Parrot and Bird Training

If anyone has told you that parakeet training was difficult, they obviously have never read this post.


First off, let me start by telling you we bought our Budgie, Kevin, at a national chain pet store. Now we all know buying from a big box store like that only makes it harder to train. Next time I’ll use a local breeder and get one for a little more money, but already hand tame.


Rules of buying a budgie based on my experience:
A) Buy your parakeet as young as possible
B) Make sure the cage is big enough for him to outstretch his wings, it should be able to comfortable hold two parakeets with outstretch wings.
C) Have plenty of food on hand, never run out. Keep the water clean by using a water bottle.
D) Provide a safe environment for him.
E) Purchase a mirror and cuttle bone.
F) Parakeets love to tear things apart. I use manila rope.
G) You should have the time to devote to your parakeet.
Millet is a favorite treat among parakeets, be sure to have some handy.



By doing the things above you’ll already by 50% of the way when it comes to training your parakeet.


When you buy from big pet stores stores, the birds are handled like freight, like merchandise to throw on the shelf. Then they pack the parakeets in a small cage with about a hundred more birds. So naturally they start to bond with each other, they interact, and react with each other (one bird flies they all fly).


Then you finally pick the one you want, and the birds first real encounter with a human is usually some punk high school kid who just reaches in and grabs him. Pulls him away from his friends and family to stuff him in a small dark box with little holes. All of this is pretty scary if not traumatizing. No wonder your parakeet wants nothing to do with you, and would go to great extremes to not be touched by you.


Luckily there is an easy way to reverse the damage, and turn your wild and untamed parakeet into a trained, tame, and loving pet.


(Week 1 & 2)
It is very important to just leave your parakeet along during the first two weeks. He is in a strange environment, and needs to learn your routine and build trust. You can help him to get more comfortable by placing the cage in a corner or covering at least two sides of the cage. Do not place him in direct sunlight, but put him somewhere where he can get natural light. Your Budgie will not have watch all four sides of the cage this way, and thus will be more relaxed. When you walk by the cage talk gently to the bird. Only open the cage to change the food and water. During this time your parakeet will begin to learn your routines and realize that you won’t harm him. Try talking to the parakeet as much as possible every time you pass the cage or if you’re in the same room.


(Week 3)
After your parakeet is eating normally and is comfortable and happy, you can begin the fun part: hand taming! This tactic may seem a bit strange, but it works. What you’ll want to do is clear a room out so there are little to no hiding places. You want to make sure of this because if the bird gets away from you, you’ll have to move furniture to find him and that can be frustrating. This stage requires a lot of patience, and you cannot allow yourself to be frustrated. This room should also be dark, with absolutely no light at all. You want to turn off the lights, and then stick you finger in the cage right under his chest and then left him up gently once he steps on. Talk to him gently as you do this, making sure to use a soft voice. Do not get mad or frustrated. That will only make things worse. When he steps up on your finger, he’ll have no idea he is on your finger. Do this every other night for the week, and try and do it at the same time so he’ll know it’s coming. Once he steps up on his own you can start the next phase of training.


(Week 4)
Once you have your Budgie (Parakeet) sitting on your finger with the lights off. Grab a flashlight and take it into the room with you. Turn the flash light on, but have it stand on the floor (or table) to block the light. Once you get your parakeet up on your finger, slowly lift the flashlight to reveal that he’s standing on your finger. He make completely freak out once he sees it. That’s okay. Let him jump off and panic a little bit, once he calms down start over. Make sure he is in his cage (a comfortable place) before you begin again and that he has calmed down. Put the light down and give his eyes time to adjust tot he darkness. Work with your parakeet on a daily basis at this, and soon enough he’ll be sitting on your finger out of habit. Even though its something he’ll do all the time in the ark room, during the day he probably won’t go near you. Consider this normal behavior and it will change as time moves on. Don’t be discouraged if your parakeet does not completely trust you after the first month. Again, this requires patience.


(Week 5-6)
Now that your parakeet can sit on your finger in a dark or dimly lit room, without being too jumpy you can move onto the next step. This would be a good time to introduce the bird to other pets in the family. Our cat is a good boy for the most part, so we would pet the cat and talk to him and the bird gently as they see each other up close for the first time with no bars in-between. This way the cat will associate the bird as family and not try to hurt him. After the cat has inspected the bird, he’ll eventually get bored and just walk away. Turn the light on in the other room, which will no doubt be brighter, his eyes will adjust and there is a good chance he’ll fly towards the light. Just walk over to the room and pick him up with your finger. He’ll soon realize that you’re coming to rescue. Do this as much as possible and be gentle with him. This is a scary thing for him and you must be seen as his protector.


(Week 7)
After your bird gets used to stepping up on your finger. It is time to do it during the day. It will feel like lost progress, but he eventually realize that you mean him no harm and that its okay to sit on your finger. Soon after your parakeet will be jumping up on your finger an whistling dixie. After you get your budgie to sit on your finger, don’t be so eager to take him out the cage, let him get use to it and feel relaxed. Keep talking and drill the sound of your voice into his psyche. At some point you’ll have the chance to take him out his cage, and there is a good probability that he’ll immediately fly towards his cage.


The trick is to 1) clip his wings and 2) turn him around so he can’t see his cage. Quickly make the cage “disappear” by either going to another room or covering the cage with a towel. If his wings are clipped he won’t be able to go far, and he’ll need to step-up on your finger so you can take him back to this cage. You’ll bond as he begins to realize that you “rescue him”.


(Week 8)
Now that he is comfortable sitting on your finger outside his cage, you’ll have to make things much more interesting for him while he is out. Keep him by your workstation or computer. There should be a piece of manilla rope or desk toys that he can play with. As you spend more time together your bond gets closer and trust builds. You’ll soon have him chirping and talking. Acknowledge him and interact with him, don’t ignore him. Be sure to teach your younger children to be gentle with the bird and not to abuse them so they can live a long and happy life.


Now I know this seems like an incredible long process (8 weeks!) and it is. But this is the technique I used to tame my parakeet. If you want a technique that works much faster, then I suggest you check out this website. It shows you how to tame a parakeet in just 7 days! Unfortunately I did not discover this parakeet training method until after I had mine tame, but next time I will definitely use it.



Learn how to train your Parakeet in just 7 days by watching the videos on this site.