Amigo's flying free "training"

[Mare]

Amigo's flying free "training"??
A lot of people have asked me about how I trained my bird, Amigo, to be a free flyer, what training techniques, videos, format, etc. Haha, these questions always make me smile and think back to his beginning to fly freely days. At this time, 3yrs. ago, I had no idea that there WERE training techniques or videos available! What the heck was a clicker?? A parrot forum?? Who knew?! I was still in the dark, pretty much, with what we were about to introduce to not only Amigo, but my husband and myself.

Amigo came to me a very unhappy, caged bird. The previous owner was an old friend that lived about 5-6hrs. away, I had met Amigo once, but that was several years ago. She was having to move and asked if we would help her out by taking him in, just till she got settled. Well...long story short, he ends up being a forever bird. Before Amigo, we had NO experience with birds. It felt like our home had been taken over by an alien, it was horrible! Thank God, he bonded to our 16yr. old son, so he was at least manageable when my son was home from school. Son leaves for college...now what? I call previous owner and plead with her to take Amigo back, at least till my son was home for summer vacations. No way, she says, can't do that, still unsettled. Bummer! Within a week, Amigo bonds up with me, decides he is IN love with me, (lucky me), and life continues. He was still this force in the house that could not be trusted around other people. At least I could handle him, thankfully. I could not keep him happy with toys, good food, lots of entertainment, he always seemed to be discontent. This is a big assertive bird.

A year after having this bird in our home, my brother-in-law recommended this book called King Solomon's Ring, by Konrad Lorenz. Lorenz was a naturalist living in Europe in, I believe, around the 1930's. He studied animals in their natural settings, as much as possible. He acquired a pet cockatoo, not sure which kind, but one of the larger ones, and allowed it to be free. He kept an open window in his home just so the bird could come and go, at will. This bird was bonded with him, this bird knew where home was. This book started us on our path to allowing Amigo to be free.

After living with Amigo for two years, in the home. My husband suggests that maybe we should try Konrad Lorenz's technique. I'm like,,What?! I know you don't like this bird, (only because the bird doesn't like him), but I am not just going to let him GO!!? I re-read the book, and the more I thought about it,, the better it sounded for a bird like Amigo. His personality, his size, his aggressiveness. The only problem now was...his wings are clipped. Which was a good thing.

We had an outdoor cage for Amigo during the day and when we were outside, on the deck, I would have him with me, or when my son was home, he would hold Amigo, out of his cage sitting on a chair. Through this time, Amigo's flight feathers were coming back, slowly. My husband built a ramp, ( a 2"x4"x10' board), that wired on to Amigo's outside cage on to a large oak tree limb, next to the deck. The first time he came out of his cage to the ramp, he was scared but curious. He walked up the ramp into the tree and loved every minute of it! He hung out there for about 3hrs. chomping down limbs the whole time! He finally came down and we sat on the porch some more.

This bird was totally bonded to me when he started to fly. He knew where home was, food and water. He was a terrible flyer when he first started to really take off. Lots of crash landings and misses. He would over-shoot a landing spot and end up sprawled out on the ground. At that time, he wasn't strong enough to take off from the ground, so would come running towards me, for help. I would follow him around the property, scared to death, that I was going to lose him. I called to him constantly so he would know where I was. When he would get too far away, I would head back to the house and call to him as I went. He followed. There were times when we had to get the ladder out to retrieve him from a tree because he didn't know how to fly down.

I hope this post wasn't too terribly long. This bird is NOW, 3yrs. later, a Jedi warrior out there! To see him this way was worth every minute of stress and sleepless nights of wondering if we were doing the right thing by him. I think we did good!

[keepsmiling]

Thanks for sharing part of his story. That is awesome.:encouragement:

[Honesty]

Thankyou for sharing your story with us Mare:)

[roxynoodle]

Wow, thanks for sharing the beginning as I never knew that :) I love Amigo's stories and IMO he has about the best life a "pet" parrot could live.

[aliray]

That is also the first time I heard the whole beginning ..What a great story.

[Mare]

Every day, since then, has been "QUITE" the adventure, with Amigo!

[mrgoogls]

that is the first time I have ever heard how his free flight got started! wow.... he must be really bonded!! I hope one day I can free fly cooper. but not like amigo, I think a quaker is to small for that. but maybe just let him fly around, recall him and such.

[Turquoise]

That is an awesome story of how you went from not wanting to keep Amigo when you thought your friend would take him back to worrying if you'd ever see him again. I would have been the same as you if it had been my bird & story.

Even tho you didn't know anything about real training for Amigo, you did an excellent job with him.:thanks4sharingthumb

[Blancaej]

Mare - What a wonderful story! I just love it. He certainly seems like a very happy bird. Unfortunately because of the cold weather in VT, I could never try this here. I would hate to let a bird free, then have to bring them inside all winter long. I'm sure you feel lucky that this works so well with your bird. I think the stress was worth it. I have a song that says it well, "Nothing important ever comes easy and nothing easy is very important.

