Taming a new budgie

[Rain Bow]

I sleep in the same room w/ my Zon, Buddy. I found years ago when he slept in his big cage that he'd often just wake me up playing in the middle of the night. Now, it could've been that I woke him up snoring back then. Now I sleep w/ a C-Pap but he's prefering a small travel cage to sleep in. It's winter in NY where I am & It's considerably warmer which may be why he chooses it. My husband doesn't snore & he would hear Buddy wake periodically & fluff.

I think your fids warming to you quite a bit! If he wasn't he wouldn't sleep you'd catch him w/ 1 eye open watching you!

 

[Mybluebird]

Progress!!! I offered Tweetie some millet and she put both feet on my finger - yippee, yeah!!! I slowly moved my finger to the center of the cage and she kept eating. Then she looked around and saw she wasn't beside a perch and jumped off. I'm beside myself with joy.

 

[Lori D Pert]

 

[Rain Bow]

​

 

[Dorcas George]

 

[Mybluebird]

Sigh. I purposefully did not put a mirror in her cage because I read it would interfere with the taming process. So, today she is sitting on the perch below her stainless water cup, stretching up, bobbing her head and kissing her reflection in the outside of the cup! Should I move the perch lower so she can't stretch up to see herself or now that she's seen her reflection, will she climb on the bars anyway to see herself? Maybe now is the time to get her a friend for Christmas?

 

[Rain Bow]

@Lady Jane I thought you may have some ideas.

 

[Mybluebird]

I moved her water cup a tad so she has to really stretch to see her reflection. Now she's leaning into the cup and kissing her reflection and chirping away. Still trying to get her to eat fresh food. So today I clipped a piece of broccolini to her cage and draped it over her favorite perch. At first she wouldn't get on her perch but favorite won out. She's perched right beside it - the closest she's gotten to anything fresh. I haven't seen her nibble it yet but I'll keep putting it there until she tries it. Sneaky of me, huh? Or maybe just devious.

 

[Mybluebird]

I'm so proud of my timid girl. She's really been exploring her cage for the first time today! She found her cuttlebone and chewed it some. There's a ladder hanging below the cuttlebone and she stood on the top rung. Based on @Zara suggestion to another member I got a pedi perch which I put in about 3 weeks ago. Also today for the fist time she perched on it a couple times. Recently at night she's been clinging to the bars at the top of her cage. She's never perched on her swing, just jumped on and off. Today I put a short perch near the top of the cage. She started looking at it after I took my hand out of her cage. Then she crawled up to check it out but didn't perch on it. She also has a toy that is rings with little bells on it. I've been taking my pinky finger and rattling it and today she started rattling it. That's the bravest she been since she's been with me. And all this in one day!!! Yes, that's me being rude and interrupting her lunch.)

 

[Lori D Pert]

Ahhh, you have reached the pivotal point where her natural curiosity is winning out over her fear. She should gradually start exploring more and more. Congrats as she is finally relaxing a bit. Give her some time to truly explore her cage and when there is no fear in that, then the time has come to let her try coming out. Oh, about the mirror thing..some believe that mirrors are a no-no and can lead to aggression and obssession. This can be true for little males but I am not sure about females. Sam has a mirror as she seemed soothed by it when I first got her. She only bothers with it now in the mornings when she first gets up...she tells it off! I don't really think it's a problem but others may say differently.

 

[Mybluebird]

Tweetie has discovered every shinny thing in her cage including the metal gaskets used to attach the perches to the cage and is looking at her reflection in them. And, yes now that I moved the perch below her ss water cup lower, she has started climbing the bars to look at herself in the outside of the cup. I have broken the code on her soft chirps at sunset and her clinging to the bars at the top corner of her cage - she was looking for a place to roost for the night. I put a short perch near the top of her cage today. She chirped softly. I then covered her cage leaving the front open except for that corner and she climbed on up onto that perch. I'm so patting myself on the back! Maybe one day she'll use her swing or maybe she'll always consider it a toy.

 

[Lori D Pert]

Sam has never used her swing as a roosting perch, it was always and still is, a toy. She has many swings and boings on all her play gyms and uses them all. When it is time for night, night though she lets me put her in her cage and bring her to her sleep room. She then jumps up to her rope perch (the highest in her cage) and gives me a "brrrppp" which means goodnight.

 

[Mybluebird]

Tweetie keeps settling in more! We now have an established sleeping routine. I put a short perch at the very top, front corner of her cage. She tweets softly when the sun goes down. I move her cage to the corner of the living room and cover her cage leaving the front open but her top corner covered. She won't climb up to that top perch while I'm standing there watching her (!) but when I walk away, up she goes. When I get ready to go to bed I cover the front. Some mornings she gets up before I do and climbs down to a lower perch. Other mornings she's still on the top perch. I open the front of the cover. When she's ready to start her day, she gives me a couple of loud chirps and I uncover her. I'm so well trained! Today she played with a toy I hadn't seen her play with before.

Tweetie says, "Just what are you doing?" I can't help it. I NEED lots of pictures of her!

 

[Dorcas George]

Hooray for all these baby steps of progress. Tweetie is teaching you patience! As are Packer and Frost at my house. Frost is refusing to leave the cage now, after scaring herself a couple of times. Packer comes out but doesn’t fly much and watches over Frost. But I think Frost’s flight feathers are growing!

 

[Mybluebird]

We have the sleeping arrangements down now. I moved her cage into my bedroom because initially that is where I'll let her out to fly. She really didn't like that - she stayed skinny with her wings slightly out from her body the whole time. I've started moving her cage around during the day but always in a spot beside me and where she can look out a window. She seems to be ok with that. I'll try taking her into my room again.
Here's her sleeping arrangement.

 

[Mybluebird]

It poured down raining last night and is predicted to rain off and on all day. She's getting used to "weather" from her window. Here she is this morning - no reason except I like taking her picture!

 

[JoJo&Loki]

I love all these updates and pics! Sounds like things are going well for you two
This thread is bringing back sweet memories of when Jo and I were getting to know each other. Even that bell toy in the last pic- that was the first toy we played with “together”

Enjoy this time and all the precious milestones! Getting to know your bird is so amazing, isn’t it?!

 

[birbkid]

You need to sit near their cage and talk to them. And eventually, inch closer. But do not get closer if they seem uncomfortable and inch closer after 1+ sessions of them being comfortable with you in that spot. Then the next session moves a little closer. Then when they are fine with that, put your hand a tiny bit in the bottom of the cage and keep doing it and moving it in more once they feel comfortable. Then starts feeding them millet (not on your hand, hold the end and feed them the other side.) Then slowly offer your hand and eventually have them step up to eat the millet (Do this in sessions each session move a little closer.) then once they are fine with eating and stepping on to your hand, bring feed them breakfast from your hand every morning.