cue from your mouth.

- The bridging stimulus set an example when a hand is raised to command the bird to perch in one corner of the cage, the demonstrative actions serve a bridge for the parrot to choose in abeyance following the hand cuing because a toy is ready at reach.

2. Do not punish pets for any negative attitude or actions done previously.

Example:  When it unties cage's knots (birds do keep biting and untying); a long time before you discovered it, don't whip or deprive it of meals.  Birds or animals do not know of past and future.  Bird's instinct is to live or act "here" and "now," and never aware of anything done ostentatiously.  Turn to let a parrot obey you on what it does at the moment.

A large scale of parrot species needs to be captivated to ensure you with one of the best pet favoured by many households.  Research where your pet originated in order to pursue utmost care in mutual relationships between humans and birds.

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Pet Behaviour Training - For BIRDS

A Costa Rican coconut farmer showing his juvenile Red-lored Amazon to tourists as a bonus for tipping well.
(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

When you get a new pet, then it is important that you start with the basics of pet behavior training. This is helpful when it comes to teaching birds to be petted, or teaching them how to talk if you are the owner of a parrot. Pet bird training allows you to learn the behavior of your pet in order to put this into practice when training with your bird.

Before you begin your pet behavior training, you should learn your bird's behavior and body language so that you know what he likes and dislikes and when he is happy and sad. If you try to reach in to touch your bird on the head, then your bird might see this as a form of aggression from you. Does your bird go stiff and stare back at you? Does he try to bite you or run away from you? 

These are all behavioral signs of a bird that is not happy about being petted. If you ignore the behavior patterns of a stressed bird, then you might end up getting bitten on your finger. However, if your bird seems relaxed and turns or bows his head then this is a sign that the bird is enjoying what you are doing. Some birds even bow their heads and close his eyes which is a sure sign of a bird that is happy about being petted and trusts his owner.

How do you get started on training your bird to be petted?

1 Choose a time when your bird is relaxed and happy

2 Always keep your hand in view of the bird

3 Speak to your bird in a soothing voice before trying to pet him

4 Always be gentle

5 Begin by gently touching his beak and then gradually move your fingers to the skin just behind the beak

6 After touching the beak, move your fingers around to the side of his head

7 When trying to pet your bird on the body, make sure that you stroke with the natural orientation of the feathers because ruffling the feathers can irritate your bird. Stroke in the direction that the feathers naturally lay.

8 As your bird begins to relax, work your fingers around to the back of his head and his neck

9 Don't force your bird into being petted because you might just end up with a sore finger!

10 Don't let strangers pet your bird it is important that he learns to trust you fully first.

By Mike Hickmon - Article Source: EzineArticles

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8 Basic Guides To TRAINING Your PET BIRD

Photo by Jen’s Art&Soul

You brought home with you a beautiful Macaw, you’ve done your research and got it what it needs to be a happy bird. Now its time to train your pet bird to do all the neat tricks you’ve adorned from a distance in envy. Where to start? Here are some basic training tips for those of you who recently brought in a feathered friend.

The more you spend time with your pet bird the more you will become familiar with their unique personality. Like humans, these birds possess unique personalities that tell you how they feel in their own special ways.

1. Have you ever had trouble concentrating during long class hours or business meetings? Like people birds get bored too, so keep the training session short. 10 minutes are about the ideal length in retaining your bird’s attention.

2. Comfort and familiarity are important to birds too if you’re using props to train your bird then leave them near the cage and let the bird warm up to those items.

3. Once again, birds are like people in that they can’t concentrate very well with distractions. Turn the TV and your stereo off when you’re training your pet and try to find a quiet place away from the cage. If the bird, however, has some insecurities or is frightened you should probably keep the bird near the cage to let it feel secure.

4. We all remember things better when there’s a reward involved. (Remember that gold star you got for turning the homework in on time back in elementary school?) Find a treat that your feathered friend will be rewarded with if it performs a trick correctly. The treat doesn’t necessarily have to be food but if you do choose to give your pet something to eat, make sure it’s small and something that is easily consumed. Though praises or a good head scratch is always preferred.

5. Consistency is the key to success. Try to train your bird same time every day. That way your bird has something to look forward to and can get used to the routine.

6. Try to avoid your pet from developing bad habits. Biting can be avoided by keeping your hands out of beak range when training your bird. That way your bird won’t be as tempted to take a bite out of your finger.

7. If your bird starts to misbehave don’t get intimidated, remain calm and stay close until the bird calms down. You can leave when the bird has stopped stirring, this way it teaches your pet that acting out won’t get it what it wants.

8. Remember that each bird behaves differently and all birds require patience and commitment. Don’t expect for your bird to behave like a Harvard student after one or two training sessions. With abundant affection and consistent training, your bird will learn to build bonds with you and perform tricks.

By Roy Tanaka - Article Source: EzineArticles

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