# Clicker Training--Nail/Wing Clips?



## cknauf (Aug 27, 2012)

I have some questions about training specific behaviors. I've started clicker training with my birds, and it's going pretty well. I'm currently working on recalling.

I've seen people train birds to tolerate nail clips and wing clips via clicker training, and was curious how best to proceed when I get to that point. Where do I start the 'shaping' behavior with each? Also, are there any 'functional' tricks people have found useful? We might move on to some of the silly tricks eventually, depending on how much the birds seem to like it, but I'd love to get these safety/useful tricks down first.

Thanks for any help!


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

Grooming behaviors are a little different than other types of clicker training, since the bird plays a passive role while you perform the actions. You would start out by rewarding the bird for allowing you to touch its feet or wings, or at least allowing you to make a move in that direction. Once the bird is comfortable with being touched, you would work on being allowed to touch the wing or feet with an implement (scissors, nail file, whatever), and eventually work up to actually doing some clipping with the implement.

If you want to teach the bird to accept toweling, there are a variety of ways to do it. Most of them involve rewarding the bird for voluntarily approaching the towel. One typical way is to drape the towel over something to create a sort of tunnel and rewarding the bird for entering the tunnel. You would gradually work up to having the bird stand inside the tunnel and while you lower the towel down onto the bird.


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