The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1889-05-17
TANNING A CANARY.
How Bird May BE Taught to Perch Upon
His Masters Nose.

How q Bird May BE Taught to Perch Upon
His Masters Nose.
The method have followed in the
earlier training of canaries is not orig
inal with me. am indebted therefor
to a Catholic priest. whose entire sue
cess therein encouraged me to make
some efforts on the same lines.
There are two important prelimi-
naries in the process: First, you must
have no one else in the vicinity of the
birds cage-or, better still, in the
room; and second. rare degree of
patience is requisite. Of these two
essentials, moreover, / would place the
greater stress on the latter.
The small bunch of fluff and feath-
ers and warbling unceasing. whose
dainty tricks shall form the burden of
my sketch, called Cap. He was of
bright, yellow tint, but had black
spot topping his head and extending
well down to the eyes. This ebon
speck, so neatly placed, suggested his
name. When he first came into my
possession Cap was bit fractious-for
bird. Here, then, is the method by
which tanned him.
At dozen intervals in the day 1
approached the cage slowly, and,
placing one finger near the wires
where the perch rested, instantly
ierked the finger away. This action,
which may seem rather foolish, I re-
peated over and over, but always in
gentle fashion, so as not to frighten
the bird, but only to excite his Curl
osity. Well, it gradually dawned on
the tiny brain that I was afraid of
having my finger pecked-the very
impression my action was meant to
convey. The canary's shyness was
becoming obliterated through the
novel idea that I was actually afraid
OF him! Cap began quite soon to act
on this idea, and with lessening eau
ton each few times. Nor did I fail
to give him opportunities. By slow
degrees 1 got closer to the wires and
intruded my finger at greater length
between them, withdrawing it direct
ly on the birds approach, and if he
CHANGED to overtake and peck it l
simulated much misery if not pain at
the mishap.
swell, it got so at last, simply by
following the above rules, that, whether
Cap was eating or bathing or picking
his feathers. he left off the task and
flew to the side of the cage the instant
my finger appeared, and later on, in
fact, if | dared to come within a yard
of his territory! His enjoyment of my
supposed fear of him was merged at
last in genuine temper, and he would
evince it by outstretched wings, sharp
squeaks, and eyes which had as much
OF the devil in them as they could hold.
At such unmannerly times he stood on
one leg, grasped the wires with the
other claws, and babe me particular
defiance.
Cap was now tanned; so the aggra-
waiting measures employed in bringing
about this condition were gradually
dropped, and coaxing system, which
varies, of course, with bird lovers, was
adopted to win confidence where had
effectually displaced fear. Once you
tame a bird, it is advantageous to give
him the liberty of the room for a couple
of hours every day. He thus has the
chance to improve an acquaintance
made behind the bars. But tame him
first in the cage; this is my experience.
And now let me recount some of
Caps cute accomplishments. Ihave
time and again had him alight on my
shoulder Or on the top of my head
while l was writing, and he had trick
OF futtering around or below from
these points and posing with perfect
sang froid on the bridge of my nose!
This, indeed, was his favorite coign,
albeit trife awkward for me.
Sometimes placed his bathing dish
on the palm of my hand, which 1 held
out invitingly. and Cap made not
particle of bones about alighting on
the dish rim and, after few prepare
tons. dousing down in the water and
making it fly while he performed his
additions. Having finished, he would
seek the top of my head, shake him
self thoroughly, and then make the
circuit of the room warbling at the top
of his voice. My door often stood open
while Cap was out of his cage, and if
left the room his invariable practice
was to fly after me and have cliff"
down stairs on my head or shoulder;
while often, when he heard my step
coming up and [ had previously crept
out without his seeing me, he would
fly down to meet me. Occasionally,
through inadvertence, the cage door
has been left open over night, and Cap
has awakened me in the morning sit
ting demurely on the bridge OF my
nose. This may not appeal very
strongly to the credence of the reader,
but it is fact, as are each of the in
stances named of my canary's talent
for making himself perfectly at home.
Cor. n. Y. Sun.
Some persistent novel readers in
the British Museum devoured as manv