jgerardo Posted January 14, 2014 Share Posted January 14, 2014 So I finally convinced myself to buy an aviator harness. I am kind of nervous I don't know how Luna will react to harness. I feel like I am going to have a hard time getting him into it. I am also afraid that he will try flying away only to be pulled back from the harness. I have never hear of bad experiences with the harness but I do want Luna to have some outside time. Being indoors all day for the rest of his life isnt what I want for him. How did your experiences go with harness training? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BaileysPapa Posted January 14, 2014 Share Posted January 14, 2014 I am in the process of training Bailey to wear the Aviator. Watch the video that comes with it. Watch it several times. It took a few days to get him to let me put it over his head. I got him used to me running my hand over his head before I got it in preparation. I also touched & manipulated his wings earlier. Both in preparing for the harness and for vet exams. He accepts the harness over his head, but will not let me tighten it yet around his body. It has been months trying to get around his body. Every day we do harness training. At least once. But, he will not let me tighten it. I have watched the video, and others as well, for tips to get him to accept it. Still no luck. When he balks, and tries to get away, I take it off immediately. I do not want him to become scared of it. However, he WILL get used to it. I will not give up. I have had many birds, and have been able to walk around with several of them outside. A few were harness trained before I got them, a few stayed with me without a harness. I will not take any chances with Bailey. He WILL wear that damned harness eventually! Good luck, and keep at it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgerardo Posted January 14, 2014 Author Share Posted January 14, 2014 Wow I am so inspired by your determination! I will try my hardest to make it the most comfortable for him even if it takes months like you said. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SRSeedBurners Posted January 14, 2014 Share Posted January 14, 2014 I'm assuming your avatar is a pic of you and your birdy. I took the Aviator harness and hung it over my ear periodically until she finally started ignoring it. At first she was scared of it and there was no way to get it near her without a fight. Then I started touching her with it, offering treats if she would accept them through a loop in the harness (neck hole). I've always had her where I can get my hands under her wings so I didn't have to work on that much. Once you get the bird used to the harness in close proximity you should have no problems from there using treats. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave007 Posted January 14, 2014 Share Posted January 14, 2014 So I finally convinced myself to buy an aviator harness. I am kind of nervous I don't know how Luna will react to harness. I feel like I am going to have a hard time getting him into it. I am also afraid that he will try flying away only to be pulled back from the harness. I have never hear of bad experiences with the harness but I do want Luna to have some outside time. Being indoors all day for the rest of his life isnt what I want for him. How did your experiences go with harness training? I've used the harness for a few years. I had a hard time getting my greys used to them because both were adult birds---9 yrs and 14yrs . 2 of my greys finally accepted them. 1 CAG, 1 TAG. 2 different sized harnesses. The other grey can't fly. It's pretty easy to get a young bird used to them. Like Bailey said, watch the video a few times. Watch it when you run into small problems. Start slow and if needed, have one other person around to help out until you and your bird gets used to it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgerardo Posted January 24, 2014 Author Share Posted January 24, 2014 I bought the harness. Luna is not afraid of it. I tried getting him used to it hanging on his body but he bites it and sees it like a toy i cant even begin to put it on! The video said we shouldnt let them chew on it but what can i do? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave007 Posted January 25, 2014 Share Posted January 25, 2014 (edited) I bought the harness. Luna is not afraid of it. I tried getting him used to it hanging on his body but he bites it and sees it like a toy i cant even begin to put it on! The video said we shouldnt let them chew on it but what can i do? It's good that he's not afraid of it but he doesn't know it's a harness. So, you shouldn't be laying or partially laying it on the bird. The time to do that has passed. I'm not surprised that he's biting it. He would be biting anything that hanging off of him. NOW is the time to look at the disk and watch it and watch it over again. Now is the time to start putting it on him. Now is the time to prepare getting nipped and to be possibly bitten when doing it. Start this whole thing off knowing there's a good chance of getting bitten. Now is the time to expect to hear your bird to squawk and growl when doing it.. All people who have parrots have gotten bitten at one time or another. Now is the time to be brave. Now is the time to become a parrot owner. Edited January 25, 2014 by Dave007 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgerardo Posted January 27, 2014 Author Share Posted January 27, 2014 Yes it is I got bit on my thumb. We were so close all I had to do was adjust the harness around his body! I got the neck and wings no problem. But his legs started getting tangled with the excess harness and he got scared. I will definitely start watching the video over and over again. Thanks for the words of encouragement! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SRSeedBurners Posted January 27, 2014 Share Posted January 27, 2014 Tip: if you got as far as adjusting the harness, have something he can bite on to distract himself while you work on the harness. Whenever I need something to distract, I use a ball point pen with the ink reservoir removed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgerardo Posted January 29, 2014 Author Share Posted January 29, 2014 I finally got it on him after about a week of trying! He resists a little but not too bad. When he does he chews it and chews it and chews it. I am just afraid he will rip it one day hopefully not. I am happy with that! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brat Birds Posted January 30, 2014 Share Posted January 30, 2014 You might try to tighten it just a bit. Yes, they can chew through it. I know it says they can't, but I have two that say they can! LOL Just make sure you check it often if you see him chewing and ALWAYS check it after you take it off. It is wonderful that it only took you a week to get him in it that is a short time! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timbersmom Posted January 30, 2014 Share Posted January 30, 2014 Good job! It will be well worth the effort if you can get him out and about. We have too many predator type birds in the area for me to use one. I'd love to be able to though! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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