We acquired a 4 year old male cockatiel a couple of months ago. His previous owner passed away and we have no idea about his history, including if/how he was handled. He will communicate with us and groom my hair through his cage but hisses and gets upset if he sees my hand move toward his cage. He will not take anything from me. How do we progress? I would love to have him able to come out of his cage but I need to be able to do it safely. Any suggestions?
Hi Melissa,
It’s very likely this bird was never handled since he came from an elderly owner. The owner may have just talked to him through the cage. Adult birds are very hard to tame, especially if they have never been handled. But since he interacts with you, there is more hope than with some. It’s important to always keep in mind that cockatiels are prey animals, so they are sensitive about being grabbed. He doesn’t trust hands right now, and needs time. As for letting him out of the cage, I would not recommend doing this unless you get his wings trimmed. I would actually recommend a wing trim, and this can help you with taming and training. He will grow new feathers the next time he molts, so it isn’t permanent. I’m going to give you the links to our behavior and training pages, which will help you a lot. Consider this will be a slow process, and may take months or even longer. And he might never be comfortable with hands. The best way to start is sit by his cage with your hands in your lap, and just talk to him. Once you build trust, you can rest your hand close to the cage, and talk to him, doing this very day until he stops reacting to your hand. It’s baby steps, but it is the only approach that builds trust and will have any chance of taming him.
Thank you for asking Lafeber,
Brenda
