Train Your Parrot With Games For Well-Socialized Companion Birds Continued…Train Your Parrot With Tug-o-war: It's not okay to let the bird win all the time, particularly if it is an aggressive bird; but be sure to let a shy bird win often. Rescue me!: Also a favorite parrot-initiated game with several frightening variations. Help, my toe is caught! is a version well loved and frequently played by Amazons. It was certainly the favorite game of Portia, my yellow nape, during his bachelor days. (Yes—this Portia proved to be a male!) He would flap, scream, and hang upside down by a single toe. When his concerned owner rushed to help, she found a delighted bird (not stuck) gleefully displaying for attention. This game is exciting, though a little hard on the heart. A loving owner must check the bird in case it really is in trouble! Train Your Parrot With Chase me!: This is a slightly controversial game because it isn't passive, and one must be sure that the bird wants to play. (Never chase a frightened parrot if you have a choice.) The concept of this game is that there is running and chasing, but no catching.
Chase Me! is a favorite game of Goffin's cockatoos and is sometimes mistaken for fearful or untame behavior. I am often called to tame a "bronco" Goffin's whose owners are convinced that the bird doesn't like them. "She comes to me, but when I try to touch her, she takes off like a shot," confused humans say. Usually, I find a doting bird that runs from even the most mundane contacts—not in fear, but for fun. Some Goffin's will literally run circles around the person they want to chase them. If you want to handle these little beauties, entice them with passive body language, wait and reward them—with petting, not food—for coming to you. A parrot's games will vary with the passing of time from shy baby games to more sophisticated challenges and flirtations. These interactions will remain a delightful part of your lives together. Playful passive Interactions are a great way to relate to a tame parrot that needs attention when everyone is too busy to handle It. When you train your parrot with passive noncontact games, you find that they are absolutely the best way to interact with a bird that doesn't like being touched. Simply because the parrot won't tolerate the hand doesn't mean it isn't a playful pet. Certainly, (In1 more creativity and imagination you devote to a pet's games, the more enjoyable will be your time together. |
