Training Journal

[crowe]

So I brought home a lovely English lacewing budgie two days ago (8 July). The breeder says that he or she is ten weeks old. I haven't yet settled on a name which seems appropriate -- a problem compounded by the fact that this budgie's mutation makes it impossible to sex visually at this age.

In any case, my new budgie was hand-fed, and is not at all afraid of humans or hands as a result, which should make the training process that much easier.

S/he has proven to be an extremely active and curious bird so far, and has already left no corner of the quarantine cage unexplored. In fact, when I took him/her out of the cage this morning to replace the paper liner (it needed replacing more because it had been shredded than because it was soiled, I might add), s/he seemed more interested in running around and exploring the table on which the cage is located than anything else, including going back in the cage. :p

Also, some pictures! I posted these in another thread, but here they are all the same:

http://members.cox.net/cfrowe/img/IMG_3637_edited-1.jpg
http://members.cox.net/cfrowe/img/IMG_3638_edited-1.jpg
http://members.cox.net/cfrowe/img/IMG_3639_edited-1.jpg

[FaeryBee]

I'm so in love with your new bird I can't stand it!!!

[KTyne]

I'm so in love with your new bird I can't stand it!!!

I agree with you! I have jealousy dripping from my every pore, LOL.
Gorgeous!

[crowe]

The new budgie and I got in a total of 5 training sessions today, each about 8-10 minutes long. I've discovered that s/he doesn't seem terribly interested in millet, though I suspect it has more to do with inexperience than anything else.

I've noticed that this budgie naps throughout the day, and will tend to do so either in the food dish, or s/he will pull up the corner of the paper cage liner and settle underneath of it for a nap.

[crowe]

I'm so in love with your new bird I can't stand it!!!

I agree with you! I have jealousy dripping from my every pore, LOL.
Gorgeous!

Thanks! :p

[CharmedWolf]

Gorgeous!! Looks a bit like my Phoenix, with those cute little white cheek patches ;)

[crowe]

Got in two more training sessions so far: One in the morning and one when I came in for lunch. S/he was more willing to nibble on millet when I offered a little piece of it this morning.

During the noon session, s/he and Kiwi were exchanging locater calls with each other for a few minutes (from different rooms, of course, since s/he is in quarantine), until the new bird decided to try and fly down the hall to find Kiwi. Except, having clipped wings means that this exploration ended one fluttering yard or so later. S/he looked both bewildered and disappointed by this, and quickly climbed up onto my hand when I laid it flat in front of him/her.

At the moment, I can hear the scuffle of an ongoing battle between bird and cage liner, as s/he seems to have taken it in preference to the actual toys I've offered.

[FaeryBee]

Good job in your training sessions. So, not only is your birdie beautiful, it's also very intelligent.
(Totally unfair that you get it all!) ;)

[Birdmanca]

The color yellow is very attractive in a budgie. Your training with your new bird seems to be going quite well.

[crowe]

Good job in your training sessions. So, not only is your birdie beautiful, it's also very intelligent.
(Totally unfair that you get it all!) ;)

The color yellow is very attractive in a budgie. Your training with your new bird seems to be going quite well.

The breeder deserves a lot of the credit, actually. :D

[crowe]

Only got in two training sessions today, but one was for a solid fifteen minutes. S/he was quite comfortable with sitting on my hand and preening, which I feel shows fair bit of trust.

I've been leaning towards Samson as a name for this bird, but it comes back to not yet knowing what sex it is.

S/he also vocalizes more readily now, and kept up and exchange of flocking calls with Kiwi for a solid minute or so.

[crowe]

I didn't keep track of the time spent on training sessions, but today was filled with plenty of exploration for a young budgie, which included:

Making a mess of an inch long piece of millet.
Climbing up the arm of the sofa.
Climbing along the back of the sofa.
Climbing up my shirt sleeve.
Climbing onto my shoulder.
Nibbling on my hair.
Chirping into my ear.
Exploring the lamp table.
Exploring the items on the lamp table.
Tossing the items off the lamp table and onto the floor.
Peering at said items after tossing them onto the floor.


All in all, I'd say that s/he is becoming more comfortable with the new environment of our house.

[crowe]

Today, we had some time on the boing.

What am I doing up here?

http://members.cox.net/cfrowe/img/IMG_3641.jpg

... And what is this thing?

http://members.cox.net/cfrowe/img/IMG_3647.jpg
http://members.cox.net/cfrowe/img/IMG_3643.jpg
http://members.cox.net/cfrowe/img/IMG_3644.jpg

Well, it seems safe enough.

http://members.cox.net/cfrowe/img/IMG_3640.jpg
http://members.cox.net/cfrowe/img/IMG_3649.jpg

[crowe]

Nothing terribly remarkable to report today. S/he did flutter down to the floor and make a dash down the hallway in an attempt to get to Kiwi.

Few things are more comical, I think, than a budgie trying to sprint at full speed, though I'm sure that s/he thinks its serious business to try and find the other budgie in the house.

[crowe]

Not much to report. We've been getting regular training sessions in. S/he has become much more curious as of late, and seems to like climbing on furniture and running around on the floor for the sake of exploration.

[RiverSong]

Sounds like everything is going great! Love the pictures!

[crowe]

I haven't been updating this, since there's really nothing to say. Training is going well, and I can't wait for the day that I can introduce him/her to our other budgie, Kiwi.

Sounds like everything is going great! Love the pictures!

Thanks. Glad you liked them.