Bird Harness: How To Train Your Feathered Kid(Fid) Using One

Hold the bird harness always to the front of the bird

First and foremost, the bird needs to get used to the look and feel of the bird harness. Therefore, it is so necessary to place the bird harness always on the front side of the bird, so that it gets acquainted with it. Birds will never like using bird harnesses on them. After a while, however, they will get used to it. This is a good method to follow because by doing so, the bird would not try to get out of the harness immediately.

Now it’s time for us to get to know more about how to train the feathered bird. Let’s see how!

Tips on how to train your bird with a bird harness

Your bird should know how to be well-behaved in social situations. This is why it’s crucial to train them. Most birds cannot be tamed entirely, but the wild side of it can be contained on a massive scale. It takes a lot of time for the bird to be trained. So be patient!

Things you need:

1. A good sturdy bird perch

2. A nice dowel

3. A lightly-colored towel

4. A bird leash

5. Apple spray

Always stand above the bird

You should always stand above the bird so that the bird gets to know that you are its master. Motivate the bird to step on your finger when you place the finger around its lower breast. Give short and brief instructions such as “up” or “step-up”. When it obeys your commands, try to encourage them by saying “good”.

Also, remember not to hold the bird too low. When you do so, the bird will try climbing up through your arm. It is always better to keep them in a chest-high position. 

Also, do not let your bird sit on your shoulder. It will lead to several injuries later in the future. No matter how much ever your bird is trained, it could harm you when it feels threatened.

By the time you reach the third session, you need to make sure that the bird follows your language and several words such as stop, good, up, etc. Make sure that you finish your bird sessions before it gets bored or tired with the sessions.

Use a good towel to make your bird comfortable

You’ll have to use towels for several occasions. Especially, when your bird needs to be groomed, given some medication, or handle an injury. When you have the bird harness around the bird, it is really easy to train them. 

Make sure you go for light-colored towels. Most of the birds get nervous when they behold bright colors. When your bird is comfortable with the towel, cover the bird from behind. Do not press the bird because it may hurt your bird. So always try to be gentle with your feathered kid. Your index finger should always rest on its head so that you always have a firm grip on the bird. By doing so, it will not be able to get out of your grasp. 

Use a good biting stick

A biting stick will make the bird busy using its beak. It is good to teach your bird what is appropriate to eat. When there is a good biting stick placed inside the cage then the bird will understand after a few training sessions that it is good to chew a wooden stick and it isn’t harmful at all.

Discourage aggression

Birds can get aggressive while you’re training them. So the best way to deal with their aggressiveness is by being gentle. You do not have to yell or punish them for their instinctive behavior. With a bit of patience, you can tame them well.

Say a hard “no” and place your palm to show that they have to stop any aggressive behavior displayed. Until the bird settles down to normalcy, keep your calm and always try to use gentle words. You have to follow these steps when your bird relentlessly flaps its wings. Never try to touch the bird when it shows such signs. It may even go to the extent of harming you.

By spraying the apple spray on several items, the bird will understand that the items cannot be chewed due to the bitter taste of the apple spray.

Provide good treats after training

After an exhausting training session, your bird can get really tired. So the best way to reward them is with some good mouth-watering treats. You can also encourage them in between the sessions by giving them a few good treats. This will help them understand that the treats are given for happily obeying during the training sessions.

Never overfeed the birds and always give them their treats in small portions. Cut most of the giant-sized items into small tiny pieces, so that it is really easy for them to gobble down their throat. To protect your fingers from accidental bird bites, make sure that you give the treats by holding them with the tips of your fingers. Some of the best food for your birds are millets, pellets, thistle seeds, and leafy green vegetables.

We hope you have enjoyed reading this guide on bird harnesses. If you are in doubt all you need to do is go through this article to abreast yourself with knowledge on bird harnesses. Good luck with your bird training!