# Two little birds....BIG attitude problem



## swagger87 (Apr 24, 2009)

Hello, 
I am new to the site ( I will post an introduction thread soon). I have recently come to be the mother of two Lovely Cockatiels.  I have had them for a whole week now. I have owned Parakeets in the past and I had an older Cockatiel when I was younger. I find myself in need of some coaching however. 
I got my little Male, a regular gray (doesnt have the female 'bars' on tail and sings quite loudly) named Dale from a woman who had no clue how to take care of him. She had him in a tiny cage that sat in the corner on the floor and said she had given up on him after two years of him only whistling and no words.  
My other Tiel (not sure of the gender as it has no tail.) is a cinnamon named Sweet Dee (I think its female as its very quiet and reserved) Its tail was ripped out by its Bully father. The lady that gave it to us said shes over a year old and as its parents would lay eggs, the father would pull out her feathers and peck at her ruthlessly. 
I introduced the two over the coarse of a whole day and let them explore their new cage together, keeping the old cage handy in case they got into a bad squabble. 
They got along great. Dale had never been around another cockatiel and Dee wasnt used to not getting attacked. They seem to enjoy each other, except for a hiss now and then when One thinks the other is getting too much of their treats, lol.
Dale will come over to the side of the cage closest to the couch and whistle at me and I whistle back. He seems to enjoy it. Dee seems to be horribly afraid of me, and when she starts to be afraid, Dale becomes scared as well. 
I've tried to put my hand close to the cage to show them its not scary, and I whistle and give them treats when they come close. But they are still very afraid. I know its only been a week with them, and I know that I have to help undo two years of neglect, but I need help.
What do I do with them to help gain their trust. I cant open the cage to give them food and water without shrill screams from Dee, a flapping of wings, and hisses and bite threats from Dale. 
ANY ADVICE IS WELCOME
Love
Swagger
Dale:tiel2: and Sweet Dee:tiel6:


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## twig braker (Feb 17, 2009)

sounds like you are doing fine. seems they have been throught a lot so might take a while to gain their trust but i think you are doing fine, just let them watch you throughout the day sit close to the cage and talk softly and whistle, give them treats, dont pressure them to do anything. just be keep on working with them, keep them healthy and they will come around. they have just had a rough time it sounds like so give them some time


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## swagger87 (Apr 24, 2009)

I really Appreciate your words of encouragement. I tried to ask the same question on Ask Yahoo, but the only answers I got were "thats wierd" and " try petting them". Lol, Im not going to try and pet the poor things if they're terrified of me giving them fresh food and water, I may lose a finger, Lol!
I sit by the cage Every chance I get and I mimic Dales whistles the best I can and he like it. I've been trying to give them fresh fruit slices, but I dont think they've ever had anything but a poor seed diet. 
I have a lot of hope and Time at my side. Now If they could only see that I want to love and care for them, not harm them. I do believe they were handled roughly if at all.


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## Renae (Feb 9, 2008)

They'll soon realize that you aren't a threat. Offering them fresh fruit daily is the right thing to do, though they may not seem to like it now, doesn't mean they're not going to get curious one day and try it out. 

You've got two of them which makes it that bit easier, because say if one of them eventually were to jump onto your hand the other one is going to think 'hey this human isn't so bad after all!" I mean, it's like follow the leader.

You will have to spend time getting them to trust you before you can tame them. Sessions should be short (10 minutes or less) and done several times a day. Each time you achieve one step, repeat it several times until your pet is comfortable with it before moving onto the next step.

Sit by the cage and talk to him or read a book, occasionally looking over at them to say hello or say their names. Speak in a soft and cheerful voice. When putting food or water in the cage, move slowly and talk to them soothingly.

When they're comfortable with you being near their cage and responds to you by getting close to the side of the cage you are near, it is time to introduce them to your hand.

Offer them a small piece of millet or a broken sunflower seed but do not try to touch them if they move away from your hand. Hold your hand in the cage doing nothing, just to get them used to your hand. They will start to realize that the hand will not hurt them, but this may take a bit longer, with a lot of patience.

