# Harness Training and Babies!



## Dreamcatchers (Apr 17, 2011)

So, as promised, here are a couple quick photos of some of my babies. Susanne, the normal grey is Baby, the one who you helped save. For those of you wondering, Baby got sour crop and then a bacterial infection when she was 6 weeks old. None of the other birds got sick and I was beside myself (its been a rough spring!). Thanks to Susanne, we not only got a vet to prescribe the right meds the very first visit, but also a vet who taught me to give injections twice a day and use a crop needle to administer meds directly into the crop three times a day. I am happy to say that Baby was 65 grams when she was diagnosed and she is now 112 grams (caught back up to her siblings) and 100% cured. She wore a crop bra for 10 days before it shrunk enough to maintain on her own. She is 8 weeks old.








Baby in her harness.









The next pic is of Skittles who went home with his new family today. Here he is also sporting the flight harness...


















And the last pictures are of the little ones I had to pull this morning due to an air conditioner malfunction. As you can see, the littlest one is doing well after being nearly cooked this morning.


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## Dreamcatchers (Apr 17, 2011)

Here are two more of Baby, a little lighter so you can actually see her. LOL.


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## delawaregirl (Dec 2, 2011)

Baby is pretty and the babies are so cute. Is it hard to harness train? Is Tweety (7 1/2 mos) too old for us to try?


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## Dreamcatchers (Apr 17, 2011)

delawaregirl - I am of the philosophy that ANY bird can learn, regardless of age. It will just take more patience and bribery. LOL. Aviator sends you a great DVD/CD of how to use the harness. I prefer their harness over all the others because 1. it is nearly escape proof and 2. it does not put any stress on the neck. The straps fit over the head but they are set at a specific length then stitched around the "belt". Because they are a set length, they do not tighten around the neck. I also like the elastic leash. Again, designed to minimize the stress to the body should your bird suddonly take off and run out of leash.


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## Lulu-Tiel (Jun 3, 2012)

I bought a harness for Lulu. It ended up being the wrong size (was marked wrong) so I had to return it. It was so funny though. We had one session, and she wasn't impressed (she hates being restrained lol). So the next day I pulled it out of the box, went to grab her, she jumped off the table, and I had to chase her around on the floor. Needless to say, she wasn't impressed. 

I'm very jealous that you're cockatiels can wear one


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## Dreamcatchers (Apr 17, 2011)

Lulu - all my babies get introduced to them.  Because I had so many at once this time, we had a full day of bronco-busting the first time they all got to put it on. 13 babies. LOL. Every one of them will wear one now. I prefer to give the new owners a head start. If the babies stay with me for too long, they also learn to recall. One of my normal hens named Delilah is one of those babies - she was hatched back in October and was doing recalls in harness when she was 14 weeks old.


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## Lulu-Tiel (Jun 3, 2012)

Do you have an extra harness you want to sell? 
What size are they wearing?


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## Dreamcatchers (Apr 17, 2011)

Sorry, I don't have any extras. They are wearing the petite "trainer". I got a trainer because they are cheaper, but you don't get to pick color and the trainers often have a slight imperfection - usually stitching. The one that Baby is wearing has the neckpiece sewn on backwards but it is still safe and functional. I use that because the babies will chew up a harness and they are expensive. This way they get trained but I am not spending a fortune.


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## Lulu-Tiel (Jun 3, 2012)

I will look into the trainer ones. I've never heard of them


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## Lulu-Tiel (Jun 3, 2012)

I can't find a model called that


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## Dreamcatchers (Apr 17, 2011)

Hang on, let me find the link.


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## Dreamcatchers (Apr 17, 2011)

http://www.avianweb.com/aviatorharness.html 
Scroll down about half way and you will see the ordering area. The "trainer" selection has been removed and replaced with a "whatever" color option. If you pick the color, its 4.00 more.


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## Lulu-Tiel (Jun 3, 2012)

Thanks so much


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## meaggiedear (Nov 20, 2011)

So cute. I doubt I could ever get Grey to wear one. Maybe Ama with A LOT of patience.


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## sunnysmom (Sep 23, 2011)

Your tiels are adorable! : )


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## Dreamcatchers (Apr 17, 2011)

Thank you. I have two more going to homes this week and three going to a new home in NY when they are 12 weeks (I won't ship anything before 12 weeks). The youngest babies are really turning out nice. And the littlest one is doing great!


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