Cockatiel-Training
87Cockatiel Training
Training Cockatiels
Cockatiel Training
Training Cockatiels can be a lot of fun and also pretty easy. There are several methods you can use to train cockatiels and we have some free Cockatiel Training videos that show you how. You can also check out our web site for more cockatiel training videos and sign up to be on our newsletter that gives you the most up to date training information out there.
I included two videos here for you to see our Cockatiel Training methods. ONe covers teaching your cockatiel to do tricks. The other covers why your cockatiel bites you. I work all the time with my cockatiel Magoo so if you are having some other issues just Let me know.
Training A Cockatiel
Cockatiel training - tips and steps to reduce unwanted behaviors.
As a general rule, cockatiels are easy-going members of the parrot family. They are happy and affectionate birds, but each has its own personality. Sometimes bad habits develop and your once friendly bird begins screaming loudly. You ask yourself, "What happened? How do I stop this?" This is the point where cockatiel training comes in handy.
Screaming is one habit that is extremely bothersome. Your once peaceful home is no longer peaceful. You try to watch television and the noise is unbearable. You want to nip this in the bud before it becomes more difficult to break the habit later. Luckily it's not difficult to train a cockatiel not to scream.
Cockatiels don't just scream just to be screaming. They are doing so because they are trying to tell you something. Here are some things they may be trying to communicate to you when the scream:
They are bored, they need mental stimulation.
They are lonely and need to spend time with you.
They are stressed or fatigued from not getting the rest they need.
They have a poor diet that is causing them physical discomfort.
They are maturing sexually and don't have a mate.
Of course, there may be other reasons, but these are the main reasons that a cockatiel might begin screaming.
Before you begin training, there are some things to understand about cockatiels. First, cockatiels are noisy birds by nature. That's how they communicate, so you can't expect them to be completely silent. Learn the sounds your cockatiel makes and listen for sounds that are out of the ordinary. These are often good indications that something is wrong with it.
Second, you may be inadvertently reinforcing your bird's screaming by giving in to its demands. For instance, if you take your bird out of it's cage to get it to stop screaming, you are teaching it to get its way by screaming. Instead of reinforcing that behavior, you ignore your bird until it stops screaming.
One of the first things you must establish in your relationship with your cockatiel is that you are the boss, the bird is not. You also cannot react when your bird bites or screams at you. If you let the bird think it's the boss, you've already lost the cockatiel training war.
Consistency and patience are required when cockatiel training. Just as your cockatiel didn't learn these habits overnight, they are not going to be trained out of them overnight either. In fact, be prepared to spend several days to a couple of weeks retraining your bird.
Routines are important when training your cockatiel. In fact, set a routine for when you remove the cover from your bird's cage, when you having training sessions, and specific times that the bird is allowed out of its cage once training and behavior issues are no longer a problem. Repetition is the name of the game if you want to be successful at cockatiel training.
How do you establish the routine? Start working with your cockatiel daily for at least 15 minutes each time, two to three times each day. Make sure that you include them in your day even when you aren't actively training them. Talk to them first the first thing you walk into the room. This may keep them from starting to squawk and scream because you're giving them the attention they desire.
If they are able, let them out of the cage so that they can be a part of the family's daily life. They are social animals, so they will enjoy the opportunity to go with you into different rooms and just be with you. Don't forget that they are still wild creatures at heart. They need freedom to roam, and allowing them out of their cage will give them this freedom.
Let your feathered friend know what's going on. Give it a consistent cue when you leave the room for a few minutes, and a different one when you plan to be gone for a while. Tell your bird, each time you leave the room, "I'll be right back." Use a different cue, such as "Be good today" when you're leaving for several hours or for the day.
Don't yell at or punish your bird for doing what comes naturally. Control the urge to bang on the cage if the bird is especially noisy. Your negative behavior will reinforce the behavior instead of causing it to quit.
Remember this important point when cockatiel training, you can't give up. You may have some setbacks before you have success, but you must persevere. Stay focused on the goal of training your bird not to scream and you will be rewarded with less noise in your home, and a much happier bird.
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About 2 months ago I adopted a 6 year old cockatiel. Prior to my adopting him he was kept in a small cage with vertical bars hung approx 8" fom the ceiling and had not been out of the cage for over a year.
I bought a book on how to care for him, bought him a proper cockatiel cage with natural perches and toys and with patience and gental persuasion he has come to accept and trust both myself and my grandauter who is living with me. At the same time as \i adopted the Cocatiel my grandaugter brought home a little canary that had been likewise neglected. Both birds get along well and have no problem visiting each others cages, both cages are opened in the morning and the birds are allowed to fly free as long as either myself or my grandaughter are at home.
