Home » Bird Forums » Birds Of A Feather » Cockatiels » My cockatiel doesn't like me. please help me!
Posted by fwuz on Wed, 09/12/2007 - 16:34 :: Cockatiels
Hi, i have a male cockatiel, he must be around 8 months old, well thats what the pet shop keeper told us. well i have had him for about 5 months now and he has not been able to form a good relationship with me. i have tried almost everything i can think of and from the advice of others. i tried to train him by my finger he just tried to bite it, i let him bite it many times but he still hasn't got used to me entering his cage. i tried towel training but that made everything worse much worse! i let him out and at first he never came near me but now he comes and sits on my shoulder but will not let me touch him. i have also got him a much bigger cage but everytime i go near his cage he opens his mouth ready to bit me. he wont eat from my finger if it is in the cage, but he will if i feed him from outside the cage. however, he does sing quite alot,well his mood depends on the weather lol. the problem is that iam going to university very soon and well my family is here but he is closest to me. what do i do, do i give him away or get him a friend. and if i do get him a friend now will he accept him? oh someone please help me im so lost! thank you.
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Posted by karen on Tue, 09/18/2007 - 20:50.
I would see how willing your family is to care for him. If they do not want to take the time to work with him, I think it might be kinder to find him another home. I don't think getting another bird as a companion for him would be the best thing since it sounds like you would not be around to help introduce them to each other gradually... and two birds still need attention to stay at all tame.
If you have some time to start working with him more and your family is willing to give him the attention he needs then it might work out if they watch him for you.

If you want to start taming him more, I would suggest training him to step up onto a handheld perch to start with, so you can bring him out of the cage. Choose something that looks like perches in his cage, and if you can bribe him on with some sunflower seeds or spray millet (spray millet is good if he won't take food from your hand). Then take him into another room away from the cage. It is good if you have a gym or stand for him but you can hold him on the perch, too. Without the cage to distract him you can just talk to him quietly - see if he relaxes. It may take awhile for him to calm down. If he preens or stretches or fluffs out his feathers, he is feeling more relaxed. See how he does with this. Once he's comfortable with leaving his cage and seems happy when out you can try getting him more used to hands as perches. See if he will start taking treats from your hands, see if he will step up onto the handheld perch if you shorten it so he must go closer to your hand. The idea is not to force him to accept your hands, but more to desensitive him to them gradually. He may be afraid of hands from being grabbed or poked at in the past.

Karen
Chico (conure) and Pippin (budgie)
WI
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Posted by fwuz on Thu, 10/11/2007 - 14:12.
Hi,

Thank you so much for your advice, although my family are looking after my cockatiel very well since I’ve been at university, the problem is that during the day he is quite alone. I am thinking the best thing to do is to give him away. This is going to be the hardest thing for me to do, but I have no choice I want him to be happy and for that I will have to give him to a home where he can enjoy his life. Does anyone know where and to whom I can give him to? Is there anyone looking for a beautiful, male cockatiel? Please can anyone suggest a really good place for a cockatiel, either a home or even a good aviary? Oh by the way we call him Babey, and he is adorable.
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