Needing some help with flight

Solo

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Feb 24, 2015
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Wichita,KS
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Shamrock Macaw
Ok, so phoebes been through a couple molts since I got her last year and has lost all of her cut feathers. She s been doing great on her flying and I'm wanting to keep her fully flighted to allow easier navigation of her room and exercise. Well, here's the kicker. I got a new refrigerator for Christmas and ever since she been having a hard time staying on her playstand. She'll fly on top of the fridge, on top of the aquarium, or on top of the dvd rack. Non of these places are safe and so I keep getting up to remove her. Now initially she was doing this to navigate the house, but it has since turned into a game of chase. Unless she is on my lap with undivided attention she flys to one of these spots for me to chase her. I can't leave her up in these places to get hurt. My coming after her has become a reward, even if I display my dissatisfaction. So question is.. Are there scat mats for birds or some other corrective behavior/deterrent for this? Even if I clip her wings (which I'm not wanting to do) she'll still have some levels of flight and be able to get to 2 of these places if not all 3. I'm going to work on making some sort of slanted cover to go on top of the fridge to deter perching/landing. Any training tips are welcome and thanks for looking and reading my novel.
 

StephenAndKyleigh

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Jul 29, 2015
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Dallas, TX
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Kyleigh, B&G Macaw -
Peanut, Yellow Collar Mini Macaw -
Aaliyah, Green Wing Macaw
Good question! So, I would practice rewarding her for places she is allowed to go. Let's say she lands on Target A, a place you are happy with her landing. Be sure to reward and praise her for landing on Target A. I would even target train on Target A. However, when she lands on Target B...I would remove her and place her on Target A, followed by a reward.
 

plumsmum2005

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Nov 18, 2015
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England, UK
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Lou, Ruby, and Sonu.
Fly free Plum, my gorgeous boy.
Hi to discourage Plum from going to places I dont want him I have used stuffed Cockatoo parrots, works a treat!

I dont think these will work with yours but it's an idea right?
 

Anansi

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Dec 18, 2013
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Somerset,NJ
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Maya (Female Solomon Island eclectus parrot), Jolly (Male Solomon Island eclectus parrot), Bixby (Male, red-sided eclectus. RIP), Suzie (Male cockatiel. RIP)
I practice the positive reinforcement model suggested by Stephen. In addition, I also added a timeout component for repeated infractions.

By adding a timeout for whenever my birds have repeatedly gone where I've asked them not to, the sense of being rewarded for my attention by forcing me to attend to them diminishes.

Another thing to consider is providing alternate landing spots near to the places where she shouldn't be landing. (Like adjustable height training perches or even tree stands if there is enough space to make doing so feasible.) If you provide a more convenient perching area it might help dissuade her from the forbidden areas.

Adding station training to all of this, as well as targeting and recall work, will enhance your ability to limit her flying to appropriate places only.
 
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Solo

Solo

New member
Feb 24, 2015
294
0
Wichita,KS
Parrots
Shamrock Macaw
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Awesome. I will try this. I have been doing a time out for repeated offenses, but to no success. Thanks guys
 

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