My problem is that the cockatiel is a biter, he will sit on my knee and watch tv with us, he will allow both of us to stroke the back of his head and his back, but if we try to stroke his chest or even raise our finger to stroke his head from the front he will bite. \|If he is perched on a piece of furniture and we want him to perch on a finger to take him with us to another room he will try to bite. We both tell him up up when we are trying to get him onto our finger, but he will bite before he gets onto that finger.
What can I do about it, is there a tried and true method to stop cockatiels from biting. Is he too old now to learn how to play with any of the toys we have bought him, he seems to be either afraid of them or plain doesn,t know what to do with them.
One thing you could try to get him to stop biting you while he steps up, is you could take him into a smaller room, away from his cage, and do step-up exercises every day for about 15 mins or so. have him perched on your finger, and put your other finger right in front of his stomach, and say "step up" or "up up". Every time that he does this without biting, reward him with a treat, when he bites, firmly say "No bite". If he gets frusterated and bites harder, or for longer after a few steps, give him a short break just sitting on your finger, talking to him in a soothing voice. After he's calmed down a bit, try again. You have to be persistant, and every time he bites, make sure to say "No Bite", and reward him for good behaviour. It will take a while, but this is what i did with my 2 older cockatiels in a similar situation, and it took about 4 months. Now they're at the point where I don't think they even remember how to bite lol. It just takes a lot of persistance, and spending a lot of time with your bird until he learns to trust that you aren't going to hurt him. For his toys, some birds are just very very picky about colours, shapes, size, or even types of toys. Some birds are quite content with a toilet paper roll, whereas others love the extravigant colourful toys you buy in a pet store. you could try playing with him with the toys, but you might have to get him to a high trust level before he will enjoy that kind of interaction with you. When introducing a brand new toy, take it in baby steps. Maybe show it to him a couple times first, after he's seen it a few times, try putting it on the outside of the cage first for a few days so he gets used to it being there, he might even get curious, and chew on it a bit throught the bars. Then you can move it into his cage. If you just put it in his cage right off the bat, that could potentially stress him right out, and then he'll definately have no interest in it once he gets used to it being there. Hopefully this will help :)
I've had my cockatiel, Mocha, for about 3 years now but I still cannot get him out of the cage. He lets me pet his head through the bars and relaxes when I talk to him, but he won't let any of my other family members touch him (I can't even get him to come out to clip his feathers which I know is bad but I think the stress would be a lot worse). I used to have an older cockatiel who did the exact opposite! He would let me get him out of his cage and we would play, but he would never let me pet him (this little bird has passed on now). I think one reason for Mocha's 'shyness' would be the fact that my family also has a cat and a dog and we let them roam free on the first floor. I have tried in the past to train him in a bathroom that we have, away from the other animals, but I didn't have any success. What you wrote was that I would have to spend 15 min. two to three times a day training him but because of school and after school activities, repeating that 15 min. every day is hard to fit in. What should I do?
I just got 2 cockatiels and they must have been abused. When I got home with them they are quiet. I can't do anything but put food in their cage. I try to put my hand by them but they bite and run from me. I've had them for a week and it don't seem to be getting any better. One flew out when I was trying to feed them and I got 3 cats so I grabbed him and he took a peace of skin off my finger. How can I get them to be nice.
i have a cockatiel named sunny( male) ,and he won;t stop hissing at his tail .I asume becuase he's young ( 11 months old) so he does not know that his tail is harmless but sill, what should i do to stop him from hissing a screaming at his tail ?
I use's to have a bird named Molly and she was the greatest. She let me take here eggs out the cage without biting because she bite everyone else. I could dod anything to this bird even pick her upfrom the back with my whole hand. I enjoyed her but she didnt like other people, she's gone now and now I have another female. My question is why is it that I cant get this bird to do the same thing the new one I have? She runs everytime I put my hand in, I never can pick her up but she neve bites either she just runs like heck, what am I to do? Oh yeah I only had her for two days.
Hi i have a cockatiel called spike, he doesn't let ppl clap him or pick him up, one moment he will let you and he will fly on to your leg or sholder then when you go to put your finger under him he will bite or hiss and is there anyways of telling the age of it looks young but is there any physical ways in telling?
