A New Cage!

[Outstrech]

Hello! Hope you are having a wonderful day so far. I have a 6-7 month old cockatiel named Sunflower. He doesn't play with toys, but I'm hoping the new cage I'm getting him will change things up a little (I got him a foraging, rope, and seagrass trapeze toy, along with the ones I already have). The new cage is almost, if not twice the size of the current one with an open top and plenty of space to play. The problem is, Sunflower isn't target trained, I've tried it and he doesn't do anything with the target. Even if I boop him on the nose it's no response. I'm going to try to teach him stepping up on a dowel (right now he takes seebs from my hand-they're considered a treat as he usually has pellets) today and see how it goes. If it doesn't work, I've considered putting the cage openings side by side and just letting him go to the new cage in his own time with millet and the other side. Based on my current information, would that work or do I need to teach him to step up? Thanks a lot!

 

[sunnysmom]

So you don't currently let him out of his cage? How long have you had him?

 

[Outstrech]

I keep the cage door open he just doesn't come out.

 

[The_Mayor]

Thanks for clarifying. I wasn't sure what you were asking.

If Sunflower doesn't come out of his cage and he doesn't step up I can certainly understand how that creates a challenge for getting him into his new cage.

My first questions are: how long has he had the opportunity to come out of his cage?

I'm a new bird owner, but one of the most important things I've learned is that, whatever the question, patience and letting them do things at their own pace is usually the answer.

Some birds need to work up to venturing outside their cage. So he may just not be ready yet. In that case, it's just down to patience. I'd expect that eventually he'll come out and at that point he'll start exploring, including checking out the Millet House.

I don't see a problem butting the new cage up against the old one so that from his perspective it's just like the contractors came and build a new wing to his house. If you do that, I would caution that you pay a lot of attention to any gaps he might get stuck in and that both of the cages are very stable so there's no possibility of things toppling. That would be bad.

Of course, if he does get comfortable stepping up, that gives you another way to encourage him to check out his new digs.

I'm definitely sympathetic to your dilemma - when my birds got here, I had no idea how I was going to get them from their shipping box into their cage without risking them getting loose in my apt (which is definitely not bird safe). Fortunately, their cage is big enough that I could take out the bottom grate and pan, reach in and pull the shipping box up, place it on two dowel perches, replace the grate and pan, and lower the box onto the cage floor. And then I had to figure out how to open the shipping box. It was a bit of a farce, but in the end they were safe and comfy in their new cage. But now they're getting an aviary and I'm doing the same calculations.

 

[Outstrech]

Bad news guys...I tried to get him to step up and he just bit the dowel. Recently he's becoming...more indifferent than before. It's like "Okay I don't like this dowel. If it comes close I'll just bite it." Also, FYI I've had him for around 4 months.

What do I do?

 

[The_Mayor]

You might want to take this to the behaviour board. This doesn't seem to really be about flying so much as other stuff.

That said, while we're talking here, I have some thoughts.

First, four months may seem like a really long time, but from the bird's point of view he might just be getting used to his environment.

I don't know about the biting the stick thing (although better the stick than your finger). I don't know about cockatiels so I can't even guess whether that was defensive or if they just enjoy biting sticks and he thought that was the game.

When I'm introducing my birds to a stick or my finger my goal is to move it so that it's close to them so they can get a good look. I watch their body language carefully and if it looks like they're getting a little uneasy, I just make a cheerful comment like "thanks for playing" so they think that was all I meant to do, not that I'm retreating from them. Sometimes Mustrum has let me get the stick all the way against him and eventually he stepped up, but then the next day when I started moving the stick towards him, he was like, "yeah, no." So, I stopped and went back to it later. If the bird feels threatened by my actions, then we're worse off than when we started. And if he feels like he needs to bite to defend himself, that's definitely the wrong path.

As I say, I have no idea if that's what's going on with your bird, but that's some stuff to consider.

 

[Outstrech]

He seemed to be doing it defensively and not trying out the sturdiness or playing with it.

 

[Outstrech]

I'm getting a little worried. For the entire day he's been on his tall perch. I put his favorite treats at the door. He has no response. Just sitting there with his eyes closed. Is he okay?

