How to tame a new cockatiel?

[Markymoo]

Hi there, new member here and newbie at keeping birds. I got my new cockatiel Walter the other day, I've given him about 3 days to settle in his new home, I've been reading on how to tame him to come onto my finger/hand however he only seems to step up on the cuttlefish bone which is in his cage, as I wanted to use something that's not bot going to scare him right away as he seems to fear my hand at the moment. I've spent time near his cage talking to him and doing kissing noises to him, he doesn't run away when I go no near him anymore, only when I put my hand in his cage to change his water etc.

I used the cuttlefish bone just use something as a perch to get him to step up ony finger however when I put my finger near him he raises his crest and flies to the top if his cage. He's about 11-12 weeks old, I've tried using millet and grapes as treats but he doesn't go nowhere near my hand.

How do I get him to come to my hand and not be scared of me? I did manage to get him to step up on my finger but he flew off straight away, he's not had his wings clipped but I've just seen advice to clip them as it'll help with training etc.

Please help. Thank you. Mark

 

[Tara81]

What does he eat? Does he like millet? 3 days is not long. When a bird is moved to a new home it takes time to settle in . Does he talk to u or is he afraid of u and quiet? try talking to him for a couple of days, then drop his favourite treat in his food bowl. Make sure all grapes you give him are seedless, all fruits must not have seeds in their pits . Most tiles don't like fruits anyways but just some caution. If he does love millet, you need to remove it from his cage and only give it to him from your hands. You would first start by going to his longest perch, putting your hand on the opposite side he is at, and keeping your hand there for a couple of minutes, or until he relaxes. After he relaxes, say good bird, and remove your hand . You are rewarding him for relaxing by removing your scary hand. Soon he will get used to this routine so u can keep your hand in longer. When he moves toward your hand, this is when you can stop removing your hand as a reward. Instead say good bird for moving towards ur hand. Eventually he will go eat the millet. Let him eat from your hand til he is used to this. Then you want to hold your millet with your thumb and middle finger and hold the index finger in front of the perch so he has to step on your hand to get the millet. Do this til he is comfortable . Then u Can start moving ur hand with him on it. I don't believe clipping is a good idea for a scared bird. Clipping makes the bird lose confidence because they cannot get away,thus being more scared. Also a bird that young should be learning to fly first before being clipped.

 

[Tara81]

Do realize he isn't going to go to your hand in one day, this process should take about a week or two. Just keep showing him your hand has a tasty treat from a distance. Don't move your hand much until he starts eating from it. When he is comfortable doing this, and goes to your hand to eat even if u move it everywhere around his perch this is when u attempt to manuve the millet so he has to get on your finger to eat it.

 

[cosmolove]

Was he purchased from a breeder that hand fed or was he at all hand tame before you purchased him?

The answer to those questions can help give us a starting point for him. 3 days is not long at all to settle in. I usually give about 2 weeks to settle in. I will talk to them a lot during this time and any bird I have fostered or rescued that was hand tame or use to people I would leave the cage open and let them come and go as they please. Once they start coming out on their own consistently and acted interested in me I would start working with them a little. I usually would start by offering treats. Millet is usually a huge hit with cockatiels.

When I had a cockatiel I was fostering I would only give her millet outside of the cage. Now the one I had came to me with her wings clipped. I personally do not clip wings unless there is a safety reason to do so. I want the birds to always feel they have a way out if the need it. But that decision is really up to you and I encourage you to research the pros and cons of both.

If your bird ends up very millet driven I would start by putting a perch on the inside of the cage door and opening the cage. Then hang a millet spray on the door. Sit near by but not too close and talk to him/her. Then I eventually moved the millet to the top of the cage on a little play stand I had for my girl. I started sitting closer and closer to her each day until she got use to me being there and talking to her. She eventually actually would chirp and sing while I talked. Then I started offering the millet from my hand. Then put it on the palm of my hand and let her lean over or step on my hand. By then she wasn't nearly as skittish about me being around.

Just remember you're running a marathon not a sprint. There is no need to rush things in the beginning. Rushing now will cause problems down the road! Take it slow

 

[Markymoo]

Thanks guys, I know 3 days isn't long at all. I'm all new to this so I treated it like I did with any pets I've owned, I give them a couple of days to settle in to their new home then start socialising them to me.

When I bought him he wasn't not hand tame at all, only interaction he had was when the woman at the shop grabbed him to get him out for me to buy him.

He loves millet and I've managed to get him uses to stepping up on a perch from his new cage which was too small. I get him to step up on that then step up on my finger which he's starting to do now.

Do cockatiels recognise verbal praise? As I'm not able to instantly rewarding him with millet, but I do always tell him he's a good, pretty bird

 

[Tara81]

I think with birds not bonded to u the only thing they will first understand is food but in time your lil tiel will get used to verbal praises so keep it up I would reward with food and praises as much as possible, u want that bird to love being with u because u have yummy millet

 

[Markymoo]

Ahh right he does get bored rather quickly, but as soon as millet is offered he quickly gains interest again xD

Is there any way of getting him to not be scared of my hand? He's used to the target stick/perch but once I move my hand he freaks out and puffs up. I managed to get him to step up earlier today but after an hour or so he was scared of my hand again. Why does he just forget the training?

 

[cosmolove]

Training will not happen in a matter of days. He is still learning. Just give him more time. If you push too much this early you can make him fearful of hands completely, which can be a pain down the road, or cause biting issues. I wouldn't try to pet him or anything yet, your hands are scary to him right now. Just keep showing him that there is nothing to fear by offering lots of goodies from your hands. You really want the bird to start associating hands with good things, like yummy millet! Once he is consistently trusting to take food from your hand without acting scared then move on to asking him to step up. I usually like to start with a perch and have them step to that first so they learn the command "step up" without hands being a factor. Then after they start learning to step up then I'd start asking with hands. By then they should be use to your hands giving him yummy treats and he should be less fearful when you get close to him

Hopefully that helps! I'm about to go through this process with our new eclectus! It'll be quite the experience!

 

[Tara81]

If he was adult fed as a hatchling he doesn't know hands are safe. it will take longer then one day, he remembers 3 months of his life without big scary hands in it. if u can get him to step up for millet for a week try enticing him to step up for toys. He is still a baby tiel and will lose interest very quickly because he wants to play play play. At least mine does. Give him lots of toys in his cage and outside to get him used to playing. His favourite toy might bribe him in time to step up also, until he is no longer afraid. Just be patient. He is young and will come around