When they seem to be OK with your hand being in the cage, offer them millet/bit of sunflower seed out of the palm of your hand - if they get frightened then don't worry, take your hand out and try again either later or the next day, you don't want to put any stress on them. Just keep repeating this once/twice a day, soon enough they're going to get used to your hand. 

Once they're taking the millet (or whatever treat) from the palm of your hand, you can try the "step up command" which is simple, all you do is put your hand near their feet (keeping your hand close) and say "step up" you may need to keep practicing this if they don't step up for you the first time, but give them lots of praise when they've come to "stepping up".

It's all time and patience. Good luck with them and I hope this helps a bit.


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## twig braker (Feb 17, 2009)

from my personal experience they take to vegetables better than fruit so maybe try that out, brocoli was the first for mine(i think because it kinda looked like seed) but every tiel is different.

eventually they will take to you, sounds like it is going pretty well for a week if they whistle with you. doesnt sound like they are totally terrified sounds like they are just kind of shaky and unsure and its only been a week i think things will turn out great if you keep on trying, so keep it up!


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## swagger87 (Apr 24, 2009)

Thank you both so much. They will accept Millet from me, just not out of the palm of my hand yet. 
Its so funny to watch them try to reach their necks as far as possible so they dont have to touch my hand to get their treats. 
Thanks again for the advice! I really appreciate it. 
I will try to take some pics soon and post them.


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## sweetrsue (Jul 8, 2008)

Wow by the time I got to this post everybody had already given great advice and it seems all the answers. except to say that at a year old you should be able to tell a male from a female Cinnamon. The male should have a yellow mask just as a male gray would. If it is a female there would be yellow on the face but it would have the body color in it as well. It's just a little more subtle in the cinnamon mutation.


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## Eikoden (Apr 6, 2009)

Keep trying. My male, Kermit, was hand raised, so he's very good right now, and stepping up, etc. 

However, I just got a female, as yet unnamed, and she is just like your two cuties. I've found that she has changed over the course of the day I've owned her, just because I have been quieter and nicer than her previous situation. 

Follow the steps described by others' posts, and you're going to see BIG changes. Trust me, the best is yet to come, though it may take a long time.


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## Danielle (Aug 15, 2008)

Keep up the good work! They can take some time to come round, but it's worth it. One of my aviary-raised tiels, Quinn, is almost tame now and it's taken 8 months. She flies over and perches on my shoulder sometimes and now tolerates head scratches and cuddles. It's a great feeling watching them building trust in you.


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## swagger87 (Apr 24, 2009)

Thank you SWEETRSUE, EIKODEN and DANIELLE! 
(I do believe Sweet Dee is a female. She looks almost exactly like the pic you posted. She has the slightest red tint to her tho and she has cream on her wings instead of white. She also has tiny yellow speckles on her chest and on her red cheeks.)
I would like to announce I had a really nice surprise today! After being sick with the flu for 4 days:wacko:, working long hours and having to deal with the most ungrateful, hateful public:censor:, I came home from work, sat down on the couch (pooped as can be) and Sweet Dee chirped. I didn't think much of it, but I put my hand up to the cage (I haven't done that since I've been sick) and she actually nuzzled my finger with her beak!!
I got some millet and put my hand in the cage, and she reached and reached, but I kept it just out of range. She hopped up on my hand and ate:clap:. When she was done she hopped down and chirped again sweetly so I tried again. She hopped up and ate, and I tried to rub her head. She didnt know what to do about that, pulled away, but she didnt flee from me. :thumbu:

Sadly Dale is still being a butt head for now, lol. Hes quite grumpy today. Not sure why.


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## sweetrsue (Jul 8, 2008)

Wow! Your doing great! It always warms your heart so much when they choose to come to you!


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## xxxSpikexxx (Jul 30, 2007)

Thats great that she came to you  Keep up the good work


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