I wanted to write about this because after so many years, I am really seeing the wonderful effects.

I have always worked hard to socialize my TAG Phinney. About six or seven years ago, I started taking her to retirement homes to visit the elderly. Phinney is a very trusting bird and she also does not bite so she's safe around the elderly. She is an African Grey so she is innately shy.

Phinney has about seven prop tricks and about four or five hand tricks. When I started taking her to nursing homes, her wings were clipped. I would go once or twice a week and we would practice her prop tricks in front of the oldsters. The oldsters ALWAYS enjoyed it because they really love to have visitors and they find the birds to be "exotic" and fun. I enjoyed the interactions because I got to practice, practice, practice tricks in a variety of situations. One thing I want to add is that Phinney does not like to be petted so I taught her to wave instead. The oldsters are always charmed by the wave.

In time, I quit taking her to nursing homes because I wanted to work on flight training Phinney. Her wings have now grown out and after years of work with her, she has become a very confident and proficient flyer. I wanted to start taking her back to the nursing homes again as a flighted bird (and add recall to our "bag" of tricks") I recently hooked up with the Seattle Humane Society and we are doing their Pet Partners program which sets us up to visit the Alzheimer's unit at a local retirement home (We are doing this along with a friend who has the sweetest little citron cockatoo).

Anyway, I am AMAZED at what a little professional Phinney has become. She goes into the retirement unit and she barrels through her tricks quickly. We can perform them over and over again. She stays very focused and seems to be almost fearless. Few things startle her (except the cat but I don't blame her for that) Last night, one little lady walked right up to our area and grabbed Phinney's treats right out of Phinney's treat bucket for a snack - and Phinney just kept on dunking basketballs in hoops like a pro. I was also able to get my bird to sit on the oldsters arms for treats and sit on their walkers. I have to admit that this amazes me a little because she is fully flighted and can easily fly away if she is nervous but she seems to fully understand that this is her "job" and makes no attempt to leave.

Phinney is eleven years old. When I started taking her to retirement homes seven or eight years ago, I really did not understand the benefits for this bird over the long term. Today, I see a bird that really LIKES having an audience, really ENJOYS doing her tricks over and over and over and has settled into a smart little "companion bird". She has an aura of playfulness and fun about her and seems to perform with a sense of humor.

For those of you on this list, who are interested in trick training but are at a loss where to find an appreciative audience....consider visiting a local retirement center. I think that the younger your bird is when you start this, absolutely - the better your bird will become. Not every bird is cut out for this. You need a trusting, steady bird that you know will not bite.....but I also think that there are a lot of birds that are definitely cut out for this and are missing out on the opportunity because people just don't think about it.

The benefit to a nursing home is 1) It doesn't matter if you mess up. Nobody cares. The oldsters just enjoy the interaction and fun 2) You can practice, practice, practice until the bird will do the behavior in many, many different venues with many, many different distractions 3) You are doing a GOOD thing for the community 4) It's VERY relaxed and you can just laugh and have fun. 5) Your bird can grow into this and in time, you will end up with a companion that will surpass your expectations. 6) You can almost always set this up to tailor it to your own schedule. You can always perform at the best time for you and your bird!

So....just an idea for those of you aspiring "trick trainers". This has worked so well for my birds. I even started out taking Babylon Senegal to nursing homes when she was a baby. She was and is an extremely socialized little bird that is very smart.....I am not taking her to retirement homes today though because at the age of six, she has a bit of a "hot button" and about 2% of the time, she has nipped and I need to trust her 100% not to do that.....but I DO take Babylon lots of other places and she LOVES to do her tricks and she really settles down if she has an audience.

Visiting retirement homes is a GREAT thing to do with a young bird. If any body wants ideas on how to start, you can email me privately but the first place to start is to contact the activity director of a facility near you.

Anyway, I just wanted to pass this on because this has far surpassed my expectations. When I started this, I didn't know where it would lead but I can sure see the results today. I think too many parrots do not get out and do not get proper socialization and if you start young, you can set your companion up for an exceptional relationship as the years go by. Don't you think that socialization is an important element to getting a reliable, steady, clicker trained bird?

_{Permission to reprint this 2007 clickbirds post was given by Mona Delgado, all rights reserved.}