Cockatiel Training
A Few Tips For Cockatiel Training
Cockatiel training is a gradual process, and not for those who are quick to temper. Trust is key when dealing with these small, intelligent creatures, and the only way to earn that trust is through sheer patience and consistency. If you can find a young, hand raised cockatiel to begin with, this will make your job much easier. If you have the kind heart that it takes to adopt an older bird, or one who has been abused or neglected, your duties will be all the more difficult, and will take quite a while longer, but the success will be that much sweeter for both you and your bird. The first step to cockatiel training will be to familiarize him with your hands.
Your hands should mean good things to your birds, and negative reinforcements are never acceptable when teaching an animal to trust you. Pain, agitation, fear, and panic are the only things that you will create by striking back after a bite or hiss. Begin your hand desensitization by placing your hand inside of his cage for at least ten minutes at a time, about three times a day. Slowly reach in and rest your hand on a perch or water dish, so you don’t get tired, and just speak softly to him. You can put a favorite shelled nut or a piece of dried fruit on your hand, just in case he’s the type of bird who will move toward food.
As you continue this phase of cockatiel training, you can begin moving your hand closer to him slowly, and this will also speak to the way that you change his feed and water or clean the bottom of his cage. Quiet and gentle is the name of the game. Once he behaves as if your hand is just another fixture within his cage, you can begin trying to get him onto your finger. You will press gently upward on his belly, just in front of his legs, and gently command him to “step up.” Keep trying this until you succeed, and don’t be discouraged. He may nip at you, and he may even bite hard, to which you will use the sharp demand “no bite.” if you can handle the pain, pretend that it hasn’t phased you.
Once you have finished this portion of cockatiel training, you have conquered half of your battle. In the same gentle fashion, you may start to touch parts of his body with your other hand while you talk to him. If he is to talk, he will repeat the words that you say most often, and only those that he enjoys the sound of. To teach him not to chew on your things, you can use a non toxic bitter apple spray on the items he is not welcome to, and use the same “no bite” demand when he is caught red beaked.