[Rescued]

I very much wish that all birds had the freedom and joy that Amigo has. It brings me a lot of joy to hear about him.

[Mare]

The funny thing is, and rather sad, really, is that I never would have attempted this, with Amigo, if I had been a member on a parrot forum. I LOVE this forum, people are kind and open here. There are folks, elsewhere, that are very judgmental and if I had brought up this thought, of letting Amigo be this way, it would have been axed and People would have said, "Off with her head!!"

[ShellyBorg]

Amigo sounds like he really needed to have more freedom. Makes me wonder. We are learning more and more about parrots every day. I just got done reading about a study where they raised some babies, 50% hand feeding and 50% parent raised with daily play time with care takers. The parent raised ones did not talk as fast as the hand raised, but later in life did not have the issues of over bonding, plucking and screaming as some of the hand raised one did. Both made great pets, the parent raised ones just had a seemingly healthier bond with there caregivers.
I wish we all could at least afford outdoor flights. I know I do. I really think I would have happier fids if they had at least some sense of freedom.

[jacksmom]

Wow, as if I wasn't already impressed enough by this forum - I cannot believe no one has sent a lynch mob for you yet, Mare! ;)

And you have my total respect on this issue - I also considered free flight a long time...but unfortunately was ruined by forums early. Yes, it is a risk, of COURSE...but when my dog goes barreling through the woods out here, isn't that a risk also? She has come back many a time cut up from goodness knows what, probably just slamming into sharp branches or long-forgotten rusted farming equipment miles back into the woods. Would I take that from her? Not a chance.

I had to search your posts and find Amigo's story, (newbie here) someone mentioned the exercise he gets in another thread. It makes me want to not lug cages tomorrow, lol...but in the case of Paris that is just laziness that makes me say that. Jack is more suited for that life - he is an accomplished flyer, already can take off from the ground, so on.

I wonder if you will answer a few questions for me...

1) Do you have other predators where you live, such as large birds of prey? Hawks? Are you concerned for Amigo with any sort of predator? Love the coyote story! :)

2) How did the "spooks" work themselves out, a lot of watching, calling and chasing? By "spooks" I mean, say, a tree falling nearby - most birds sign up for the "fly away first, ask questions later" policy - how did you handle it at first, and what does he do if he gets spooked now? Fly away and look back, if all seems kosher go back in for a landing?

I have a ton more, lol, but may we start with those? :)

[Mare]

Hi, jacksmom! I have tons of family members here at this time, I'll get back to your questions as soon as I can! :)

[Mare]

Ok, I've gone into hiding under the pretense of needing a nap but actually needing a break from too much love :th_scared3: Yes, we do have hawk predators here and Amigo has actually been taken down by one and survived .. I believe he survived because of his aggressive personality and size. The hawks normally will not attempt to pursue him. This happened during a hawk migration.
Jacksmom, the MOST important thing I can tell you, is, have a contact call for your bird. Have a call that he knows is YOU. You better feel a very strong bond and you better feel secure that he is smart enough. I know many humans that I would not attempt something like this with, on the ground, just because they are so dingy!

To be continued...

[Mare]

Ok, the "spooks" are not an issue with "us". I know nothing of macaws except that they are beautiful, seemingly magnificent animals. I know nothing of their nature. All I know, in the flying department, is what I did with Amigo. I know that I wouldn't try this with my Goffin's and I know that it is VERY risky and the scariest thing I've ever attempted. I don't want to discourage you but I want you to know, KNOW your bird. (I've never used the word 'know' so many times in one paragraph before, ever!)

[jacksmom]

It's okay, Mare, your concern is genuine and much appreciated! No worries, though, not about to jump into anything, just flirting with the idea. :)

I want to go check out the book you mentioned, think about it, study my birds, think about it, practice some return training in the greenhouse, think about it, come ask ten more questions, think about it, study my birds again, think about it...and probably never do it, lol. I imagine anyone jumping into something like this without doing all that and more has a good chance of it ending in heartbreak!

Jack has got to be bigger than Amigo - he is large for a blue and gold, and I believe that your average blue and gold is larger than your average cockatoo. In fact, I think the hyancinth macaw is the only parrot larger than the B&G. Paris, on the other hand...she may only have a longer tail, lol, since Amigo is big for a cockatoo.

About assertiveness...Jack does, in spades...but does this mean aggression? He is a huge bluffer, he will lunge at you like he is going for the kill, but if you just stay there doing whatever you are doing he will probably try to feed your hand. I never taught him to bite...he thinks a gentle nip is the worst kind of pain, I taught him to think so, lol. Paris, on the other hand, will NAIL you...hard. I didn't raise her. :rolleyes:

I am not sure I understand - you say spooks are not a problem - do cockatoos not have a strong prey/predator response? I assumed that all birds did? Fight or flight, right? I think I would want them to fly away from danger...just want would want them to come back when they do! :eek:

Thank you so much for answering my questions! :)

[Mare]

I've had someone question me on the book I had referred to. He read it thinking that I got Amigo in the air by some directions from the book. The only thing the book gave me was the courage to try because I knew then that it could be done. There are no directions or instructions except maybe the contact calls he did to get his bird to find him in a crowd.

