help with my cockatiels?

Question

i have two cockatiels. i have wrote before about them and decided to get my cockatiels wings clipped . my husband does not want to get his done until he has seen if honey does ok ,as he thinks its not right. i want to know what i can do to try and tame honey. i put my hand in her cage and she hits the bottem of the cage pacing. how can i get her out of the cage when i have her wings clipped with out hurting her (we think she is a her) and when she comes out of her cage do i try to get her to sit on my finger or do i just leave her. i have only had honey a few days i do have cheeko who lives in a cage next to honey as we did have them in a cage together but they fight. cheeko is a hard bird as soon as we put are hand in his cage he goes mad so my husband has backed off but until cheeko goes to the hand how can we let him out as how do we get him back in. i have never had birds before so all this is new to me

Answer 1

Calm down and relax.......don't worry about the pacing, the bird is still getting to know you. My female Drea still paces and she is the tamest you can imagine. Try putting a washcloth over the bird when it is on the bottom of the cage, it makes it easier to retireve them without putting a lot of stress on them. After awhile they will get used to it, but, if you have only had the bird a few days, leave it alone, and just talk to it for a about 2-3 weeks. Offer it food. Make sure it sees you feed and water it... it will understand that!

Clipping the wings is a good idea, I don't care what others may say, in my experience and I have done thins a long time, clipping forces the bird to rely on you for mobility and as a means of getting back to the cage. Once it establishes it can trust you, then you are on your way.

Don't fret let it take it's time to get to know you let it observe your day to day rituals, put it in the busiest room of the house, so it sees it is part of your flock.

they are very social and need to feel they belong. That is the first step.
The taming doesn't happen overnight, trust me, I have one who is 22yrs old and it took a good 2-3 years before she fully trusted me, now you would never know she wasn't hand reared.

Good luck, feel free to email me if you need any help or have any questions, they make great pets, you just need to know what you are getting into!

Good luck,
Tanya

Answer 2

Cockatiels are good climbers with their feet and hooked bill, so clipping their wings is less of an inconvenience to them than it might be to some birds. Wing clipping is not permanent, so if you decide later that you don't want the wings clipped, you can let them grow back. It is easier to tame a bird with clipped wings, and the bird won't accidentally fly out the door and get lost and die.
You can buy a net at the pet store to catch a bird that won't come back to you, if you let it fly around.
Cheeko and Honey may get along better after a while. You could probably let them fly together (if their wings aren't clipped) because outside the cage is neutral territory and there's plenty of room. When and if you think they are ready, try putting Cheeko into Honey's cage; he should be less aggressive outside his own territory, and Honey should be more assertive inside hers.
Try pinning a piece of millet spray (from the pet store) on your shoulder to win Honey's heart and convince her to sit on your shoulder.
Cockatiels are pretty smart and it takes them a while to bond with you, so keep at it. Talk to them, and let them watch you eat; they will feel more a part of the flock.

Answer 3

First of all- keep your birds in separate rooms until they bond to you, or they will bond to eachother and it will be very hard to tame them. Wing clipping does not hurt them. You are just cutting off dead feather shafts. Wing clipping is a must if you want to tame your bird. If they can fly away, any work you do will be useless. If you have never clipped wings, bring it to a vet or a friend. Sometimes a pet store or breeder will do it for free as well. It will take a long time to get your birds to calm down and trust you. Don't force anything. I suggest that you check out www.birdsnways2.com and go to the Tieltalk site. There are a lot of helpful informative people there.

Answer 4

Definitely clip your birds wings ASAP!

People can tell you "oh it's so cruel" but your bird is NOT flying around outside, this bird is your pet. This bird has never been in the wild, and if you want your bird to like you and not get hurt, you HAVE to clip its wings. Just wait until your bird flies into a window and dies, then your husband will regret not clipping its wings.

Just don't clip them yourself, get a professional to do it. (Some places do it for free, some places charge from $6-$15, and you only have to get it done when your bird moults)

Answer 5

To get them out of the cage, simply leave the door open and stand away from it, they will eventually come out...make sure you put the cage on the ground because they have their wings clipped so you dont want them falling and injuring themselves...in terms of catching them: the one with its wings clipped will be easy to catch...I would suggest closing the blinds in the room and truning off the lights or just turning down the light...they dont see well in the dark (make sure that you can still see them tho, this works best in the day time when there is still a bit of light peaking in from outside) this will also help them stay calm...approach them very slowly with a towel and put the towel over them ... using the towel will keep them from biting you as well and make it even darker for them and relieve stress..then simply put them in the cage...in terms of taming them...let them out each day and when they are out try and approach them very slowly...till u get closer and closer...maybe even try giving them food from your hand..keep your hand flat when open dont cup it or they will bite...hope this works for you :) good luck

Answer 6

i have an cockteil, danny-boy. when i got him i cliped his wings, it was trumtric for him. not to mention i got bited! what i read on the net and in a book was to towel them. use a towel to get them out,covering their head and wings. this way they don't fear your hands. took forever for danny-boy to trust my hands again. try treats to get them out. but let them come to you. i took danny-boy to the shower with me, don't shower! just sit in tub with him and let him explore. give him treats while in there. danny-boy likes scrambled eggs and crackers. talk to them while their in their cages, leave cages open so they can come out if they chose to. remember this takes time and understanding, also i read that it's easier for one bird to attach to an person than two. these are just my experinces with one bird. he loves to sit on my shoulder,be petted, says " i love u, pretty boy,danny boy" he will fly to me when he wants attention. again this is just one pet owner to another!

Answer 7

Slow down, just keep putting your hand till she hops on it. PATIENCE..