Hey bud. I have a 6 year old male cockatiel and he has a habit of banging his beak against the cage... if hes not near the cage he does it on the perches, or sometimes if hes out of the cage he'll do it on my shoulder etc. Ever heard of this before? What can i do to ease him up on it.
cheers.
peace
I've had Dean for about 3 months, and he's about 6-7 months old. Is there a way for me to teach him to go back inside his cage on his own? Also, is it a bad thing to clip his wings? I love that he flies freely, but it's difficult to get him to back inside his cage- he also doesn't play with any of his outside toys, only picks at our earings, buttons, etc. Any ideas? Thanks
I have two eight year old cockatiels, they're not so much mean as they seem anti-social. The lady who had them previously only came to see them once a week to feed them and left them in an empty house. One of them talks and sings from behind the bars of his cage, but when I get my fingers too close, he bites. The other bird whistles a little and he's not as bad, he hisses and hardly bites. I leave the cage open for them to venture out, which they do and like-- that's when I can pick them up if they're walking around on the floor, but even if they're on my fingers and I reach to pet them-- they bite. As well as one of my birds enjoy being on my shoulder and it's hard to get him off, which I don't mind, but when I want to he bites at my fingers so it's a mess when I have to get him off to leave the room because I have dogs and they're curious. The hissing one who likes to be on my shoulder likes to chew on things-- broke my favorite necklace, it's just really stressful trying to get them to stop biting and hissing at me all the time.
If you have any information, please e-mail me!
iloveyou.fool@live.com
Alrighty I have a issue with my girlfriends daughter vs my cockatiel. I have owned my bird for about 15 to 20 years, I dont mind if she snaps or hisses or squaks at me I give her that its in her nature. I used to trim her feathers until I noticed she flew better with her wings clipped and decided never again. I also trained her and enjoy the fun playing with her.
My girlfriends daughter has 2 cats who hunt small birds where I find them all the time outside my window where my cockatiel is sitting. They are fully clawed and dont mind taking the birds because its in their nature. The problem is she is planning on taking my bird upstairs away from me, where she wants to train her and I prefer her to stay the way she is. I love birds but I dont really care if they are traind or not.
In the new enviroment sits these 2 cats and a pair of birding dogs. I am fearful that if my cockatiel gets spooked she flies and 1 of the four eats my bird. This threat is extremely real and where I love animals I dont want to hear that one of hers killed my cockatiel, there is no trust with any of the animals upstairs and I am always keeping a constant watchful eye out for her pets.
So in what way do I stop this action from happening?
you can contact me at celticolorado@yahoo.com
Hi,
My cockatiel is fourteen. He bites at my jewelry and is able to unfasten it. When there is no jewelry he nibbles and picks at my skin. How do I get him to stop this? Is it becasue he is bored when on my shoulder?
Any advice would be much appreciated.. I love my cockatiel very much!
-Roxann, NYC
Thank you for posting this article. I have 2 cockateils, one is 12 and the other is 10 years old and they have slowly developed a screaming problem and I had no idea how to stop it. I realize that the behavior is a normal thing to them, they aren't doing it just to annoy me, but it has gotten so bad that I considered letting them go. I am a serious pet owner and it would break my heart to do that, so I've lived with the ongoing stress of dealing with them. Your article gives me hope that there is a way to change this behavior. I will do my very best. I love them and can't stand the idea of giving up on them. I just can't cope anymore with the constant screaming. They live in a huge cage, get a variety of foods, get daily attention, etc. I'm at the end of my rope...but I won't give up. I take pet ownership seriously...so thank you for your help with this problem.
"OMG my cockatiel wont stop screaming. i cant take it aneymore he is almost 3 yo and has been doing this for the last year i used to let him out of his cage all the time i had to stop becaus i moved and got a cat i stoped leting him out for a about six mo. and slowly stared leting him out agen the cat is used to him they play together the cat is declawed but i stay clos by them but the screaming has got worse to wher im on the edge of giving him away he even screams when his door is open. i cover his cage to stop him it dosent always work it has gotten so bad that he spend more time coverd then uncoverd i even tryed geting him a friend i got a parakeet they are in the same cage and get along verry well but he still screems i need some advise i just cant afford the training videos im on a fixed income please aney sugestions he is a healthy bird i really think this is becaus of the cat i still give phionex ( the bird) the same atteion as i have since i got him. he is well trained and talks goes to other pple he is a cage for his breed and it will fit 2 tieals
Hey, my cockatiel is only about 10 months old and he is a great bird, his name is Cookie and he doesnt scream or bite hard... to me at least. The problem is that he will gladly come to me and sit on my shoulder for ages, in the mornings if he hasnt seen me before seven o'clock he becomes aggitated. He doesnt like to be with anyone but me, even people he has known his whole life he will bite if they try to take him off my shoulder. He is only sensable when im away and only then will he go with others, is there a way i can stop this?
