Either I'm defective at training or where are all the other youtube videos, the ones with the squawking and the "get it off me!" "get it off me!" "stop killing me!" All those little smartypants sitting there getting their harness on and doing all the tricks. Bah!
Am I defective?
- Thread starter strudel
- Start date
MikeyTN
New member
- Feb 1, 2011
- 13,296
- 21
- Parrots
- "Willie"&"Lola"B&G Macaw,
"Dixie"LSC2, and "Nico" Scarlet Macaw.
It just takes a lot of time and patience, I don't even use those on my birds except I've got one to try to get on Lola. We'll see how that goes....
MikeyTN
New member
- Feb 1, 2011
- 13,296
- 21
- Parrots
- "Willie"&"Lola"B&G Macaw,
"Dixie"LSC2, and "Nico" Scarlet Macaw.
I highly doubt she'll just sit there....lol....She's very high strong! But she does really good with me if I ask her to do something....
MikeyTN
New member
- Feb 1, 2011
- 13,296
- 21
- Parrots
- "Willie"&"Lola"B&G Macaw,
"Dixie"LSC2, and "Nico" Scarlet Macaw.
LoL....Good luck coaxing her!!!! 
Calace
New member
- May 16, 2013
- 400
- 0
- Parrots
- GCC- Ollie 3.9.13.
Cockatiels- RIP Charlie 2012, Zac 2006.
Hahaha. I started training Ollie with the hairband yesterday and he was squawking his little nutty head off about THAT! Just imagine what he'll be like when we actually start with the harness! 
- Feb 28, 2013
- 305
- 1
- Parrots
- Green Cheek Conure Pee-Wee
Those videos are on the proverbial cutting-room floor.
Birdman666
Well-known member
- Sep 18, 2013
- 9,904
- 272
- Parrots
- Presently have six Greenwing Macaw (17 yo), Red Fronted Macaw (12 yo), Red Lored Amazon (17 y.o.), Lilac Crowned Amazon (about 43 y.o.) and a Congo African Grey (11 y.o.)
Panama Amazon (1 Y.O.)
I have done a fair amount of training.. I mean, I had conures skateboarding across my living room coffee table for crissakes...
And my greenwing especially is about as mellow and even tempered as these guys get...
But if I were to try and put one of those harnesses on any of mine?!
NOT SO MUCH!
I had better luck with "stay put" training, and recall, than I did with harness training.
And my greenwing especially is about as mellow and even tempered as these guys get...
But if I were to try and put one of those harnesses on any of mine?!
NOT SO MUCH!
I had better luck with "stay put" training, and recall, than I did with harness training.
Last edited:
- Thread starter
- #12
Yes, it is obviously not something that they take to naturally. I'm just in a bit of a quandary. She's shown that she can fly, everybody seems to say "galahs have to fly" or they'll get fat and get horrible diseases, she wouldn't let me clip her wings even if I could do it, so I'd have to take her somewhere, and then she could still fly away or she'll get eaten by my dogs....... I want her to accept a harness so I can have her outside without having her run away from home. She doesn't understand that it's all so she can have more fun times, I'm not trying to kill her or strangle her with a rope.
sigh. discouraged. we'll keep working on it. Just all those cleverdicks on youtube don't help. You just lift up this wing. Yeh, right. NOT SO MUCH.
BillsBirds
Well-known member
If you bought an Aviator Harness, watch the video. Several times. If you have no video, watch it online. Several times. It takes a long time to get them to accept a harness. After all, they have wings to be free, to fly when & where they want to. Or need to, if threatened. Like, by being put into a restricting harness. My Grey is just starting to accept it over his head. It took months! Of everyday, several times a day. Now, tightening it around him will probably take years. 
Be patient, and persistent. BTW, on Youtube, most of those guys just show off their tricks, etc. without telling you how long it took to get those birds to do these things.
Be patient, and persistent. BTW, on Youtube, most of those guys just show off their tricks, etc. without telling you how long it took to get those birds to do these things.- Thread starter
- #15
Not so much of the first, we got it on her today
My main concern was what the man in the video said about them letting you get it on them and you thinking it is all ok but then chucking a wobbly later because they didn't really want it on. Hopefully, I won't have scarred her for life...... I'm a bit of a wuss, so it's hard for me to judge whether I'm just being too reticent or pushing too much.
Apart from carrying on a little bit when it went on, she seemed to get more used to it and had it on and seemed quite relaxed, had some scritches and wasn't biting at it.
We went out the back and she jumped off me only to be caught short by the leash... I need to look at the next steps for learning the flying part,....
JessieRosie
New member
I'm at the same point as getwozzy, Rosie puts her head through the loop for a treat, then just wriggles to get out!
She won't sit still so I have no idea how I'll get in on her body! I'll be watching the threads closely to see if anyone has any tips for getting it on hyper birds that don't sit still!
She won't sit still so I have no idea how I'll get in on her body! I'll be watching the threads closely to see if anyone has any tips for getting it on hyper birds that don't sit still!
I'm at the same point as getwozzy, Rosie puts her head through the loop for a treat, then just wriggles to get out!
She won't sit still so I have no idea how I'll get in on her body! I'll be watching the threads closely to see if anyone has any tips for getting it on hyper birds that don't sit still!
I learned a trick from dear jerseywendy- take her into a closet or bathroom with the lights dimmed or off (they cant see very well in dim/dark light) and then gently slip it on...she might be a bit more cooperative that way. [emoji6] and do the same for taking it off.
Birdman666
Well-known member
- Sep 18, 2013
- 9,904
- 272
- Parrots
- Presently have six Greenwing Macaw (17 yo), Red Fronted Macaw (12 yo), Red Lored Amazon (17 y.o.), Lilac Crowned Amazon (about 43 y.o.) and a Congo African Grey (11 y.o.)
Panama Amazon (1 Y.O.)
Honestly, recall training is a bit of a royal b#%&*...
But I found it easier to recall than trying to put a harness on any of them. I never had any luck with that myself. So, no, they make it look easy in the video because these birds have already been trained to accept it and you don't go through that. So, just like certain cell phone apps that my daughter mastered in two seconds, that make me want to throw the thing across the room...
Trick training is one of those things that it depends on the bird. If they have an interest in it (and my conures did) there's nothing you can't train them to do. If they don't have an interest in it, then it's very difficult to get them to pay attention long enough to try the behaviors you are trying to teach them.
My conures enjoyed skateboarding across the living room coffee table... my big macs, not so much. My amazons? Recoiled in horror at the sight of the thing. My CAG liked bowling. That's an individual bird thing.
But I found it easier to recall than trying to put a harness on any of them. I never had any luck with that myself. So, no, they make it look easy in the video because these birds have already been trained to accept it and you don't go through that. So, just like certain cell phone apps that my daughter mastered in two seconds, that make me want to throw the thing across the room...
Trick training is one of those things that it depends on the bird. If they have an interest in it (and my conures did) there's nothing you can't train them to do. If they don't have an interest in it, then it's very difficult to get them to pay attention long enough to try the behaviors you are trying to teach them.
My conures enjoyed skateboarding across the living room coffee table... my big macs, not so much. My amazons? Recoiled in horror at the sight of the thing. My CAG liked bowling. That's an individual bird thing.
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