Bad habits we have intentionally or unintentionally taught our birds

When I got Sammie she was/and is perfectly trained to step up. You don't even have to say it, just hold your hand out and she steps right up.

Well, I taught her a bad habit without even realizing it. When I wanted to put her back on her gym or cage or whatever. I'd pick her up like a football and place her where I wanted her. Well, now she still steps up beautifully, but won't go back unless I do the football routine. I know one day that's going to bite me in the rear when she decides she's not interested in going back.

What bad habits have you taught your bird(s)?

Foraging for treats! My Percy knows very well that everything that isn't a "real toy" has some hidden yummy bit inside it. Sooo, in the morning when I give him his healthy veggies and pellets and I refresh all his toy bowls and foraging goodies, he makes a thourough search of every toy bowl and anything else that's new and weird to find the treats....and leaves the veggies until they go limp.

Any time I pick up my car keys, there are three birds clamoring because they think they get to come with me...

My birds get locked in her cage for about 3 hours a week, while I do my break down cleaning. By maggie's reaction, you'd think I was killing her... [If that door closes it may never open again! I'll be trapped in here forever!]

No, just until I finish mopping.... believe it or not, you're just not as "helpful" as you think. Funny? Yes. Helpful? Not so much.

My sun conure used to fall asleep inside my shirt every night. And when I went to bed I'd take his limp, sleeping body out of my shirt, and set him down inside his happy hut on my bedside table... (not that he was spoiled or anything!)

Idiot here used the same signal for recall, for all three birds. Now they get confused over which one I'm calling. And we have had some near-miss mid air collisions with everyone trying to fly to the same spot on my arm at the same time. (Remedied that one by giving them each a different spot.) But for awhile there I needed an air traffic controller.

All in all, I've done fairly well. I guess.

I could go on and on about some of the things I have seen other people inadvertently train their parrots to do. (Mostly biting and screaming.) I was the guy who re-trained them OUT OF IT after the fact.

My gcc Kiva learned to pace from me ,now when ever she is agitated she will pace on the long wooden dowel.
So i pretty much keep out of her way then.

My rose crowned Fury learned to put his beak between the bars and then really move up and dawn fast with sometimes tongue sticking out,he does this every time i stand for the cage.
I tried to learn him to dance.....

And i got 4 gcs that sabotage me when i am gaming,somehow they know which keys i need and fly off with them,needless to say since i got birds i'm not a priced member of a team.
And when i am watching a movie or in a skype call Kiva either steps on the mute button or the lock button.
It got so bad i had to buy a keyboard that uses those keys in combination with one other.

I taught her that if she screams I will come and let her out of the cage. I didn't know that you aren't supposed to come when they scream. :/ oops! So we are working on that....

I taught Ekko that it is a game to get on the floor, as I always come pick him up. Now he gets on the floor and runs right to the perch I use to put him back on the cage and stands on it, just looking at me and waiting for me to play my part.

I love it. I'm glad I'm not alone

kq_fan said:

I taught her that if she screams I will come and let her out of the cage. I didn't know that you aren't supposed to come when they scream. :/ oops! So we are working on that....

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Percy is the same but he doesn't scream, he calls me by what he believes is my name :Baba. He starts softly but if I'm busy or pre-occupied, it gets louder and longer until at the end, he's calling "BaaBAAAAAA!!" With a sharp Up-note on the last part...and by then, my family shouts along "Just go to him, won't you?" LOL!

He's been doing it for a while, even since the time he wanted to rip my hand off each time I came near him...I think he knew even then that calling me would make me so happy, I'd just go running, treat in hand :31: Luckily, he only does it when he knows I am at home and now he does it just for some kisses and scritches, not treats.

In the beginning it was the words "ouch", "dammit" and "good boy" Hahnzel would repeat to me when he would nip my finger. We fixed that.
Now it's the shower routine. Playstand first. After the shower (mine not his) it's on top of the shower door while I shave, then it's on my left arm so he can see out the window while I brush my teeth. Then when I lean down to get water to rinse he climbs back onto the play stand.

The only time Num Num will step up is when I remove him from his cage.
he flies around all day long, lucky dog....then when it's time to put him back into his cage for bed...he's like 'uh uh, I'm not going to do THAT!' Then flies off.
he's realized the only time I ask him to step up is to be removed from the cage AND to be put back in...ugggg, silly me.

I didn't realise I was doing it, but whenever I gave Milo a treat or something new to try, I would say "Is that nice...?".

Now, whenever he sees me with food he bobs up and down and will ask "Is that nice?" over and over again, increasingly loudly until he gets some...