BirdTricks Tuesday | Foundational Failures Series
Added 2020-07-14 23:00:01 +0000 UTCOur BirdTricks Tuesday 2020 series is focusing on 18 Foundational Failures that lead to major problems! They may seem obvious, but they're things we see ALL. THE. TIME. and finally felt the need to address in this series!
Be sure to leave a comment and let us know how you relate to this topic, or what topic you hope we cover in the next episode!
Comments
Omg Dave is always so DRAMATIC lol I love all of your videos
Kaligh Gradall
2022-01-04 01:29:19 +0000 UTCThis is such a key video, especially during hormone season! I think I've finally had the lightbulb moment, and noticed Cheeky bites when I ignore he signs through her feet. I am one of those parronts who holds onto her feet for fear life. The problem is, if I stop doing that when moving her around my home, she will attack the dog (and would obviously die) or attack and upset my sister. My family members are not interested in fixing the issue with the power pause, even if Cheeky is in her cage. So, I feel like I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place cause I can't convince my family members to trust my training knowledge. Even if it might make our lives collectively easier. 😭
Catrin Griffiths
2021-03-30 03:11:40 +0000 UTCI mainly have problems with putting my Goffin cockatoo away if it's a smaller cage. We have a small travel/ sleeper cage he loathes (and has even ripped a bar off of at the bird sitter's). Lately, I put a empty bowl in the cage to fill with treats. I STILL can't place him in a perch inside, he insists on being placed on the door of the cage so HE chooses whether it's worth it to go away. Definitely feel whipped by my bird, but hey, avoiding a bite is avoiding a bite lol. Sometimes he can't be bribed with treats, so instead I put his FAVOURITE foraging wheel filled with treats inside. Or, if all else fails I place paper towel inside for him to rip up. Unfortunately, both the foraging wheel and any white rip-able material trigger a psycho aggression response, but better the paper towel or toy than my fingers lol...
Catrin Griffiths
2021-01-23 20:47:38 +0000 UTCI love this foundation series. Yes, some is obvious but most of it is so awesome to reflect on and work on changing it to give my birbs the best life I can.
Connie Muttart
2020-08-01 21:24:16 +0000 UTCAll these videos have been awesome and helpful! I would love to see a video about stepping up and how to get your bird comfortable with holding your birds feet. My Amazon will let me hold his feet but only for a short time. He's a big shoulder rusher. Ive been doing my best to not let him on my shoulder anymore. He never listens up there. I always have a hard time even just getting him to step up off of me onto a perch, his play stand, onto or in his cage. I know he knows how he just does not want to. Most the time he refuses to get off me. He only steps up off of me when he wants to or when he knows that theres a reward for stepping up onto the perch like a treat. I also have a baby Red Fronted Macaw and I am trying to get her used to me holding her feet but she tries to step up in ways to avoid me to be able to hold her feet with my thumb. She doesn't like it when I hold her feet too much Im not sure why. So glad I became a Patreon. Im excited to learn and train my own parrots through your videos.
Amber Brown
2020-07-25 02:22:50 +0000 UTCOmg, yeah. I feel you on that one!! I was lucky in the respect that Storm took to me but amazons are a struggle in general so I know it isn't easy and can be overwhelming with their nutty body language (they show sooooo much sometimes it's like ahhhh!) definitely tackle diet first and foremost since you have the obesity issue.
BirdTricks
2020-07-22 18:41:57 +0000 UTCThank you! I will absolutely check it out. We got this bird from my grandma and she is an blue fronted Amazon (just like storm) and obese with so many trust issues. I have been watching so many of your videos and bought your beginning training series. I just hope to make her life as good as I can for her.
N k21
2020-07-22 16:38:00 +0000 UTCWow! You'd probably benefit from my series with Rasta the alexandrine parakeet. It took me a good 3 months to get him to step up: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NhEdpp2y1JE&list=PL3CAAFA96341D289F
BirdTricks
2020-07-22 13:34:04 +0000 UTCI wish I could hold my bird's feet! He is scared of hands in general. Twice I've had him on my hands after he has had a bath and it too heavy to fly, but I pushed too far and tried every time he took a bath and now he just flies to the ground rather than sit on my hand. So I backed off again and am going very slowly with target training around hands and also just cuing calm when there is a hand near him and rewarding him for ignoring it and being calm.
Carmen Griggs
2020-07-21 21:39:22 +0000 UTCI can't wait for the video on how to get your bird to step up. Our bird is 40 and she has never stepped up on anyone.
