The step-up exercise is one of the first activities a parrot owner should initiate with its bird. Teaching a parrot to step up onto a finger or a hand paves the way for peaceful interactions between parrot and owner.
Parrots are naturally curious and can get up to mischief. A parrot might be happily investigating a visitor's pockets, earrings or eyeglasses and it may be preferable to return it to its perch or cage for a necessary time-out. Teaching a parrot to step up when directed makes for better control and easier handling.
Parrots, like young children, have minds of their own and may resist efforts to physically remove them from a potentially dangerous activity (chewing on electrical cords) or from an undesirable location (inching towards a hot stove element). Teaching a parrot to step up when instructed can avert disaster.
A well-trained parrot will step up when told to do so, instead of resisting by running away or biting. At all times, interactions between parrot and owner should be peaceful, with the owner in control of the situation.
Reminders for Teaching a Parrot to Step Up
- Never initiate step-up training if a parrot is busy preening, eating, bathing or otherwise engaged. It is important to practice step-ups when the bird is receptive to training.
- Step-up training should always be a positive experience, with the parrot receiving encouragement and praise.
- Step-up training sessions should be short and sweet: an owner should make allowances for avian attention spans and the owner should be relaxed.
- Parrots enjoy routine. If possible, step-up exercises should be practiced at the same time each day.
- Before initiating step-up training, an owner should be in a dominant position, which means that the owner should be higher than the bird. This position will help to reinforce the owner's authority when teaching a parrot to step up.
- A hand should be brought in gently under the parrot's belly, in front of and above its feet.
- The owner should say: "Step up," using the same words each time, so the parrot associates the words with the action.
- When a parrot steps up onto a proffered finger, it should be rewarded with verbal praise, a food treat or a favorite toy.
- Once the bird gets used to stepping up, the owner can bring in the other hand so that the bird steps from hand to hand.
Teaching a parrot to step up conditions it to obey, setting a model for desired avian behavior and aiding in receptivity to future efforts at training. If all goes well, with consistent step-up training sessions, a pet parrot should master step-ups without undue difficulty.
Avian Advice
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