I'd like to start getting some pointers on step up training for Chico. We're not ready yet, but its not too early to be thinking about it. Right now, we haven't even had any physical contact yet. I'm taking it slow, just letting him get used to the new place, new cage, and me. He seems fine with letting me do stuff with his cage, like changing feed bowls, wiping down the cage, taking the grate out to clean it, etc. He's taking treats from my fingers with no problem. His former owner mostly scritched him through the bars, so we'll work on that soon. He was pretty plain about letting her know if that's what he wanted, he'd go to the bars and bow his head. After we get that far, at some point I'll probably start sitting by the open door, and see what happens. Not to let him come out, but to see if he'll get comfortable with getting close to me with no bars between us. Sound right?

But then what? I've only step up trained much smaller, younger birds. I have no evidence that he's ever been handled, or that he's ever known how to step up. I can make a wild guess that a hand held perch would be the way to start, and if that's as far as we ever get, that's cool. She used to occasionally open his door and let him out in the bird room, and if he didn't go back in by himself she had a capture net. I hate to see him that cage bound, and would like to at least be able to get him out on a play stand.

A perch would be the way to start. He would have to go back in his cage at sometime, how long can he last flying around without food and water. I can't see how a capture net would be necessary if you have more time available than he does.

You can use Quito and Tausi as examples of how to do things such as step up. Let Chico see you interact with them and give scritches and praise and treats. I know you said it would be hard to keep Quito from flying to Chico's cage, and we felt the same way about Jerry at first, which is why Lulu was our main demonstrator (but now that Winston is incorporated into the daily activities, Jerry is now his main teacher, he learns by watching Jerry).

I even used a stuffed animal when training Winston sometimes LOL! I went on vacation recently and bought a little stuffed cockatiel (about twice the size of a real one) that had a velcro piece by the feet so that it can "perch" on your finger. I bought it for my husband just as a cute gesture, but sometimes I would work with Winston after Lulu went to bed and I remember reading a long time ago that someone had used a stuffed animal to demonstrate stepping up with an untamed bird - so I thought, what the heck, it's worth a try. I practiced stepping up with the stuffed animal (aka slide my fingers to and from the velcroed feet lol) and I would just sit and watch TV with the stuffed bird on my finger. And I would talk to it and give it scritches (yep, I'm crazy!) and one time I put the stuffed bird down and then asked Winston to step up and he did right away with no hesitation! Now he realizes that flying away is much more fun than stepping up, so we've moved a few steps back but we're working on it.

I agree completely with Sara. Parrots are flock animals and learn behavior from each other. IMO they also communicate extensively with each other, probably in ways we don't recognize.

I make it a point to bring my breakfast into the room and eat with my flock in the mornings, as I think it's important to demonstrate flock behavior with them. First I feed them, then I go get my own breakfast and bring it back. I haven't gone so far as to fling my food around the room , but do eat with them.

Mattie Sue Athen and Sally Blanchard both have excellent materials on training.

Winston would also look away and direct his attention away from Lulu (he would go on super long preening sessions or play with his toys) when I would bring her near him as an example. He pretended to not notice her but he was really playing, "I do see you and am watching you, but I don't want YOU to know that I'm watching you..." Sly little devil