Training a 7-year old Amazon to Step Up

Hi friends!

So I recently adopted Lorenzo from the Florida Parrot Rescue, and let me tell you... He's one amazing guy! We took him for a check up at the vet to make sure he was doing well. Besides being a little chubby, he's very healthy. Yay!

My biggest task with him right now is teaching him to step up. While I have only been with him for six days, he is already allowing me to touch his beak, feet, and top of his head. This dude LOVES head scratches, which makes me believe he was handled before. However he refuses to step up.

My question for the parrot forums...

1. I have typically trained step-up in the past by keeping a treat in one hand while holding out my arm/hand as a perch in his reach. Is this an appropriate technique for Amazons, or do they need something else?

2. I was able to get him to step up onto a blanket that had my hand underneath it. Should I continue to approve this behavior, or will it ultimately leave me needing to put a blanket over my arm whenever it's time to go somewhere?

3. Or, am I simply expecting too much after six days? He is the only bird in my home and receives TONS of attention from me. My GCC (RIP ) was able to learn step up within a week or so.


Thanks for your help!

1. The "luring" technique is one way to get a bird to step up. We trained our amazon (10 y/o and never been handled at the time) to step up using that method. He's very proficient at it now. There are also other techniques using a clicker you could use, if you plan to train him with a clicker...

2. It's never bad to have a "back up" method of getting your bird thats not using your bare hand. Amazons, especially males, can get very aggressive in the spring when it's hormonal season and theres not much you can do about it. Being able to get him with a thick towel, glove or to step up on a stick (the preferred method IMO) when he's in a foul and defiant mood will save you both broken trust in each other until he's feeling better However, the toweled hand should be a situational method of getting him. He still needs to learn to sep up to your bare hand too.

3. Each bird settles in at a different rate. He sounds like he's warming up to you already, and I bet over the next few months, he will learn to step up proficiently and you'll be able to move on to teaching him bigger and better things

So now I have a question for you- what kind of amazon is Lorenzo?

Kiwibird said:

So now I have a question for you- what kind of amazon is Lorenzo?

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He's a Double Yellow Headed Amazon. He came to me already knowing how to say Hello, Lorenzo, Hola, Whatever, Aqui-Aqui, and other spanish that I haven't picked up quite yet.

And he learned a cat call whistle from me. Woo!!

Lorenzo getting some head scratchies.

If your bird speaks Spanish, it's possible that it knows how to step up but you're giving the command in the wrong language Why don't you try to say "sube" (soobay) when you offer your hand? It might work. If it does, say "sube" and "step up" until you've turned it into an English only bird. Just my 2 worthless cents!

Lorenzo is beautiful! And giggleagain brings up an excellent point that Lorenzo may know how to step up, he just needs a verbal cue in spanish instead of english

Giggleagain said:

If your bird speaks Spanish, it's possible that it knows how to step up but you're giving the command in the wrong language Why don't you try to say "sube" (soobay) when you offer your hand? It might work. If it does, say "sube" and "step up" until you've turned it into an English only bird. Just my 2 worthless cents!

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Great idea, I'll try that! Thanks!