Really need some help - training issue

[jenwolf]

So. . .both this morning and tonight Quin did not want to get on my finger and come out of his cage even though he's in there acting like he wants attention or something.

So I put millet on my hand and coax him onto my hand. While he's eating the millet I slowly move him toward the door of the cage. Finally, he's out of the cage at the doorway and happily eating millet. He lets me pet him and contiues eating. Finally the millet is all gone so I slowly put him back into the cage.

I figured I'd do this a few times so that he'd want to get on my hand and come out. Well. Not 2 minutes after I put him back and close the door he starts flying at the door, back to the perch, at the door, back to the perch, etc. So I just open the door and let him come out on his own. Ok that's fine.

So he flies around a bit then sits on his window pirch for a long, long time looking outside. Then he starts to sing and sing and it turns into screeching. What the heck does he want? When I go to him it's like he's making a game of getting on my hand then getting off and running up and down the pirch. He does not seem scared, it's like this is a game!

So now I can't get him back into his cage. He gets really upset if I cup my hand around him and bites (not hard, but hard enough to let me know that he does not like it). I can't let him stay on that window pirch all night, he'll need to get back into his cage eventually but how do I do it?

I tried getting him to come with millet, but it's the same game. He grabs a bite and runs on the pirch then grabs another bite then runs on the pirch. He loves the pirch and looks so happy there. Has his face feathers all puffed out, sings really pretty now and then, preens himself, stretches, but he is so stubborn! What can I do to get him back into his cage without scaring him half to death?

[featherjinxer]

You said he does not mind you cupping your hands around him- restrain him that way and place him back into his cage. It sounds like he is not scared by that, jsut annoyed.

He is unclipped?

[Cidsa]

Well, I know that budgies like to screech and hop about because they are playing and they *love* excitement!
It might think it's a fun game where he can be outside and get millet.

I think that you should try to cup your hands around him again, if he's unclipped and you can't get him, just leave him be. Eventually he will go back into his cage.

Mine constantly do this, but they do eventually go back in.
Also, putting the millet inside the cage might help as he might go in there for some.

If worse comes to worse and you really need him back in the cage. Get the room as dark as possible, then turn of the light. Have someone right by the switch.
This is not recommended, but if it's an emergency do this..
Turn off the lights and let your eyes adjust, budgies really can't see in the dark. Once you've adjusted make sure you have someone at the light switch. Then gently and quickly grab the bird then tell the person at the lights to turn them on.
This method will scare the bird, but if the lights go on as quick as possible it might not be as scared. Also try not to let go even if he bites you.
Also, if the birds jumps or flies tell the person to hit the lights, this will make it so the bird doesn't fly into any walls or hurts itself.

I hope this helps in some ways. But again, I don't recommend the last method as it might really scare the bird.

[Mama Bear Darwin]

The latest issue of Bird Talk magazine has a nifty article on training - it is geared toward parrot owners, but I think it can easily apply to other stunningly intelligent birds (like budgies, of course). In the introduction to the article, the author describes a situation where two girls have unknowingly trained their bird to do a whole series of antics, by their reactions to each of the bird's individual actions. I wonder if this might be happening in your case.

Anyhow, it sounds like you really are doing wonderfully with your budgie. But I think you need to be the "heavy" now and then, and place your budgie back in the cage even when he doesn't want to go. I say this out of experience, not as a bird owner, but as a mother.

Good luck!

[jenwolf]

I'm pretty convinced now that he wasn't playing a game so much as he really did want something. There's a small bird feeder stuck to the outside of the window and he could see the seeds but not get to them. I'm certain now that that's what he wanted because he kept screeching at me, getting on my hand, running on the pirch, then pecking at the glass. When I finally got him back in his cage he started into his seeds like he hadn't eaten in a year or something. Shish. I got him back to his cage by taking down the pirch (with him on it), closing the shades so he couldn't see outside anymore and carrying him over to the cage (on the pirch, LoL).

(no he's not clipped)

[Pootspete]

Glad you figured out the mystery with the bird seed Jen.

Aren't we clever in figuring out how to get our bird back into the cage, good going!ping

[Mama Bear Darwin]

[Duddles]

Jenwolf - it sounds like he was just excited by the outdoor birds, and was full of beans. When my birds are exited, I try to join in with them - I speak to them excitedly. If they are ot scared by it, I make small sudden movements as they do to let them know I am excited too. I just want to "fit in" with them, so I try to act like a bird at these times. I want them to know I am happy that they are excited.