Progress

My lil guy Lola/Ben is starting to trust me more... I think? I can now scratch his head and pet a little on the back and he really seems to enjoy it. If I stick my finger out he doesn't immediately bite until I move it closer and closer to try for a step up. When he bites should I keep handling and petting or close the cage then and there?

I wouldn't recommend getting bitten in the first place. By "allowing" a bird to bite, you are reinforcing their need to bite.

Teach him to step up via the use of target training and/or treats.

That sounds like progress to me! Have you tried using a treat to entice onto your finger? I usually hold it slightly up and beyond my finger so that it is natural to step up onto the finger and their head is up to watch the treat. To avoid biting, I let them step off back off as quickly as they want after getting the treat, to keep the interaction positive. Biting is usually them trying to tell you something, or not understanding that it hurts you when they bite hard. If it’s that they’re trying to tell you to stop - it’s sometimes helpful to keep the handling times shorter (stopping while they are still enjoying) and ending it on a positive note without a bite and taking a short break or changing the activity.

Sounds like he’s enjoying getting to know you

So he really acts like he wants to get out of the cage now every time I open the door and he has started easily climbing out and onto a perch I have which is cool. I will put him on the perch on my desk and sit next to him and feed treats and scratch his head and he likes all of that then after a few minutes he acts as if he wants to come to me. He puts his head kind of towards me and he even lifted up a foot one time. I do try to use treats and so I put my finger a little above his foot level and then put the treat at his mouth but farther back. He either doesnt try to get the treat or stretches for the treat, sees my finger and slowly bites it. Even now he is back in his cage and I am laying on the ground so he went to bottom of cage and is walking back and forth as if he wants to come out and play.
I am very happy with the progress but should I just continue what I'm doing?
Thanks.

It sounds like he’s really responding to you . Have you considered target training? It’s often helpful in bonding, as well as being a good step that will help with step up and other requests you’ll want to be able to make. There’s tons of great videos on You Tube for instruction. Some use a clicker as part of target training but I’m not coordinated enough to target, click and reward so I skip the clicker and use a word instead lol.

If the biting in your finger is not hard ... he is probably testing if it is safe to transfer to this mobile perch. (Out there not all branches are safe, so birds choose carefully - it's another level of trustbuilding)

If it is an uncomfortable pinch...why not make a start on presure-bite-training (there is a sticky/topic somewhere here) and let him know what is okay and what is too much.



All in all it sounds like you two are doing great!
I would say: yup, keep it up!

There is trust and your bird is showing you he wants to do more.

I'd say continue doing what you are doing!

However, have you tried making your hand an extension of whatever he's actually on? So instead of a physical step up, it would be more like going from carpet to linoleum - it's just another surface.