Help! I just adopted a cockatiel and it won’t come out of its travel cage

[Grace’sBirdieTribe]

I just adopted a cockatiel and she’s in a tiny travel cage so I’m trying to move her into a bigger cage but she’s very fearful and she doesn’t like any of the treats I’ve offered her. If I let her out there’s no way to get her to me or her cage so I don’t know what to do. How do I get her into her cage as quick as possible without all the time I would normally take to train a bird to trust me?

 

[pebbles1553]

if the large cage door is big enough to fit the small cage in, maybe try putting the small cage into the big one, and let her come out by herself, make sure you have good food waiting for her in the big cage.... idk if that will work

 

[Saravp]

Don't. There's no reason to force her out. Let her come out when she's ready. Take the travel cage to a small room with preferably not many places to hide under such as furniture. Keep the door to the travel cage open and wait. Maybe read a book or go on your phone or whatever just wait patiently until she comes out. Most people say to leave them in their cage the first few days but i disagree. If you do that the only thing you teach them is that their cage is the safe place and that anything outside it including you is scary. Let her get used to you and her surroundings first so that you become the safe place.

 

[pebbles1553]

yes, i would recommend to not force her out...

 

[Jcas]

When transferring a new bird from a small cage to a big cage, I open the doors to both cages and place them so the openings are against each other. That way the bird can go into the big cage when they’re ready.

 

[petunia]

When I brought Valentine home, she was in her travel carrier, I put the carrier on the dining room table, opened the door and let her come out when she was comfortable, then moved her to her regular cage. As mentioned above, go about your regular day, she will let you know when its time to move.

 

[Grace’sBirdieTribe]

Hi Everyone,
Thanks so much for all your help. In the end I got my cockatiel into her cage by removing the floor and placing the travel cage inside the bigger cage. She happily flew out and now I'm on the journey towards gaining her trust. ☺️