In the next issue of ABK Magazine I will be introducing readers to a few additions we have made over the past 18 months to our training team - a group of parrots that I use for my consultation work. One very unexpected addition was `Maya' (pronounced `my-a', not `may-a') the Green-winged Macaw. She's not going to be a permanent resident here as she is on loan for a while given her special circumstances. It was an opportunity for me to work with an almost completely parent-raised Macaw that, due to having to be support fed via crop syringe after being abandoned by her parents at fledging age, is very averse to hands and completely unlike a hand raised and imprinted Macaw. I was keen to see what sort of outcomes could be achieved with such a bird. So far it has been a challenge. Besides having almost no real trust in human hands, we are also working on minimising and hopefully eliminating some early onset feather picking behaviour on her legs that she started whilst being weaned offsite. The long-term goal is to get her partnered with at least one other Green-winged Macaw as these birds absolutely thrive in the company of their own kind and flying `solo' is not (in my opinion) the ideal lifetime scenario for a Macaw.

In the short-term however, we're going to work through the process of seeing what sort of relationship we can establish with her and take it from there. She has only been with us for three weeks and although each day is a new page in the relationship-building story, I really only started some focus sessions with her 5 days ago. What I have been doing is just short, 15 minute, positive reinforcement sessions each afternoon, gradually building up her tolerance and acceptance of my proximity to her. I plan to detail these sessions in a future Pet Parrot Pointers column in ABK magazine but in the meantime, below are just a few images of the approximation pathway that we were able to achieve in Session 5 with Maya that ended with her actually placing both feet on my arm (not shown) - a huge trust moment for her! To work with birds like this is very special indeed, and humbling as a trainer as it really does challenge you to think fast, problem solve quickly, and above all, tune in to the slightest body language indicators on offer from the bird to know when to raise your criteria and shape the next stage of the behaviour. The images don't give the full reveal as they don't show just how apprehensive this bird is, but they do hopefully give some indication of just how slow good training with a parrot like this needs to be. The end result in the second last image was achieved after five 15-minute sessions over five consecutive days. No magic - no voodoo - no `bird tricks' - just patience, perseverance, keen observation, timely reinforcement delivery and above all - respect.

Image 1: Starting off where we finished the previous session with Maya taking food treats from the hand and maintaining close proximity to me without moving away to eat.

Image 2: An important approximation to consider is the nature in which the treat is taken from the hand - it provides a strong indication of the level of comfort the parrot has in the presence of the hands and trainer. A gentle taking of the treat as opposed to an aggressive `grab' informs you whether or not the parrot is starting to have confidence in its choice, trust in the trainer, and some control over its environment.

Image 3: Looks like something not worth noting but it's a critical indication of where the focus of the parrot is - firmly on the hand delivering the treat and with the confidence to look away from the trainer and towards where the reinforcement is being delivered. Time for raising the criteria!

Image 4: Gradual desensitisation of a hand grasping her perch. Note that her proximity to me has shifted back spatially on the perch - a result of the introduction of the aversive of the arm to her environment. She is being positively reinforced for gradually moving closer to the arm.

Image 5: The level of desensitisation to the arm has enabled her to have the confidence to lean over the arm to receive a treat.

Image 6: The criterion was raised to her having to place a foot on the arm for reinforcement delivery. This was a slow process and one that had many small approximations before Maya would actually place and hold one foot on the arm. I also had some challenges getting my own body positioning right and dealing with the problem of the Macaw tail, which can be a pain in the butt when training these guys as they react aversively to their tails brushing up against things while they are apprehensive. If you're wondering why the arm is positioned on the perch and not in front of it in a more `classic' step up position, try dumping a carton of milk into your outstretched palm and see what happens. With a bird that weighs close to a kilogram and is very apprehensive towards unstable surfaces, I was relying on using her perch to support my own arm and hence her weight to give her the confidence in using my arm as an extension of her perch.

Image 7: At this stage I am shifting the target of my treat delivery hand to shape her body positioning to better facilitate her getting both feet onto my arm. This was achieved by the end of the session. So much goes into getting to a point like this in terms of considering your reinforcement delivery, setting the bird up to succeed with your own arrangement of the environment, and obviously the detail in shaping the behaviour. The next set of approximations will be working towards being able to lift Maya from the perch she is being trained on here to the one above it. That will actually be a huge leap for this ruby gem.