N k21
2020-07-21 20:54:43 +0000 UTCMy cockatiel was easily scared by objects so I did the desensitization training of touching one new object that I saw in your vid with Comet and Touché. I place her on a training perch. I did a vine ball, nail polish, reflective bronzer compact and mini mascara. It didn’t take her long to figure out the pattern. I did nail clippers and it took like 2 reps to touch it. 😆. For every new one, I warmed up with the old ones to refresh. Now she isn’t freaked by objects although she ain’t happy when they are near, lol. She is absolutely terrified by an Advil bottle because of the rattling sound it makes. I often underestimated how terrified and would push too far and it would send her flying sometimes in circles around my room. I would then go back to the familiar objects but she would be hesitant to touch them because I lost her trust. 🤦🏻♀️. So I have to go slower, like an inch closer every session. I have trained her to tolerate my holding her foot but not for too long and sometimes it’s hit or miss that she’ll let me do it (she pulls her foot out). Being a small bird I can’t exactly hold on when she’s about to fly so I just gotta deal with her flying off in fear...
Rosanna Lam
2020-07-17 19:12:08 +0000 UTCYes and you should be building on the pressure of your hand to her foot as well so initially it might just be brushing her foot with your thumb, then eventually tapping it lightly, and working your way up to keeping your finger on top with little to no pressure, etc.
BirdTricks
2020-07-17 13:07:14 +0000 UTCMy sun conure will not let me hold her foot. She’s fine being on my hand but she will fly off as soon as I put my finger on her foot. I’ve watched the master class when you went over this but I never thought it was very important with a smaller bird. Training should be treating for longer & longer periods with my finger on her foot, right? Thank you!
Nancy Huffman
2020-07-16 22:20:50 +0000 UTCI loved this!! My Green Cheek Conure - Candy - is an amazing little bird and all the information I’m learning is honestly going to enrich her life and my communication with her even more, thanks guys!!!
Lee-Ann Sharp
2020-07-16 22:03:18 +0000 UTCI got a new vacuum last week and decided to introduce it to my Meyers right away, so I got a bunch of high value treats and did some desensitizing training as I unpacked it and set it up. It was a very inefficient way to set up a new vacuum, but a super effective way to make the new vacuum no big deal for my bird. All thanks to everything I’ve learned from Jamie and Dave!
Davida
2020-07-16 16:46:48 +0000 UTCI made a video on the topic here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/should-you-hold-28975539
BirdTricks
2020-07-16 16:08:44 +0000 UTCReally love the video.. just joined as a Patron.. so happy I have done so. JellyBean my GCC cannot resist a step-up, will always do it.. and exactly like you explain I can feel his mood through his feet, but I had never thought to use this as part of my understanding of him.. he hates the hoover.. going to see if I can use his communication through his feet to desensitise him..
Tara Dalton
2020-07-16 07:22:32 +0000 UTCAwesome video!
Maggie Mitten
2020-07-15 20:04:13 +0000 UTCThank you Jennifer for reinforcing what I have learned from Dave and Jamie. We now have 2 parrots from a re-homing situation. Both girls are 16 years old - a African Grey and a Severe Macaw. The former owners loved the grey but said the macaw was unhandleable, so she's pretty much been in a cage since she was old enough to bite. She has learned through the years that if she doesn't want to do something just lunge to bite you and BOOM! pressure's off. Well that's not going to work in our house! She's going to live a full life and be part of our family NOT a decoration in a cage! She's made great strides but it's 2 steps forward and 3 steps back some days! She actually stepped up onto my hand beautifully yesterday!! I clicked then gave her a treat, then another treat and I reached down to pick up another treat when my thumb touched the top of her foot and she bit me (and chewed it like bubblicious - OMG). It's definitely a work in progress but I see hope and I won't give up on her! Good news is she's actually craving my attention now - I'm honored! Trust is coming! I just know it!!
Teresa Kernodle
2020-07-15 18:15:22 +0000 UTCI was able to reconnect with a friend who found Birdtricks on YT. She is getting two Eclectus boys from a breeder in Texas who knows you guys. Small world. She is excited to join Patreon once she gets her birds. You are just loved by everyone! Thanks for another great video.
Jeanne Okerlund
2020-07-15 17:52:31 +0000 UTCYou’re so right! It is like little kids! It makes me think of my little one as a baby- walk too close to the giant Chuck E. Cheese, she couldn’t talk but u could feel her whole body tense, telling u she DEFINITELY didn’t want to get closer to the giant rat in sneakers!! 😂
Jennifer Percopo
2020-07-15 15:54:16 +0000 UTCI love this series...even the stories about desensitizing cressie to dreadlocks! Please don’t change these characteristics about your videos...it’s what makes you so relatable 😉 !
Wendy LeBlanc
2020-07-15 14:32:59 +0000 UTCI’m so excited to be a Patreon!I get to hear all this extra awesome information. I have a green cheek conure, Papaya, and Avi (Avocado), African ringneck. I have never worked on holding the. feet. I thought this was only done with large birds. I can tell you each time I have put my finger on his/her feet I either got a bite or a fly off. I’m looking forward to the information but first I wanna clearly ask, do you hold the birds feet even when they are small?
