Got a few birds that developed bad trapping habits. They land, walk around the landing board, peek through the bobs, then walk away and sit on the roof.
Driving me crazy. Any way to fix this once it’s established?
Bad habits are hard to break but possible.
Strategies:
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Hunger: Only feed inside. They trap or they don’t eat.
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Call pot: Use a calling pot with feed inside, visible through the trap. They can see and smell food but must enter to get it.
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Simplify the trap: Sometimes birds are hesitant because the trap is too complicated or tight. Easier entry = faster trapping.
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Separate the problem birds and train them specifically.
What worked for me:
Close the trap completely. Only open it when YOU are there feeding.
Bird lands, you open trap and call. They must enter immediately or trap closes. No wandering allowed.
Repetition with immediate reward (food) retrains them.
Time-consuming but effective.
Some birds never trap fast no matter what you try. It’s partly genetic.
If you’ve tried everything and they still hesitate - don’t breed from them. The behavior passes down.
Harsh but true. Fast trappers breed fast trappers.