Image 8: Finishing on a good note with a nice cashew as a jackpot :-)

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The second division of scientists studying behaviour, study how animals acquire behaviour…. how animals learn and is known as Behaviour Analysis. One if its best known founders is B. F. Skinner, who is best known for his classified training of pigeons during World War 2 in a secret laboratory in Minneapolis. Skinner was the scientist who defined the principles of Operate Conditioning and these studies are based in psychology.
    Clicker training is most commonly seen in the marine mammal training areas, where a whistle, rather than a clicker is used as a bridging stimulus and now this training technique has also become very popular as a dog training tool.
    What we now know as Clicker Training is an application of behaviour analysis, which has been developed by B. F. Skinner and his work with Operate Conditioning and then further developed by Kellar Breland, who was B. F. Skinner’s first graduate student.  Marian Breland, who later became Marian Bailey and Bob Bailey worked with Skinner on the pigeon project. The Bailey’s have been running Clicker Training camps, teaching people the theory of Positive Reinforcement and clicker training for many years and they are still continued today even since Bob Bailey’s death.
    Karen Pryor, who in the 1960’s was a marine mammal trainer, is probably the best known advocate of applied operate conditioning and clicker training and has written many books, such as Don’t Shoot The Dog, A Dog and A Dolphin and Lands Before The Wind, which are all worth reading if you are interested in kind and gentle training methods
    When we train animals using food, food is known as a Primary Reinforcer. We will ask the animal to do something and when he performs the desired behaviour, he is rewarded with something he finds highly desirable. When a clicker is used in training, it is known as a Secondary Reinforcer and has to be “conditioned” first, so that it will have a value to the animal and become a signal to the animal that he has done the correct thing and a reward is soon to follow. The clicker is also known as the “Bridging Stimulus”, which is an event marker that identifies the desired response and “bridges” the time between the response and the delivery of the primary reinforcer.
    The clicker is easily conditioned by repeatedly making the clicker click and giving the animal a food treat, and soon the animal learns that the sound of the clicker means treats are following, thus becoming a secondary reinforcer.
    I suppose the question is, why use clickers as training aid when you could condition your voice, saying “Good” as a secondary reinforcer? The reason the clicker has become so popular, is that it is unique and the same sound every time and does not vary. The clicker’s sound is unemotional and once a trainer is used to using the clicker, the sound can be delivered quickly and consistently every time. The clicker can be useful when training something at a distance, as you can tell the animal that it has done the correct behaviour, by clicking it, and that a reward will soon follow.
     Once the animal has learnt the behaviour, by performing repetitions of the desired behaviour and being clicked then rewarded, the “Cue”, which can be a verbal word, or hand command, or both, can start being used and learn by the animal
    People ask if they have to use the clicker forever to keep an animal doing a desired behaviour, and the answer is no. Once an animal has learnt the behaviour, the click is replaced by a treat, or praise or a pat. The clicker can now be used to teach a new behaviour. Remember the click sound only means “Yes, you have done that correctly and a treat or praise is coming.” It is also good to understand that the click sound also terminates the behaviour….. When you click, it tells the animal that it has done the correct behaviour, so can now stop. If you were teaching something that involved duration of a behaviour, then you would slowly increase the time the animal performed the behaviour, before clicking.
    To learn more about clicker training, there are many books written for all different breeds of animals, but some of my favourite ones for bird training are                 

1. Clicker Training for Birds, by Melinda Johnson
2. The Bird School Clicker Training, by Ann Castro
3. The Click That Does That Click, by Robin Deutsch
4. Clicking With Birds, by Linda Morrow

You will find most of these books by searching the internet under their names, but if you are interested in learning more about Clicker training, go to www.clickertraining.com and http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Bird-Click/
    One peculiar thing that can happen when clicker training parrots, is that because they can imitate sounds quite well, they can learn to imitate the clickers noise. One of my birds, when eating, or when I am giving him treats, will sometimes make his own “click” noise, say “Good Boy” and then eat the treat. It is quite funny. If your bird starts imitating the clicker, just ignore this and continue with the training.
    Next time I will describe the technique of ‘Target Training” and how you can combine the use of Clicker Training with it..
    If you have any questions, or need help with training please email me on garycolvinau@yahoo.com.au and I will try to assist you. Till next time, Cheers.