Jack being a very large bird, may deter the hawks. The one that took Amigo down was a red-tail, the size of Amigo. I always thought that if anybody would take him out it would have been a Cooper's hawk, they are very aggressive, though smaller than Amigo.

I've never seen Amigo back down from anything, he's very territorial. He knows where his home is and when he was being chased he flew right back here, his home base. He has, in the early stages of this adventure, flown to the other side of the valley where I could only see him as a little white speck, calling to me. I called and called back and thought for sure I was going to be hiking through the woods to go get him. He came home. If I didn't persist with my call, I don't know if he would have made his way back, not sure if he would have felt lost. He now knows every inch of this property and normally doesn't wander too far.

[jacksmom]

This makes a lot of sense, of course parrots are very persistent in their calls, lol, and it is what his mate would do for him in the wild.

I am pretty sure Jack wouldn't back down, either - just what would he do if another animal tried to attack him, nip gently thinking that should probably suffice? Maybe I am not giving instinct enough credit...I don't bite anyone either, but if someone was ATTACKING me...hmm.

Lol, I am just in love with the idea of Amigo's life, enjoy thinking about just free flight training as not a banned concept. I will probably never want to have them out of my sight while outside, I think I would always be too paranoid for that. But to give them the open sky to fly would make their greenhouse exercises pale in comparison! For now, though, I think we will be sticking with those. :)

[Rescued]

Jacksmom, I really understand where your coming from, I too wish that I could give my birds the kind of freedom that Amigo enjoys. Alas I do not have a large piece of property and do have very large predators, bald eagles, large hawks and eagles and more. I have had the nightmare of having my blue and gold stuck in a tree. She was really scared, wouldn't move, and was hunched and desperate looking. I think it really does take the right bird, in the right environment, with the right owner and the right neighbors. We want to the baltimore aquarium this weekend and I couldn't help but feel like my birds had such a limited scope of life. I wish I could have an aviary like the one there. It was huge and had a great deal of trees and water features. They had a pair of scarlet ibis, double yellow headed amazons, sun conures, blue headed parrots and smaller non parrot species.

[jacksmom]

I had the same nightmare after Jack flew to a palm tree in the back woods when he was a baby - and he had JUST been clipped a week ago! (It is a mystery to us all what a palm tree might be doing in the middle of the woods in NC - they are not native here) He was just out of my reach, and he wanted to come to me but couldn't get down. I wonder if they have nightmares about losing us!

It was a show in Myrtle Beach that got me recently - Pirates Voyage. The ad said "exotic animals" and my boyfriend and I were very excited - and laughed when we saw the first ones - blue and gold macaws, of course, what respectable pirate would be without one, right! Arrrrg!!! ;)

Anyway, they had a HUGE indoor arena for the show, and when these guys flew, you could see their joy, even from 50ft away. I was so heartsick for my birds, I wanted them to have that...and all the old guilt, how dare I take the sky away...came flooding back. Of course, they never had the sky, and I didn't take it away...but I did, they are in my keeping and their happiness is my responsibility.

But so is their safety. Jack can whistle fairly well, I think I may start recall training with an actual whistle - cause I can't whistle very loud!

I hear the dynamic duo waking up...time for breakfast, and yaaaay it is a greenhouse day, they will really enjoy that after being cooped up in their bedroom for two days!!! :)

[Mare]

Jacksmom, don't ever feel bad for giving your birds the best life you are able to give, it sounds like yours have a wonderful one! I do know the feeling of wanting to give them something more, though :), something more natural to a bird.

The call I use on Amigo is the call he uses to call me, if that makes sense. I imitate, to the best of my ability, his call. People that don't know us and are visiting, think I've gone mad! This call is a very distinct 'where are you?, contact call. He has many other noises that he makes but there is no other like this one. This is the one I use to rein him in :)

[jacksmom]

That sounds a lot easier - but dang, I don't want to imitate the one Paris gives and I CAN'T imitate the one Jack uses. I have been going even further than that - because unlike Amigo they aren't free, and nowhere near prepared to be. This is just playing around with hopefully the beginning of recall training for even just flying in the greenhouse - and not only am I not repeating their noise, but I picked one they both make and am trying to get them to use that.

Not really setting them up for the best success, like what you did for Amigo - and don't you be embarrassed a bit about your weird bird call, I bet they have different things to say when he comes flying to you! But, I am going to give it a whirl - we started today - I will let you know how it goes! Thank you for your kind words about their life - nice to hear when they have both been so badly behaved today!!! ;)

[Mare]

I think that's a really good idea, on your part, to give them YOUR sound. This is the start of contact call. I have never done clicker training but I've heard many people have had great success with it. In my mind, if your bird knows and loves you enough to come when you call, without being bribed, you've got a better chance of not losing your bird :)