I have known of only one person doing this. I don't know if I would have the Patience.


The first step in potty training your bird is to train yourself. Each day when you interact with your pet, pay close attention to any "signals" the bird may give you before relieving himself. These can be as subtle as a change in posture, a certain "look" in the bird's eyes, or a ruffling of tailfeathers. Every bird is different, and will thus use different body language, but if you know your bird and learn to "read" him, it won't take you long to catch on.

Another thing to pay attention to is the frequency of your bird's droppings. Many birds will use the bathroom as often as every 5 or 10 minutes, but again, this is highly individual. If you watch your bird, you may begin to see a pattern in his restroom habits, and if you take note of the amount of time he or she takes between poops, you will be better at judging when your bird is ready for a potty break.

Once you've gotten a good idea of your bird's natural bathroom schedule, you can begin to work with your bird on learning the right places to go potty. The first thing to do is decide where you want your bird to relieve himself. This can be any number of places, such as the bird's cage, a garbage can, or a piece of newspaper or cage liner. Whatever you decide on, it's important to stick with it as much as possible. Many bird owners train their pets to potty on a piece of waste paper, as this is the most portable and easily disposed of.

When you've chosen the proper place, the only thing you must do is take your bird to it (or if it's a piece of paper, hold it under the bird) when it's time to go potty -- sounds simple, right? The trick is anticipating the bird's need to use the bathroom, which is where knowing your bird's potty habits comes into play. If, for example, you noticed that your bird relieves himself about every 7 minutes, then you should place your bird over his designated poop space every 7 minutes. There may be times when your bird does not need to poop as often as normal, and that's okay -- if you notice that your bird hasn't pooped after being held over the potty space for a minute or two, let him resume playing, and just try again after 1-3 minutes have passed.

When your bird uses the bathroom in the correct area, be sure to praise him with kind words and tasty treats. As time passes, he will begin to understand that pooping in the right place yields great rewards! This can take many months of training, however, so don't be surprised if your bird has a few accidents, and don't be angry with your pet if he "misses the spot". Remember, it's your responsibility to pay attention to your bird's body language and schedule, and get the bird to the proper place to go potty.

With persistence and plenty of positive reinforcement, many birds take to potty training quite readily, and quickly learn that pooping on humans (or furniture) is not encouraged. While it does require effort on the part of the owner to make sure that accidents don't occur, most claim that it's much easier than tending to the laundry and messes that un-trained birds create. Have fun with your bird and make potty training a learning experience for both of you -- and never again worry about losing your favorite shirt to a "bird bomb"! Alyson Burgess

All of mine are potty trained and will poop on command. They have slip ups if we dont pay attention but not very often.

Oh wow! How did you ever do it?

We started Afa as soon as we got her. Watching and waiting, when she would go we would say "Poopy!" Now she tells us "poppy!poop poop poop!!!" So we rush her to whatever she can go on and we reinforce "go poopy!" then the boys all chime in saying "poopy!!" They know to go on their perches. If its been a few minutes they may show body language so we put them on the perch and they go. Or we will put them back and tell them "poopy" they go, get praise and come back to sofa time. It was easy.

Ruby is potty trained too. I hold her over the trashcan and say "poop, poop, poop" and bombs away. My brother gets the biggest kick out of this! hahahaha

For those that potty train, are you ever concerned that they'd intentionally hold it and await their cue even if you forget to give the cue? I realize that birds can hold it all night long, but (with my tiny guys anyways) I'd be concerned if I forgot to give the cue for whatever reason (say if I was away for a day or two).

No. if they let me know but I dont pick up on it, they will go. Last night Afa had a tantrum while we were having a heated debate over shelving for tv components. I thought she was just being rude. Then John took her, we were still talking and she let it go on him. Our fault. They drop and tilt when they are starting to push so you just need to know body language.

Do you leave seed in their cage at night? I do & I often hear mine munching in the early hours. In our case therefore there is quite a nice little pile under the sleeping area.

I can't imagine training a Budgie to poop on cue. They poop a lot. I just want mine to forget the pooping as they fly thru doorways or onto me. When I clean - I look everywhere.

I think they might learn a bit of independence there. Hey - when you got to go - you got to go.

Leigh - do yours go to their perches on their own if you don't take them?

No Jac, I have to take them like a taxi. Thats what I am, a taxi and food server. Other than that the only thing Im good for to them is something to bite!

Ollie is sort of potty trained. She'll go on command, but she's not trained well enough that it keeps her from pooping off the back of the couch when she's up there playing. I'm very diligent about keeping an eye on her, so when I see her start to squat and move her tail back and forth I send her flying to one of her gyms. Once she lands she'll immediately pick up where she left off, telling herself "gooo potty. good girl!"

Ollie poops about every 15-20 minutes, but she rarely poops in her cage. She'll hold it for a good 11-12 hours night of sleep. During the day she won't hold it longer than 4-5 hours or so.