THE ART OF TAMING BIRDS.
Although birds are naturally of a timid disposition, very easily
alarmed, and from their delicate structure unable to endure any but the
most gentle handling, they may be made very tame and become quite
attached to their trainer. We propose to tell our readers how to tame
their birds, but to make these instructions successful they must be
carried out with the greatest gentleness and patience. The utmost pains
should be observed not to frighten the bird, as a single fright may
render him so shy as to defeat all your efforts to gain his confidence.
The following plan is the simplest and most uniformly successful that we
have seen tried: The trainer opens the door of the cage and teases the
bird gently with a soft feather. This he does till the bird pecks at the
feather, then at his finger, and at last comes out of the cage and
perches upon his hand. He then smooths his feathers down, caresses it,
and offers it some favorite article of food, which it soon learns to
take from his hand. He then begins to accustom the bird to a particular
call or whistle; carries it upon his hand or shoulder from room to room,
in which all the windows are carefully closed, lets it fly and calls it
back. As soon as the bird becomes obedient to the call in the presence
of other persons and animals, the same experiment is cautiously repeated
in the open air, till at last it is rewarded with complete success. This
process is well suited for nearly all young cage birds, especially
linnets, bullfinches, and canaries, but it is dangerous to take these
tame birds into the open air during pairing time, as they are liable to
be enticed by the cries of wild birds.
Birds that are caught in winter often take to the cage more kindly than
would be expected, but after their capture some days should be allowed
them to become accustomed to their new situation, before expecting them
to respond to your kindness. Newly caught birds should be put into a
quiet place, shaded with a green woolen cover, so that the innate may
not see persons moving about the room, and it should be supplied with
abundance of whatever is supposed to be its favorite food. Hemp seed
generally fulfills this requirement. It is an immense advantage to have
a large cage made like the “trap” or store cages in which canaries are
generally sold. The wooden bars are less liable to hurt new comers than
those made of wire.
Whatever the cage, the food and the shading are essential points; and
the bird will often become familiar with his mistress’ voice before the
cover is removed, and he able to see her. After the first day or two do
not leave the seed tin always in the cage, but take it away after each
meal for a little while, taking the opportunity of having a talk with
the bird when you give it back, and gradually bring the cage a little
nearer to you as it gets more tame. The water, of course, is always in
the cage, and this must not be understood to imply a starving system,
the only object in taking away the seed is to obtain the chance to talk
with him and make friends when you bring it back. A single bird in a
cage tames more quickly than when there are two or three.
A New York paper, speaking about the importation of canary birds from
Germany, says the following sight was seen in Florence, Italy, in 1861,
by a lady and gentleman belonging in New York. In walking in the
principal street they overtook a man with a long whip in his hand, which
he was moving from one side to the other in what they thought a strange
manner. When they came up with him they found he was driving a flock of
canary birds, as in England they drive a flock of turkeys. A carriage
came along, and the man waved his whip in a peculiar manner, when the
little birds all went to the sidewalk until the carriage passed, when
they took the street again. A woman wanted to buy one, when the man
sprinkled some canary seed at his feet and half a dozen of them came to
him, when he took one up in his hand and delivered it to the woman, who
paid him one franc. The man then went on again.
Elihu Burritt, the learned blacksmith, gives an account of Mr. Fox, of
Tregedna, near Falmouth, England, who, by persevering kindness, has won
the affection of a large number of birds—so much so that they fly to
meet him when he calls them, and hop about him, eating the crumbs with
which his pockets are well filled. When digging in his garden if is no
common sight to see little birds hopping on the handle of the spade or
rake used by the gentleman, thus showing their confidence in him.
Sometimes they enter his bedroom early in the morning, through the
window, and in their way call out, “It is time to get up.” On Sunday,
when Mr. Fox goes to his place of worship, some of the birds are
frequently seen to accompany him along the road chirping and singing all
the way.
The following is a new and approved method where it is desired to tame
birds in a very short time, and is applicable to all kinds of cage
birds, proving efficacious in one or two hours: A portion—larger or
smaller in proportion to the wildness of the bird—is cut off from the
inner plume of the pen feathers, so that the bird cannot hurt itself if
it attempts to leave the hand, and the external appearance of the wing
is not impaired. The nostrils of the bird are then touched with bergamot
or any other odorous oil, by which it is for the time so stupified as to
perch quietly on the finger or to hop from one finger to another. It may
attempt to fly away once or twice, but this is not often repeated,
especially if the experiment be conducted in a dark place—for example,
behind a curtain, which offers the further advantage that if the bird
fall it is not likely to hurt itself. As soon as it sits quietly on any
one finger another must be placed in such a position as to cause the
bird to step upon it. As soon as it is accustomed to hop quietly from
one finger to another the main difficulty is overcome, for if when the
bird is gradually aroused from its state of stupefaction it perceives
that its teacher does not use it roughly, it may by degrees be taught to
manifest perfect obedience to his commands. To teach it to eat from its
master’s mouth it should be kept in the cage without food for some time.
If it be then taken upon the finger and its favorite food be presented
to it on the outstretched tongue hunger will soon teach it to feed. A
story is told of a favorite magpie that had been accustomed to receive
dainty bits from the mouth of its mistress. One day it perched as usual
on her shoulder and inserted its beak between her lips, not, as it
proved, to receive, for as one good turn deserves another, the grateful
bird dropped an immense fat green caterpillar into the lady’s mouth.
Birds tamed by the preceding process may be taught to sing while perched
upon the hand. To effect this it is only necessary to coax them by
chirping to them and using encouraging tones. The chaffinch may be made
to sing by whistling “yach! yach!” and stroking it on the neck; and the
bullfinch by speaking to it in a friendly manner, accompanied by a
backward and forward motion of the hand.
[Illustration]