# Stick And Millet



## morla (Aug 15, 2011)

Hi! I have been trying to what this video does!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fh8OTrRRSk8

I can get Daisy to touch the tip of the stick when i show it to her, but she won't go near the millet when i try to reward her. How do i get her to eat the millet? Because if i get her to eat the millet she will be more likely to touch the tip of the stick and then she will go where the stick is! 

Then soon she can step up onto my finger! 

I actually had a dream last night that she went on my finger!


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

This is positive reinforcement training, and you have to be able to deliver a reward in order to make it work.

Does she already know that millet spray is delicious? If she doesn't, put a piece in her cage and when it's all gone you'll know that she knows what to do with it. 

If she already likes millet spray but is afraid to take it from your fingers, there are two different things that you can do:

1. Teach her to eat millet from your fingers. Start out by offering it to her through the cage bars - this is less scary for hand-shy birds. When she's comfortable taking it this way, work up to feeding her without the cage bars in between you.

2. She gets the reward without eating from your hand. After she's earned the reward, set the millet spray close to her then move your hand away. After she's had a couple of bites, pick up the millet and ask her to touch the stick again.


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## morla (Aug 15, 2011)

ok. Thanks! Something cool happened today! I treid to have her perch on the stick and she does! She went on my finger for a little bit too!


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

Great news! It's cool that your dream just came true.

If you want to teach targeting (touching a stick with the beak) you need to use a different stick that's too small for the bird to perch on - something like a chopstick or coffee stir. If you use a regular perch for targeting, she could get confused about whether you want her to target or step up.


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## morla (Aug 15, 2011)

Oh! Ok! I don't know if i should do the target now sense i can get her to step up on the stick. I can get her to perch on my hand for a little bit, but then she flys back in the cage. I am going to keep trying that until she can perch on my finger perfectly.


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## DyArianna (Aug 7, 2011)

Congrats on the progress Morla! Baby steps!


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## lperry82 (Aug 2, 2010)

Congrats Morla


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## morla (Aug 15, 2011)

Thank-you! Daisy is just so cute! I touched her a little bit and she feels so soft! But when i went to touch her chest she flew away. I heard that cockatiel like being petted in the chest. Is that true?


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## lperry82 (Aug 2, 2010)

Mine don't like to be petted there only the head, neck and sometimes the face


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

Birds usually like to be petted in the same places that their mate would preen in the wild. With cockatiels that means the head and neck, and they usually don't enjoy being touched in other places. There are some parrot species that preen each other all over so they enjoy being petted all over, but cockatiels aren't like that.


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## Travis89 (Feb 27, 2011)

Congrats on the progress, morla!


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## morla (Aug 15, 2011)

Thanks! By the way! I like your siggy!


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