Budgie Training Question

cartermomma · 02-27-2005, 10:14 AM

Alright, I'm trying to train my budgie to be able to sit on your hand and all of that good stuff. The problem is, she bites really hard. I have no idea on how to train her that biting is bad. As it is, whenever we take her out we have to wear gloves. Thanks in advance!

cartermomma · 02-28-2005, 07:10 PM

Thanks! I think that we went on too fast with trying to train her, so we're kinda starting at the beginning.

budgie-boy · 03-01-2005, 12:17 PM

ok i'm glad too hear that

Squishi · 10-31-2005, 03:03 AM

I had Bob at the perching on my finger stage, now suddenly overnight he regressed to running away from me or the perch by climbing up the cage wall when i get near him.

I'm quite sad about this and wonder why he suddenly hates me :< I'd so love to let him out of the cage to fly around my room, but if he doesn't trust me... what do i do? I don't like clipping birds wings, cos they're meant to fly and i find it cruel (that's a personal opinion okay?) I think it would increase the "i don't like you" factor if I got it done now too.

I've tried bribery with nice treats, but that didn't work either.

Should I just keep trying?

samanthathebudgiegirl · 11-05-2005, 03:45 PM

yep, keep trying and it WILL pay off. and as for the wing clipping it only prevents them from flying UPWARD so they can still fly just not high.

Lovebirdfan · 11-05-2005, 10:05 PM

Quote:

Should I just keep trying?

YES!!!

It takes a while to gain their trust, and setbacks are not uncommon.
Just TAKE IT SLOW, keep encouraging interaction, reward when they do even the littlest positive thing, keep a soft, happy voice... and you will be pleased with the results.

proud of my budgie · 11-05-2005, 11:28 PM

i'm still working on this trust issue with my two budgies. when snowflake was by himself, he was progressing well, was standing on the finger and walking up finger steps. but when i got bluebird (who's completely petrified of humans), snowflake picked up on his behaviour, and now freaks out and regressed, standing for short periods and flying away.

they're kinda balancing off now, but it's going to take awhile before both would walk on the fingers, etc. oh well, i love them anyways

matio-xox · 11-23-2005, 05:12 PM

matio (my budgie) was VERY meen for me for like three months but i didnt give up i just kept trying =) but sometimes the bites can hurt i know, but if you just keep trying you will have a very happy budgie to play with.

skyler-xo · 11-24-2005, 11:55 AM

Sometimes I have trouble with Jack and Skyler, especially Skyler, but as long as I keep trying it pays off=)

eterri · 11-25-2005, 06:52 AM

Also, be very mindful of the things you're communicating (even inadvertantly) to your budgies. This is why it is advised to ignore biting. If they get any sort of reaction by biting you, you'll be reinforcing their behavior. For instance, if you get bitten and jerk your finger away your bird will know that biting makes your hand go away. If you yelp or scream it's the same thing (some budgies even enjoy the noise and drama of it all).

So keep persisting and try to think like a bird.

Cambria · 12-16-2005, 06:52 AM

ALso, when you're working with them, try to be calm and don't get nervous because their senses pick up on it and they may become nervous, too.

Clipping wings isn't permanent, but as samantha said, it just prevents them from flying higher. They won't be mad at you if you clip their wings. When I got my first keet, Fredrick, he was SUCH a biter. I let him bite me a couple of times when i changed the food/water dishes and he figured out that biting wouldn't make me go away. I followed a few steps and he trusted me to bring him out, but then as he came out, he'd fly to some unreachable shelf. I did clip his wings, and in the time before the flight feathers grew back in, I trained him to stay on my finger (because I could catch him easier at that point when he flew away) so that when his feathers grew back, he wasn't scared of me. And that's how I trained my keet. <3<3<3<3<3

Alexander · 12-28-2005, 08:54 PM

Not really, no. I've been bitten by a cockatoo, a cockatiel, an African Grey, & a conure. Between them and the budgie, I'll take the budgie bite any day. It feels more of a "pinch" than anything else. Still, I guess it depends on how you are able to take pain. I've personally got a high threshhold. I don't think budgies have the capability to break skin, though. I interacted with a cockatiel for almost three and a half years, and he was never able to make me bleed.