HI my cockatiel wont let me pick her up unless if i leave the door cage open if i try to she will hiss and back away and how do i get my cockatiel to not hiss at me when i cover her up??
I just adopted a 1 year old cockatiel from an elderly lady. I have just got him home and he has been screaming constantly. I donèt know whether it is just because he is in a new place... he does not even stop if I go to him. This is a major problem because I live in an apartment so it is very hard for me to just ignore the screaming. What is the best way to stop this. Thank you.
I have to say I love all animals but birds are my favorite pets by far and having some one help me become closer and grow as a handler is amazing if there is anything that I can dmaybe get the word out about birdtricks.com let me know thank you very much
I have a cockatiel an I to tran it now to get on my hand how do I do that.
I have a cockatiel an I to tran it now to get on my hand how do I do that.
I have a a pair but it's the male we have problems with he loves people and is a very good natured bird but for no reasion if the bird is out of his cage when my cousin comes to visit he he becomes wild and dives at his head and even so much as to even poop on his head a few times I don't know which to fear the bird? or the cousin?.
Hey there. I recently bought a cockatiel. I had wanted one for a long time, However, now that i finally have it I don't know how to get it to enjoy my company. I have been trying to get it out of the cage, but I think he is too timid. How Can I get my bird to trust me enough so that we can have a fun and loving relationship. Please email me!
I need a little more info when it comes to cockatiels. Can you give me some step-by-step instructions on tricks to teach my cockatiel? thanx bye!?????
hey tink! i can tell you some of my tricks and they are easy!
flap: when your bird flaps keep saying flap and then give him a treat then once he knows that it is called flap say flap and then it will flap!
step up: get a stick and say to your cock step up and push him a little by the chest and hopefully he will loose his Balance and step up.now always do that and when he knows that u want him to do it he will just do!
it.
wave: will be easy after you teach him step up. get a stick and tell your bird to step up (teach bird step up first) when your bird lifts its foot up instantly remove the stick and treat him and keep doing that
batman: sometimes your bird will go upside down and wave its wings like batman. then say to him batman whenever he does it say batman or battyboy (battygirl as well) then your bird will know and will listen to you.
When it comes to Cockateils, you have to buy a hand trained one, or a Hand Raised one before you buy it.
When you go to the pet shop, the birds in the cages all together are not hand raised. The birds all together are birds whose parents have raised them their selvs, and they've had next to no human contact. They're pretty much feral.
Unless you're willing to go through the hours of trying not to get your bird to maul your finger, buy a hand reared one.
These birds are tame, friendly and willing to love you!
If you are wanting to buy one of these birds, you will be looking at near $100 for a normal coloured one. You may find this a ripp off, but it's worth it than having your finger bitten off every time you go to touch your friend!.
If you are thinking about having a hand reared bird as a pet, make sure they're in their cage by themselves, not with more birds, and that there's no mirrors.
I only say this because if they're with more birds, they won't talk because they have other birds to talk to, so why learn English? And they will form a mate, or a close connection with another one of those birds, even if they're of the same gender, and will have no reason to become close to you.
I used to work in a petshop, so I actually know what I'm on about! Hehehhe
Also, if your bird is not biting you when you're getting it out of the cage, but you're scratching his head and he gives you a nibble, he's generally not actually trying to bite you! Thats just his way of being affectionate.. And if they have a screaming problem, try changing their diet, or this could just be their way of saying I want attention, or to spend time with you. Cockateils are naturally one of the most noisiest birds there are/ :)
Be patcient, and you will have your new friend very, very soon.^^
i will soon be getting a cockateil and i am worried about it biting- what do i do to prevent it biting please?
