Since I have worked so diligently and done some research on training, I have a newfound interest in training techniques.

I would like to know what you would like for your bird to do that it doesn't do. What are your barriers to that goal? What have you tried? Obviously the stepping up has been a real dillemma and now that I have found out WHY, it is easier to accept.
I still struggle with Cleo in some respects, but she has certainly come a very long way in 6 months.
My personal goals are to get Cleo consistently stepping up on my hand without the hand perch. Currently she'll do it in the neutral room, but not on something like a chair that she can run and hide from me. And she flies off my hand if given the chance.
The second part of that goal is to get her to go in a carrier. ewww, I even dread that thought now. LOL. But it's necessary for her sake to be able to have her safely vetted and evacuate in case of an ice storm. or tornado.

If your bird doesn't need any training, per se, would you be interested in teaching them parlor tricks? Cleo loves it when I ask her to "gimme some change" and drop the ring in the cup. That has been a bridge, using clicker training, to get us where we are today. Since they are flock animals, they love to get feedback and make you happy. And small tricks are a good way to bridge that.
So, let's get off our tailfeathes and get our heads together to train our burdz!
If I can do it, anybody can.
Mark
*This is not to debate whether a bird is to be trained or not. Some don't feel that birds should be trained. Respectfully, that is a person's own decision.

Good thread here Mark!

I think right now my biggest training issue is sadly step up as well. Maple does it for me now without question....I don't even need to say step up anymore....I offer a hand, she offers a foot and off we go.

Harley on the other hand is a battle every single time. I offer my hand and say Step UP. He tires to "beak" my hand playfully. In a more stern voice...Harley..STEP UP! Then he starts making his silly Ack Ack noise, beaking my hand and playing. EVENTUALLY.....I either get frustrated and give up, he starts to bite and I give up, or he FINALLY does it, and gets lots of praise. I find it's essential for them to know what step up means and do it when I need them to. It can sometimes be a matter of safety.

So, we keep trying and keep throwing lots of love his way when he does it properly. He's better at it for Daddy then me. But being military he's away sometimes, so it's essential I am able to handle the fids. He is still young, and it took a good 9 months to a year to get Maple doing it consistently. I know he was hardly ever out of his cage before he came to us and used to freak out when his previous owner ventured into his cage to get him out. He's still a baby. So hopefully it will improve over time. But it sure is frustrating!

They do love to learn new things. Phrases and games. Maple's fav is when you ask her if she's got a bad cold she replies AHHH-CHOOOO!!! Harley is picking up on that one too lol.

But if anyone has any suggestions about teaching Harley step up...I'd love to hear em!

Kris, I can share what has ticked with Cleo.
Will Harley stepup on a perch???
Mark

I would love to be able to get Ollie into her harness. I've sort of given up on it though. It'd be fun to take her outside in it, but I don't know if it's even worth the effort to work on it with her. She can just as easily go outside in her travel cage. She picks up tricks pretty quickly, and I need to start on some new ones. It's great stimulation for her!

I for one would like my birds to clean up after themselves

jk

Yup he's a little better with a perch. I think it's just a matter of when you get anywhere near him he thinks you want to play. It's not that he's afraid of hands or anything. He'll jump right up with Rob most of the time and once he's up with anyone he's happy to stay there. He's better stepping up off the play stand or his shower perch then he is off his house or swing. Might just be a matter of practice. I dunno. What worked best for Cleo?

yip good plan

Good thread Mark, I would like to teach Peanut parlour tricks, he often knows what I want and will be stubborn, took me a while to teach him recall, I had to threaten to leave him, I just tell him bye bye to make him come. He reminds me so much of a 2 year old saying "no touch" and then touching the forbidden things while looking at you.

Maybe somebody else can chime in on harness help. I have read where they let them play with the harness a lot, not all the time or it looses it's effectiveness. You never let a bird play with a prop that you use.
I'd let her just play with it and gradually acclimate her with it and obviously give her big special rewards and treats for each touch she has with it. If she runs from it, then I might try laying it down by a treat or putting the treat on it. When she touches it, use big immediate praise the second her beak touches it. And build on it from there. The holding it in your lap and you playing with it while she watches. carry it around so she she's it's ok with you. I had to carry a perch around in my hand a week, not even approaching Cleo with it where she would stop running away from the perch. She still does some but not as bad. Maybe sit her in your lap and the harness in the other hand.
Dunno, bottom line is the millisecond she even gets close or touches it, praise her, reward her. If you were clicker training, that'd be the time you clicked..the second she touches or does the desired thing.

Ok, if anyone of us here could figure that out, we'd be rich, retired and on a secluded island somewhere....at least I would.

HEY!!!!! I knew a bird that actually would clean up after it self. PeeWee a rosebreasted too, would chew a wooden box allowing all the pieces to end up at the bottom of the tray, and than daily he would climb down the cage, go between the crate and the cage and take all the soiled pieces out from the tray and throw them on the floor, so while his cage was spotless the floor around the cage was a mess.