Training times?

[flyforever]

Hi!
I was wondering--how long should a (almost year-and-a-half-old) green cheek conure's daily training session be? When Jade was a bit younger, the sessions usually lasted about five minutes. Right now, they range from several minutes to quite a long time (or shorter sessions several times a day), but after longer ones she tends to get pretty tired. I am wondering if this is a good approach, or if we should refrain from overly long sessions and have a more exact amount of time each day Thank you!

 

[Julianna]

The length of a training session depends on your bird. Watch how fast she's reacting to your cues and how well she's learning. You want to stop the session BEFORE she gets tired and frustrated, because that will cause a bad association with training, since that's what you ended on. You want to end on a positive note, so end after she does something well and you give a treat. Another reason to end a session is if she just isn't hungry anymore and doesn't want the treats or other reinforcement anymore. That said, my training sessions usually last somewhere between 10-20 minutes. This might be different for you, though, since you have a different bird. Just keep an eye on her and make sure she stays enthusiastic and happy during the entire session. If she starts slowing down, you know it's time to stop. Good luck!