#parrot training

Training some recall and stationing! Leia did absolutely great, almost perfectly, even though the aviary is 20 feet long, it was a bit windy, and there were distractions everywhere. Such a good bird!

Drogon exploring the new flight training aviary! It is BIG!

Drogon knows a bunch of tricks and really loves trick training, but he definitely has his favorite ones!

A fun thing I like to do is allow him to lead the training session himself now and then - he’ll tell me which trick he wants to do, and then I ask him to do it and give him a reward when he does. It’s especially fun right after a session of training a new trick/behavior, if he’s been getting bored or a bit frustrated about not getting it right every time, - to just move on and let him decide for himself what to do, ensuring his satisfaction (and a treat) every time!

So here’s a video (sorry it’s in Swedish) of him asking me to ask him to do his two absolute favorite tricks over and over - “vinka” (meaning wave in Swedish, so it’s waving), and “dracarys” (which is the verbal cue Daenerys from Game of Thrones uses for her dragons to breathe fire…. I use it for a lil wing flap).

As you’ll see, the one time I ask him to do a trick that he didn’t request at first, he just ignores that and tells me he wants the other one. Big boy likes to be in charge!