# Training without having wings clipped



## Nimra (Aug 4, 2014)

I can't train my cockatiel. He is an adult and he is difficult to train. I want to have his wings clipped but I can't because my parents won't let me. I don't know how to train him and I need some advice. Training without having wings clipped is hard. Plus, my cockatiel can't get used to my hand. I did wrong by poking my finger in the cage. Now he hates me. So I want to train him quickly and please tell me how. In my country there are no bird treats and I try to feed him seeds but he won't eat them. I need some advice and I need it quickly. PLEASE tell me how to train him quickly and what should feed him. And please read the whole message. Thankyou.


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## Nimra (Aug 4, 2014)

Sorry I meant what I should feed him. I apologize for my silly mistake.


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## dianne (Nov 27, 2013)

I am sorry you are having a hard time with your cockatiel.

Unfortunately, rushing the taming and training is often counterproductive. I do know how you feel. When I got my birds I got very tired of hearing how you have to be patient and go slow. However, it is true.

You might try to get a book on training birds. "Clicker Training for Birds" is a good one.


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## Nimra (Aug 4, 2014)

Thanks! I will see that book.


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## Nimra (Aug 4, 2014)

But books is something that is hard. I don't buy books online.


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## Nimra (Aug 4, 2014)

Please if there is anymore advice tell me. And I am checking the book.


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## sunnysmom (Sep 23, 2011)

I personally am against clipping a bird's wings for training purposes. When one does, it's not really building trust but forcing a bird to be dependent on you. As was said, you can't rush training. You have to be patient and try to work at the bird's own pace. Here are some articles which may help:


Food Bribery - http://talkcockatiels.com/showthread.php?t=28661

Taming lperry82 version - http://talkcockatiels.com/showthread.php?t=22073


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## Charlotte (Jun 4, 2014)

I find that YouTube is a good source of information for any things - if used critically that is! Though he can be a prickly character in person, Michael Sazhin is a clicker training God. His channel is called Parrot Wizard.

You need to begin slowly. You can target train your bird inside the cage with some patience (by that I mean asking the bird to bite or touch a target stick and rewarding it for doing so). No need to reach in, clip or get bitten! Google it and I'm sure you'll find some tutorials. This is a good first step. Use spray millet as a treat. As for diet check out this site's nutrition forum and read up.

If you don't mind me asking, are you old enough to shop for books etc online? I only ask because you mentioned your parents and it might affect the advice people can give.


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## Nimra (Aug 4, 2014)

Ok I get it. But no bird treats in my country. Please tell me what sort of bird treats can I feed him instead millet or pellet.


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## Nimra (Aug 4, 2014)

Thanks for the advice, by the way


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## dianne (Nov 27, 2013)

My tiels really like sunflower seeds. If they are in the regular seed mix you give your bird, you could take them out and use them as treats. If the bird won't take them from your hand, you could drop them into a dish in the cage. Some people use almonds or peanut butter as a treat.


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## Nimra (Aug 4, 2014)

Can you post a picture of sunflower seeds?


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## dianne (Nov 27, 2013)

Click on this link for pictures of sunflower seeds:
http://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=sunflower+seed+image&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8


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## Nimra (Aug 4, 2014)

YES YES YES!!!! Finally I have a treat. I love you Dianne. Thanks for the help. I will try to train him now. Thanks for the help.


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## dianne (Nov 27, 2013)

Oh, I'm so happy this helped you!
Good luck.


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## Nimra (Aug 4, 2014)

Thank you again!


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## Nimra (Aug 4, 2014)

By the way charlotte I am not old enough to buy books online. I still live with my parents and I am more likely a baby for you guys. So I am totally stuck, and my mom isn't interested about training him because she hates pets. She doesn't like any animal. This kind of sucks because my mom is more likely the one who brings me what I want. My dad says treats aren't important and even though he is sort of interested in this situation, he actually doesn't do anything. He is more likely thinking mom is going to buy me something, when mom is expecting him to help me out. So I am stuck here. I have three big sisters but none of them is eighteen yet. My oldest sister is seventeen but its hard to wait till next year. I will like to tell me aunt to send treats to me from Canada but it will cost a lot to send treats from one country to another. She is going to visit me in October but I want to start now. I am a impatient idiot so please I want help soon.


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## Charlotte (Jun 4, 2014)

Hi Nimra, that's a shame about your situation. I do hope you manage to have some success with sunflower seeds.

You asked me in another post how I tamed and trained Murray. Unfortunately my situation was entirely different to yours - Murray was a hand reared baby and already hand tame. It was simply a case of pushing against him to ask him to step up and rewarding him when he got it right. He got it within a couple of goes. He was never afraid and always wanted to hang out because he had been so well reared and handled his whole baby life. You have a much more difficult task on your hands - taming an adult tiel who isn't yet tame and was probably parent reared rather than hand reared. 

