They are scared of me..

[kaylor]

Hi everyone! So I have had my two budgies for a few months now. After I got them I let them settle into their cage for a couple of weeks and then my life started getting crazy. I had every intention to tame them very consistently after they settled in, but I started working a job that requires a hole lot of learning and time so I felt bad that I had to work instead of taming them.   (I had time for them before my job, and still do! Don’t worry! Just at first with learning everything it got kinda crazy..  ) So a few weeks ago I finally had time to start taming them! One is named Josh, the other is named Tyler (after Twenty One Pilots!) I started just talking to them and they were very used to me because of the late taming. The next step I did was feeding them millet. They love millet! When they were very comfortable with that, I put seeds on my hand (with a glove on) and they eventually came and ate off of it! And then eventually they went completely onto my hand to eat the seeds! After that I tried taking my glove off and putting seeds on and they won’t go on because they are scared of my bare hand. And that is where I am right now. But they are still quite scared of me. Anyone have advice on making them more comfortable? Also I got a bath that connects to their cage and they won’t go into it. It has been there for while now and they still won’t go in. Any advice on that? Another thing is that they are scared of any fruits and veggies that I try to give them. They won’t go on my hand for it and even if I leave it in their cage they stay away from it. (They are cut in small pieces.)

Thanks!

                -Kaylor

[judyann]

Sit next to the cage whenever you can.  I have my cage right next to my computer, and I have had my budgie for almost 2 months. It took her almost 3 weeks to eat millet from my hand.

     I bought a bag of wooden bamboo skewers, 100 skewers for one dollar.  I use them to try to get her to eat veggies and fruit. It was very time consuming, putting tiny pieces of fruit/veg on the stick. 


I have tried kiwi several times, carrot several times, she will not eat it, neither will she eat tiny pieces of banana.  She nibbled raw brocolli once or twice but does not really like it.            I think the FIRST veggie she did eat was fresh basil leaves (tiny ones w'flowers on top) after I had offered it to her several times.  
     While trying to get her to eat grass seed from outside, I saw her nibble on a blade of grass.  That gave me the idea of cutting a piece of lettuce into skinny ribbons, and shr ate lettuce for the first time.  
But millet was the forst thing she ate out of my hand, and that took a long time, so I made sure I was sitting in a comfortable position. and STILL my back and arm got stiff waaiting for her to take a bite.

[judyann]

Oh, I forgot to say, I sit and hold the wooden bamboo skewers with a tiny leaf or bit of fruit or veg on the end.
     Another thing I tried was rolling a piece of spray millet in applesauce, and while eating the millet she got a litlle taste of apple. Now she eats apple.

[Deleted]

Can I ask, was there a reason for the glove step rather than straight to bare hand? They might be wary because of the colour and texture change. Mine aren't tame but will eat off my hand, but the one who always jumps straight on will balk if I happen to have a ring on because I don't normally.

[Hezz]

Sept 11, 2020 9:58:59 GMT @sillycat84 said:

Can I ask, was there a reason for the glove step rather than straight to bare hand? They might be wary because of the colour and texture change. Mine aren't tame but will eat off my hand, but the one who always jumps straight on will balk if I happen to have a ring on because I don't normally.

My question, exactly - why use a glove?? You want the birds used to you, not a foreign object. Now they just have to get used to another thing. You've put in an extra step that didn't need to be there.

As for a bath ... the birds will bath ... when they want a bath, not just because you supply one. Contrary to popular myths, budgies do not need to bath every day, even every week. They are a desert bird - give them some dripping wet foliage hanging in the cage, and you may notice them taking an interest. Then again, they may not.

As for fruit (don't bother too much with fruit - too much sugar) and veg, they need to learn that these are actually food items. If they haven't been introduced to veg as chicks they will not see these strange objects as being something they are supposed to eat. Try some of the more leafy greens for starters. Much more like their natural native food of seeding grasses.

[kaylor]

Thank you everyone for your help!! It is very appreciated!

As far as the glove goes.. I have had a few bad experiences with hamsters and haven’t interacted with budgies ever before. So.. I can’t change that I used the glove, but I know they will get tame! I did my research and I saw that several people suggested a glove.

[Deleted]

Ah, yeah, I got bitten by my hamster a few times.

They will get used to your hand the way they got used to the glove eventually, it just means they need to adjust to the new feel and appearance of your hand. Keep trying and I’m sure they’ll get there.

[kaylor]

Thank you so much!

[reenie]

Sometimes if they see you eating it can provoke an interest, although they may need to be a wee bit tamer. I can't eat a bowl of cornflakes or a rice cake in peace because Stuart perches on the bowl, or the rice cake itself, and mooches for some.