[kikicockatiel]

hello everyone we have had kiki for one month now we got her from a woman who said she was probably 4/5 months old,i guess maybe that was right b/c she has pin feathers on her head and is losing feathers everywhere she has even lost two of her long yellow tail feathers and i heard they have there first molt at around 6 months(is that right?) ok well i would like to know is she ever gonna step up on mine or my daughters finger the home where she was before never let her out of her cage so she never bonded with anyone. i let her out everyday in the morning when i get up and she stays out till 'bout 9oclock she likes to fly out and sit on my budgies cage that my husband built i have to put paper on top there cage or else the budgies will get pooped on (yeah gross):blush: anyways she does get plenty of time out, my biggest concerns are that she doesnt want to step up on my finger is this something that will just take more time and yes we do the hold the millet up to her thing .she isnt very vocal either will that come in time or are they just more quieter than all four of my budgies i love all the chirps and squacks and was hoping on her to be just as chatty

 

[Plukie]

Hello. Well, first things first, it seems that Kiki is going through her first big moult, when mine did that I thought he was going to be bald! When you let her out of the cage, do you just open the door and let her fly out? If you talk quietly to her, move slowly and put your hand in the cage, gently but firmly put your hand to her and get her to step up onto you, then take her out of the cage. Try getting her on your hand in the cage, first off she will jump on and off, that's ok, she'll still be a little unsure, but with quiet talking and reassuring words "good girl!" "Well done!" etc. etc, she will soon learn that it's a good thing to sit on your hand. By getting her on your hand and you taking her out of the cage she will get the message that, you can put your hand in her cage and mean her no harm, also, she will get to know that she can come out when you say and not when she wants to. You will have to be patient though, if she is around six months old and never really bonded with anybody, then you have to build up the trust with her, so that she knows you won't hurt her. Patience, quietly and slowly and she will gradually get to trust you. Females are not really very vocal, once bonded with you, they tend to scream for you when you leave the room. Some females whistle but most are quiet. Are you sure she is a she?

 

[Tike2]

Hi, I got my year old Tiel a month ago... he had been with his breeder for a year, with lots of other birds... so was a major adjustment for him to move into a new place with no birdy friends... it has taken lots of patience and more patience to just get him to step up for me, even tho he is tame and was handfed... this forum has been so helpful with advice and suggestions... and Tiki and I have made so much progress... Good luck.. btw, I used a little perch to get him to step up to start with....

 

[kikicockatiel]

no i am not sure if she is a she or a he just going by what the former owner thought.when kiki comes out in the morning she climbs up to the top of her cage and sits there for a moment then flies off to atop of the keets cage and then back to her cage and then back to keets cage and so on and so on ,so i dont really try to put my hands in her cage i try and get her to step up while shes sitting on the keets cage,she does call out like when we leave the room once i walk in all talk to her she stops i also noticed her starting to make some sounds while preening herself,will her molting effect us bonding with her we love her so much i just want whats best for her

 

[Plukie]

No, the moulting shouldn't change anything, although she/he might be a bit grumpy with all the pin feathers and itching that comes with a moult. You could try misting her with a spray of warm water, that helps them. I think you would be better to start off by putting your hand in her cage as I suggested and let her get used to your hand in there first, try getting her to step up onto you whilst in the cage, because when she is out of the cage and on top of your budgies cage, she's no need to step up, she can just fly right back to her cage if she wants to. It took me six months to realise that I have to be in control of my bird and not him in control of me, which is what was happening to me. Dooby ruled the roost totally, he was a demon, he would bite at every given opportunity, because I let him do what he wanted basically. You will have to take charge, be patient and firm, make her step up in the cage, that's the first start, then once she has stepped up, you can take her out and let her fly, then you must get her to step up again to put her back in. I wouldn't let her stay out all day like you have been doing, but that's just my personal choice, my reason is, she is then doing what she wants to do all the time. So, with mine, they come out first thing in the morning, I take them out one at a time, give them a kiss and let them fly, they are out for about an hour flying and playing, then I go and get their breakfast, I put that in their cage and put them back in, usually, they see their breakfast and go in for it anyway. Then after about an hour in the cage, I take them out again for flying and playing. When they are in the cage, it give me time to throw open the windows and have a tidy up etc. etc. that the way I work it with my two. Bedtime is between 6.00p.m. and 7.00p.m. and they get covered up (I leave the bottom half of the cage uncovered) then in the morning, they get uncovered around 7.00a.m. and another day begins. I hope this helps, I know Tike2 will back me up when I say patience is the key word here. I am not the most patient of people, but if I feel I am beginning to lose my patience with them, I leave the room for five minutes, calm down and then start again. You haven't had her for very long, so it's still very new to you both as I said before, you have to learn to trust each other. You will get there, Tike2 never thought she would make progress, but look at her now!! LOL.

 

[kikicockatiel]

thank you very much i will start trying all this tomorrow,i was afraid she was just gonna be this way b/c of having to stay in her cage with her former owner i felt bad so that was one of the reasons for letting her stay out all day,i just want to do right by her and want her to be as happy and healthy as possible

 

[Plukie]

That is exactly what I wanted for Dooby as well, I thought I was doing the right thing by letting him do what he wanted and be as free as a..........bird, but then they feel they are in control and when that hormonal stage hits, boy you will know it. I went through six months of **** with Dooby until I posted a video on here of what he was doing to me and it turned out that it was MY fault!! Because he had had all that freedom and been left to fly free all day more or less, he was in control, so when I put my hands anywhere near him he ripped me to shreds, I was very nervous of him and it showed on the video that I was being hesitant with him. Quite a few people picked up on that on here and since then, I gritted my teeth and if he went to bite me, I just carried on regardless and made him step up, it took him a couple of days to realise that biting wasn't working any more and that I was back in charge. Since then, he's been a little darling....of course, I was told that he needed a friend as well....that's when Daisy came to live, about four weeks ago we got her. I fully understand where you are coming from though by letting her be out of the cage after the life she had before, but let her come out of the cage on your terms....not hers. Good luck and keep us posted.

 

[kikicockatiel]

thanx i will keep ya'll posted:clap:

 

[Tike2]

Yes it has taken lots of patience.. but we have come so far... one thing I did do tho after reading as much as I could about tiels before I got Tiki was have the breeder clip his wings the day I brought him home. I didn't want to be chasing him all over the house. I also left him in his cage for a wk to let him get use to the dogs , myself and our general routine. I know you said this little one had been in the cage for a long time, Tiki had had free flight at his breeders I think.... the first time I opened his cage he flew out, to the floor of course, it suprised me so much I just scooped him up and put him back in the cage... Since I am a new bird owner, I was nervous, he was nervous... and so on...

Boy, have things changed in the last month... Its great and I'm having so much fun.

 

[Simon]

Hi,

Based on my rather short experience with cockatiel(s) - about 6 weeks - it's like dancing - there are a couple of steps that needs to happen before the bird is ready.
I am away from 8:30 to 6:30, so when I get home and open the cage door my bird first stretches, then when I get close it expects some neck scratching, and THEN he is ready to step up ;-)

S.