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Only steps up to launch off

Discuss indoor freeflight and managing freeflighted birds around the house. How to live with a flighted parrot.

Only steps up to launch off

Postby Newby » Tue Dec 02, 2014 11:22 pm

HELP! After 10 months of working to get Charlie, CAG, to step up and allowing his feathers to grow, so he's flighted, he is now only stepping up to fly off of me. He is super excited when I come over and have him step up, then his feathers get tight, he stands up tall and boom he's gone. He won't step up once on the floor, so I've reverted to using his travel cage to transport him to his cage or a perch. It has taken so long to gain his trust I'm afraid to do anything to make him fear me again. I was using the two perches to target him back and forth and he has built some muscle from that. He has never flown between perches, only bending over grabbing the opposite perch with his beak, and using his wings to flap to the other perch. If the perches were, in his opinion, too far apart he would not even try. How do I get him to stay on my hand? What cue can I use, without freaking him out, to make him fly? I realized how well he could fly yesterday when he took off from a perch in our loft area, flew over the living room, over the kitchen table and smack into a wall. I need to get it under control fast, I fear for his safety. He has become quite a good friend and that is why I don't want to ruin the trust he has began. Any tips would be greatly appreciated. I am the one who wrote "Will he ever fly" and "Step up" in Taming and Training, just in case there are questions about Charlie's background. I heard that plopping to the ground hard, like when he tried to fly before his wings grew, could be viewed as punishment for the act of trying to fly. I'm really worried after the wall thing that he'll think of that as a punishment too. Sorry, I'm a little anxious about this whole thing. Wolf, if your reading this you might be smiling because you told me he would fly and I could yell "Hallelujah", now I'm yelling "HELP!" ;) How is your kitten? :gray:
Newby
Parrotlet
 
Gender: This parrot forum member is female
Posts: 23
Number of Birds Owned: 1
Types of Birds Owned: African Grey
Flight: Yes

Re: Only steps up to launch off

Postby Wolf » Wed Dec 03, 2014 8:00 am

Hi again, it has been a while. Glad to hear that Charlie finally has his wings. Now there is a period of time of crashing into things while he learns to control himself. They are pretty fast fliers and he needs to learn to gauge distances and to fly a bit slower and there is nothing that he can read to learn this his only recourse is to fly to learn these things. Turns are the most difficult as he needs to slow down to make the tight turns needed for flying indoors. After that landings are the hardest. All you can do is to wait it out while he learns the ins and outs of indoor flight and hope that he doesn't injure himself while he is learning.
The regaining of his ability to fly should help with his shaking as he will gain confidence in himself as he learns the art of flying. He won't be as fearful as he will have the means of escaping from danger. Now, I would work on teaching him to come to me when I called. He should already know and respond to his name so I would start with him close and call his name while showing him his most favorite treat. He is smart and will figure it out and when he does you just have to prepare yourself for him to come to you in which ever manner he chooses be it flying or walking. If you have him on a perch or on top of his cage he will probably fly to you.
It seems to me that if he won't step up for you when he is on the floor that he still has some unresolved trust issues as this is their most vulnerable place to be. Does he still walk about to get around? If so this is where to begin teaching him to come to you when called. Then progress to a perch.
Due to the fact that all of my birds, so far, think that I am the best perch in the house, I have not had to concern myself with getting them to remain on me, only their refusal to perch elsewhere some of the time. I will have to do some thinking about this a bit and try some thing with my birds to see how they respond before I can answer any better than this, for now.
The kitten is doing fine and is having a grand time terrorizing the other cats. Her eyes are still cloudy and I have been keeping her on antibiotics still as she still has some respiratory issues. Other than that she is just like a normal kitten of her age. Thank you for asking after her. We call her Patch.
Wolf
Macaw
 
Gender: This parrot forum member is male
Posts: 8679
Location: Lansing, NC
Number of Birds Owned: 6
Types of Birds Owned: Senegal
African Grey (CAG)
Yellow Naped Amazon
2Celestial Parrotlet
Budgie
Flight: Yes

