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How to get two already paired cockatiels to get along with me

kbenkr

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2/22/20
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14
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Mashhad, Iran
Real Name
Cyrus Rahimi
Hi guys, so just like the title says, I have a male and a female cockatiel. They’re young (less than a year old) and I’ve had them for about 4 or 5 months now. They’ve already mated and rely on each other in pretty much every situation. If I move one of them to another place the other will definitely either fly to the one that I just moved, or they will scream at each other until One of ‘em goes to the other.
As I said they do let me lift them but they won’t stay long, they let me kiss them on the neck or beak and the male on pretty much kisses me himself when I lift him and get him close to me. But they’re afraid of me most of the times. They’re very cautious when I’m around they won’t come on my shoulder and they don’t eat out of my hands. What should I do to get close to them?
I had another female cockatiel which flew away and she and I got along pretty well. She wouldn’t get off my shoulder even if I went outside (which one day I kinda slipped and she flew high enough to not see me under a tree and flew away).
I don’t want these two to be the same I just want them to be comfortable with me so I can hold them longer or hold them close to me or on my shoulder and other stuff.
Thanks in advance 5C1F03D3-AFA1-41F4-99BC-526C9F1C9B28.jpeg
 

jh81

Rollerblading along the road
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Jan
5 months is not a lot of time in bird land :)

do you practice “step up” with them?

you make them step up on the perch, then set them down, make them step up gain.. do this a few times a day (but keep it short, maybe 5 minutes each time) then slowly move them further away from the perch. If they fly back, you’ve moved too much away from the perch :)

my mom has two cockatiels, basicly the same like you. I am now at the poit where one of them will stick on my arm when i move around the room :)

also, see what treats hey like, most parrots and parakeets like sunflowerseeds, you can use that as a treat when they step up, make them see you are a nice, fun guy to hang around with :)

i sometimes let the birds sit closeby, but not interact with them.. that way they can learn that i am not some predator who wants to eat them :)

remember, for most birds we are HUGE monsters :)
 

kbenkr

Moving in
Joined
2/22/20
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14
Location
Mashhad, Iran
Real Name
Cyrus Rahimi
5 months is not a lot of time in bird land :)

do you practice “step up” with them?

you make them step up on the perch, then set them down, make them step up gain.. do this a few times a day (but keep it short, maybe 5 minutes each time) then slowly move them further away from the perch. If they fly back, you’ve moved too much away from the perch :)

my mom has two cockatiels, basicly the same like you. I am now at the poit where one of them will stick on my arm when i move around the room :)

also, see what treats hey like, most parrots and parakeets like sunflowerseeds, you can use that as a treat when they step up, make them see you are a nice, fun guy to hang around with :)

i sometimes let the birds sit closeby, but not interact with them.. that way they can learn that i am not some predator who wants to eat them :)

remember, for most birds we are HUGE monsters :)
Ok so it’s been more than a year now, it’s basically the same (I just saw your reply cause there were no notifs) yes they do come on my finger, but they don’t let me move them around too much cause they get further away from each other so they fly back, and if I move both at the same time, they just fly away together, I’ve recently changed houses so it’s actually worse now (obviously because of the different environment). So now it’s to the point that my female cockatiel is super scared of me and avoids me as much as possible, even though I’m not around them much, they’re in a different room, their cage is in a position much higher than me, and other than nights when they sleep, I always let them out, and rn they’re getting more comfortable with their surroundings, but they still don’t like me. And yes I do give the male one sunflower seeds and he loves it but still no effects.
 

Zara

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@Khizz has a pair of tiels she has spent over a year building trust slowly with them. I think you will find her threads interesting.
 

kbenkr

Moving in
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Location
Mashhad, Iran
Real Name
Cyrus Rahimi
Well.. thats it then... you need a Pionus :heart:
I feel like I should have gotten these two separately, like get one, tame it and get it to like me, then get a mate for it. Oh well, Thanks for the help anyway:heart:, I'm stuck with these fools for a LOOOONG time now, I wanna get a dog as a next pet, but if it's a bird, I'm definitely getting a Cockatoo, they're a bit expensive in my country though, also a bit crazy:)
 
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