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TAMING COCKATIELS
How a bird behaves depends a lot on what its experience of humans is, which is one of the reasons that I always recommend getting any bird from a reputable dealer that you know and getting the bird as young as you can. That way you know the history of the bird and can influence its behaviour right from the start rather than having to spend time correcting bad habits later on. Taming cockatiels will be made harder if the bird hasn't for example, been hand fed or able to socialize as a baby. You may well find that birds from this sort of background are very distrustful of humans and prone to biting. You may get lucky and find that the bird responds quickly to gentle friendly handling but be prepared to spend several very frustrating months getting your cockatiel out of the biting habit if it has one. Young birds will always be easier to tame than older birds but both will take patience. Birds are not natural fighters. They have wings and can literally take flight if frightened. If they bite you its probably because they felt they had no alternative so think carefully about how you approach them and what their instincts will tell them to do. It is important to spend time with your cockatiel and learn their body language. They will always give you a warning before biting. It might be a lunge, a hiss or tail fanning. If they're getting upset leave them alone to cool down before you try anything else. Try to nurture you bird's personality by spending time with them. Sit near their cage and talk to them, let them get used to your presence and the sound of your voice. I find that reading a book out loud works quiet well. It stops the pretty Polly monologue which somehow always bothers me. The bird hears me talking and I get to read a bestseller. Bird's have comfort zones in the same way as humans do. Do you like strangers sitting too close…neither do cockatiels, so respect their space and move back if the bird is unhappy. Gradually ,move closer to the cage over a period of days or weeks until the bird starts moving towards you. Once the bird has accepted you, start putting your hand into the cage so that he gets used to you. Don't try touching him at first. Once he has accepted your hand you can start gently stroking his chest. Remember take each step slowly and don't rush. After a few days of stroking being accepted it is time to get him to step up onto your finger. Gently push your finger against the top of his legs pushing up very slightly towards the abdomen. He should step up onto your finger. Leave him in the cage and let him get used to sitting on your finger. After a few days of repeating this it is time to bring him out of the cage.
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Make sure that you are alone and undisturbed for the first few times that your bird comes out of the cage. Traumatise him now and you will be set back weeks. Gradually you will be able to spend more time with him out of the cage. Sit him on your shoulder. You will soon get to the stage where you are so comfortable with your cockatiel that you almost forget that he is there. One important thing is that some cockatiels will bite to control you. If your bird has this habit there is separate training to stop this but it is important not to let a bird that is biting sit on your shoulder and feel dominant. If your bird is a biter make sure that you have the dominant position by keeping him sitting in your lap and maintain eye contact whilst he is out of the cage. Your patience will be rewarded - just take each step slowly and if in doubt wait another day or two before trying something new. Enjoy your cockatiel
About the Author: Nick Bird has been a keen parrot enthusiast for nearly twenty years. He is the author of the ebook The Ultimate Guide to Parrots. He shares his knowledge and experience of parrots, keeping parrots, taming parrots and taming cockatiels in his articles and website. You can visit his website at
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