How to hand tame a Cockatiel?
Category: Cockateil Training Q&A
Question by Shortstuff95: How to hand tame a Cockatiel?
So i got my new cockatiel and it’s in it’s cage still i have not handled much but when i do start to handle it how do i go about it like it’s bit me before it hurts pretty bad so i wear gloves i want to be able to hold it without gloves so how do i tame it to not even think about biting? thanks!
He is 8 months old from a breeder.
Best answer:
Answer by redondo beach Baby #2 4/21/2010
This is going to be the case with all birds. It just takes time and trust. You mentioned the bird is new. He/she needs to gain trust and that only comes by spending a lot of time and handling the bird. Keep using the gloves until eventually the bird knows you’re not going to hurt it. I don’t know much about cockatiels but I had a love bird and I used to hand feed it fresh fruit. Hope this helps and good luck!
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Pet store?
You probably scared the bird so it bit you. Fist you need to get the birds trust. There are a lot of ways you can do this. The first day you bring the birds home put him/her in the cage and sit close to the cage but not to close where your scaring the bird, make soft noises, whistle, talk softly or just whatever the bird seems to enjoy. Do not bother the bird the first day and night. Make sure to cover the cage at night, this will keep the bird from screaming at night as well as a dark and quiet room. Now that your bird has spent one night in the new cage he/she should feel a bit more comfortable. Continue with making noises with your mouth that your bird enjoys, you don’t have to do this for an hour, its your choice. Maybe, every 30 minutes for 10 minutes. After a few hours you can towel train him. Get a small towel and wrap it around the bird, starting from the center of the towel and the birds back, the birds face should poke out a little but not enough to bit you. Your bird will probably be a little scared but just hold him/her without touching the birds face, should calm down after a while. Also, make the noises your bird likes again. Do this for about an hour. You can also watch TV if you like, try finding a show your bird likes(the sound of it) Just don’t put the volume to loud and no bird shows while doing this. After your done put the bird back in the cage.(unwrap the towel in the birds cage) Do this for about 2-4 times a day for 2-3 more days. Remember never to put the bird back in his cage without him/her calming down first. Your bird should get a little more used to this by now. Now when your bird is calm you can start gently petting the birds head one or two times, watch the birds reaction, if the bird was scared wait for him/her to calm down before petting again. After a few days you should be able to pet the birds beak. With a sweater covering your fingers try to get the bird to step onto your finger, You can start covering your fingers less and less each time.
Taming a bird takes time and patience.
The more time you spend together with the bird, the better the bond.
Remember to watch the bird a lot when taming. If the bird is hissing he probably doesn’t feel comfortable with you being any closer.
You could also try feeding some spray milletes(there favorite) while in a towel or on your finger.
Make sure not to put the bird higher then your shoulder or eyes.
First, you need to make sure his wings are clipped; if they didn’t do this when you bought the bird, ask your pet shop to do it and show you how. Next, take the bird out of his cage gently by wrapping it in a towel. Take it into a small room and shut the door. Spend 15 minutes a day just letting the ‘tiel sit on you and get used to the fact that you’re gentle and trustworthy. Then you can teach him the command “step up” onto a perch or dowel, and eventually when he bonds to you he will step up and come out on command.