The training begins....

Well, in all actuality the training had begun as soon as Captain Teach had arrived.  But, what with the necessary time to adjust and settle into the routine of a new home after such an ordeal as he had found himself in, it had to be very mild and more "introduction to training" than training itself.

The Litter training in the short term is the most important to my self, as it keeps the cage cleaner and easier to maintain.  This makes for a healthier, more comfortable environment for the rascal.  As such, having a healthy and comfortable place to live makes all future training endeavors far more plausible. 
We are meeting with some definite forward success with the litter training.  I did a full cage cleaning last night - the first full one since we began.  Fear not, there had previously been some wipe downs and minor tidying, but it was time to make certain there were no areas of filth that would begin to fester in some unknown area of the cage.  One would think that a wire clad cage would be easy to spot any potential areas as such - but, one would be wrong. Py-rats, much like toddlers, excel at finding places to make their own personal festering storage areas.  Even in not-so-plain sight.  However, the cage was in relatively good order, all things considered.  He had at some point peed in his nest box, which could have been at any point, so may not be a set back.  I replaced the cloth strips with tissues, which will make observing it easier.  Also, if he should have occasion to make a mess in the nest, the tissues are easily removed to the litter tray to serve as a lesson as to where that particular behavior is acceptable.  He did also leave "raisins", as they are oft times referred to, in his hammock.  The towel was removed and replaced with a fresh one.  Aside from that everything else was confined to inside the litter pan, or next to it - which could have been either knocked out or just the attempt to keep it away from his food.
But, the point remains that he is definitely separating areas and has not used any of the three platforms or the ramps for littering.  So, fresh litter, clean cage, we'll see how things continue along.
As for the litter..  Well, that is something that must be there, but one must exercise caution in the types used.  Clumping clay litter is bad, as is anything that will produce dust.  So, Rayne picked up this:
ExquisiCat Naturals Fragrence Free Paper Cat Litter 
And it has been working well.  At first he just grabbed the paper bits and chewed on them a moment and tossed them aside.  I am assuming that he had considered it food, coming from an unknown pet store, lord knows if he was served pellet food or not.  But, once he got the understanding that it wasn't edible (at least not in any enjoyable sense), he has since left it alone and used it for it's intended purpose.

Additional training, more on the behavioral end has begun as well.  The first major vocal command I am working on is "shoulder".  As he has shown himself adept at it to begin with, and certainly exhibits all signs of contentedness while on mine & Rayne's shoulders, I felt it was a good idea to break him in on this one.  It should also prove to be handy when he begins to run around or starts venturing further.  This will give a solid base point for both us and him to recenter at any point. 
The process is simple, really.  I give him the opportunity to climb to my shoulder, issue the command, issue the command, issue the command then issue the command.  When he responds appropriately, he is given a treat and appropriate affection.  As this started yesterday it is in the early stages, and has been done several times yesterday and a few this morning.  I am proceeding in "clumps".  Run through several times, then I drop it for a while.  I trust his powers of retention and instincts for food stuffs will have him following the command in short order.  I will keep you posted as to when it begins to take, that we may gauge the general time frame.

He spent more time in the free-range area last night, and has been showing more comfort there.  It is my hopes that he will begin to use it for it's intended purpose which is mainly as an exercise forum.  He has had no interest in the wheel at all, and despite the short runs up and down the three levels in the cage to take food from his dish down to his stashing area in the nest box, I fear that the cage ramps alone are not enough to provide the levels of exercise he will need in the coming to months to stay healthy.

But, there will be more on that later.