kinsei
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Post by kinsei on Sept 23, 2011 20:14:44 GMT 10
guess who i have sitting on my shoulder right now .... !! ;D  ;D the container with castors is another great idea as i have plenty of empty ones collecting dust in the garage i may as well put it to use!! today i noticed on pedros tongue (more towards the back) that it's hollow, sort of like a small empty hole ?? now i may have just been seeing things i'm not sure and it's hard to get a good look. he's eating fine, happy and doesn't have stinky breath and if it was what i saw it doesn't appear to be infected or irritated. for eclectus or birds is this normal or should i get it checked out? i'll keep my eye out over the next couple of days to see if i can see it again |
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Post by avinet on Sept 23, 2011 23:03:31 GMT 10
today i noticed on pedros tongue (more towards the back) that it's hollow, sort of like a small empty hole ?? Well spotted - what you saw was the glottis, the entrance to the windpipe down to the lungs. It is located in the back of the tongue and isn't that easy to spot unless looking for it. So nothing to worry about - and nice to hear of the shoulder time! cheers, Mike |
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kinsei
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Post by kinsei on Sept 25, 2011 17:03:57 GMT 10
thanks avinet nothing to worry about!
and also i'm glad i wasn't imaging stuff lol ;D
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kinsei
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Post by kinsei on Sept 25, 2011 17:12:44 GMT 10
i wasn't sure where to post this so i'll put it here .... i'm just so so EXCITED i wanted to share the news! lol pedro and i were having a play and he was on my hand, i've always wanted to try the 'bat trick' and i knew it was way to early to try this for him as i'm still depositing trust to him but i really really wanted to see how he'd react being on his back. and guess what?? HE DID IT!!!!!! ;D  ;D (with my hand behind him) |
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Post by avinet on Sept 25, 2011 21:21:38 GMT 10
That's great - you have obviously gained his trust  cheers, Mike |
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Post by twr on Oct 2, 2011 13:31:23 GMT 10
i wasn't sure where to post this so i'll put it here .... i'm just so so EXCITED i wanted to share the news! lol pedro and i were having a play and he was on my hand, i've always wanted to try the 'bat trick' and i knew it was way to early to try this for him as i'm still depositing trust to him but i really really wanted to see how he'd react being on his back. and guess what?? HE DID IT!!!!!! ;D ;D (with my hand behind him) that's fantastic. If found with Tinga, once he took that first step to trust me, and he found nothing bad came to him because of it, everything else followed at hyper speed. I bet that's the same with you and Pedro. Looking forward to hearing more Pedro stories. |
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kinsei
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Post by kinsei on Oct 7, 2011 19:22:36 GMT 10
i'm just in the middle of a baffling moment.... i was starting to write 3 months gone by now, but then i re looked at the date i started this and it was august so it's really only coming up to 2? am i going mad? so i double checked the date in my diary and yep, it was mid august he came home. ummm anyway! i think i've been reading his signs alot better now especially the 'i'm ready to sleep!', and 'hurry up with my food'. he's become a very cuddly boy just happy to sit on you and have a chat, although i still don't find him to be very adventerous at all. of course his favourite place is still on top of his cage and it can be hard to convince him to come down! i feel as though we have bonded together and have come along way since the beginning but i still feel something is lingering - maybe a lack of confidence? it's hard to put my finger on and i assume this because he came to us with one wing clipped and he can't really fly and this might be why he's not confident enough to explore and always goes back to his cage  his wing is taking it's time growing out but i've decided to leave it until i can see that he can fly. hopefully his confidence will gain and it might change some of his behaviour. oh and one other thing, i don't think we have the 'step up' command going full force yet, pedro seems to do it only when he's in the mood too, when he doesn't want too he looks like 'nope, not doing that now ask me later'. ! twr - how long have you had tinga for now? what was your training/bonding with him like after tinga had gained your trust? |
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Post by twr on Oct 10, 2011 8:55:26 GMT 10
