Clicker Training

[tacoeater411]

Bird owners always say that they train their birds with clickers, but what exactly do they do? I'm trying to teach Charlten some very basic tricks and he's doing okay. I reward him with millet. Isn't a food reward enough? Would a clicker speed up the process? :confused2:

[Joey]

Clicker Training

A clicker is a small plastic-and-metal device that costs just a dollar or two and makes a sharp click when squeezed with your thumb. In clicker training the sharp click is used to communicate one simple idea to your bird: what you just did, when you heard the click, has earned you a treat. You can also say "good bird" or something like that but the clicker has the advantage of being timed.So you can communicate more precisely.

If you haven't done any clicker training before your bird will not know what the click means - it's just a noise. So the first step is to teach the bird that a click means that a treat is coming. This is quite easy to teach so it's a great way to get into training.

First you will need a clicker - or just something that makes a noise that is consistent, brief, and easy to hear. Most pet stores sell clickers from a bucket near the cash register for about a dollar each.A retractable ball-point pen works pretty well.

Second, you will need a reward. If you know what your bird's favorite treat is, get some. If you don't know, get some seed mix put a tablespoon onto a plate, and watch what the bird eats first. Or try everthing in your fridge (except avocado!!!).
If your bird has a habit of biting people don't offer the treat in your hand - instead, place it on a spoon or drop it into the bird's food bowl from a safe distance.
If your bird has no interest in food treats, you can use head-scratches, praise, or other rewards.

Teaching Your Bird What The Clicker Means

Here's how you teach your bird that "click" means a reward is coming:

1) Click.
2) Offer the bird a reward.

Wait for the bird to eat the treat, then repeat the process. It's pretty simple, isn't it? Don't let the bird see the treat until after you click. Always present the reward in the same place (be it a treat, or your hand, or whatever), so the bird knows where to expect the reward to appear.

After doing that five times just click. Does the bird look toward the place where you offered the treats? If so, the bird knows that "click" means a treat is coming.

If not, try removing distractions training in a quieter place. Make sure that you're offering the reward in a consistent place, so the bird can see the pattern. Make sure you're delivering the treat within one or two seconds of the click. Make sure you're not showing the reward before making the click - you want the bird to hear the click, THEN see the reward coming, so they see these events happening in a sequence, rather than all at once.

Teaching Your Bird To Earn Rewards

Once the bird understands that a click means a reward is coming, the next step is to teach the bird that a click means "you've done something that earned a reward." For this, we will start with a behavior that birds will naturally perform - beaking something placed under their noses.

Generally speaking, "targeting" means touching some object with some part of the animal's body. When it comes to training birds "targeting" usually means beaking the end of a small stick - I use a chopstick, some people use drinking straws, others use plastic rods, you can use whatever you want. Beaking the end of a stick is a very simple behavior, and it's something that parrots do naturally, so it's very easy to teach. Here's how it works:

1) Slowly move the end of the stick to within an inch or two of the bird's beak.
2) When the bird beaks the end of the stick, click.
3) Withdraw the stick and present a reward.

If your bird is afraid of the stick, hide most of the stick up your sleeve, with just an inch or two protruding from your hand. Move the stick slowly when presenting it and when withdrawing it.

If your bird attacks the stick and tries to chew it to pieces, click when the bird lets go, rather than when the bird bites down. Pull the stick away as soon as the bird starts chewing, and click when the bird's beak is no longer touching the stick.

With any luck, this will also take just a few repetitions before the bird realizes that beaking the stick = getting a reward. Watch the bird's body language very carefully... When the bird understands, you'll start to see it reaching out for the stick as soon as the stick begins coming closer. Then you know the bird understands this game.

Before moving on to more advanced behaviors let's extend this targeting idea. Most birds will quickly learn to target a stick that is held within a couple inches of the bird's beak. But if you hold that same stick six feet away the bird may well ignore you or wait for you to bring it much closer. So now let's teach the bird to go to wherever the stick is.

I summerized a loooooong article off the net for you...lol Hope It Helps!:D

[Amy]

Which site did you get it off? It sounds good.

[tacoeater411]

Wow, that is very helpful! :D I hope petco or some other similar pet store will have a clicker I can buy.

[BUUZBEE]

my petco has them in a tub at the checkout

heres a link online

http://www.petco.com/Shop/Product.aspx?R=6917&Nav=1&N=0&Ntt=training+clicker&sku=782270&familyID=9698&

[jayjay]

they are usually used for dogs and other larger animals. so i would check the dog sectoin of your pet store if you cant find them.

[tacoeater411]

thank you!

[abel]

My Petco also has them at checkout.:)

[tacoeater411]

Just got a clicker from Petco and tried it out a few minutes ago. Instead of thinking "click=treat," Charlten believes "click=I better fly away before the clicker eats me.":eek: So I don't know what to do now! :crying::confused1: :1zhelp:

[jayjay]

hahah, that's kinda funny. don't get discouraged. its something new and your budgie will naturally be cautious of it at first. you just have to be patient and continue to show him that the clicker isnt harmful. you probably wont be able to train him with it as much the first few days as he gets used to it, but if you just play with him and click it once in a while to show him it isn't harmful, eventually he'll get use to it. jay use to give me the ima bite that finger off look everytime i tried to scratch him just below his beak on his chest, but now, he almost looks like he purrs with excitement when i do it. all things just take time and patience.

[tacoeater411]

Charlten was okay with the clicker on the second day. The training did seem to speed up, but I ran out of ideas for tricks! Oh yeah, out of a possible 100% of patience a human being can have, I have about 2%, but I am getting better!

[Alfie]

lol...i'd like to know how this training method goes. Keep us posted!

[jayjay]

hahah, yeah, i lack much patience myself. a lot of times, i dont even bother to reward jay with millet anymore. and then he reminds me that im not doing my part by constantly stepping back down off my finger until i give him some. then he is content to just stay on the finger haha. so im not sure i'd be any better if i tried the clicker, but i'd love to know how things go for you.

[Parakeet Girl]

thats really cute!

[PetiteK]

I have a question about this.

I've got 2 birds who are very attached to eachother. When I start training, should I separate them and train one at a time? If I do this, I'm afraid the other bird will become jealous or scared, making the one I'm training unable to pay attention to me.