Progress with Gloria and next steps

[kozykitty]

I've now had Gloria for two weeks. Gloria is a 30 year old BFA whose mother went to a nursing home. The son kept Gloria for a short while but felt he couldn't care for her. She was in a local pet store that rehomes pets for about 3 weeks. According to the shop caretakers, she was quiet for a few days when first arriving there then she became chatty. She's not aggressive at all and didn't spend time out of her cage at the shop.

I got her original dome top cage which had 2 metal perches and I upgraded it with a lare java wood perch and a couple of other perches. I also put a chew toy, foraging toy and another toy in the cage. I hope to upgrade her to a larger cage with a play top.

She was chatty from the beginning but on days when I'm home from work, she seems quiet during the day, being chatty first thing in the morning and again in the evening. She spends a lot of time sitting on her perch, sometimes she climbs and sometimes she shows interested in bathing. Every day, I put my hand to her while holding a treat and saying step up as well as doing the same with a training perch. She doesn't seem interested in doing so but reaches for the treat (which she doesn't get). I figured I'd work on this each day. She did bite me three times that first week. I have to put my hand in the cage to get her dishes. It occurred to me that she was anxious for her food dish as the bites occurred as I would be putting it in the cage. The third time, I said "no" sternly and withdrew the dish, putting it down outside the cage for a few minutes. She was clearly unhappy about that. I waited until she got on her perch (about 10 minutes later) and put the dish in without issue, praising her and giving her a treat. Now, when she gets the open beak "I'm going to nip at you" look, I say "no" and it stops so I feel we are making progress.

I have not let her out of her cage yet. I have to know that I can get her back in as I have 3 cats and can't walk out of the room without her in the cage. What would be my next steps here? She has a dome top cage and I just bought a nice natural wood cage top perch I can put up there. I have to figure out a way to keep her from pooping on her food and toys below. I'd like to just leave her cage door open to see if she climbs up there but I'm not sure how to get her back in. Suggestions here would be very helpful. I was thinking that starting this in the afternoon before dinner might help as she might willingly go back into the cage for her dinner. She likes to share food from my plate. I'd like to get her to step up on the training perch so I can take her in the kitchen while I fix dinner. Our kitchen and family room (where she resides) is like an L shaped great room.

She's a very sweet bird. She does some screaming but she's fairly quiet. I feel she needs more activity as she hasn't played with her toys much. I've given her a skewer with corn on the cob that she likes so I thought I'd add some more things to forage on that. I know it's only been two weeks and it will take time to build our relationship. I just don't want her to become cage bound.

On a side note, I find it humorous that she makes kissy noises and says "pretty girl" to my husband, but to me she says, "mother, mother, get to work!" LOL

I've appreciated all I've learned from these forums. Thanks for all the help!

 

[Peppo]

When I first got Paco, he was cage bound for seven years, getting him back in the cage was my biggest fear too. You need to make a plan and try. For 2 months, I took all animals and other people too out of the room he was in. I blocked off the open doors with a curtain rod. I had a towel ready just in case, a handful of treats in my pocket, the lighting was down, TV low.... Yes, I was a freak about it but I just did it, over and over again. Out with a stick to his stand, treat. Stand to cage, treat. Increasing the time every day. I then let my son sit on the couch while we did it, then my husband,and eventually the dog and rabbit while on high alert of course. After this was seemless, I gave up the stick and have not had the just in case towel out since. I remember The day...I put the dog on the couch, potatoe, the rabbit was scurrying about, my son was building Legos. I went to Paco's cage said step up put him on his stand, sat down on my chair and hopefully said out loud "just get along." It has been the same since. I still supervise. It it is wonderful that they, we, all can hang out. Point is, you just have to make a plan, stick to it.

 

[kozykitty]

Did Paco step onto the stick? I have a training perch that she won't step on. I guess I could try a dowel or stick. The other option would be just to open the cage door and see if she climbs out and goes on top of her cage.

 

[Peppo]

Yep. I used about a twelve inch wooden perch. He learned to step on that first. As our confidence built, I gave him my hand or forearm. I think it is important to stick train them as if a situation happens that you can't reach them for some reason the stick works. Paco hid behind the toilet one day just happy as can be.my hand wouldn't manuever behind it so I got the stick and he hopped on. Very useful in a tight squeeze or if he gets up high and I can't reach him, I am very short! I never just opened the cage, I always asked him to step up. He actually waits now until I ask or he asks in his baby voice "step up?" And I still melt and let him out even though I am late for work... Just set your goal and make a plan. I did that for everything I taught him. You can do this!

 

[kozykitty]

So any suggestions on how to get Gloria to step on a stick? I have a 12 inch wooden dowel. I hold a treat in the other hand. She attacks the dowel. She's not at all interested in stepping on it, treat or not. This has been going on for a couple of days. She won't step on my hand or arm either.

 

[MonicaMc]

You want to reward Gloria for looking at the stick, then moving to the stick. It makes it easier if the stick (or your hand) is an "extension" of what she's already on. Don't ask for a physical step up, but a gradual one.


Barbara Heidenreich demonstrates it with this scarlet macaw.

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GIaDDSeZKnI"]Parrot Training Workshop Live Demo - Step Up Training with a Macaw - YouTube[/ame]

 

[kozykitty]

That's very helpful. Her java perch, which is where she spends most of her time will be tricky to do that with given it's shape but I'll try to figure it out. It's nice to see it done.

 

[mh434]

When one of my birds gets aggressive, I too use a stick (I'm already on a first-name basis with the Emergency Room staff who do sutures, and I'm trying to avoid putting all their kids through college). When I'm dealing with a particularly raging bird (like my 'Zon, when he's on a rant), I use the stick, which is about 2 1/2' long, with a towel wrapped around my end of the stick AND around my hand (if he thinks he can get away with it, he'll scamper up the stick to attack my hand - when he sees the towel there, he doesn't even bother trying).

When I first put the stick up to him, he attacks it, of course. I don't pull it away, but continue to stroke his belly with it, just in front of his legs. At the same time, I keep talking to him, to draw his attention away from the stick. Eventually, he succumbs to his instinct to step onto the "branch" that's in front of his feet, and I praise him while using the stick to get him back in the cage.

Worth a try?