Re: Only steps up to launch off

Postby Newby » Wed Dec 03, 2014 11:38 am

I'm so happy to hear that Patch is doing well. Thank you for some direction. He does come to me when I call him, sometimes. I will work on perfecting that. He walks and follows me all over the house. He climbs the stairs just to fly down them. He is learning to turn corners a bit. The flight from the loft was just so darn fast I don't think he had time to process what was happening. Remember I could only get him to step onto the left hand? Well, I only perfected the right hand step up a few weeks ago. As long as there is progress and I don't fall backward with him I'm okay with just keeping the patience. This morning I tried to hold his feet, but he escaped anyway. I'm thinking that will cause more issues than help me at this point. In the beginning I used that travel cage all the time, and I really don't mind doing it again for awhile. Currently he is at the top of the stairs saying "helloooooo" I'm expecting a swoop anytime now. His landings have become amazing. I did what you said and during the wing growing made sure he was only landing on something padded. What fun this is! I knew I could count on a response from you, and Pajarita as well. I'm waiting for her to read this and give her thoughts too. I'll keep you posted. Thank you!
Newby
Parrotlet
 
Gender: This parrot forum member is female
Posts: 23
Number of Birds Owned: 1
Types of Birds Owned: African Grey
Flight: Yes

Re: Only steps up to launch off

Postby Wolf » Wed Dec 03, 2014 12:38 pm

Take advantage of those times that you see that he is about to fly when he is not with you to call him to you.
I don't know if it will work but when he steps up and gets ready to fly you could try to scratch his head while telling him stay. It depends on if he allows you to scratch his head and how determined he is to fly .
Wolf
Macaw
 
Gender: This parrot forum member is male
Posts: 8679
Location: Lansing, NC
Number of Birds Owned: 6
Types of Birds Owned: Senegal
African Grey (CAG)
Yellow Naped Amazon
2Celestial Parrotlet
Budgie
Flight: Yes

Re: Only steps up to launch off

Postby Newby » Wed Dec 03, 2014 8:15 pm

I'll give it a shot. He is allowing me to touch him more and more. I pet him right behind his neck. If I touch anyplace by his head he shakes his head and does not seem to like it. I'm going to move him to his play stand now so we'll see. It really is a good time for him to be this way due to the holidays and me being busy. I just kinda go with the flow. I'm going to keep thinking about it and try to come up with a good solution. I would still love advice though if you think of something else I might be able to try. Thanks again
Newby
Parrotlet
 
Gender: This parrot forum member is female
Posts: 23
Number of Birds Owned: 1
Types of Birds Owned: African Grey
Flight: Yes

Re: Only steps up to launch off

Postby liz » Thu Dec 04, 2014 9:29 am

You are doing so good with him. He feels safe enough to use you as a launch pad. Myrtle has owned me coming up on 4 years now. She still will not let me touch her head unless she is under my hair. Preditors attack from above. The only time I can use two hands is when they are under her feet. I would not care about touching her head except she has wax spikes. Rambo only preens her feet.
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liz
Macaw
 
Gender: This parrot forum member is female
Posts: 7234
Location: Hernando FL
Number of Birds Owned: 12
Types of Birds Owned: DYH Amazon Rambo
BF Amazon Myrtle
Cockatiels: Shadow Tammy Flutter Phoenix Jackie
Andy Impy Louise Twila Leroy
Flight: Yes

Re: Only steps up to launch off

Postby Newby » Sun Dec 07, 2014 10:42 pm

Thank you Liz. I didn't realize that he felt safe and that is why he is launching off my hand. He is becoming more and more attached to me. I am going to start playing hide and seek with him. He really wants to be where I am and is almost at a run after me when he is on the floor. I started holding him close to my body when I'm transporting him on my hand. I use the other hand to keep him from turning to fly off. So far it's working. I don't want him to fly away from me until I teach him how to land on something and not crash into the wall. Most of the time he can land on the floor, but sometimes the stinkin' walls get in his way. I'm not sure how to do that, but tomorrow I'm going to try to have him launch from me onto the top of his cage after I get him from the room he sleeps in. If this is a bad idea someone let me know soon ;) Thanks for the input :gray:
Newby
Parrotlet
 
Gender: This parrot forum member is female
Posts: 23
Number of Birds Owned: 1
Types of Birds Owned: African Grey
Flight: Yes

Re: Only steps up to launch off

Postby Wolf » Mon Dec 08, 2014 8:09 am

I think that hide and seek is a good game for you to play with him. I think that his biggest problem with the flying thing is the amount of space between the walls of the room. He is a pretty good sized bird and the bigger the bird is the more room they need to maneuver in. It is the reason for those pesky walls moving to get in his way. It may take him a few times but he will figure it all out. If he has a perch that stands solid enough for him to launch from and you have a long space like a hallway that it can be put at one end of with him on it you can call him from the other end of it. It might help him with having the time to put on his brakes for landings. If it works it will help him to figure out what he needs to do in smaller areas.
It sounds like you are doing great together.
Wolf
Macaw
 