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The Parrot Rescue Centre spends a lot of time and resources in doing what is best for the parrots in its care by ensuring the birds are vet checked, given fresh food, enrichment, clean aviaries and cages, providing natural habitats and by building larger enclosures.

The PRC is not a large organisation, it is privately owned and managed by Zarita, Jamie, Bella and volunteers. To help fund the PRC we have created the PRC Shop, Bird Boarding, Sanctuary Program and also rely on the generosity of the public. The PRC does not receive any financial assistance from the government or other large organisations.

We need your help and support to continue to provide a high standard of care to the PRC parrots and also to continue to provide the Website, Newsletter and other services such as Sanctuary, Rescue, Rehabilitation, Adoption and Placement programs.

Thankyou for your kindness.

Yours truly,

Zarita Garozzo

Thankyou for your support.

Snippets for the Month

We would like to say a special Thank you to Sheryll Steele-Boyce from Australian Bird keeper Magazine who kindly donated an Adoption advertisement in the current Birdkeeper Magazine April-May 2010. Your continued support of the PRC is greatly appreciated.

Here is a link to a music clip that touched our hearts, it was created by a group of musicians, to help support Haiti Earthquake victims.

You must be the change you want to see in the world. Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948)

Click here to watch this inspiring music clip.

How to enter the monthly draw to win a PRC recommended parrot toy and have your birdies picture and story part of the PRC Newsletter.

· Fill out the Parrot Rescue Centre Membership Form
· Write a story about your feathered friends, whether emotional, funny or silly
· Send it to zarita@parrotrescuecentre.com
· Include a photo of your bird as an attachment on the email.

It’s that easy! We look forward to hearing your stories!

All leg rings on pet birds require periodic checking to make sure that there are no problems or discomfort relating to the fit of the band or the ring.  As an avian veterinarian, I am often presented with birds suffering great pain and discomfort from ill-fitting, tight or misshapen bands that have acted as a tourniquet on their legs.  Budgies and canaries commonly suffer from scaly mites that burrow into the bare skin of the legs and feet and cause a thickening and flaking of the skin in these areas.  As a result the leg bands become tight and “ring-bark” the legs.  Often owners have not noticed any problem as the feathers tend to hide the legs.  Birds with larger beaks, such as sun conures and Indian Ringnecks can bite at aluminum, open bands and squash them out of shape. This action can also cause the ring to act as a tourniquet and cause swelling and constriction of the leg. Just recently I had to operate on a sun conure to remove a constricting leg ring that was encased in skin and tissue.  The bird’s skin had actually grown over the problem band.  Leg rings can also get caught in cages and toys which can lead to breaks, cuts, dislocations and sprains. If seeds or twigs get caught under a leg ring, subsequent irritation can cause swelling and constriction of the foot and leg. In the worst case scenario, amputation of the affected foot is necessary.

Because of all of the injuries and problems that I’ve treated as a result of constricting leg rings, I usually recommend the removal of leg bands from pet birds.  Removal of most bands is a simple procedure and will prevent any potential injuries occurring.  Owners should never attempt to remove a leg ring themselves.  Always consult your avian veterinarian, who will safely remove the band and prevent injury to the bird.

Microchips are a much safer and more convenient way of identifying your pet bird.  Microchips are about the size of a grain of rice and can be quickly and safely implanted into the breast muscle of the bird.  Each microchip contains a unique number which is
recorded and registered to the owner through a microchip company.  It is common practice for veterinarians and animal shelter workers to scan any lost birds for microchip identification which link the lost bird directly to their owner.

If anyone finds a stray or lost bird, they should always take them into their local veterinarian and have them scanned, in case the bird has a microchip.  The microchip is the safest way to identify your pet bird and to ensure that it is returned to you in case it gets lost.

Written by Peter Wilson
BVSc MACVSc
Avian and Reptile Practitioner

To contact Peter Wilson Click Here

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