The fact is, nobody here or anywhere else can tell you exactly how to tame your tiel, how long it will take or what to do. Tiels are like people, and each is different. As well as not knowing your tiel, we don't know the situation, or how he reacts to you. You need to research as much as you can and then decide which methods are right for you.

As I said, begin with just getting your tiel to take a treat from you. De-shell the sunflower seeds and break them up into manageable bits. If your tiel is too afraid at first, let him see you drop the treat into his bowl. Even this will take time. After he is used to taking treats, offer him a stick and try target training within the cage (do you know what this means?). Once he has this trick, you can use it to target him to different perches and areas of the cage - and one day perhaps onto your finger or arm. 

Sit by him and talk to him as well as just trying to train. You might not get the results you want by August, but perhaps you will make progress by then. Best of luck. Let us know what you try and how you get on!


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## Nimra (Aug 4, 2014)

Thanks charlotte. The only thing is I am a real baby. I am only nine years old. And I do not live in the united states or something. I live in Pakistan and there nobody takes interest in pets. I saw a training video of cockatiels and I thought how nice it was of Americans to train them. My sisters said I was getting too much obsessed with these birds. That is why its hard training in a country where you don't train birds. I decided to sign up here and take matters in my own hands. But it was a bad idea. I am online all the time and my mom says its a waste of time. I am really stuck.


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## Nimra (Aug 4, 2014)

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## Charlotte (Jun 4, 2014)

I'm really sorry about that, Nimra. I could tell you were young! I understand it's hard for you, but I think it's wonderful that you have decided to come here and find out information  x


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## Nimra (Aug 4, 2014)

Thanks charlotte. You are very nice.


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## Fredandiris (Nov 27, 2012)

I'm sorry about your situation, but I'm glad you're stepping up to the plate! It's good that you have a passion for birds at such a young age and the will to change the situation that you're in, rather than just sitting around. I answered one of your previous posts but I thought I'd chime in a little here.

Were you trying to post up a picture? You'll want to use the "manage attachments" tool that's towards the end of the page when you're making a post. It's in the "Additional options" sections.


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## Nimra (Aug 4, 2014)

Thanks for telling me.


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## Nimra (Aug 4, 2014)




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## AstroNAbbey (Aug 9, 2014)

Wow Nimra..its lovely to see a Young Gun like you taking such interest in cockatiels...when I was your age the only thing I knew about them was that they Originate from Australia XD haha...Hang in There Mate!!..and I wish you all the luck ....Abbey (My WF Cinnamon Pied tiel) is Parent Reared aswell...but I got the Age Factor on my Side as she is only like 3 months old..So I'll also be working hard to Train and Tame Her...but I'm sure You will do a Great job with Cookie  All the Best!!


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## Nimra (Aug 4, 2014)

Thanks. But can anybody tell me if training a parakeet and budgie is the same thing. Cause I saw awesome video of it on you tube but it was about training a parakeet. Please reply quickly and soon.


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## thewandererw (Aug 22, 2011)

A budgie and a parakeet are the same bird


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## Nimra (Aug 4, 2014)

Oh ok. Probably why I was so confused that why does a parakeet look like a budgie  Thanks for telling me but can you please tell me if training them is the same thing as training a cockatiel?


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## Charlotte (Jun 4, 2014)

Pretty much! Similar training techniques can be used for most parrots, big and small


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## thewandererw (Aug 22, 2011)

Yes they look the same there are a few kinds of parakeets but the most popular are the American and English the American parakeet are small and the English parakeet is bigger.


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## Nimra (Aug 4, 2014)

OK. But please answer the question I asked earlier. Do you have any advice?


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## thewandererw (Aug 22, 2011)

Yes training a parakeet and tiel are the same just go slow and at the birds speed you can't rush training you will just stress the bird and loose any trust you may have made.I know you are trying to train your tiel before you start school this year but it not going to be totally trained by that time but start now and keep working with him/her I it will happen.


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## thewandererw (Aug 22, 2011)

For got to add both my tiels are flighted wings are not clipped.


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## Nimra (Aug 4, 2014)

Ok. I am not going to clip his wings anyway. A lot of thanks. I am glad that I can train him now.


