Please help with tips to train my Parakeet...

I’m feeling defeated. I’ve had a Parakeet for a month now and all it does is flutter away from me. I talk softly. I sing with the music. I spend time near it several hours a day. I let it out to exercise but all it does it sit in one spot unless I move and then it flutters away from me to other side of room. It does chirp with certain songs. But won’t let me near it. Sometimes it eats some Millet from me but always from a distance. It’s still super scared of me. Even when I change food and water it crawls up to highest corner stays there for hours. Am I doing something wrong? I’m considering returning it cuz maybe it’s just not a friendly bird. I don’t know.

((When you say Parakeet, I am assuming you are talking about an "American Parakeet," also know as a budgerigar. IF you mean some other kind of parakeet, my advice below Might Be all-wrong in some points.))

Parakeets are very timid by nature. Some of them, like my Jefferson-budgie, do NOT want to be touched, and will pretend to not know you. You can still have a relationship.

There are some videos online about training parakeets. I saw a tip on one that is really good. Use an old-fashioned clothespin to hold the millet. This allows him to take millet from you at a more comfortable distance, but still taking it from You. And you can easily adjust the distance, moving it toward you micron-by-micron, or moving it a little away for his comfort.

During your time with the bird, try body language mirroring. When you are spending time with your budgie, sit and pretend to be a Member of HIS flock. LEan forward or sit Up like he does. Look at your bird with sideways glances. When he eats some food, you eat something. When he drinks some water you drink some water. Etc.

I really hope you do not return your bird. In most cases, "getting a bird For your bird" is a bad idea. However with parakeets this is not necessarily so. These birds Really want to live in flocks. USUALLY a singleton will bond better with its human, but not always. So IF you are not satisfied with this one you Might want to consider getting a second one to join him. The second one might have a more-friendly disposition. And whether or not this is so, you will get to enjoy their interactions. And you might have a better chance of getting "accepted" as a third flock-mate.

Additional reason I hope you do not Return this one. EVEN though you are not seeing the friendliness you hope for, this budgie has most likely already accepted you. When I got my own parakeets it was not until I took them with me for an overnight visit to some friends who also have budgies, that I learned that they even recognize me. My friends were up peeking under the cover at them, when I came down the stairs. I had spoken and I could hear the chirping as usual. However my friends told me, they had Only "perked-up" when they heard my voice. To my friends, seeing them withOut me, it was very clear the budgies responded to my presence with happiness. However I of course only saw the when I was With them, and so they had me convinced they were not even acknowleding me.

It is very traumatic for a little birdie to be re-homed, especially once it has bonded to you, which this one Probably HAS, even though you are not seeing it.

Others may probably feel differently, but in this case I myself would recommend accepting this might be a look-don't-touch bird, keep loving it, and Get a Second budgie.

(PS -- Additional question. Just to double check. Its cage is reasonably large right? You can get cages at pet stores that are really too small for any bird to live in happily. It should have enough space inside its cage to be able to move around easily--and even fly, at least a tiny bit.)