Touching

[Guest]

So Gizmo is very good about stepping up, in fact in the 6 months and daily handling of him he has never refused to step up. He may sqwak every now and then but he always steps up no biting or anything else. More recently he has been giving kisses, when he is perched on his door or on my hand he leans out and makes kiss sounds until I kiss his beak. Really a lot of fun, now it would seem the next big move for Gizmo and I would be touching. The last few days I have been letting him feel my fingers with his beak, he is very gentle and at times reluctant to do so. He is real touch and go about it. Sometimes he will play with my finger other times he will turn his head and growl at me. I don't want to push him past what he is comfortable doing. So is this the best way to get my friend to allow me to eventually pet him?

[lovemyGreys]

Here is a copy of a topic i posted in another thread

 

Getting your bird to accept being petted / touched is not training so much, as being in tune to their behavior and clues and working with the personality of the bird.Each bird is an individual & therefore will accept human touch accordingly.some birds like physical contact while others like their personal space, but most are more likely to accept contact from people they know & trust.

 

When approaching training your bird to accept petting, the first step is to read the cues your bird is giving you.

You can do a little bit of training to get your bird more comfortable with the idea of being petted. As with other forms of training, practice in short frequent sessions and stick to small steps at first.

 

Choose a quiet time when your bird is relaxed.

Keep your hand in full view of the bird.

Speak to your bird before petting him or her.

Try just lightly touching and petting the beak at first.

If your bird lets you touch his/her beak, try gradually moving your fingers to the skin on the face just behind the beak.

Use a very gentle touch.

Work your way around the side of the head.

Work with the natural orientation of the feathers -- petting the "wrong way" can be irritating. Pet either in the direction the feathers naturally lay down, or gently scratch side to side between the feathers.

Eventually, as the bird relaxes (a bird that is enjoying being petted will often ruffle its feathers and bow its head) you can work your way around to the back of the head and neck.

Don't try to force your bird to like petting.

Don't expect your bird to accept petting from strangers.

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