WolfRyder · 12-29-2005, 07:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alexander

Not really, no. I've been bitten by a cockatoo, a cockatiel, an African Grey, & a conure. Between them and the budgie, I'll take the budgie bite any day. It feels more of a "pinch" than anything else. Still, I guess it depends on how you are able to take pain. I've personally got a high threshhold. I don't think budgies have the capability to break skin, though. I interacted with a cockatiel for almost three and a half years, and he was never able to make me bleed.

I've had a couple of budgies break the skin LOL! They know how to bite-and-twist

I've also been bitten by a very frightened Tiel and that drew blood too. But it's rare they bite that hard unless they're really angry or very very frightened.

Rule #1 if you have a bird, no matter what kind, eventually you'll get bitten/nipped. If you don't want to be bitten, don't get a bird LOL!

Heavens, I've been bitten by dogs too, and cats and rats and just about any pet I've ever had

ichbcam · 03-14-2006, 08:01 PM

My only suggestion would be to not react by jerking your hand away (as hard as it is). When I first got Murphy she'd go to nip at me and I'd instinctly jerk my hand away. It taught her that nipping equaled getting the scary hand to retreat. When I stopped jerking my hand away she also stopped nipping. I also used to put my hand, full of seed, into the cage and just leave it there lying on a perch for a long time. Eventually she got used to it. Now if I put my hand in to take out a toy, or move something around in the cage she jumps up and sits on my hand. My only warning is that your hand can get VERY tired... so get as comfy as you can!

sueb50 · 03-31-2006, 06:47 PM

Thought I would jump in here and add my 2 cents. I just got my first bird 6 days
ago. She is a 4 yr. old that had almost never cameout of the cage. I have started holding millet in my hand and just holding it by her. I can't remember having so much fun. She looking at my hand and took a few nips at my fingers. You do have to not react. I didn't know what that would feel like to be nipped or to hold a bird. She finally would reach Waaaaay down and eat the millet and everyone in a while hop on my finger. It was the most amazing thing!!!!! I am hooked! She still doesn't trust me alot but she's not fluttering around as much as she used to. What a thrill this is.....

Raphael_the_wonderbird · 04-13-2006, 11:05 AM

I guess i am lucky, because both my budgies have been easy for me to train?
A lot of it is trust, if they trust you and see you about a lot they will associate you with calmness.
I agree with everyone who says not to jerk your hand away when they bite cos they do think they have won by getting your hand away!!!
My budgies have never really hurt me, they have sure given me a nip but as far as i'm aware female budgies bite harder than males cos they have to strip bark off trees for nesting material??
It takes a great amount of patience, keep at it, do it very often and for small amounts of time and always end on a good note, by them getting off your finger etc and they will learn to trust you.
My babies kiss me and chew on my lip rings all the time, and they cuddle up to me when they are scared or tired!!
Keep going it will be worth it!!

wetheril · 04-22-2006, 12:34 AM

I agree with everybody else about not reacting. Even if it hurts, try to be impassive about it. If you show them that biting is useless, they will stop doing it. If biting is going to teach them that the hand will go away, or give them amusement, they will keep at it.

The first bird I ever tried taming was Snowdrop, and she was the one I had the hardest time with, but she tamed very well in 2 weeks. (All other birds after Snowdrop tamed in less than a week--with Jasmine and Joe, I was scritching them in 3 days.) Be patient--every bird is different.

Does your bird run away from your hand? If your bird starts to back away everytime your hand comes near, you should probably get your bird comfortable with the hand first. I second the suggestion about having some treats in your hand and keeping it very still for about 15 minutes at a time. Your bird should eventually be brave enough to come eat out of your hand. Don't make any sudden moves around your bird; always make nice slow moves, speak in a quiet, soothing voice. This tends to calm them down. When your bird comes to associate your hands with goodies, you can then try to get them to step up.