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## Nimra (Aug 4, 2014)

*So i am stuck again aftera*

I am so stuck. I let cookie out of the cage today. At first he ate his seeds while staring at the open door of his cage the got out. I didn't know that he was going to sit on top of his cage. I did not tell mom and dad so I was stuck. He was really sitting on the floor before so u thought he was okay. Then I got my maid to pick him up and put him in his cage. He screamed a lot and losted a lot of feathers. Now he is so scared. I am so much feeling guilty. I had to give him a bath again cause his feathers were in a weird shape. He preened his feathers again. I know I didn't break a blood feather but I am sure I broke a good bond. What should I do???? I want the quickest way to rebond with him. And I want a quick answer. Please tell me what should I do?


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## Lu*lu (Jul 4, 2013)

OK. I know you are 9 years old, but if you really, really want this cockatiel to be tame, you HAVE to listen and follow this advise. I bought a cockatiel that was so afraid of humans, every time we passed her cage, she would thrash, scream and break feathers. I got her tame in 2 MONTHS. She would fly to us, and if we would leave, she would cry. This might not seem like it, but 2 months is VERY QUICK. You HAVE to do this in steps, you cannot rush it. 1) Do not even let the bird out. It may be hard, but it seems the bird is so afraid of humans, letting him out is just going to hurt him. He is noticing humans = pain and fear, NOT good. Don't give him baths!! Water can be traumatizing to a cockatiel that isn't ready for it. Just be in the same room with him. Sit next to the cage. Let him watch you. Do this until he is comfortable with your presence. 2) Open the cage and put your hand at the bottom. If he panics, don't move. Just keep your hand down there. Let him look at it. Pull your hand out. Shut the door. Do NOT touch him. Do this several times a day. Do this until he doesn't react when you put your hand in. Do NOT LET HIM OUT. 3) Slowly bring your hand closer. If he panics, hold still. Do this until you are able to bring your hand all the way to him. Put seeds in the palm of your hand, let him see the seeds. It can be regular seeds, it doesn't have to be a treat. 4) Once you can get your hand to him without him panicking, you can start training him to "step up". Push your finger into his lower belly. He should naturally step up. Hold him still, set him back on his perch, close the cage. Do this ten times a day! 5) Once he steps up on your finger and is calm, you can try to take him out. Once he is out, you can set him on your shoulder, move very slowly, and show him there is nothing to be afraid of. This entire process can take a week, or it can take a lot longer!! If you do not have the patience to do this, you should NOT be training a bird. Cockatiels have not been domesticated long, which means they are wild animals with wild instincts. It takes patience and love to train a cockatiel. Grabbing a bird, forcing water on him, or putting him in a position where he breaks feathers makes him scared. You want to teach him that you are "good"! That you won't hurt him. This takes time. If you want training to go fast, you should get a dog. Birds can take a long time to train. When I was 9 I had a budgie I trained with this exact technique. I didn't want to be patient sometimes, but I was, and he was a good budgie who loved to be with humans. Good luck!


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## Charlotte (Jun 4, 2014)

Hi Nimra! I'd give it a couple of days before you try anything new with him, although Lulu's technique might work in the future. Just go back to talking to him and being kind for a while, then take it slow and start again. 

Also, didn't you say Cookie enjoyed a spray bath? I know what Lulu us saying but if he finds it enjoyable then I don't see any harm...if he's unsure, though, put it on hold for a while too.


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## Lu*lu (Jul 4, 2013)

"Cooke" is a cute name by the way. I don't remember where I read about this technique...I think it was in a budgie training handbook I got when I was a kid. It has worked well for all my budgies I've owned over the years, and it was simple enough for me to do as a little girl. I've only trained 1 cockatiel using it; the cockatiel was from a pet shop and obviously had zero human contact, ever. But it worked. The trick is, is to teach your bird you are "good" in small, simple steps. Too much stimulation may be confusing, which is why I suggested not giving baths for now. From the story you posted, it made it seem this bird is terrified of hands. If you limit your contact with the bird to super-simple increments, it may help train the bird faster.


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## Nimra (Aug 4, 2014)

Thank you for the answers. Baths are now off. Cookie doesn't like baths ever since the accident. So I don't give him baths. Anyway the weather got cold ever since the stupid flood that came in my city because of so much rain for two weeks.


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## Nimra (Aug 4, 2014)

Oh and I am extremely happy that I have a quick Training advice. Not everyone gets to train a cockatiel in two months. Thankyou again.


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## Nimra (Aug 4, 2014)

Lulu you have a beautiful cockatiel. What is it? I have never seen a full white cockatiel at any petstore.


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## Oztiel (Sep 5, 2014)

Trust is the thing with these birds .They must be really confident to allow them to fly to you.

I trained my last bird at 3 years old old to fly to me on request.

He was a very twitchy and nervous bird but would come when called only if he was calm and confident that nothing would threaten him.

Oztiel


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## Nimra (Aug 4, 2014)

okksssss. I get it. My father decided not to clip his wings anyway.


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