You are on the right track. It works well.

But the FASTESTway I found was through food.

My Blue & Gold was heavily one-person. A friend of mine was willing to help me. I gave him no treats, so the only way he could get any treats was from my friend. We started with his favorite — cheese (absolutely magic bribery) through the bars. This way, she felt safe, and Alaska could not reach her to do any harm. It only took a couple of pieces and he figured out that this other person was worthy of his attention.

He started reaching a foot through the bars and she petted them. Both gained a bond and a feeling of safety.

I am sure that you have noticed that birds will offer a foot to test a strange bird to see if it is safe (much less damage than sticking your head in their space). This forced him to offer the foot to get the treat, and she could communicate in proper bird talk. He responded rapidly. She then started petting his foot on the bars, then reachiing through the bars. Then she petted his body (far from the beak), and finally his head which he was offering and begging to be petted (I had also decreased my petting him). Both grew at the same time.

This only took a couple of days. I then handed him to her with her hand coming up behind mine (it is hard to attack what is behind you) and used my other hand to protect her from his beak (unnecessary). By this time, he was in love with her as the “Bearer of Great Treats” so they were off to a great freindship.

The next person took only a couple of treats, and he associated people with treats. He now wants to go to EVERYONE and I use him with schools, scouts, and other groups. He is a great ambassador for parrots!

One other thing I have found to be very important — When I hand a bird to another person, I hold their hand (they come from behind), and offer the other for his beak as a stabilizer. I do this because I found that many people will drop their hand either from fear or surprise at the weight of a macaw. The bird will then try to hang on (bite?) to keep from falling. This also helps the bird gain confidence since they do not find themselves being dropped every time a stranger tries to hold them. Small wonder they are not trusting of strangers! I wouldn’t trust stranger either if they knocked me down everytime I tried to trust them!

Also, the clicker works well, but not the way you think. Alaska likes to make things happen, so his reward after doing a trick is to grab the clicker and click it himself (his own applause). I will have to order another one. He is rather rough with his technique. The local clickers are a lower pitch and he does not like them as well.

Thanks for all of the good info. Keep up the good work. I have passed you address on to several of my friends.

Joyce, Alaska, Velcro, Maya, Skookum, Kiwi, Chinook, Zooie, Marie, Denali, Smiley, Chena and Rainbow