Another way of training your bird to step up is to use a stick in place of your hand. If you get her comfortable with stepping up on a stick, then you can progress to getting her to step up onto your hand.

HaXxorm4ster · 07-21-2006, 02:45 PM

lol you guys.. or girls have some really soft skin!
Anyway, it feels like a small pinch...except when they bite and then PULL which makes it feel like it was going to tear your skin...but it isn't.

Anyway I guess I was lucky too since I bought a budgie that is about 1 year old but only bit me the first day and the second he/she was already on my hand.

DeeJay · 07-26-2006, 04:10 AM

I just got my bird 2 weeks ago and we are making progress. He will now continue eating when I approach his cage and talk to him. He will step up onto a dowel but not my finger although he immediately looks for another perch to go to. He also will allow me to rub his chest without moving away most of the time and he will eat millet from my hand. My question is... When and how do I get him out of his cage. His wings are clipped but I am worried that I will traumatize him trying to get him back into the cage and damage what trust we have developed. Any ideas?

sweetytweety · 08-25-2006, 06:23 PM

i dont like clipping wings..its makes them look either untidy or just out of proportion
but this is my thinking:
we take away the freedom of birds by taking them into our homes...gonearethe sky and all the trees and territories
so that makes us totally responsible and not to clip is endangering them

so i clip and keep at it ..trimming all the time so they dont suddenly gain height and speed
they are so unpredictable
and i always keep the blinds down and havent got any mirrors that they can bash into..i do have a jewellery box with a large ish mirror attached that they play round as i type here but all they can do is flutter to the ground...

i keep them amused and take them with me whenever possible as long as the temperatures arent extreme and the surroundings are safe

i find they get tamer by just hanging out with u ...i let them get used to my hands as i type here and the tiels are super tame now just with them playing round the pc ( keep an eye on wires off course)
they play with my cinnamon budgie and they all groom each other
keep ur budgie close to u as much as possible ...i hope u have some luck and end up with a good companion
wild budgies are beautiful but a tame one is an honour and privilege

silver_riselka · 08-30-2006, 12:38 PM

I've had my budgie, Kira, for a year. She got very well trained and was very nice for a while. She has always had problems with biting though; it just goes through periods where it get's better or worse. There was always someone in the house to keep her company (I live with with a bunch of students) and she spends most of her time out of the cage. Then people left for the summer and I was the only one there, so when I was gone to work, she was home by herself. That's when she really started to get mad at me and demand lots of attention. She would fly to me and start biting my neck and ears but wouldn't want to get off. I started to try to stay home more to keep her company. I also got another bird, Agua, 2 months ago. Kira now spends a lot of time with him but she started biting even worse. I basically can't have her on me anymore because she will bite for no reason at all. She also knows how to make it hurt. She knows all the painful places where the skin is softer and she won't just nibble, she will grab on as hard as she can and keep chewing non stop. I keep tyring to just ignore it but she will keep biting and so hard that it brings me to tears. She breaks skin and leaves red and swollen welts. I don't know what to do. I'm pretty sure she just enjoys it. I am not in control of the situation and I'm not really sure how to regain that control anymore. She basically terrorises me. I have thought about trimming her wings, but I am reluctant because she is so used to flying that I'm afraid she will seriously hurt herself. If someone can help me come up with a better routine for dealing with her, I would be eternally grateful.
So far, Agua, the little one, is nice to me but he is definitly more attached to Kira and I am afraid he will pick up her habbits.