It is recommended that u buy a hand tamed cockatiel... however that is not strictly necessary. I have had my cockatiel, Stevie, for 3 months now and he is probably about 9 months old. He wasn't hand tamed at all and I got him from a petshop. When first getting a cockatiel, they should be put in a room where the family spend most of their time and they will need a few days to adapt to their new surroundings, so are best left alone with minimal contact at first. Go about ur routine as normal and ur tiel will watch what u do which helps them define what normally happens on a day to day basis. After a few days, start to go over to the cage and talk gently to it for a NI its or so, then stay close by but ignore it. Repeat this for a few days. When changing food and water, do it purposefully and ignore bird for the first few occasions, then speak to it softly as u do it from then on. He will learn to recognize ur voice and that u mean him no harm. Start speaking to him when u walk past him etc. Once he is used to u being nearby to him, talk to him and touch ur own face, or run ur hands through ur hair etc, so he can see ur hands and that its no threat to him. Once he is used to seeing ur hands,a few days later, slowly put them towards his cage and touch the bars. Chances are he will back away and hiss at u. When he does this, talk to him softly and slowly move ur hand away from cage but where he can see it still. Repeat this over the course of a few days until he doesn't his when ur hand is on the bars. Then try to offer him some food from ur fingers. Chances again are that he won't take it. After a few days, leave his cage door open, and walk away. He may not necessarily come out but he will do when he feels the time is right. If he don't come out, close the door after a few minutes. Repeat this over a few days, and soon he will come out, probably have a little explore and go in his cage. Try not to approach him when he is out, and if possible let him go back inside of his own accord. Once he is confident outside of the cage then slowly go and stand near him but don't touch him. On next occasion, Do the same but let him see ur hands... but not put them towards him. Repeat this for a few times, then eventually put ur hand slowly towards where his legs are, pushing gently as this encourages him to step up... and tell him "step up". Don't pet him, let him get used to this first. Once he is confident with this, then slowly attempt to pet him. They key is, don't pull ur hand away if he bites or hissed. Honestly it don't hurt! If u pullout hand away, then he learns that he can get his own way by doing this. Hope this helps :-) stevie is now a very loving affectionate tiel and these are the steps I stuck to enabling him to be so trusting. After 3 months of having him, he even gives me kisses and preens me gently lol :-)
hi i have a pied male cockatiel he is 7 month old i got him when he was 2 month old he been with for 5 month he never pite before but now he is starting to pite when i say step up he used to step up without piting me but now when i say step up he keep nibling my head and going back and step up when i put my finger under his chest he keep doing that i dont know if the ather cockatiel is teaching him to do that coas i got a wild male cockatiel his owner never put him out of his cage before and touched him but when i got him he is always out of the cage and he learnt byhimsefl how to open the cage so do you think i should seprate them they been together for a long time in the same cage when i got them and if i took the pied cockatiel out of the cage to play with him they make this the same whistle and the wild one want stop doing until i put the pied on back to the cage plz help me the pied one was my first bird and i realy love him and i am really crazy about him to help thanx for reading this cpmment :) :(
and i am 13 years old and there is a budgie with them aswel he is a good bird but he get scared if u put ur finger on his head but he never pit me before even thought he dont like it they are in a same cage the pied one name is lucy when it was little we thought it was a girl so we called it lucy but now her chick tourned darker the budgie name is skyblue and the wild cockatiel is a grey and his name is pepper
but i want to tech tiki my cocatil to do triks and i want powpow to notbite and do triks
I have a cockatiel that i adopted from petco and i had him for 4 days and i named hom neco. I watched a training vid on how to stop cockatiels from biting. Its working a little but not very affective. I would like to know how i can build the relationship faster and easier and gain his trust. Neco is not a mean bird he is just cautious lol. And i would also like to know how to aproach him in the cage without him biting and teaching him how to do the "step up" cue. He wont let me touch him. He either clings to the cage and gets away or trys biting, wich doesnt hurt at all hes all talk, how can i train my cockatiel effectivly without buying training videos and crap like that?
I have
I recently just brought a bird from a pet shop, he was 8-10 weeks old, and he's been home now for 8 days. When we brought him home we was obviously frightened, he had a few days to settle in. I started talking to him from the moment we got home, started him getting on a wooden perch before my finger.
We've started a routine with him as he's still new, but im getting more and more worried about his biting!!!! I cannot get him out of the cage to my finger, i still use wooden perch. Than get him off (sometimes) when we first started i used rubber gloves so i wouldnt react so i could take place as boss. Now i just have very sore nipped fingers.
I've started putting his cage away, whenever a comfort thing of his was around, he goes straight to it. If he is walking along the ground, he couldnt be more excited to be picked up to be taken higher. If he stays on the finger for a while without moving, out of no where he will just bite, hard. i started blowing on him hard to give him a fright.
He gets comfortable on our shoulders right up under our ear/necks & if we even try to take him off, biting starts again.
Seems he only bites when he's comfortable.
How can i stop this ?
I've had cockatiels before and NEVER have they been this bity!
awesome love training my sun conures they are just so cool. I love coco and shy
Hi, I have my cockatiel Snowy for about a year an a half now an when we got him he didn't bite fingers but then he got sick n went to the vet n when he came home everytime I put my fingers in his cage he either runs away or bites, how do I get him to trust my fingers and let me touch him??
Jungle Talk 4 years ago
Lots of people have cockatiels, and your hub is chock full of good training information.