The Avian Behavior Podcast

We are going to be talking about how LIMA (least intrusive, minimally aversive) and the humane hierarchy structure stopped serving me in my animal behavior progress, what got me there, and how I help my clients instead. We take a HUGE look at how it's not uncommon in science for us to wittingly or unwittingly select the results that we want to move our hypothesis along, and this can have enormous...

In this session of our Behavior Makeover Series, we work with a rehabilitated non-releasable raven that is showing a lot of avoidance behavior around his trainer. We create a behavior shaping plan using non-coercive negative reinforcement instead of counter conditioning or systematic desensitization to build the raven's trust. This works on all species, from parrots to eagles and mammals too. As a...

In this final part of our series with Dr. Scott Echols, board certified avian veterinarian, we cover A LOT of ground in terms of avian health and welfare. If you want the straight science about how to get your bird exercising, even in terms of rehabilitated wildlife, diet management, and osteoporosis, we talk about it all. Dr. Echols is as always, so generous with his time and information, and we...

Working with rehabilitated birds of prey as education ambassadors is rewarding work, but it can be fraught with challenges as well. From working with unruly (and opinionated!) audiences to dealing with heartbreaking avian losses and health issues, it can feel thankless at times. In this episode, we focus on two big issues: working with a volunteer staff and sensitive birds coming from a place of t...

The Problem Solving Paradigm teaches you how to manage really complex and sometimes uncontrollable variables when trying to train your bird, so you actually can realize real change.   Because let's just be honest here - trying to train new skills in a busy household or work environment is REALLY hard.  Life happens! Uncontrollable variables like family members, other trainers, and outside influenc...

Board certified avian veterinarian Dr. Scott Echols discusses some pretty intense concepts in veterinary and wellness technology. He covers how new technology is discovering diseases we never even knew existed and how we are able to diagnose and treat them. We also talk about how CT scans are able to help us identify issues that blood screening and biopsies aren't catching, which for me is has com...

Bonus release from our earlier interview with Jon Rossi of the Rossifari Podcast. We talk free flight training and how it relates to our leadership philosophies, being a woman in leadership, bird nerdin' and so much more. You can check out our swapped episode on mentorship on Jon's Rossifari  podcast page and so much more on zoos, conservation, and animals. If you are loving our ethos on animal tr...

Using food as a contrived reinforcer to train our parrots is often fraught with emotions and tension. And not without good reason. But we can discuss the differences in contrived reinforcement and natural reinforcement and how both are important components in building strong relationships and decode our interactions with our birds. These concepts can uncover why our birds might stop doing what the...

Training free lofted birds of prey can be an incredibly enriching program for trainer and bird, but it can also lead to an unnecessarily protracted program that brings all parties a lot of stress. Bird of prey trainers that are interested in this type of training need to assess a number of environmental conditions, including their own skills and support system in their assessment prior to commenci...

Why does science in animal care matter? My bestie Barbara Heidenreich and I sit down - this time in person - for a conversation about what it actually means to be scientific in animal care and behavior. And why that's important. We talk about natural behavior, species differences, the constructional approach, and so much more. Resources for the Avian Behavior Lab (it's growing, people! We have big...

ICYMI, petkeeper is a derogatory term in a niche community like falconry. This episode explores the roots of some falconry disagreements and why it's so important to find a supportive community that fosters curiosity and an ethical training paradigm that fits you and your bird's needs. https://avianbehaviorlab.com Our Patreon  The weekend effect in wildife Decline in hunting is a crisis in wildlif...

Whoa baby, y'all, this is another incredible interview that gives you a whole 'nother paradigm to the think about in animal training. Let's blow the lid off of the way we think of operant conditioning and dive deep with Maasa Nishimuta and Sean Will of CAAWT, or the Constructional Approach to Animal Welfare and Training. This conversation will have you rethinking the four quadrants, what the conse...