sweetytweety · 10-09-2006, 05:25 AM

Squishi i dont think birds can 'hate' people
they may be afraid/ nervous ...whatever... but they cant hate cos they cant process those kind of thoughts...
i just had a group of teenagers over to see my birds and some expressed fear at the corella's free flight round the room,,one said,,"i think hes going to attack ,,i think he hates me"...these were kids whod never really had much to do with birds ..so i went thru the training routine we have been establishing and they saw the 'reward and ignore' scheme...reward for approximations of desired behaviour and ignore the rest ...be patient and neutral but insist on reaching the goal.... eventually
i think if u think that ur bird 'hates' u, it could impede progress.. u may be more reluctant to take the bird out or to train it and then time could take its toll ..
so treat the bird like a big challenge and a chance to grow together and triumph! and see the tiny changes that happen (and they may well be tiny tiny changes!!!! with lots of setbacks along the way)
but keep chipping away !!

this evening i tried a different approach with socialising a youngster male budgie...
its the catch and release method which i havent used before...but it seems to work with young budgies..so people tell me...
its not recommended for everybody and ill just see if it works and share my progress with u ..
this bird bites hard...he appears quite calm but he doesnt like hands so ....in i go ...!
no gloves..nothing up my sleeve except quiet determination to be patient and not let the bites bother me
i go in
i chat to him
i 'tunnel' him through my hands..letting him feel my hands but have his head free...he uses his beak to get thru and he bites and bites but i dont let go..i hold him gently but firmly talking to him all the while

then with his back to me i urge him to step up whilst i nuzzle him...chatting to him ,,,keeping him busy..saying 'step up' step up' good boy!
i grab a millet spray and stroke his cheeks and body..hes calm and not biting now.. sitting on my finger like a miniature japanese warrior boy...hes puffed out and beautiful,,,,
then i let him go back into the cage
a minute later
i go back into the cage..
repeat the process ...chat to him in low but excited bird talk...human gibberish
put him back into the cage again ... wait a couple of minutes then take him out again and immediately put him back b4 he bites this time...

what this is supposed to do is desensitise the bird...he has no way of predicting what im going to do but each time he realises...im not hurting him ...i let him go ..

see, this is basically the way the show people do it...they dont spend ages standing around getting the birds used to them..theyre doing it from the nest as they inspect their babies for quality etc...the birds are picked up briefly and put back...no fuss...theyre not into making pets but they need a calm bird for exhibiting...
the budgie bites do hurt..not enough to draw blood on adult skin but for a child it would be hard not to scream and let the bird go....
tonight i made sure the bird wasnt trembling and that its heart beat was normal and not racing..otherwise itd be traumatic ...that would be useless..noone can learn anything if theyre frightened out of their wits

i dont know that birds 'enjoy' biting or that they know where to bite ...i think hens do it cos they have to ...they have to ward off males and protect their youngsters..so u cannot blame them for being a good hen.. all females have a protective streak..just look at ur own mums..they can be tigresses when it comes to protecting their kids from bullies!

when i have that kind of bird..and i have now had the experience with three of them..two cantankerous young hens and this little boy...i just take it on board...they may never be the most friendly birds but they can be less frightened and therefore make better companions...
ill let u know how im getting along with this catch and release method...and i wish u luck with urs!

jacqui7680 · 10-23-2006, 04:06 AM

Hiya! I just brought a second budgie, oscar, I didnt plan to get a second one but i went to buy some more food and he was sitting on the bottom of the aviary all by himself, he cant fly bless him because his flight feathers dont fly properly, he looked so lonely I couldnt just leave him there so now one has become two! Anyway my actual question! my original budgie, billy, is a year old and completely tame but should i seperate oscar from him if i want him to become tame or will it be okaybecause billy is already tame so oscar will see that im not scary? cheers for any help!

Anja12 · 10-23-2006, 04:54 AM

Congratulations, jacqui7680!
Your billy is a lucky budgie to have another budgie in his life.
They are often kept alone, but this is not good for them.
They need urgently at least one bird of the same type.
My birds became tame by watching the others with me.
But beeing tame is also a question of character.

jacqui7680 · 10-23-2006, 05:25 AM

yea they seem quite happy together although billy keeps ransacking oscars cage he doesnt seem to care though! Yeah true ill just have to see how things go with him he already seems to be a bit more brave with me than billy was when i first got him so hopefully he will be my friend aswell!