So that's pretty good progress really. It's only been 2 & a bit months for you. It sounds like great progress and as time goes on you will learn to read him even better and I'm sure his courage will grow. Just let things happen. Sounds like you're doing great. I adopted Tinga as a 5 year old in November 2010. Since you ask  briefly November 2010 to January 2011Ignored the open cage door. Ignored toys & nets on the outside of his cage. Played well with toys inside the cage, seemed happy, independent and able to keep himself always busy. Did not act scared, but had no interest in leaving his cage. Did not need me. Accepted a treat from my hand through the cage bars. February 2011- I placed a play stand, with food bowls, very near the open cage, positioned so a branch reached inside the cage door. Tinga now had to be on the play stand, if he wanted the treat. March 2011- once he was comfortable with that, I served his evening meal on the play stand, so if he wanted his supper, he came out for it. At first I made sure not to look at him when he came out to eat, pretended not to notice him there. When he was used to that routine, I would praise him while he was on the stand. Occasionally I'd invite him to step up, but he would not. He would eat & then go back inside the cage - I knew he knew the "step up" command from his old owner, so I started clicker training. Now he only got the treat if he at least put one foot on my hand. This was done before his supper, so he was motivated. Eventually he stepped up & I took him to the couch. That was a mistake & because he wasn't ready for that, he stopped stepping up for a long time. June 2011- he stepped up again. I'd click, treat & put him straight down. About 3-5 mins of that a night & then I'd give him his supper. He seemed to start enjoying this. He could hardly wait for the step up command before he hopped on, took his treat, but he still hopped straight off. I think the key thing here was letting him hop off & not trying to take him away like I did back in March. - then the miracle happened. After his supper about 3 weeks into June, he flew to me. It was another 3-4 nights before he did it again. Not sure why he took so long to trust, but I think he was grieving at the loss of his old mum. Also, being older he was not so open to change as a younger bird might be. Anyway, after the breakthrough, things moved fast. He loves to be with me, snuggles inside my shirt, naps under the doona & preens my hair and eyelashes. I can no longer be in the room with him at his supper time. He would prefer to be on me, rather than eat. I have not trained him to do tricks, although his old owner told me he could do a card trick with the clicker. So far, just the functional stuff. We practise step up, down, stay and come most nights. I don't think I'll ever get stay to work the way I want it to. He knows what I want when I say stay and will do it, but only if I retain eye contact & keep repeating the trigger word. Once I look away he will fly to me. I can't walk in the room without him flying to me, to the point it can be a bit much. If I put him on his play stand for a break, before I get to door or sit back down, he has flown back & is on me. He also doesn't tolerate the lorikeets being on or near me. Luckily, they have each other for company. If Im not in the room, he still prefers to be in his cage. I will walk back into the bird room, the cage door is open, but he's playing inside. Only sometimes do I find him outside his cage. Sorry, it wasn't as brief as I'd hoped  |
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Post by anzac on Oct 10, 2011 11:07:55 GMT 10
No need to apologise, it's great hearing about everyone's progress however long or short it is |
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Post by Robyn on Oct 10, 2011 12:01:45 GMT 10
Kensei, I have to tell you that there is no comparison between a Sun Conure & your eckie Pedro. LOL. I think what your experiencing with your boy is very typical of an eclectus, sometimes i wonder what they are thinking when i am asking something of them. I am sure most of the time they think i am nuts. The males can be very placid & laid back. Not to much in a hurry & seem to have to think long & hard about even doing the slightest command. Unless it involves their favorite treats. Mine will move fast for almonds. I think that's why i love my eclectus so much. They are not to hard work, very intelligent & can entertain themselves. parrotenrichment.com/books.htmlDownload the above link will keep you & Pedro busy & entertained for hours. ;D |
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Post by twr on Oct 10, 2011 19:24:16 GMT 10
Yes my sun is very different to your ekkie. Not even considering the species differences, which I don't know anything about since I have zero ekkie experience, the age and situation of how we both acquired our birds is so very different. Tinga didn't start out behaving like I was told a sun would (clingy, inside shirts) but 11 months later he is true to Sun form |
