Twigs is wild again :(

[RavensGryf]

Also, you never know, this could be good for your relationship. Once he forgives you, more forgiveness will come easier and more frequently. Just trust in yourself. You know what your doing He loves you. Like i said earlier, Birds love to hold grudges, but they usually forgive after a few days

You know, my parrots don't even hold grudges! They're strange though. Maybe my Budgie is more "normal" in that regard LOL. If so, he's still mad!

Today, when it was time for Twigs to go back to his cage, he ACTED like he was going to go in TWICE, then said "psych!" and took off again! He did everything "as if" he was going in... He went to the edge of the roof, dropped down to the drawbridge door, but just as I was about to praise him, he turned around and sped off! Yeah... I think Budgies are pretty smart :20:.

 

[Allee]

Twigs is small too. Whenever I'm at Petsmart looking at the Budgies, they're always bigger. in fact ALL my birds are on the small side for their species! It has nothing to do with the health. Just as people or any animals vary in frame size.

Thanks Julie! I went to a bird show several months ago and saw a pair of quakers that looked like monsters compared to my quakers. After that I really started noticing the range of sizes in the same species. Other than being tiny, Piper and Twinkle seem healthy. I know they can hear because they are starting to mimic the other birds.

It's a shame your husband escaped his punishment. I've been around a lot of budgies, just not my own. A friend of mine has a little male budgie that lost his lifelong mate, the pair were several years old when my friend adopted them, they had never had socialization and were pretty hostile. She was very worried about the male after his partner passed away. After a few weeks the budgie apparently decided on his own to be tame. He started flying to her shoulder and sitting on her hand and taking treats, he did all that of his own free will with little encouragement from her. It was a happy surprise for everyone.

 

[RavensGryf]

Wow Allee, your friends Budgie sounds amazing! I've never heard of that ... He just decided to become tame on his own. They definitely all have their individual personality that's for sure. Twigs has always been very skittish and wild and hard to tame, while his late buddy Pix tamed pretty easily. I'd love it if Twigs became a tame little bird.

I don't know how I ended up with every one of my birds being so small for their species. Just coincidence I guess. Even some past birds too.

 

[Anansi]

Some birds get past their issue rather quickly. But others can hold their own in the grudge department with the most stubborn of humans! My Bixby, for instance. I never thought he would be in this category, as he never gets upset with me. But over a month ago he actually got annoyed with my son and he has been holding onto that grudge like it was only yesterday! Haha!

My poor son keeps asking me why Bixby "hates" him, now. (He's 6) Poor thing. So we're currently going the bribery route. Lol! But the going is slow, let me tell you. With time and LOTS of treats, though, I'm sure this phase will eventually pass. As will Twigs' little grudge. I only hope he isn't as stubborn as Bixby! Ha!

 

[HeyHey]

Cool, I am not the only one chase my bird to his cage. But, I don't grab him. When he lands, I put my figure so he can step up and when he does I walk back to the cage and he hurry and flies off and I have to do that several times.

 

[RavensGryf]

Well, it's been around a week since this first happened. The update is both good and bad. When I put my hand in the cage, Twigs will step up again (though not as readily as before), which I'm happy about. The bad thing is, although Twigs KNOWS what "in" means, he has learned that if he doesn't want to go in at the time, he just won't! Simple as that.

I've been letting him out while Robin and Griffin are out also, as I figure Twigs is fast and alert enough that he should be able to avoid them. I don't like to because I know it's a risk. I have no other choice right now. If I waited until Twigs was ready to go in before I let the others out, they'd be waiting for hours.... Sometimes Twigs just isn't ready to go back to his cage for HOURS :52:. It's getting to be a big production everyday, and I don't want to stop letting him out!

Any suggestions for getting a WILD flighted Budgie back into his cage? Let me tell you, I have already thought of the more obvious ways. Targeting or putting a favorite treat in the cage does not work. Remember, this isn't a tame parrot were talking about. He's a semi-wild Budgie who is really not used to hands, and will only step up for a quick second if he's in his cage or on the floor, otherwise he's too wild. He's also not treat motivated. :49:

 

[Timothy]

Also, you never know, this could be good for your relationship. Once he forgives you, more forgiveness will come easier and more frequently. Just trust in yourself. You know what your doing He loves you. Like i said earlier, Birds love to hold grudges, but they usually forgive after a few days

You know, my parrots don't even hold grudges! They're strange though. Maybe my Budgie is more "normal" in that regard LOL. If so, he's still mad!

Today, when it was time for Twigs to go back to his cage, he ACTED like he was going to go in TWICE, then said "psych!" and took off again! He did everything "as if" he was going in... He went to the edge of the roof, dropped down to the drawbridge door, but just as I was about to praise him, he turned around and sped off! Yeah... I think Budgies are pretty smart :20:.

My Lovebirds do this to me ALL the time ^^ (but they are breeders so i wont clip them for training purposes)

 

[Timothy]

Well, it's been around a week since this first happened. The update is both good and bad. When I put my hand in the cage, Twigs will step up again (though not as readily as before), which I'm happy about. The bad thing is, although Twigs KNOWS what "in" means, he has learned that if he doesn't want to go in at the time, he just won't! Simple as that.

I've been letting him out while Robin and Griffin are out also, as I figure Twigs is fast and alert enough that he should be able to avoid them. I don't like to because I know it's a risk. I have no other choice right now. If I waited until Twigs was ready to go in before I let the others out, they'd be waiting for hours.... Sometimes Twigs just isn't ready to go back to his cage for HOURS :52:. It's getting to be a big production everyday, and I don't want to stop letting him out!

