- [Male Teacher] I guess what's your main focus today?
And what would you like us to help you with?
- I'd love to know whether I'm doing things right or not.
The little things, like am I holding the treats
and the target stick far enough away
when I'm doing that sort of stuff.
So anything that I'm not doing right now
would be good to know before I go
and get one of the courses.
- [Male Teacher] Okay.
(lively electronic music)
- [Female Teacher] So anytime somebody asks us to clean up
their handling or their training,
we like to see what that looks like
so that we know exactly what we're dealing with
and what to clean up.
Now her targeting looks really clean.
Everything looks great.
The bird's very receptive, enthusiastic about the training,
is enjoying the treat, the cues are very clear.
The bird is responsive.
So, everything looks really good to us so far.
(clicks)
- Good boy!
- [Male Teacher] Did he spin in two different directions?
- He does turn and spin--
- [Male Teacher] He does them both!
- [Bird Owner] Yeah!
- [Male Teacher] That's cute!
And he's like--
- [Female Teacher] He's waving, he's spinning,
he's doing all sorts of stuff.
(clicks)
- [Bird Owner] Good boy!
And I try to do the teaching and--
(chair creaks)
- [Female Teacher] Uh huh, yeah, what does that look like?
(clicks)
- [Bird Owner] That's sort of as far as--
Do you want that?
You won't finish!
(Male Teacher laughs)
(crosstalk)
(Male Teacher laughs)
- [Bird Owner] Sort of, I think we're calling it shake.
So, get him to shake and then trying to lift--
- [Female Teacher] Oh okay.
- [Female Teacher] He's not sure
what cue you're offering him.
- [Bird Owner] Oh, sorry darling.
Turn.
- [Female Teacher] Ah, so he does this!
- [Bird Owner] Good job!
Good boy!
I think he's comfortable enough to do it.
- [Female Teacher] Okay.
- He'll do that quite happily.
- [Female Teacher] Okay, and just kind of be in your hand.
But you want him to actually--
- That's the demanding thing that he does.
Good boy.
That's... when he plays, that's--
he's due in January.
- [Male Teacher] Being consistent
with how you're doing it, but
sideways and then always approach it
the same way every time so you can anticipate it.
Will he let you just roll him over on the table?
- Possibly?
Yeah, and then he gets like--
(bird squawks)
- [Female Teacher] He's just confused.
- [Male Teacher] He's frustrated.
- Yeah, yeah.
- [Female Teacher] I think we're gonna have
more success from when he naturally just presented it.
- [Male Teacher] So just how you were
flipping him over earlier if I'm understanding right,
how she was doing it, flipping him over earlier--
- [Female Teacher] Basically the idea is that,
sorry can you hold that.
- [Female Teacher] The idea would be
that you train him to just lay in your hand.
And not hold on to your fingers at all.
- [Bird Owner] Yeah.
- [Female Teacher] Then you would transition that
to setting him down on a surface like this
and you would click and reward
and he's naturally gonna roll himself up, right?
From his back, he's gonna put himself up.
So then every time you would set him down,
you might set him down a little bit this way
so he can be on his side, go to his back and he'll roll up.
- [Bird Owner] Good boy!
(clicks)
Good boy!
- [Female Teacher] That was really good!
Go ahead.
(clicks)
- [Female Teacher] We start off by warming him up
with a few targets to see if he's receptive
because we wanna have a training session
closer to the table to be able to transition there
but he is really not digging it.
Not in the mood, not doing it.
The other thing that changed is her hand position.
She's trying to hold a treat now in that hand
and it's changed the dynamic of the trick.
- So when he does that sort of stuff,
do you persist or do you just go, "Hmm."
- I'm waiting for you to tell me
because you know him better.
To me, I'm interpreting it as he's not in the mood.
- Yeah.
- To do this particular video that we're asking,
which if we're capturing it, we can't capture it
because we're waiting for it to present itself, right?
- Yeah.
- Like we need that natural ability.
What's your interpretation of it?
- Yeah, he's definitely more interested
in things other than me--
- [Female Teacher] He's interested in the target.
So he's interested in things that he already knows.
- [Bird Owner] Good boy!
- [Female Teacher] My one thought that went through my mind
is have we rewarded him for stepping up nicely?
'Cause he has been stepping up nicely.
You've always said good, you've never given him a reward.
- Okay.
- That's one thing that is just a reminder in masterclasses,
that is a trick and if you start seeing it's more nippy,
it's less likely to happen, it's probably because
when it was great, you never did anything about it.
- 'Cause I generally done more training stuff with dogs
and things, I've used verbal praise a lot more often.
- They tend to be a little bit more receptive.
I just think that--
And there are birds who are very receptive to it.
But for the most part, I see you using treats
and then when he steps up nice you're like, "Oh, good boy!"
- Okay, so not--
- And no treats.
- Being consistent in the rewards, is it?
- Yeah it's kinda like, huh,
why didn't you get a treat for that one?
You know what I mean?
- Yeah.
- 'Cause it's probably just as important,
if not more important than anything else you're asking.
- [Female Teacher] Not the first day.
- Oh, not the first day.
But the second day they had!
- Yeah.
- [Male Teacher] Someone seems to be--
- Did you catch yourself?
Did you catch yourself?
- Yeah.
(laughs)
I have my treats ready!
- [Female Teacher] So I'm gonna
replay that clip for all of you.