Gender: This parrot forum member is male
Posts: 8679
Location: Lansing, NC
Number of Birds Owned: 6
Types of Birds Owned: Senegal
African Grey (CAG)
Yellow Naped Amazon
2Celestial Parrotlet
Budgie
Flight: Yes

Re: Only steps up to launch off

Postby liz » Mon Dec 08, 2014 8:55 am

If he follows you around the house YOU ARE his safety.

I drove to Myrtle Beach to rescue Myrtle and stayed in a motel overnight so she would know me first before she came into this kayos. For a year she lived in a dark dining room that was dead quiet.
I halfway wake up to roll over in bed so I put her little cage on the corner of the bed and opened it. She would not come out but I drew her attention to me with peek-a-boo[ "hold on" and she learned that meaning. I still use hold on when she is on me and I go in the garage or some place else she is not aloud to be and it works. She has learned to hold on without me saying it which was very good when I walked into the back yard forgetting that she was still attached to me. She learned come'ere from my interaction with Rambo. He would yell Momma come'ere and I would come. After she used the word, she is now able to recognize the word [i]come and I can use come on or are you coming and she responds (when she feels like it).
Yes, I am bragging about her but since I don't have educated knowledge about birds I can only tell you what I know that is similar to what you are asking. If someone is standing in a doorway that she wants through she will turn side ways to fit. She can hover for a second and even turn from that position. Yes, I have had her for three years for her to learn, but her learning warms my heart as if my child was learning. A non bird person could never understand the excitement.

Rambo is a pedestrian so I give him flying lessons by standing on the other side of the room with him on my finger. Then I bounce him a little while counting to three and then say fly. It is a whole lot safer than the floor or landing on an animal which has been done.
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liz
Macaw
 
Gender: This parrot forum member is female
Posts: 7234
Location: Hernando FL
Number of Birds Owned: 12
Types of Birds Owned: DYH Amazon Rambo
BF Amazon Myrtle
Cockatiels: Shadow Tammy Flutter Phoenix Jackie
Andy Impy Louise Twila Leroy
Flight: Yes

Re: Only steps up to launch off

Postby liz » Mon Dec 08, 2014 9:09 am

liz wrote:If he follows you around the house YOU ARE his safety.

I drove to Myrtle Beach to rescue Myrtle and stayed in a motel overnight so she would know me first before she came into this kayos. For a year she lived in a dark dining room that was dead quiet.
I halfway wake up to roll over in bed so I put her little cage on the corner of the bed and opened it. She would not come out but I drew her attention to me with peek-a-boo[. Wile driving back I would say "hold on" every time a made a turn and she learned that meaning. I still use hold on when she is on me and I go in the garage or some place else she is not aloud to be and it works. She has learned to hold on without me saying it which was very good when I walked into the back yard forgetting that she was still attached to me. She learned come'ere from my interaction with Rambo. He would yell Momma come'ere and I would come. After she used the word, she is now able to recognize the word [i]come and I can use come on or are you coming and she responds (when she feels like it). She also says it.
Yes, I am bragging about her but since I don't have educated knowledge about birds I can only tell you what I know that is similar to what you are asking. If someone is standing in a doorway that she wants through she will turn side ways to fit. She can hover for a second and even turn from that position. Yes, I have had her for three years for her to learn, but her learning warms my heart as if my child was learning. A non bird person could never understand the excitement.

Rambo is a pedestrian so I give him flying lessons by standing on the other side of the room with him on my finger. Then I bounce him a little while counting to three and then say fly. It is a whole lot safer than the floor or landing on an animal which has been done.


I think she is learning "help". When Rambo is in a situation or when he is too lazy to climb down from his cage, I ask him if he needs help or can I help you.
User avatar
liz
Macaw
 
Gender: This parrot forum member is female
Posts: 7234
Location: Hernando FL
Number of Birds Owned: 12
Types of Birds Owned: DYH Amazon Rambo
BF Amazon Myrtle
Cockatiels: Shadow Tammy Flutter Phoenix Jackie
Andy Impy Louise Twila Leroy
Flight: Yes

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