 

[Outstrech]

Poor baby isn't eating...

 

[Outstrech]

Good news! turns out he was scared of his brightly-colored food bowl. I changed it to his old one and he's okay. I'll obviously keep a close eye on him, but he seems fine!

 

[Outstrech]

(sorry for so many posts in a row)

I'm a bit worried about spending my money on a nice cage and he'll just squat in his old, dusty, small cage. Does this happen a lot or is it not common?

 

[MC_Hahn's]

It's normal for a bird to take time to get used to a new cage. @SumitaSinh faced a similar problem with her amazon a while back, I believe.

Have you tried using a t-stand? They often aren't as large as dowels, but have a similar concept.

Also, if he bites the dowel, would he bite at the target stick if you put it between the cage bars nearest him? Although I'd recommend desensitizing him from the target stick first.
What material is your target stick? My cockatiel prefers small chop sticks.

Worst case scenario, you have to use a towel to transfer him to the new cage.

I'll tag some more experienced 'tiel folks.
@Tiel Feathers @Sunni Tiel @sunnysmom @JewellBird

 

[Outstrech]

I'm using a chopstick for target training. Is target training necesary as he's pretty unhappy in his cage rn and I would like to get him in his new cage asap. Also: does toweling traumatize birds or are they just scared but not terrifed? I'd do that if it wasn't too hard/made him scared.

 

[MC_Hahn's]

Is target training necesary as he's pretty unhappy in his cage rn and I would like to get him in his new cage asap.

It depends on your situation. If he is unhappy in his current cage, try alternating perches and/or toys. If he hasn't been out of his cage since you've had him, you could let him out in a confined space (small room that is bird-proofed). A play stand may be beneficial for out of cage time in the future.

Also: does toweling traumatize birds or are they just scared but not terrifed? I'd do that if it wasn't too hard/made him scared.

This also depends on your experience toweling birds. Here's a post from a few years ago that deals with a situation similar to yours: Toweling an untamed parrot?

 

[Outstrech]

i'm sure he would rather starve himself than come out of his cage ;-; seriously i left his food outside for an hour (to lure him, near his cage) and he just ignored it, and when i put it back he was eating super fast. the problem with his current setup is that its just really inconveient to put new toys+ he is wAY to accoustomed to always being in one place. I also can't change perches without him getting super scared.

 

[Outstrech]

Operation new cage commence!

 

[Sunni Tiel]

If you can't put the old cage inside the new, or if he won't come, you can towel him. It's best to towel only when you have to, it's not a positive experience for the bird.
I got a couple new, not tame budgies today and I had to towel them out of their travel cage into the new one. This was the safest, least stressful way I could manage, it wouldn't be safe if I connected doors. Anyway, I took a little washcloth over my hand and picked them up one at a time, after I had one out of the cage, I released my grip so they could stand on my hand, and put my hand in the new cage. They were really chill, I don't know how well that would work with a bird that is scared of hands. I was of course in a bird proofed room in case they did fly away.
Sometimes you just have to take the first step, but if the bird looks uncomfortable or angry you can try again later. Also be sure to have lots of treats all over the new cage, so it's a positive experience.
If you can find a less stressful way to move him, do that, but It looks like you've been trying for a while.

Good luck!

 

[Outstrech]

With gentle toweling, Sunflower is in his new cage! He's settling in, still a little bit stressed, of course, but he's already kind of preening. Truly, thank you to each and every one of you, but espically @Zara, @sunnysmom, and @scrape. Hopefully this is the golden road to a better life, with lots of seeb.

 

[Outstrech]

He's mainly staying in one spot just like his old cage. I hope I'm not spending all that money for him to squat in one spot and not play with any toys. Obviously I should be paitent so I'll update you guys in a week or so. RN i cant make big changes without him freaking out sooo yeah. GN everybody!

 

[Zara]

He's mainly staying in one spot just like his old cage.

He will need time to adjust

Be sure there are different perch option, different types and in different places. As well as a good selection of toys to investigate.