Our second interview with Dr. Scott Echols, Diplomat- ABVP - Avian Specialty, nutrition expert, and, geez, there so many epithets we can tag on here. In this episode, we talk about avian dietary supplements, Omega-3 fatty acids, the ol' pellets versus raw diet debate, and a few other questions within this topic. You might want to bring a pen and paper to this one. Our Avian Behavior Lab members an...

Owl ambassadors can be tough to train, but in our opinion, so worth it. They are powerful conservation ambassadors for myriad of topics. We topic about two key things that we look at when we set ourselves up to train an owl ambassador. Our Owl Ambassador Masterclass gets really deep on this subject, and you can purchase it on demand at the Avian Behavior Lab. If you are looking to brush up your sk...

Screaming is a big deal when you live with parrots, and boy do we know it. We just dropped the final lessons of our Screaming Masterclass in the Avian Behavior Lab. Eleven meaty lessons and worksheets filled with in depth how-to's and comprehensive approaches to this issue. We get you started in the right direction with this episode. Check out https://avianbehaviorlab.com  with the coupon code AVI...

What do trials for human's capacity for G force have to do with animal training? Turns out, the alleged beginnings of Murphy's law at Edwards Air Force Base in California by Colonel Stapp's team had its beginnings not in pessimism but practicality. Our episode explores how we can use this mindset can turn our understanding of animal behavior into mastery. Tangents include integrity in the animal t...

In our interview with self-proclaimed bird nerd and parrot lover, Melanie Canatella, Founder of Fluff and Feathers, we chat about working with birds with special needs and creating a more harmonious environment and relationship with them. This is an in-depth conversation about how minimizing fear and stress responses can weave tight the fabric that connects us with the animals in our care. Melanie...

Animal training mentors, role models, and teachers can be incredibly impactful for our growth. This was a concept I actively sought when I knew I wanted to learn as much as I possibly could about animal behavior. We talk about: Is a mentor a necessity or a luxury? What to look for in a mentor/role model What bad relationships teach us Why it's ok to eclipse your mentor's learning journey What does...

How do you train your dragon? If you have been on the earth for a hot minute, you know that everyone has an opinion for how you need to train the bird of prey in your care. Let's go over the methods, well most of them. Or some of them. We analyze the environmental conditions that inform our decisions, jess free or no, free lofting, tethering, strobes and all kinds of tools we can choose (or opt ou...

In this episode, we talk about how our training ethos shapes every interaction we forge with the birds in our care. There are some great ways that we can build our foundation through a firm understanding of the animal training fundamentals, so let's get into it! How do you start training before you even start ** training** ?? On the show notes page, we have our Black Friday coupon codes for those...

In Part 2 of our live recording of our podcast from MemberFest 2021, we cover some serious ground! We talk about aspergillosis and the importance of force free veterinary training, field a few questions about training with negative reinforcement and the constructional approach, and end up with a bit of a sciency chat about spiders! You can check out our newest courses up on the Avian Behavior Lab...

It's our Avian Behavior Lab MemberFest 2021, celebrating the second anniversary of our online animal behavior and training membership platform. We did a live podcast with our members, telling training challenges and success stories, plus things we have learned, putting everything into question-answer format for our members to ask questions of their own. Stories in this one include working with an...

You can't tell anyone to be curious, you can show them, you can inspire them, and you can lead with humility and grace That's what Dani Poirier Larson of the Southwick Zoo shows, the spirit she embodies and shows her team. Dani's words are so powerful and ring so true for a behavior enthusiast who wants to engage with the human and animal world around us as well as feel the fire of the enthusiasm...

Animal behavior sure does love routine. But what happens when that routine changes and is beyond our control? What about those changes that affect our mental well-being and then transfer on the way we work with our animals and fellow animal lovers? We talk about the three different ways this impacted our work. We also discuss pandemic pets and what we can do when the goal posts change, routines ch...

Everyone has preferences, and our birds and other animals are no different. From African Greys to Turkey Vultures, the birds that we work with make no bones about it when they have chosen a favorite. Sometimes it is harmless and other times it can be downright dangerous. We talk about strategies and environmental management scenarios to help your bird work better with others, as well as how to pre...