Hand taming aviary bird

[Kaya]

Hey everyone,
I'm having alot of trouble trying to train my grass parakeet,
I bought him 3 weeks ago, as an "Aviary bird" but I'm determined to hand tame him.

He steps up well in cage, but seems to have no enthusiasm to leave his cage.

Ever since hes gotten more confidence being out of his cage, he just jumps off my hand and onto the floor as soon as I let him out.
He used to let me carry him around and even give him scritches sometimes.

I don't think hes scared of hands, he just seems to have no motivation to be with me. He doesn't care much for treats and only takes them when I put them right up against his beak. (I've taken the sunflower seeds out of his normal food now but its still not working).

What can I do to make him like me more? I have no idea what to give as a reward.
Do you think It might just be time, since hes never really been with humans much before?
Also, I just got his wings clipped last week, and its probably the first time in his life he hasn't been able to fly properly.

 

[Kaya]

Also, I'm not sure how I should react to my bird when hes out of the cage, should I just let him run around, or try to pick him up and make him sit on my hand?

 

[MollyGreenCheeks]

First you need to understand it is going to take time. Was it an aviary bird with the purpose of mating. I'm wondering if it had a specific flock mate. In time you will hopefully become it's flock mate. Are the wings clipped? I assume so since you say it jumps off you hand onto the floor. If there are no safety issue with him being on the floor you can just follow him around and talk to him about what he's doing or where he's going. On the other hand you can pick him up and put him back on his perch 200 times a day which some will likely say is the preferred method. The main thing is just be there and talk to him and spend time with him so he knows you are there to take care of him. It will take time.

 

[MonicaMc]

From my limited experiences, grass parakeets typically aren't very big on being held and interacted with humans, especially in regards to getting scritches. I haven't noticed much of them allopreening each other, so it's kind of hard to imagine one enjoying a scritch from a human. I haven't had a hand raised (as in hand fed) grass keet, so I don't know how a hand raised one is compared to parent raised (or parent raised and interacted with by a human as the chick grows).

I honestly don't like the idea of clipping a grass parakeet, as the ones I had rarely used their beaks to get around. I find it the equivalent to clipping a finch. In fact, the ones I had/have kind of remind me of finches! Light, soft chirps, lots of fluttering, and cute little birds!


Have you tried millet on a stick?


I would have to say that it could take time for him to warm up to you. Grass keets aren't like other parrots, which is why they are usually aviary birds more than they are pet birds.