Re: [Freeflight] new member - stayDot to Mercury

["Chris Biro" <chrisbiro@surfbest.net>]

Hello Dot,

> Casper perched halfway down my back cos he didn't like (maybe he saw) me
put Artha on the ground
> Agile enough to get my hand BEHIND my back and tell him to Step up. Put
him down and he flew straight back to me. 3 times.

So what did you do when he landed on you these times? Did you offer him a
goody? Or did you walk straight back and put him down where he does not feel
comfortable? You need to be careful not to associate being put on the ground
as being what happens when he lands on your arm as called. Make sure you let
some time pass before you set them back down on the ground. Or even better
yet, have them do another trick between these flights to you from the
ground. You do want him to
associate flying to your arm with getting something that he wants.

So now you have found a way to initiate the correct response, good. Now you
just need to make sure that they get appropriately rewarded when they do it
right. Its really that simple. You also want to make sure that you don't do
something right after they land on you that could be an aversive for them,
like directly putting them on the ground or back into a cage. You might also
want to keep them away from food for a while prior to doing this training,
that way they will both be more interested in your goodies during these
training sessions.

Parrots: More Than Pets, Friends For Life
Chris Biro
Nature's Choice Essentials Website: http://www.organicbirdfood.com
ESENCE Website: http://www.thepiratesparrot.com
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Tel (206) 618-2610