My rescue cockatoo

[DonnaC]

Hi! I have had my rescue African Grey for 4 years, and have had a relatively easy time training her. I recently adopted a rescue cockatoo and I need help! He only steps up when HE wants to, so if I have to put him up to attend to something I have to resort to wrapping him in a towel.
Any suggestions on how to get him to step up all of the time?
I have tried the treat method, where you hold the treat in front of them while placing your hand in the step up position, this works sometimes, but ONLY sometimes. ANY help with training will be appreciated. Thank you!
(he is a Mollucan Cockatoo btw)

 

[orphansparrow]

Have you tried stepping him up on a dowel rod? How long have you been working with him?

 

[DonnaC]

I have not tried that yet- I will try it!
we have had him for about 3 weeks.

 

[Icey]

That's not a long time. Let him get settled and used to his new surroundings and people. You will need to have patience and go at his pace. He may still be scared of all the new things.

 

[sunnysmom]

I suggest target training. You start out slow, look at the stick, touch the stick etc then working up to step up. There are some good YouTube videos on how to do it. Also www.goodbirdinc.com is a good resource.

 

[Toy]

3 weeks is a blink when it comes to a rescue or re-homed bird. Some need months if not longer. Many carry baggage they never let go of. Take baby steps. Try sitting him on the back of a chair. A chair back will limit his movement. Then have him step up/down several times. Say step-up when you want to pick him up & step-down when you want him to step off your hand onto a surface, etc. Always use the same command word(s). Reward him if he does it each time with phrase or a treat. Keep training sessions to about 10 minutes. Try to keep him off the floor & only on his cage or play stand/perch. On the floor he may be showing territorial behavior.

My previous B&G Macaw was 2 years old when I got her & had zero training. She feared being handled, as she had been abused. To her touching meant being grabbed & shoved into a tiny cage & kept in the dark 24/7. We had to keep her in a dog crate until her cage arrived, which took 6 weeks. Once it arrived she she took to her new big cage like a kid to candy. She settled down & I started her training. Over time she learned step up/down, wings up, go back to your cage, back up, wave one wing & say bye-bye, go in crate, etc.

So take it slow, reward positive commands, ignore bad ones (just try again), be consistent with command words.