Adopted a Wild Cockatiel at 9 months old last year

chinensis8 · Jan 5, 2020

My parents have recently adopted a Female cockatiel from a bird farm not too far from our home. When she first arrived she was just fine and she adapted so well to us. She is an absolute sweetheart that loves to groom all of us and be around us.

The only thing is that she doesn't like to be handled. Stepping up to our fingers is easy enough but as soon as she sees our fingers headed her way in an odd manner she would start running away. This makes it extremely difficult for me to put her in the cage, her pet carrier for when we go to the vet and for giving her medicine and vitamins.

What can I do to make her not feel scared of my hands?

Flboy · Jan 5, 2020

Hi, my JoJo was also fearful of being groped! It took a while, but I found explaining what I was doing and slowly reaching with hands flat, palm up worked! Also, reassociate hands into something good! Always a treat! Lots of reaching just to say hi and give a treat!

AmyMyBlueFront · Jan 5, 2020

My BB is a real oddball! Our nightly routine is..in the evening both Amy and Beebs come out of their houses. BB on my finger and we walk towards "Uncle David" (my brother) BB has no problem at all to flapflap and land on David's shoulder,where he will wolf-whistle and general chatter to him,for about five minutes,then that's enough and BB will start chirping/calling for me. All I have to say is "come here BB"he doesn't even have to SEE me and it's flapflapflap of him seeking me out.
After a while when we are in my bed room watching tv, I lay a big towel on my bed (so he doesn't do his business on it

) with his little T-perch and toy's. David will come in looking for "birdie kisses" this is when it gets interesting lol. BB wants NOTHING to do with him! He'll jump off his perch,run all over the bed with his hat high in the air,all the while saying "c'mon...c'mon!" Poor Uncle David is climbing all over the bed pleading with BB to give kisses lol. The bird will climb on me..run behind me,hang off the side of the bed..just wants nothing to do with his uncle lol. Frustrates David big time

lol.
I think its just a nightly "game" that BB loves to play with him.

Jim

1oldparroter · Jan 5, 2020

Sounds cute. jh

LaManuka · Jan 5, 2020

This can be a very slow and sometimes downright discouraging process but you need to stick with it, stay positive (birds are EXPERTS at reading body language!) and never stop trying. There’s not really a “silver bullet” which will make your cockatiel change her mind about your hands unfortunately. Flboy’s suggestion of the flat palm approach is a good one but you must be prepared for it to take a fair while.

Many years ago i took in a beautiful white female cockatiel who I found wandering the street a few houses down from mine. Having been unable to find her home i kept her and called her Twinkle, because I actually found her on Christmas Day and i thought she was so beautiful that she shone like the Christmas star

Anyway she was not particularly tame and refused to have anything to do with me for a total of about eight years before a switch suddenly flicked on in her little head and henceforth she became the sweetest, cuddliest most darling bird imaginable. So keep at it, it’s never too late!

chinensis8 · Jan 6, 2020

Flboy said:
Hi, my JoJo was also fearful of being groped! It took a while, but I found explaining what I was doing and slowly reaching with hands flat, palm up worked! Also, reassociate hands into something good! Always a treat! Lots of reaching just to say hi and give a treat!

That's what I've been doing as well, she just runs away lol and then comes back to me when I've placed my hands to my sides, away from her.

Associating my hands with treats would be an idea I'll follow from now on.

AmyMyBlueFront said:
My BB is a real oddball! Our nightly routine is..in the evening both Amy and Beebs come out of their houses. BB on my finger and we walk towards "Uncle David" (my brother) BB has no problem at all to flapflap and land on David's shoulder,where he will wolf-whistle and general chatter to him,for about five minutes,then that's enough and BB will start chirping/calling for me. All I have to say is "come here BB"he doesn't even have to SEE me and it's flapflapflap of him seeking me out.
After a while when we are in my bed room watching tv, I lay a big towel on my bed (so he doesn't do his business on it ) with his little T-perch and toy's. David will come in looking for "birdie kisses" this is when it gets interesting lol. BB wants NOTHING to do with him! He'll jump off his perch,run all over the bed with his hat high in the air,all the while saying "c'mon...c'mon!" Poor Uncle David is climbing all over the bed pleading with BB to give kisses lol. The bird will climb on me..run behind me,hang off the side of the bed..just wants nothing to do with his uncle lol. Frustrates David big time lol.
I think its just a nightly "game" that BB loves to play with him.

Cute birdie, ours just loves being around people at all times and sing playfully. The only problem is handling an untamed bird.

LaManuka said:
This can be a very slow and sometimes downright discouraging process but you need to stick with it, stay positive (birds are EXPERTS at reading body language!) and never stop trying. There’s not really a “silver bullet” which will make your cockatiel change her mind about your hands unfortunately. Flboy’s suggestion of the flat palm approach is a good one but you must be prepared for it to take a fair while.

Many years ago i took in a beautiful white female cockatiel who I found wandering the street a few houses down from mine. Having been unable to find her home i kept her and called her Twinkle, because I actually found her on Christmas Day and i thought she was so beautiful that she shone like the Christmas star Anyway she was not particularly tame and refused to have anything to do with me for a total of about eight years before a switch suddenly flicked on in her little head and henceforth she became the sweetest, cuddliest most darling bird imaginable. So keep at it, it’s never too late!

Interesting, I wonder what changed for her to suddenly want to be with you. Looks like I'm going to have to wear gloves for 8 years or more

Flboy · Jan 6, 2020

To add, for many parrots, gloves are terrifying!

AmyMyBlueFront · Jan 6, 2020

Flboy said:
To add, for many parrots, gloves are terrifying!

I can't agree with you anymore about that statement David!

When I first took Smokey home,I was still nieve about "parrot's",she was a wild-caught. I later on had visions/nightmares of some BIG MONSTER with work gloves on,reaching down into a hollow in some tree and scooping her right out of it

:15: It was terrifying for me just thinking about it,I can only imagine what it did to her:15: No wonder she hated hands for her 26 years.

Jim

chinensis8 · Jan 8, 2020

Flboy said:
To add, for many parrots, gloves are terrifying!

Ok I'll avoid the gloves then but giving medication is difficult because of the pain, is there anything I can do to avoid being bitten till I bleed?

AmyMyBlueFront said:
Flboy said:

To add, for many parrots, gloves are terrifying!

Click to expand...

I can't agree with you anymore about that statement David! When I first took Smokey home,I was still nieve about "parrot's",she was a wild-caught. I later on had visions/nightmares of some BIG MONSTER with work gloves on,reaching down into a hollow in some tree and scooping her right out of it :15: It was terrifying for me just thinking about it,I can only imagine what it did to her:15: No wonder she hated hands for her 26 years.

Jim

How do you guys get along with the biting?

Adopted a Wild Cockatiel at 9 months old last year

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Considering a cockatiel too....

Hand Taming and Oldie

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