Bird Training & Enrichment at Southwick's Zoo

Bird Training & Enrichment at Southwick's Zoo Contact information, map and directions, contact form, opening hours, services, ratings, photos, videos and announcements from Bird Training & Enrichment at Southwick's Zoo, Wildlife sanctuary, 2 Southwick Street, Mendon, MA.
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The Avian Department at Southwick's Zoo is committed to promoting the utmost physical, mental, and environmental stimulation achievable through a combination of relationship building, positive-reinforcement training, and enrichment....

05/22/2025

Avian Adventures: Above & Beyond debuts in THREE DAYS!!! Are the birds fully generalized to all trainers yet? Not quite! Therefore, guests can expect to see lots of training in action! Here’s a recent video of Amber and Ernie generalizing to a different trainer, Sarah. Each bird has a primary trainer, who gets the behaviors well established, transitions to stage (generalizing to a new environment) and then we begin inviting different trainers to ask for the same behavior. We are careful to ensure that all trainers fully understand all antecedents and criteria. Ernie and Amber have a history of unique challenges offering vocals for various people, so we are being mindful to generalize tactfully for their success. In this video, Hope asks for the behavior, and Sarah offers the treats! Seems simple, but taking the time to iron out these kinks will help us reach our goal faster. And for those of you who know these birds can understand.. offering their vocals TOGETHER like this is a pretty big deal (and also literally adorable)! ❤️💚

Who’s having more fun in this photo- Emily, Hope, or Sugar?! The answer is all 3! 😆 Challenging some of our “veterans” t...
05/02/2025

Who’s having more fun in this photo- Emily, Hope, or Sugar?! The answer is all 3! 😆

Challenging some of our “veterans” to new show behaviors with a newer looking stage and lots of fun props has been enriching for everyone involved! Sugar surprisingly seems to be really embracing all the changes- thanks in part to some really awesome resiliency training over the winter. So proud of you, Sugar!

04/25/2025

We have been working SO hard to bring you a new and exciting free flight show for 2025! From training, to stage design/props, music, perching, and everything in between. We truly haven’t stopped! We are training through the chaos; getting the birds outside seeing visitors while they learn (even with an unfinished backdrop 😁). If you’re visiting the zoo between now and Memorial Day weekend, you might get a chance to see lots of training in action. We are empowered now more than ever and truly can’t wait for you to see all of our hard work come to life. One more month until the debut of Avian Adventures: Above & Beyond!

Happy 30th Hatch Day to our sweet Benjamin! 🎉🎈💙 Have a favorite memory of Ben? Share it with us below! ⬇️📸: Ruth Mazeika
03/24/2025

Happy 30th Hatch Day to our sweet Benjamin! 🎉🎈💙

Have a favorite memory of Ben? Share it with us below! ⬇️

📸: Ruth Mazeika

01/26/2025

Perdi Progress Report! If you can believe it, little miss has entered the crate, and we’re now working on shutting the door in approximations. Emily is using the verbal cue “door” to tell her that door movement is coming and follows up the action quickly with a nice juicy piece of meat. At any point, Perdi can make the decision to leave if she’s feeling uncomfortable, inherently making her more likely to choose to return. Choice and control are crucial in the early stages of training- especially when counter-conditioning a response to a previously aversive object. So proud of you, Perdi! 👏🏼

01/17/2025

Since 2015, our birds have been collecting donations for The Bird Endowment in support of their mission to save the blue-throated macaw. Ten years later, we are thrilled to continue supporting their cause, adding more pick-pocketing birds to the mix, and a fancy new donation bin! Generously made and donated by Emily’s dad, Luis Begue, our new donation bin challenges the birds to place the dollars in a slot, adding a nice new complexity to the behavior (not to mention a gorgeous aesthetic). After a few weeks of working through some challenges, Ernie finally conquered the behavior yesterday! So proud of the green bean. Next up, Henri! 😁😁

Which birds can you expect to see in our new free flight show for 2025? KINTA! This fierce little kookaburra has come su...
01/15/2025

Which birds can you expect to see in our new free flight show for 2025? KINTA! This fierce little kookaburra has come such a long way with her confidence in flight, in addition to her confidence around unfamiliar people. By the end of the 2024 season, she was flying between trainers with a full audience of spectators! Who was lucky enough to see Kinta in flight last summer? We can’t wait to share more of her with you!

📸: Ruth Mazeika

01/11/2025

Sebastian ended up with a little toe injury last week, and our awesome vet, Dr. Sam, prescribed a dose of meloxicam for pain. Since he didn’t seem to want to eat his food with medication on it, Sarah tried offering him meds through a syringe- something he is trained for. He ended up taking the entire dose, and this method is how he received all doses going forward. Stress free for both Sebastian and his keepers alike! This is what we train for! THIS is our ‘why’.

And don’t fret friends… Sebastian’s toe has healed incredibly well, thanks to the wonderful care he receives from all parties ❤️❤️

01/09/2025

Perfect bird alert! Nope, not Pongo. This is PERDI! Remember the bird who would jump at least 12 inches in the air when people approached too close or quickly? Look at her now! Approaching a trainer calmly to step onto the scale for some tasty mealworms. Of all the progress we’ve made over the past 9 months, Perdi’s journey is arguably the most remarkable and we are so proud of how far she’s come. She’s still working on the dismount…it’s hard when you’re built like a chicken on stilts 😆 Stay tuned for more Perdi content- including her impressive crate training (a big shock to those who know her). We’re so proud of you, Perdi 🥹❤️ (P.S.- Don’t mind her wonky, almost molted feather 😁)

Address

2 Southwick Street
Mendon, MA
02895

Telephone

+18002589182

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