# Bonding is happening slowly but…



## BeckaShine (6 mo ago)

…the past few days she has started clicking her beak and chirping sweetly at me and even though she is still terrified of my hand this makes my heart happy!

I work at home and have her in my office with me or in the living room if I’m downstairs. If I leave her alone too long she chirps extra loud, is she calling me back??

I’ve had my budgie girl for about a month now! She is my family’s first bird ever and we adore her so much! Sweetest animal ever!


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## srirachaseahawk (Sep 5, 2021)

It's all about time 

If your bird(s) come from a breeder that worked well at socializing their animals, then the process below is the same but it may go much quicker for you. You should move at the pace that your animal is comfortable with. 
If you place your hand in their cage and they hop right onto you, then you can start building from there with treats, training and out-of-cage time 

If you got your bird(s) from a pet store, or a breeder who doesn’t socialize their animals; your bird(s) is going to need a couple of quiet weeks to settle in. They can seem “tame” at first, but this is likely just because they are frightened and submissive.

Start by resting your hand on the outside of the cage for 5-10 minutes a few times a day. Talk to them as you do this, in a quiet and steady voice. Read something to them if you like 

After a week or two of this, you can move to just placing your hand "in" the cage. You can use their behavior as a judge on this one. If they actively retreat from your hand, even when it’s on the outside of the cage; they aren’t ready for you to go to the next step. Once they start to essentially “ignore” your hand, then you can move on.

The next step is to put your hand in the cage. Don't touch them, go near them or even move. Just rest it there for the same 5-10 minutes a few times a day and continue with the quiet, steady speech.

Your bird(s) will eventually begin to acclimate to you and slowly move up to investigating your hand. Then you can work on treat placement in the hand to see if you can then lure them to step on it to eat from it (again without moving).

And then you go from there!








This could take weeks, or even months, of work and is entirely up to the bird. You may get lucky and have a very outgoing animal that tames in a short period of time, or you may have a more timid creature on your hand that requires a lot more from you.

Birds require far more patience with training than dogs and cats do. They all know instinctively that they are "prey items" and we are basically asking them to ignore that natural response when confronted by a larger predator (you).

You can also use their voice as a measure of their comfort. 
A whistling/chirping budgie is not a scared budgie


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## FaeryBee (May 9, 2011)

*srirachaseahawk has given you excellent advice.

Yes, when she whistles or chirps loudly for you when you leave the room she is calling for you.
Be careful though. If you respond each time this happens, then SHE is training YOU. 
She must know that there are times she will be alone and learn to entertain herself at such times.
It is always important for our budgies to have some "in-cage" time on their own when they can rest or play on their own as they wish.*


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