That Bird Blog – Bird Care and History for Pet Birds

The following blog entry was done by a guest blogger and does not necessarily reflect the views of That Fish Place/That Pet Place. Please welcome Dave Womach, Professional Parrot Trainer at Birdtricks.com

When you first hear the term, “freeflight parrot” you might expect to see a parrot flying through hoops in bird show at a theme park, or perhaps doing some stunt in a washed up Vegas showroom in a dingy hotel located in the wrong part of town, just north of the famous strip. Very few people are fully aware of the “no-limits” potential of what I refer to as, Freestyle Flying™.

Imagine for a moment what it would be like, if you took your clipped parrot outside, let go of his feet and a 25 mph wind gust took him out of your hands never to see him again. For many, that is unfortunately a very common story.

Now imagine going to some exotic location after 90 days of formal training and intentionally letting go of your parrot. Nothing beats the rush of a gust of wind taking your parrot 50 feet up into the air, as you watch that bird maneuver on an invisible wave of wind, as if he were a surfer riding on the great waves of Hawaii. He skillfully hovers in one spot until he gets enough confidence to surf the air and coast back and forth, only to land on your hand a couple of minutes later.

Freestyle Flying™ isn’t for everyone, but it is for every bird. And if you’re the kind of person who is willing to put in a lot of time, energy, and research, this can be the best quality of life that you can offer your parrot.

Over the past year I have been fortunate enough to fly my flock at locations all across the U.S., and watch as they go from freshly weaned baby parrots, to fully skilled pro’s.

My favorite thing to watch them do, is a term called Jinking. (v. jinked, jink•ing, jinks

To make a quick, evasive turn) As your parrots become more and more confident and skilled, they’ll start to experiment with evasive maneuvers that they use in the wild to evade predators such as hawks and eagles. They’ll actually flip upside down, flap, turn right side up, upside down, etc until they have successfully evaded the predator. Although I have seen this used twice to actually evade a hawk (or flock of seagulls), they also love just practicing it on their own.

If you ever have the opportunity to experience the freedom of flight, through Freestyle Flying™, make sure that you don’t miss out on the opportunity.

To see a brief video that will wet your appetite, click here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O7CZsTiPiXw

People have mixed feelings about teaching budgerigars, macaws, cockatoos and other parrots to perform tricks.  Some claim that such is somehow “degrading” (to the bird, I assume!) while others consider training to be vital in forging a good relationship with one’s pet.  My experience with captive animals of all types has convinced me that, when properly carried out, trick training greatly improves the quality of life for parrots and other highly intelligent creatures.

In zoos, marine mammals and elephants are trained as a matter of course, in order to simplify veterinary examinations (i.e. when an elephant raises its foot to allow the pads to be seen) and to keep the animals occupied with stimulating activities.  Much the same is true for pet parrots.  The training process itself also helps to forge a bond between the parrot and its owner.

The First Trick

As a first trick, I highly recommend teaching your parrot to “shake hands”.  This behavior is merely an extension of one that many well-adjusted birds already perform – that of stepping up on your finger or arm.  If your bird has not yet mastered this, then please do not attempt to teach it any tricks at this point…such will only frustrate both yourself and the bird.  Please write in if you need further information.

To train your parrot to shake, you’ll need a cage-top or similar stand set up in a quiet, distraction free room.  Training should involve no punitive actions whatsoever…your parrot will be quick to make the association and will lose interest.  Improper responses should be ignored, favorable actions rewarded with a small treat.  The treat used should be hidden from the bird’s view until needed, and should not be part of your pet’s normal diet.

Timing and Progress

Training sessions should last for at least 10 minutes, and, ideally, should be terminated before your parrot becomes bored and loses interest.  As you come to know and understand your parrot’s personality, you will become adept at judging when to end a training session.

Although some parrots exhibit amazing abilities to retain what they have learned, for most the road is bumpy at best.  Progress is rarely made on a predictable basis…be prepared for a “1 step forward, 2 (or 3-4!) steps backward” type experience.  Your patience is key… do not attempt a training session when you are ill or under time pressure.  Much like infants, parrots are very much attuned to subtle cues, and will pick up on and respond to your mood.

“Shaking Hands”

To teach a parrot to shake hands, first touch its foot while saying “shake hands”.  As soon as the foot is lifted, praise the bird and provide a small treat.

Once the bird consistently raises its foot on cue, begin to gently grasp the foot and shake it.  At this stage, provide praise and a reward only after the bird allows you to shake, not when it lifts the foot.

Practice in various locations, gradually increasing the types and degrees of distractions to which the parrot is exposed when given the “shake hands” command.