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kinsei
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Post by kinsei on Oct 10, 2011 22:34:17 GMT 10
geee birds are highly intelligent creatures and keep us on our toes! our birdies are different species, and i was probably just looking for some more motivation (as you know that over used word now..... progress!!) was again slowing down and at times i find myself frustrated or thinking, is this going to be it? and then a few days or week later pedro will let another small baby step out and it's celebration all over again. and i know you've been through alot with tinga and you've worked together to be where your at now so just some inspiration i can come back to read when times become challenging. ;D robyn thanks for the link! *pedro sends much thanks!* funny you mentioned almonds as i had bought some today (erm, for myself) and they are soaking now, i don't think pedro has ever had an almond yet but i think i can share! i have noticed he will give off an obvious expression reacting to my baby talk - he dead set doesn't like it LOL. and when i speak how i normally would i find i have more of his attention. and .... maybe he is reading me, instead of me 'reading him' and he's just ummmm, letting me think that i'm figuring him out? lol |
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Post by Robyn on Oct 11, 2011 6:16:35 GMT 10
I wasn't commenting on Tinga, that is a different situation altogether. I should have made myself clearer. However i do breed Sun Conures & hand-rear the chick as well so i do know how each species act.
Robyn I can relate to your experience with Tinga when you first adopted him, I also adopted an adult male & pretty much went through the same as you did. It didn't take him to long to settle into our house although i did have a few really bad behaviors to iron out.
My original 2 male companion sunnies were exactly the same as your explanation of Tinga. They both used to fly to us no matter where we went, even to the little house if we didn't shut the door. They can & do get very aggressive & Territorial of their space & special people.
Kensei you don't have to soak the almonds for Pedro, they love the crunch of the raw almonds. Elliott however dunks everything he eats. But then he is a strange bird indeed.
Although you have the advantage of training a young eclectus, I find steady as she goes works wonders with them. They don't really come out of their shell until about 12 months of age. I see you have been able to lay Pedro on his back, that means he is trusting you, the little guy i am rearing now will already lay on his back, the 2 girls also do. I am even trying to get the baby Alex's to trust me to roll them over but they at this time are really not to sure about that. Even my RTB Too will let me cradle him, big sook.
When you talk to your boy you will notice how he will really concentrate on what your saying. He will also like to spend time by himself. If you train him in a positive way now while he is still young, hopefully he will be a well behaved adult with no hangups. To be honest you don't have to work to hard to train your bird, you just need to follow his lead especially if the behaviors are desirable.
You are in for a fun ride though. Just enjoy each day as it comes.
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Post by twr on Oct 11, 2011 21:28:21 GMT 10
..... progress!! was again slowing down and at times i find myself frustrated or thinking, is this going to be it? I know what you mean. Before what I always think of as "the breakthrough" happened, if anyone had asked me, I would have said that "this is going to be it". That I had a bird who had no need of human company. But it wasn't "it" and like you say, it's all celebrations again when the progress starts off again. |
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Post by twr on Oct 11, 2011 21:42:29 GMT 10
.....They can & do get very aggressive & Territorial of their space & special people. You're right! I had to have Tinga lightly clipped to stop him dive bomb attacking the lorikeets. He can still attain lift, but he can't do the aerobatics required for his attacks, so it is all peaceful here again. The clip has done nothing to stop him flying to me at every opportunity though lol .....To be honest you don't have to work to hard to train your bird, you just need to follow his lead especially if the behaviors are desirable. Right again. My time line with Tinga was slow, but none of it was hard work. I followed Tinga's lead with what he was comfortable with. He was just a slow boy in taking each forward step, that's all. The only hard thing is having patience ;D |
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his wing is taking it's time growing out but i've decided to leave it until i can see that he can fly. hopefully his confidence will gain and it might change some of his behaviour. 
briefly 