Connie Muttart
2020-07-15 13:47:41 +0000 UTCHe was hand raised and fed. Perhaps he is just getting adjusted. He likes to target train. I have actually have caught him playing with the target stick when I accidentally leave it out. He is clearly afraid of my hand. I think, the first week that I went too fast for his comfort. He is finally taking treats from me. I was making him take treats from my palm but he is so reluctant. I know it takes time. Yesterday, I did take him outside of his room (I have a cat and dog) and brought him in the living area. He actually stepped up to my shoulder. I guess, he was outside his comfort level and needed me. Thank you for your kind and encouraging words. (cat and dog was not in that room)
Patricia Lynn
2020-07-15 13:31:50 +0000 UTCHey Patricia, I am totally new to this paltform (but have been following BirdTricks since before we got our indian ringneck). We got our guy in December '19 and he was about 7 months old. Just before we got him, they grabbed him out of the cage, clipped his wings and threw him in a box. I was furious, we did not want him clipped and he's been afraid of hands ever since. And the irony is that he could still fly, so all that trauma had no reason anyway. We've had him for 7 months and it has been 7 months of trying to help him get over that fear. He gets time out of the cage everyday and he will take treats from our hands and it is through birdtricks that we've learned what we need to help him process his fear and learn to trust again. It has only been THIS week that he has finally started to step up on my arm (hands are still scary). So we are taking things very slow, he started stepping up on my forearm, close to my elbow and we've been able to get to my wrist. He's even stepped up on my hand (away from the fingers) and then moved to the wrist. Our ultimate goal is to get him on the fingers with a thumb resting on his feet but it's a work in progress. I have been SO frustrated because you see all these videos of people saying "just hold millet in your hand and soon they'll be stepping up" and that has 100% NOT been our experience. My point is this, it is easy to get frustrated and think that you are doing things wrong, but trust the process. For some birds it may take a long long looooooong time but the reward when they finally decide that they trust you and want to be with you is worth all the work. (You may already know this if you have more than one bird but I feel like a lot of people need to hear that it's not always " easy and quick". Sometimes it takes a what feels like forever.)
Jennifer Hambleton
2020-07-15 13:23:36 +0000 UTCI can tell this gonna be my favorite series ever, so informative and straight to the point!
Guy Goldstein K
2020-07-15 13:02:06 +0000 UTCO I feel it all, hand, shoulder, or on my head. My little girl has man hands so she can convey anything. 😀 But yes if she spooks she is just gone, there is no wait and see approach.
caitlyn Metcalf
2020-07-15 06:43:48 +0000 UTCI haven't gotten as far as having my bird on my hand, but I can really relate to what you said about vacuum cleaners. If I want to vacuum around the cage Jackie (my ringneck) goes up to a safe spot in the corner of cage. As far as getting him out so he wouldn't be afraid, sometimes I manage to signal that I'm about to do something he doesn't like and he flies out of the cage.
FlyingCookie
2020-07-15 06:06:08 +0000 UTCYall are the most amazing partnership!! Such a good tip!!
Nancie Rogers
2020-07-15 05:00:52 +0000 UTCYes I am getting better at reading my birds behavior through his feet. My bird taught me early on that I need to slow down. How? I got bit! Now after discovering Bird Tricks I have learned so much. Our communication is improving all the time.
Dana Tryde
2020-07-15 04:19:57 +0000 UTCI can relate 100% to feeling angst through my bird's feet. He's a CAG, so naturally reactive to EVERYTHING. If the chair is not in its normal spot or if I pulled the suitcase out or if there's something on the counter that wasn't there yesterday, through his feet, he tells me he noticed. I'll stop and give him time to process. Usually, he'll release the tension in his feet quickly, we proceed. Occasionally, he needs to check things out a bit longer. But invariably, his feet tell me when it's ok to go. Over time, we have built a trust that he knows when he tells me he's uncomfortable, I won't push him but will give him the time he needs to figure it out.
Jen Perry
2020-07-15 01:30:12 +0000 UTCI always enjoy your content. One thing that I noticed when I was watching this and this is likely just me and my habits so please keep that in mind. When the stories anout the dreadlock man being a desensitization for your bird ,I found I got distracted and stopped paying full attention after that point. I am not saying change anything I just wanted to share that as feedback in case you were curious. Sorry if that is not the type of feedback you were looking for.
Laura
2020-07-15 01:06:48 +0000 UTCGreat video with some awesome info! I've had my Grey for 34 years and i'm not sure when I started holding his feet, but it's been many. many years ago. I think I started doing it when I would take him to the car or even carry him around the house. It's so true, you can feel a birds intention with a little practice and being aware.
Melanie Simpson
2020-07-14 23:56:46 +0000 UTCGreat video.. If I could just my guy to step on my hand and stand there and trust me. :). Baby bird steps.
Patricia Lynn
2020-07-14 23:26:19 +0000 UTC
