Staying on a Stand

[willow]

I have had Willow one week, she is very young bird. Obviously still clumsy. I bought a large stand for her. It has a long perch and you can hang a toy above the perch. I put her on the perch but she seems to get board. She trys to climb the toy hook and yesterday she flapped her wings so hard she fell off. I have two dogs in the house so this isn't a safe thing to do. How do I train her to stay on the perch and be contented? When she starts getting too active I put her back in her cage.

[Guest Monique]

To train her you just have to put her back over and over and over again. This is very common and can take some time. When you can't stand keeping to put her back then put her in her cage. I would also work to do some training with your dogs to leave the bird alone. Praise them for ignoring her when they have access to her. Obviously you need to keep your eyes on them together 100% of the time but if you ever had a slip-up this would possibly save a disaster. We have always had dogs and birds and they have learned to co-exist. In general, my dogs are scared of the birds. I also have cats and they sit on my lap while I have the birds. They are big fat dumb Persian cats though :laugh: so if you had a real active Siamese or other cat I don't know if this would work.

[Guest Monique]

Oh I also meant to add that your bird will gain a lot more confidence and dexterity as it matures and is less likely to fall off. However if it's a goofy active bird it probably will do so once in a while. Our Grey never falls off at 4 months (he does fly off on occasion yet) but my Macaw falls off once every other week ... and he is 10-years-old. He's just too much of a Goofus and has to try amazing daredevil stunts all the time .

[Guest briansmum]

she will become competant in her own time, babies are clumsy. are her wings clipped?

 

also.. i could be wrong on this, but she may see being put back in her cage when she's active as punishment for having fun and begin to resent her cage. as long as you are there to supervise her out of cage playtime i think it is perfectly fine that she gets a bit carried away and has a couple of clumsy falls, it helps them learn. i dont think she's climbing the toy because she's bored, greys like to climb, it's fun and good excersise.

 

i know you are scared for her, i was for mine, but now if he makes a mistake i calmly check hes ok so as not to make a fuss, then say "oopsa daisy" and pop him back on his perch.

 

i hope this helps and bit, and please someone correct me if i'm wrong

 

beccy

[judygram]

You are not wrong, Beccy, and it helps. They are gonna fall from time to time especially if they are very active.

My cage has a playtop on the side of it and it has a hook for hanging a toy, she likes to climb up that and perch for it is the highest place. It is so funny sometimes when she comes down she will let go slightly and slide down the hook, it is so funny.:laugh:

[CeasarsDad]

Ceasar use to fall all the time.. As he aged he stopped falling.. You will see this too...

[Guest Monique]

Oh, I don't put our bird back in their cage when they fall ... only when they purposely get off .. as it seems like babies can do that a lot sometimes too (depending upon the baby).

[ambrosialyn]

Brutus still falls on occasion, and hes 3 yrs old. But hes constantly swinging on toys and having a good time. He also likes to terrorize house guests by purposly getting off his perch and running across the floor to get on the couch with them. As they get older, generally they are easier to train to stay on a perch. Brutus does unless someone is eating something that looks yummy.

[Guest briansmum]

yeah.. i can't get brian to stay on his perch when someone has food.. so i've started co-inciding his feeding times with our meals. don't know why i didn't think of that in the first place.. duh!

[judygram]

Sounds like you made a good decision, but in the meantime just keep putting him back when he gets off and one day after a thousand and one times he may stay.

:laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

[Guest Monique]

And if not that ... for sure 1002 ...

[Lusya]

I've purchased a little portable play stand for Izzie (since we will be traveling to my parents' house often) and I've got it last nigh. But it seems she is scared of it and she would not step up on it and sit there. How can I train my bid to accept her new stand?

[Laurie]

I'm having a similar problem. Some of you may remember my triumphant post a couple of weeks ago when I got a regular $99 stand for $23 on sale. I was so happy! Well, Klaus has only been on it maybe 2-3 times. I knew patience would be in order - it takes him awhile to get used to EVERYTHING. But this is even beyond Klaus' normal time span to accept and even enjoy something. The last time I insisted he sit on it (I was doing homework with my son and couldn't have Klaus chewing up pencils & papers) he stood at the very edge of it a peep-peeped so pitifully. These birds really know how to lay on the guilt don't they?:laugh:

Anyway, all tips are appreciated.

Personally, I think I need to time it better, when he's more in the mood to play independently. And when there's not all those lovely pencils and papers over there that he so desperately wants to chew.

[Lusya]

I was thinking maybe I have to take the stand away from her big cage?

 

Do younger birds tend to get used to new stuff easier or age makes no difference?