Updates on Finn and help for getting him in the cage

[anurim]

Hi, guys! Since most of my threads were about something bad, I decided this time to write about some of the positive stuff that happened in the last few months.
First of all, after about 7 months of struggle, Finn is finally eating pellets! And he actually likes them! I'm so happy, can't believe he's actually eating them as his daily food, and choosing them over seeds. He obviously still gets seeds in a smaller quantity, but he's not going crazy for them as before. I've been weighing him as usual, and his weight is normal.
Another good news is the fact that he's becoming familiar with more fruits and veggies. He was and still is a picky eater, but he's slowly coming out of his shell, as he has been eating small quantities of every fruit and vegetable I gave him.
Now, the part that I need help with. He refuses to get in his cage every single evening. I know this is probably my mistake since he was used to staying outside almost all day long. I haven't gotten to building a play gym from wood yet, so his nails have been growing pretty long. We had a short trip to the vet since he absolutely hates being held by me or any other family member, but I decided that I won't repeat that experience since he hated being held by the vet as well. I've made a schedule for him, where he gets out at 11 am and has to go in the cage at 7 pm. The problem here is that he doesn't like getting in the cage, but once he's in there he'll play with all the toys and sing all evening. I've tried multiple methods to distract him: using mirrors (since he doesn't get them in the cage at all and goes crazy for them) and slowly pushing him inside, placing seeds right at the door, getting him backwards so he couldn't see what I was doing, catching him with my hands (Neither I nor him enjoy this method), closing the door when he goes to drink water or eat pellets (I hate this method since I'm afraid this will discourage him from going in the cage during the day, thinking he'll get stuck in there), etc. He has pretty much caught on all of these and there are nights where I can't get him in his cage at all, and he sleeps on the TV or whatever he finds comfortable. Do y'all have any recommendations? How do you get your feather friends in their cage at night?

 

[sunnysmom]

I'm glad things are going well with Finn. Does he step up? If not, that's a good thing to start to try teaching him. I have found the best way thing for my birds is a consistent bedtime routine. Same time or as close as possible, each night. I also start putting them to bed before they're tired. Once they are actually tired, it seems to make it 10 times harder to get them to go into their cage for some reason. (Except for my tiel Scooter who is the easiest bird in the world.) So, if they normally go to sleep like at 8. That means by 7:15, I'm starting to get them to go into their cage. I have also found with a special bedtime treat helps. So for instance if your tiel loves millet, he only gets millet at bedtime, in his cage. That can be a good incentive. Also, often birds don't like going into their cage because that means you are going away. So once they are in, I sit with them while they eat their bedtime food. I sing to them, etc. They get all my attention for that period of time. So that way bedtime is "fun". And then, each bird has a special "night night" song when I'm getting ready to actually cover them for the night.

 

[Sand]

omg i laughed out loud at where he sleeps when he wont go in.
my conure goes in his cage if i touch his toy that has a bell, if i make it ring, he wants to know what's up and he'll go in.

 

[Karen]

@Myru.b I feel the same way, I hate to trick them so I do what Sunnysmom described which is to offer an enriching routine every evening at the same time. Make it a fun light transition but a definite transition. My bird will sometimes feel that the routine should be changed but I lovingly insist and we're better off for it in the long run. View the bedtime routine as a reward for Finn and don't feel guilty that you're doing something he doesn't like.

Sounds like you've had some excellent progress!!

 

[Tazlima]

I've gotten into a "bedtime snack" routine with my bedtime-resistant guy (or really, any time I need to shut him in his cage, which is generally just at bedtime). I put a small quantity of seed in his bowl, he goes in to eat it, I close the door. He can come and go to eat anything else (there are always pellets available), but seeds in the bowl = door is closing. He knows that, and is okay with it, because the only other way he gets seeds is as training rewards.

 

[anurim]

I'm glad things are going well with Finn. Does he step up? If not, that's a good thing to start to try teaching him. I have found the best way thing for my birds is a consistent bedtime routine. Same time or as close as possible, each night. I also start putting them to bed before they're tired. Once they are actually tired, it seems to make it 10 times harder to get them to go into their cage for some reason. (Except for my tiel Scooter who is the easiest bird in the world.) So, if they normally go to sleep like at 8. That means by 7:15, I'm starting to get them to go into their cage. I have also found with a special bedtime treat helps. So for instance if your tiel loves millet, he only gets millet at bedtime, in his cage. That can be a good incentive. Also, often birds don't like going into their cage because that means you are going away. So once they are in, I sit with them while they eat their bedtime food. I sing to them, etc. They get all my attention for that period of time. So that way bedtime is "fun". And then, each bird has a special "night night" song when I'm getting ready to actually cover them for the night.

Oh, yea, Finn does know how to step up. I've had him for almost 10 months now, he's just really stubborn haha. I've been rewarding him every time he goes in the cage, maybe this way he'll actually enjoy going in there. As I've said, he loves playing with the toys in the cage, so once he's in there he will not want to come out until the morning. Thanks for your suggestions!

 

[anurim]

omg i laughed out loud at where he sleeps when he wont go in.
my conure goes in his cage if i touch his toy that has a bell, if i make it ring, he wants to know what's up and he'll go in.

Haha, good to know! I'll try that with Finn, maybe he'll be interested in it.

 

[anurim]

@Myru.b I feel the same way, I hate to trick them so I do what Sunnysmom described which is to offer an enriching routine every evening at the same time. Make it a fun light transition but a definite transition. My bird will sometimes feel that the routine should be changed but I lovingly insist and we're better off for it in the long run. View the bedtime routine as a reward for Finn and don't feel guilty that you're doing something he doesn't like.

Sounds like you've had some excellent progress!!

Thank you! I will be definitely sticking to this routine.

 

[anurim]

I've gotten into a "bedtime snack" routine with my bedtime-resistant guy (or really, any time I need to shut him in his cage, which is generally just at bedtime). I put a small quantity of seed in his bowl, he goes in to eat it, I close the door. He can come and go to eat anything else (there are always pellets available), but seeds in the bowl = door is closing. He knows that, and is okay with it, because the only other way he gets seeds is as training rewards.

Thank you, I will try this too!