The Avian Behavior Podcast

Hillary Hankey
  • 4.8 (36)
  • PETS & ANIMALS
The Avian Behavior Podcast

If you are into animal behavior and positive reinforcement training, you're in the right spot. World renown animal behavior consultant, falconer, and educator Hillary Hankey dives deep with conversations and case studies on parrots, birds of prey as well as horses, dogs and all kinds of animals on topics of behavior as well as nutrition, ethology, and problem solving.

  1. 76 Tips for Traveling with Parrots

    NOV 14

    76 Tips for Traveling with Parrots

    Traveling long distances with your parrot doesn't have to be stressful. We have moved cross country with our bird family many times. What happens if your bird hates the dark, like one of our palm cockatoos did? What about hotel stays or what supplies to bring while traveling with your parrot? What crate do you travel in? We have you covered with this guide, plus the bird food pumpkin pie story that Hillary's family still tells over 20 years later. Try out the Avian Behavior Lab with a free 14 day trial with the code AVIAN Check out our YouTube Channel for more info

    28 min
  2. 75 Avoidance Behaviors and Weight Management in Birds of Prey

    OCT 1

    75 Avoidance Behaviors and Weight Management in Birds of Prey

    Our Fall 2024 Bird of Prey Workshop focused on key topics such as managing fear and aggression in raptors using the constructional approach and non-coercive negative reinforcement and using progressive weight management techniques.  Handling fear-based reactions, like those seen in a juvenile bald eagle, requires careful arrangement of the environment and building skills with your bird to have more reinforceable behaviors. The workshop also highlighted the importance of fitness and motivation over strict weight control, ensuring the bird's health and well-being remain a priority. Get on our email list for more news, behavior tips and announcements. Join the Avian Behavior Lab with a free 14 day trial using the code AVIAN

    22 min
  3. 74 Training your bird for transportation

    AUG 22

    74 Training your bird for transportation

    Training your bird for transportation isn't just an important part of education programming, it's a good life skill to have. For wildlife rehabilitation organizations, nature centers, and other small bird of prey centers, this is an essential skill that trainers rely on. For companion parrot people, this is an important behavior to trainer before it is needed in case of emergencies. This episode is an excerpt from our roadmap on Your Bird's First Education Program inside the Avian Behavior Lab. It's full of tactical advice on how to shape calm behavior for riding comfortably in a crate in a vehicle. We talk about what to do about tidbitting, why we don't use food very much to shape this behavior, and what we use to reinforce with instead. We discuss challenges with equipment and how to use context to shape the behavior. Support courses in the Avian Behavior Lab include our latest updated version of Crate Training, the roadmap, Creating a Training Program, and How to use context to shape a behavior.

    17 min
  4. 73 Dr. Stephanie Rosenbloom and the Appeal to Nature Fallacy

    AUG 3

    73 Dr. Stephanie Rosenbloom and the Appeal to Nature Fallacy

    Looking to the wild for answers is a common refrain among bird people when it comes to care advice, particularly nutrition. And while this concept seems well grounded in science, the actual practice is much more complex and nuanced. For parrots, we don't always know what, how, or why the eat what the eat. And when we do know, replicated the conditions and food stuffs can be impossible for those of us who have parrots in our care. We sit down with fellow science communicator Dr. Stephanie Rosenbloom who not only has a PhD in chemistry, but a keen interest in parrot nutrition. We tease apart the idea of the appeal to nature fallacy, that occurs when a person assumes that what is natural is good and true, without considering the effects of their actions on the environment. We discuss a recent post that went viral on social media about parrots eating meat and other topics about diet and further into philosophy. For more of Stephanie's talks, you can check out https://avianbehavior.thinkific.com/courses/avocet-2024

    55 min
  5. 72 Why We Value Fly Offs in Free Flight Training

    JUL 3

    72 Why We Value Fly Offs in Free Flight Training

    "If you are looking for guarantees with free flight training in birds, you are in the wrong place." In this episode, Avian Behavior International founder Hillary Hankey and ABI Animal Training Lead Katie Pnewski talk about how developing skills for birds and training staff around fly offs has been instrumental in their practice as team leaders. A practice of safety and growth doesn't come from expecting mistakes not to happen, it comes from preparing for them to happen and getting the most out of the experience when you are working through a solution. In free flight, you learn that true growth comes from being in uncomfortable situations.  Our Handling a Fly Off course is dropping in the Avian Behavior Lab. Sign up for a free 14 day trial with the code AVIAN.  Check out our registration for  fall 2024 Bird of Prey workshop in September and Advanced Workshop in November

    55 min
  6. 71 Differences in Ambassador Owl Species

    JUN 26

    71 Differences in Ambassador Owl Species

    Owls make remarkable ambassadors to highlight conservation work, but they can also make for challenging training subjects and divisive ideas in the training community. We have remade our entire Owl Ambassador Masterclass to reflect the nuances among species differences and address some of the challenging conversations around parent raised owls, rehab vs captive bred ambassadors and even falconry equipment.  To access the Raising an Owl Masterclass, check it out here: https://avianbehaviorlab.com/masterclass-owl-sales/ For a 14 day free trial of the Avian Behavior Lab, use the code AVIAN  https://avianbehaviorlab.com

    16 min
  7. 70 Ruling the Roost: Managing your needy parrot and your family's happiness

    MAR 29

    70 Ruling the Roost: Managing your needy parrot and your family's happiness

    Having a parrot with extremely complicated screaming, attacking, pair-bonded behavior that won’t let you out of their sight without an intrusive cascade of undesirable behaviors can be a problem for the entire household. It also means layers of stress when you are torn between appeasing your parrot and your family. This excerpt from our deep dive masterclass series for members of the Avian Behavior Lab helps us look at the angles of this complex issue and how we tease apart which challenge we take on first from a science-based perspective. This series was extremely enriching, and we know you will glean some actionable details from the science here. Sign up for our newsletter for your latest bird nerd information! For more information on how we avoid using restrictiveness and intrusiveness as metrics, check out Episode 58 For AvOCET 2024 information, check out our registration page. Stay up to date on our workshop schedule here.

    32 min
  8. 69 Gail Buhl from the Minnesota Raptor Center and Partners for Wildlife

    MAR 16

    69 Gail Buhl from the Minnesota Raptor Center and Partners for Wildlife

    This interview with Gail Buhl from the Minnesota Raptor Center and Partners for Wildlife is a thoughtful journey filled with raptor behavior tidbits, the evolution of operant conditioning in bird behavior management, raptor rehabilitation, imprinting and so much more. We talk about how working with rehabilitated birds of prey provides such a unique tapestry that has informed our progression as trainers to humane methods of choice based training, and Gail's owl mentors in her work with small owls. We go into depth about how providing these crucial contingencies gives our birds a language that they learn to rely on. For information about AvOCET, of which Gail is a speaker, check out our events page. The University of Minnesota Raptor Center Raptor Academy Care and Management Workshop registration is here. The How to Raise and Owl Ambassador Masterclass is here. Join the Avian Behavior Lab for a free 14 day trial with the code AVIAN to try out all of the features essential for your growth as an avian care provider.

    56 min
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4.8
out of 5
36 Ratings

About

If you are into animal behavior and positive reinforcement training, you're in the right spot. World renown animal behavior consultant, falconer, and educator Hillary Hankey dives deep with conversations and case studies on parrots, birds of prey as well as horses, dogs and all kinds of animals on topics of behavior as well as nutrition, ethology, and problem solving.

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