Question about cage size during taming

[Anneka]

No longer available.

[RockyandhisFriends]

I use a very small cage when training them to step up to get out of the cage and to step down to enter the cage. With larger cages you tend to chase them all around before you can corner them an get them to step up on your finger. In fact with all the toys in the cage it takes forever. The smaller the better for training.

You can see a small purple cage in my Avatar, that is the size I use for training.

Phil

[chapala]

My idea is to get them to want to come to me for treats, and earn the trust. It takes longer, but does work with a lot of patience. I think grabbing them or forcing behaviors can backfire. Hand-feeding small pieces of millet spray, making sure they get it at no other time, can work wonders. Just my opinion!
Reta

[Pado]

Anneka, If you use a very small cage for training purposes I wouldn't recommend leaving them to live in the cage full time when you are not training. A small cage for an active Parrotlet is boring and confining for them :)

[RockyandhisFriends]

Reta and Pado

I only use the litte cage for training purposes, and I only use it for young birds. You can see the in the Avatar that they are sitting on a perch. At four weeks I start teaching them to perch and to step and step down on the perch and in the small cage. I don't have to try to intice them with any treats at that age. I also try to have them handled by different people, so that they get used to being handled. I think this makes for a better home bred bird. I try to have them well socialized before I would let them go to their permanent home.

Phil

Once fledged I keep them paired in 30"x18"x!8" cages.

[Anneka]

Phil, I wish I had one of your plets.

When I visited the breeder to pick mine up, this is what I saw:

Cages of plets, older and babies. Obviously she does not have enough time to socialize them properly. Yes, they were handfed but that was probably it as the human contact goes. :(

When the breeder was about to pick one of the babies up, she got her open hand ready and all of the sudden grabbed the plet she wanted to catch. Almost like a predator :(

I wanted a plet so badly and she lives not far from me, so at that time all I cared was to bring one home. I have read many times that taming a plet is challenging and takes a lot of patience, but I am about to lose mine, LOL.

Thanks everyone for your input regarding the size of the cage.

I would only use such a small cage for the taming purposes, because she does have a bigger cage to live in. But that creates another problem. In order to switch her from one cage to another, I would have to grab her and I don't want to do that. She probably had enough grabbing in her life.

I doubt she would want to leave her cage on her own plet will :) in order to go into a smaller one.

[RockyandhisFriends]

Anneka,

Thank you for the compliment.

I don't breed my birds that often but when I do I try to have them well socialized before they go to their permanent home.

I pull my birds at 10 days of age and begin to start hand feeding them. From 10 days to 4 weeks old they are kept in a brooder where they get the proper heat and humitity until they are feathered. At 4 weeks they are fully feathered and moved to a fish tank where the can see out of their tank and start to become aware of their surroundings. At this stage I start their training. At 4 weeks old they don't have to be intice with treats to come out of the training cage. In fact they can't wait to jump on my finger and com out. At no time are they ever left in the training cage for more than a minute or two. At 5 weeks old they go from the tank to a regular cage.

Hopefully I am raising them the right way. I can't believe the amount of people in this forum that have birds that nip and/or bite. Not everyone has the time and patience to train their parrotlet. They should be able to enjoying their bird from the first day that they bring home without the fear of getting bit. There are a few people in the forum that have my birds. I believe that they all would attest to the temperment of my birds.

Phil

[BeakerLuvsBunsen]

My babies both came from Phil and they are the sweetest!
They have their moods now and then but doesn't everybody?
I would recommend his birds to any New yorkers looking to adopt a parrotlet.

Liz's Cosmo is my Beaker's little brother

[chapala]

There seem to be many breeders out there unfortunately who don't bother to socialize their baby P'lets. It's no wonder they bite when they go home - they are scared and defending themselves and haven't learned that people are their friends.

I have seen this kind of breeder (with 'Tiels, not P'lets) "hand-feed". It involves grabbing the bird, shoving food into the chick's mouth, then putting it back in the cage. Not one iota of socializing.

Phil, it sounds like you do a terrific job with your babies. Too bad there aren't more out there like you! People with new P'lets would not be having all these problems from day one.
Reta

[SweetPeasMom]

I would use the small cage for training, I also have Buddy whom is scared to death of being grabbed, so we open the door and let him come out on his own. I give him scritches and treats very often for even the smallest of good behaviors. Just keep working with your parrotlet, and Patience is the best advice I can offer.. Patience and lots of it. you will do fine.

[Anneka]

It involves grabbing the bird, shoving food into the chick's mouth, then putting it back in the cage. Not one iota of socializing.



I think this is exactly what the breeder I got my plet was doing.

The word "handfed" used to mean more yrs ago. Now since so many baby parrots are being pulled out for handfeeding, it does not mean much. :(

You are doing a good job Phil. I wish I was living closer to you.

[Anneka]

Thanks Nita.

[lisap]

Phil if I wanted a parrotlet you are certainly the person I would fly to get one.

My baby was also grabbed and it shows, she is nervous of my hand but daily she see's all the nice food the hand makes for her and I think that slowly it is working its wonder.

I sincerely wish everyone was like Phil but sadly thats not to be, my bird is not as hand friendly as I would like at the moment but I love her and will hopefully make her feel safe to allow me to pick her up with my hand. I will admit that when she is sleepy on my shoulder I get a head rub but if you don't tell her neither will I. :p