What happens here is she's asking for a step up
but he's confused because he's just
learned how to kinda shake hands,
so then she presents it a little bit differently
and he finally steps up really cleanly,
and I was able to capture it with a clicker
and have a treat ready, whereas she was not ready
with a clicker or a treat
and she didn't plan on rewarding that good step up,
so that's kinda why I was asking, "Did you catch yourself,"
and that's because, again,
she was getting a really good, clean step up
and it was the only behavior that she was not rewarding.
- [Male Teacher] Let's get the step up fixed first.
Let's use that T-stand and just do
some step ups, step down, click, treat.
- [Female Teacher] So go ahead,
ask him to step up, click, treat, step down, click, treat.
- [Bird Owner] Step up.
(bird squawks)
I don't usually do it with a clicker
in my hand so maybe I should be using--
- [Male Teacher] You want Jamie to click?
- [Female Teacher] Do it however
you normally do it and I'll click.
(clicks)
- [Bird Owner] Good boy!
And down.
(clicks)
Up, step up.
(clicks)
Good boy!
And down, and I'm not gonna touch you this time.
Up.
(clicks)
Down.
(clicks)
- [Female Teacher] She clicks
so you gotta give her a reward.
Are you gonna give her a treat?
- [Bird Owner] Sorry, got my wires crossed then!
- [Female Teacher] That's okay, I was like, "Hmm?"
So this time I'm gonna click when he steps up
if he does it nicely,
and I'm gonna have you put him straight back down
and we'll give the treat on the stand.
- [Bird Owner] Okay.
Step up.
(clicks)
And back down.
(clicks)
Good boy.
- So the problem with capturing as you're seeing,
is that it just kind of presents itself and
sometimes the bird's in the mood to do something,
especially if it's playfully driven,
you're kinda just waiting for that playful mood
to come about and then you can really do it.
So I think for you, don't worry about the clicker
during that because it is a two handed thing for you.
Just say, "Good," and follow it up with a treat
and he'll start to associate the, "Good,"
well, you might want to use a different word actually.
You're kind of in the habit of saying good, a lot.
- Yep.
- That you don't follow up with a treat.
So maybe, any other word.
When he's anxious, uncertain about something,
tries to escape something, he goes to your shoulder.
He's trying to hide from it, goes to her,
goes to her hair, you get him back,
he's still anxious about
the whole thing, you keep saying, "Good."
- Okay.
- The whole time.
So throughout that interaction,
you're using the same word, "Good,"
which is what you've used to indicate
that he's earned a treat as well but sometimes not,
because when he steps up, you say it,
there's no treat, when he does a trick,
you say it, there is a treat.
When he's anxious, you say it.
There's no treat.
Sometimes there is a treat.
- Yeah.
- So I think where your training
is getting unclear is throughout that.
So remember that emotionally you're capturing that emotion.
So if you're training him and he's aggressive,
or training him and he's really anxious,
you're capturing that anxiousness too.
So be really specific about where you go.
And that's why I was trying to be really specific
when I was clicking when he was in your hand
because I don't want him making contact
with your hand with his beak because I know
that that could escalate to aggression.
Whereas I want that cute like,
kinda pops and leans into it.
I want that emotion, whatever he's feeling there.
Does that make sense?
- Yeah.
- He also moves faster than you do.
(laughs)
So--
- [Female Teacher] Little birds!
- I think you need to plan your training session out
so that you know ahead of time what you're gonna do.
And a lot of that is, if, okay.
I'm gonna plan a capturing training session.
If he doesn't want to do it, I'm going to do this.
If he does want to do it, this is what it'll look like.
So that you're ready for both.
Because I feel like it's a little overwhelming for you.
When you get into it and you have all this stuff
and you don't move fast enough for him,
and he gets frustrated with you.
- Okay.
- [Male Teacher] I think what you're
seeing as playful is frustration.
- Yeah he's getting--
He gets annoyed.
- [Male Teacher] I also think you'd
really benefit from a treat pouch.
- Yes.
- [Male Teacher] I feel like you're--
Like, you could put your clicker on the treat--
On a--
- Reel.
- [Male Teacher] Like on a reel on your treat pouch.
So you can have it in your hand, let go of it,
get a treat and then whatever you need to do,
I think that you'd really benefit.
- I agree with Dick, like if you are holding so much
and thinking about so much and then
it's not going to plan, that it's really throwing you
and so if you plan it out and you're like,
"Okay, he's not in the mood, I'm gonna go this route,"
because you already have it planned,
for you, you'll be able to transition
much faster for him because he's just kinda like,
"Don't wanna do that, wanna do something else,
come on, cue me, what's going on,
why are you taking so long, bite nail, wanna do this."
Like he's just like du-du-du-du-du-du-du,
and you're like, "Well that didn't go to plan."
- [Male Teacher] I guess, what were your big take aways
and do you feel like you have direction on what to do?
(bird squawks)
- That's his, "Good boy George!"
(laughs)
Yeah, I think the consistency and the planning ahead,
the having the--
(bird squawks louder)
(laughs)
(bird imitates laugh)
- [Male Teacher] So adorable!
(bird imitates laugh)
- Yeah, okay!
Sometimes he tells me, "Yeah, good job," as well!
Which is actually--
Yeah having the plans A, B and C
and having a bit of consistency
(bird squawks)
Doing more--
(bird drowns out speaker)
- [Female Teacher] Every time she speaks!
- [Female Teacher] I know!