Thanks everyone! See individual replies below:
EllenD-
I ALMOST bought lychee fruit for her and then I thought I should Google its safety beforehand and forgot lol. Glad to know that you have used it with luck. Obviously I plan to remove the seed and skin before giving to her, but she might like that. I love the pepper-seed idea too.
MonicaMC- When replying to other people's similar posts, I always recommend training (with food) first thing in the AM as well. The issue with her, is that she has been taking meds first thing in the AM which have to be mixed into her food and given at a certain time. By the time that is done,she isn't that hungry anymore (satiated).
One thing that I probably should do (and have debated for months), is try removing her food at night, but oddly, I often hear her eating at odd hours (midnight, 4AM etc ) before going back to sleep until 7. Consequently, I am concerned that if she doesn't have that option, she may not be able to sleep as well and then she may start over-preening or engaging in other behaviors until I uncover her at 6:45-7am. She came to me as an over-preener and she is better than she was, but it is still a security blanket.
I know that food isn't a perfect reinforcer for her, but there are certain foods that she
will work for (they just aren't that healthy or they take too long to eat).
She is more motivated by my attention than food, but the issue is, to make my attention during training MORE MEANINGFUL than the other attention she gets during normal interaction poses a challenge, as she requires lots of interaction etc. I only restrict attention when I have to get things done around her or when she exhibits obnoxious behaviors. Otherwise, our interaction is very fluid and frequent.
Plus, if I am training her to put her head through a hoop, my presence itself is a form of attention, so that's why I'm hoping to find a better food motivator. If I am standing there near her telling her to do something, that IS attention...do you get what I am saying?
She doesn't eat an all-seed diet. She gets a bit of Volkman seed (purple bag) mixed in with her Zupreem fruit blend.
I have tried Rowdy Bush and Harrison's for months at a time with no luck. I am not saying all hope is lost, but she came to me with a worse diet than what she has now, and so that is why she is still eating some seeds (I don't want her to starve and she is stubborn enough that she probably would).
In terms of the task at hand- I am trying to get her to put her head into a harness, and the only thing that has even come close to working is food (when held on the other side). I know about task analysis and all of that jazz, but that is why I am looking for a food item that she would really like that would still be healthy. I think that if I can find something, a task like this would work much better with food than anything else (assuming I get buy-in from her).
Scott: Thank you for the Cheerio idea.
EllenD also mentioned Grape-Nuts and Kashi. I have always worried about cereals because of the added vitamins. Do you think it is fairly safe in small quantities?
Other methods that don't involve treats can work great, just take a little longer to achieve the end result.
!!!