Any suggestions for getting a WILD flighted Budgie back into his cage? Let me tell you, I have already thought of the more obvious ways. Targeting or putting a favorite treat in the cage does not work. Remember, this isn't a tame parrot were talking about. He's a semi-wild Budgie who is really not used to hands, and will only step up for a quick second if he's in his cage or on the floor, otherwise he's too wild. He's also not treat motivated. :49:

You may hate what i'm about to say, but i must say it. Honestly, i think one of the only way's your going to be able to tame him effectively, is to clip his wings once. This will force him to be dependent of you, and will cause him to be responsive to your wishes. You want him to step up? he cant fly away. Want him to go in his cage? he cant fly away. if he tries he lands on the floor, where he does NOT want to be, where YOU pick him up, which makes him thankful of you. It will be easy to target train him, and you wont have an issue with defiance. His feathers will molt and grow back in a few months, budgies get flight feathers often, and by the time they are back he will be responsive to you..

But thats just MY opinion. and this is the way i train defiant parrots that i have no luck with when their flighted. (Babies i always allow to fledge and learn to fly first)

regardless, Good Luck! Best Wishes!

 

[Colorguarder08]

I would suggest clipping his wings. I'm sure you have him unclipped for your own reasons however it would keep him from flying around for hours. And it would get him better used to your hands and therefore more trusting.

 

[RavensGryf]

Although I hate to clip Twigs, ironically, I have to admit my parrots are long clipped for reasons particular to where we live. I was actually thinking that clipping him too would be the only solution in this case. A wildish budgie is no easier to get into a cage than a finch who escaped it's cage!
Then my husband brought up a point when I mentioned clipping Twigs... Although the parrots are clipped for safety here, clipping the Budgie would actually be dangerous for him because he will be vulnerable to the parrots who want nothing more than to kill him. Flying away fast is the only way he survives Robin and Griffin!

Tonight he was much more wild again for some reason . He avoided my hand and flew out fast. I just let him be. I left his cage open, and let him do his thing. I didn't tell him to go in, and I noticed he just went in on his own after a reasonable amount of time to eat and play.
I guess for now I won't let him out unless I have time (not having to leave the house). He's done that before, where he'd go in if I don't 'tell him' to do it. I think he's defiant on purpose when I tell him he has to do something lol. We'll see how it goes for now.

 

[Colorguarder08]

In that case my suggestion would be not to have him out until he is trusting of your hands or when you have time to let him out and not worry about having to rush him back in.

 

[RavensGryf]

I could potentially be waiting his whole lifetime to be trusting of hands LOL.
I've never had Budgies besides Twigs and his late buddy Pix, but judging by how Pix was, and from what people say, I think Twigs is just an extra wild kind of guy. He has a real flighty wild streak that you can just tell is part of his individual nature. He's just not as easy or willing to become as tame as many Budgies are. I've had him almost 2 years. He was clipped for about the first 6 months, and even then he never got as tame as you'd expect even with consistent handling. I think handling did nothing but stress him out.

 

[Colorguarder08]

I don't know anything about budgies to be honest my only experience is with tiels

 

[Timothy]

Some budgies would just rather be independant and not have to deal with you if they dont have to. I had a budgie like this, i hand reared him from 4 feedings a day, and he STILL wanted to do his own thing even though his sibling that i also had (even in a separate cage) was as tame as the come.

 

[RavensGryf]

Some budgies would just rather be independant and not have to deal with you if they dont have to. I had a budgie like this, i hand reared him from 4 feedings a day, and he STILL wanted to do his own thing even though his sibling that i also had (even in a separate cage) was as tame as the come.

Yep. Like you said it's just individuality. At first we thought Twigs was female since we hear that males are typically the more docile tame ones, but he was DNA'd male. A recessive pied mutation you can't tell by cere color.

I bought Twigs on impulse I admit (I never thought twice about having Budgies honestly). I was quite taken by his beautiful color. The yellow and BLUE. Not the usual yellow and green. It was like eye candy when I saw him. I told Don I just had to have him, and he picked out Pix. This was right before Christmas 2012

 

[HeyHey]

When twigs is out of the cage do you interact with him? Does he follow you? When I go from one room to the other he follows me. Sometimes I run from room to room and he follows. Maybe you can do that like a game. My bird just like twigs also doesn't respond to treats but I think he likes kisses. Sometimes (not all the time) I put my hands up and call him and he flies and lands on my hand/arm and then I give him many kisses.

 

[Timothy]

When twigs is out of the cage do you interact with him? Does he follow you? When I go from one room to the other he follows me. Sometimes I run from room to room and he follows. Maybe you can do that like a game. My bird just like twigs also doesn't respond to treats but I think he likes kisses. Sometimes (not all the time) I put my hands up and call him and he flies and lands on my hand/arm and then I give him many kisses.

Lol i don't know what you look like but i picture you doing this and started laughing uncontrollably!

 

[RavensGryf]

When twigs is out of the cage do you interact with him? Does he follow you? When I go from one room to the other he follows me. Sometimes I run from room to room and he follows. Maybe you can do that like a game. My bird just like twigs also doesn't respond to treats but I think he likes kisses. Sometimes (not all the time) I put my hands up and call him and he flies and lands on my hand/arm and then I give him many kisses.

Sounds like your little guy is pretty bonded to you. Twigs chooses not to be bonded to humans. He'd rather fly away from me then TO me lol. He's just slightly more tame than an aviary finch!

* I did notice that he'll go back home (on his own) a lot sooner if it's in the evening. If it's the morning, forget it. He'll try to stay out all day. I don't blame him