baby budgie still scared

[aronya31]

Hi, I had a new addition to my family yesterday, a little budgie called Muffin who is about 10 weeks old. Every time I try to touch him/move my hand near to him, he scarpers to the other side of the cage. I've spent quite a lot of time with him so far, talking to him, even singing to him lol but as soon as my hand goes anywhere near him he flies quickly to the other end of his cage.

Someone today said to not treat him with kid gloves, to be bold and my confidence would give him confidence in me.

What do you suggest is a good way to start? How can I stroke him if he keeps darting away?

I've put his food bowl and water bowl on floor level as he seems to be spending all his time on the floor bars...is this normal too?

Thanks for any help here -- I love him so much, just want him to feel happy and safe.

[OP]

Welcome to the forum.
First off, stop trying to touch him, most budgies do not like being touched. Raise his food to the level you want them. He will find them when he needs to eat or drink. Carry on talking to him in a soft happy voice. By all means slowly put your hand in the cage and just keep it there. Let him get used to you. After a week or so try holding some millet near him and let him eat it from your fingers if he is ready. Time and patience will reward you. When he is ready to bond with you you will know. Don't try and force it.

[Marianne Marlow]

With new birds, it's usually a good idea to give them a few days to a week to settle in. If he's really nervous and scared then covering the sides and back of the cage wile he gets acquainted is good.

Talking to him in a calm voice is good.

After a few days, offering a sprig of millet through the cage bars and being patient with him. Imagine how big your hand is to him!

Calm and confident and not bold is better.

You said that you put his food and water on the bottom, is he eating and drinking?
Sometimes baby budgies do eat from the floor because it's what they're used to.

Most budgies do not like being stroked at all.

[Deleted]

I'm in the same boat. Got Beaky nearly 3 weeks ago and he's still very scared of me. All we can do is take it slowly, and keep persevering.

[ffiscool]

I cannot remember how long, now, but it was ages before I could go near Bailey. And took weeks and weeks before he would come out the cage. You will win with patience. It's very scary for them at the beginning

[OP]

Winking and blinking. Seriously, it helps tremendously to let them know you are not a predator.

[Deleted]

Sorry to hijack this post and hope you don't mind me asking one more thing. Squawk is very relaxed around me. Beaky's quarantine is up soon. I'm worried that Beaky's fearful behaviour will impact on Squawk and undo all the work I've put into Squawk so he ends up terrified of me too. Any tips to avoid setting Squawk back when Beaky joins him?

[ffiscool]

If anything I would say it's the other way. Beaky will take faith that Squawky is ok with you

[Hezz]

Jane ...... While some have said that a timid budgie has influenced a tame one, I have not experienced this, ever. Usually, for the majority of people, the tame budgie is the resident budgie, and the new bird takes his cues from the one already in place.

aronya31, you must wait for the bird to make the moves when it comes to touching and being touched. Once you have developed a rapport with your bird, it may allow you to scratch the feathers around its head. When your bird is a little more comfortable it will approach you, particularly if you come to it with millet, and if you offer it your finger it might explore your finger and nail with its beak. This is when trust is starting to come. Firstly now, while close to the cage, offer it millet through the bars. If you are not certain that it knows millet is food, peg a small piece up in the cage and allow it to explore it in its own time. Once bird is eating the spray, then you can try offering some in your fingers.

Unless the chicks had been handled while still in the nest, and the parents are quiet, these guys are still wild animals. It is not like taking on a cat or dog that have been domesticated for thousands of years, so trust has to be earned, and hopefully once your bird settles into his new home and realises nothing terrible is going to happen to it, the trust will start to come.

[aronya31]

Oct 21, 2015 19:52:56 GMT OP said:

Winking and blinking. Seriously, it helps tremendously to let them know you are not a predator.

.....You are joking -- right??

[OP]

Oct 22, 2015 9:12:20 GMT aronya31 said:

Oct 21, 2015 19:52:56 GMT OP said:

Winking and blinking. Seriously, it helps tremendously to let them know you are not a predator.

.....You are joking -- right??

No, I'm not joking not this time. When you look at your budgie slowly blink at him and wink as well. This lets him know you are not a predator. We have forward facing eyes and to them that is the look of a predator. Try it and you should see him start to do blink his eye(s) as well.

[Marianne Marlow]

OP is right about the blinking, it does work and you will find that eventually your bird will do it back too.

[Billy's Dad]

Billy is extremely tame,he sits on my hand for ages,gives kisses,climbs all over us but he is non too happy about being touched.You will need to have a lot of patience and keep working to build the trust,which may take a few days (took about 2 days with Billy),but will probably take much longer.We have had Buds in the past that we could never finger tame,I am convinced most of this is due to how they are treated/handled as babies.

[ffiscool]

Bailey will sit on m finger for ages too. But try touching his head, holding him, no way. Took months though after I got him, for him to remotely sit on me. I am now, allowed to cup him briefly in my hand, for a kiss. This is only since he started falling and I picked him up each time, holding him while he calmed.

But blinking totally works

[Deleted]

Dont try too much at first, give the bird a week to 10 days just to settle in its cage before attempting anything, just talk quietly to the bird, dont go near it with your hands or make any sudden movements for the settling in period, the bird should have been covered in his cage for at least 5 hours when he was placed in it.
So be patient.
Once the week to 10 days are up, you should notice that if you did things correctly the bird will be a lot calmer, and even follow your movements with his head, he will be showing interest in you.
You can now slowly place your hand on the outside of the cage, if he completely skits out just take your hand away, wait 5 mins and do it again. Soon the bird will just move slightly backwards away from your hand and not skit, he will start to look interested in what you are doing.
Now you can place your hand inside the cage, do not attempt to touch the bird just hold your hand steady, if he stays put, then you can try and give him a bit of millet (if you already have a millet spray in the cage take it out) use millet as the perfect treat.
Now it is just hard work and patience.

If the bird shows signs that it does not like what you are teaching it, stop and take a step backwards to what you were last training it to do and try again.

Every bird is different, they learn at different speeds, males usually learn quicker than females but the process is the same whether it is a budgie or a Macaw, they have to trust you before they will do anything.

You certainly do have to use kid gloves at the start, these birds are more intelligent than you think, if they take a dislike to you, you could have 15 years of trouble on your hands.

So please go slowly, gently talking to him, gain his respect, then the both of you can have a lot of years of happiness together, a truly bonded budgie is a delight to own. A badly trained one can be hell.
I hope this helps, if you have any queries then please ask.
Shewy