Further Reading

An amusing article on the Cincinnati Zoo’s famous singing Amazon parrot, which leads fans in song at local ballgames, is posted at:

http://www.cincinnatizoo.org/pdfs/2008OpeningDayParade.pdf

Please also check out our extensive line of parrot care books http://www.thatpetplace.com/pet/cat/infoL3/22315/category.web.

What would the world be like without pets? A new bill proposed in House could make this a reality. All pet owners should be aware of a pending federal government resolution. HR669 stands for House Resolution 669 which is designed to change the way the government classifies non-native species. If passed into law it will have a tremendous impact on keeping pets in America. It will make it illegal to sell and breed many animals common in the pet trade including most species of tropical fish, ferrets, most reptile and amphibian species, corals, and many others. Though That Fish Place/That Pet Place is in favor of an effective invasive species law, we are convinced this is absolutely not the legislation to accomplish that. Please check out my HR669 blog here to find out more and learn what you can do to help prevent this from even being introduced as a proposed law.

If your interests include both pet bird keeping and the conservation of wild birds, you may wish to consider becoming involved in a local bird-banding program.  My own first crude attempts at this fascinating endeavor involved trapping birds as a child with an old-fashioned “stick-holding-up-a-box-trap”, and really took off when, courtesy of my naturalist grandfather, I acquired a professional Havahart Live Animal Trap.

I did not realize at the time that my activities were both illegal and ill-advised (bird banding is a skill that must be studied), but I must say that I was fascinated to see that my prize catch, a male cardinal that I “banded” with a child’s plastic ring, remained within a very limited territory and tolerated no other males of his species.

I later became involved in professionally organized bird banding projects, and found the close contact with wild birds to be most gratifying.  I was surprised to learn that over 70% of the bird banders in the USA operate on a volunteer basis, and that well-trained people are often in demand for various projects.

Obtaining a Federal Bird Banding Permit

Those wishing to band birds in the USA must obtain a federal permit from the US Department of the Interior.  Applicants must show that they can identify and safely trap, handle and band those species with which they will be involved.  Prospective banders can take courses or participate in organized banding programs as interns in order to gain experience.

Value of Banding Data

Bird banding programs have been in operation in the USA for over 100 years, and the resulting mass of data has given us important insights into the behavior, ranges, population trends and conservation needs of a great many species.

Banding studies have been particularly useful in showing us that international cooperation is required if wide-ranging bird species are to be effectively protected.  Migratory birds may winter, feed, breed and pass through several continents and dozens of countries in the course of their travels.  Conservation efforts for such birds will be effective only if protection is provided in each of the habitats that they utilize.

Feeding and Observing Local Birds

Of course, you don’t need to trap and band birds in order to enjoy their beauty.  Providing wild birds with food, water and shelter will draw numerous species within viewing range, and will help them to survive and reproduce.  Please check out our wide variety of wild bird foods, feeders, books and related items.

Further Reading

You can apply for a banding permit and learn more about the process at www.pwrc.usgs.gov/bbl.

Information concerning bird banding courses is posted at www.osnabirds.org/on/187.

Last time we took a look at the unusual nesting behavior of this popular little parrot (please see The Half Moon, Orange-Fronted or Petz’s Conure and its Relationship with the Arboreal Black-Headed Termite.) But, as if breeding in termite mounds were not enough to distinguish it from other parrots, the half moon conure also changes the usual parrot “roosting rules” as well. And with good reason…

Giant Bats and Conures…Avoiding a Nightmarish Predator
The half moon conure exhibits a few odd behaviors as regards predator avoidance. Researchers in Guancastle, Costa Rica, have noted that resident half moon conures change roosting sites nightly. It seems that they are the favored prey of a truly unique predator, the huge false vampire bat, Vampyrum spectrum (I’d certainly move around allot if it helped to outwit a giant, flesh-eating bat!).

False vampires are spectacular and unusual bats. Although I have yet to see one in the wild, I was shown a roosting hollow in Costa Rica (they roost singly or in small groups, unlike most bats). The floor below the tree cavity in which the beast spent the day was littered with parrot feathers and the skulls of rodents, frogs and other bats.

A Quiet Group of Parrots?
Another unusual half moon trait is their habit of becoming very quiet upon first sighting a predator. The quiet – rather than, as with most parrots, the noise – spreads to adjacent groups of conures very quickly. If the predator advances, the conures begin to scream in true parrot fashion and fly off.

Further Reading
A false vampire bat may have been an incident involving a parrot that I came to know while working in Costa Rica. Please see my article Parrots and the Perils of the Tropical Night.

The following article contains a wealth of information on false vampire bats in the wild and captivity. Bats are not birds…but this one is well-worth reading about!
http://www.science.smith.edu/departments/Biology/VHAYSSEN/msi/pdf/i0076-3519-184-01-0001.pdf

Photo courtesy of Wikipedia Commons.