# Out of cage/ flight exercise



## merpirate (May 20, 2016)

Hello all, I am new to this Budgie business and I've been reading a lot but I'm a little confused. My little guy (or girl) is little over a month old and I've had him for about a week. I'm taking the taming very slowly as suggested but I keep reading about people letting their budgies out for play time before they're tamed. I have two questions.

When in the taming process should I start letting him have time out of cage? He's still a little wary of my hand when I'm cleaning/ changing food and water.

How do I 'bird proof' my room? Besides the obvious like turning the fan off, making sure there isn't anything for him to drown in and keeping the cats out. I don't want him getting hurt so I want to make sure there isn't anything I'm missing.

Any and all advice would be appreciated!


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## aluz (Jul 24, 2011)

Ideally, it would be best to let your budgie out once he/she has mastered the step up command, so that it will be easier to take him/her out and bring him/her back in to the cage. If your budgie is already trusting of you, the out of cage experience will also be better and not as stressful for both parties involved.

As to the bird proofing, covering any mirrors and not allowing direct access to windows would be a good idea. When it comes to furniture, it would be good cover any small gaps and to block sharp corners where the bird can get injured.
Till the bird gets used to the room, you can also place some nets in order to avoid a potential crash into a wall.


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## Therm (Aug 2, 2015)

A lot of people like to have the bird finger tame so they can use step up when returning their budgie to their cage. it's merely down to preference. None of my birds are tamed but all have out of cage time. if you want to let your bird out before taming, then it would need to be when you have a long period of time to spend with it. 
Your bird should not be allowed out unsupervised under any circumstance and with a cat in the house- even more important! Also bare in mind if you allow your bird out you wan to wait for it to return to the cage by itself, which could take some time. 
Catching it and returning the bird will cause your bird to distrust you- which counters bonding. 

As for budgie proofing a room- you need to ensure that everything in the room is safe for a budgie. This includes looking at any plants which might be toxic, anything the budgie could fall behind, covering windows and mirrors etc etc. just generally look at your room and look for dangers.


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## merpirate (May 20, 2016)

Thank you both! I hadn't thought about covering the window but it seems obvious now haha. The cats are NEVER allowed in the room with the bird. I do eventually want to move the cage to the living room but that will be after we're safely bonded and have learned lots of good commands. It might never happen though. I'd be worried about him constantly haha.


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## StarlingWings (Mar 15, 2013)

Great advice so far!

I agree it's a matter of preference, generally, and how much time one has on their hands. Untamed budgies tend to be much harder to get back into the cage, although it's easier if they're let out before feeding time so they are more eager to return for food :thumbsup: 

Having a dowel perch handy for them to step up onto to be "ferried" back to the cage is a good idea if they're not comfortable with stepping up quite yet. 

Also, even when they're tamed, they're in danger of being attacked by the cat (even through the cage). I would keep them in their bird-safe room and ensure there's no cat access at all times.


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## merpirate (May 20, 2016)

So far he's not interested in millet, So i'm trying to find something he finds tempting before letting him out haha.


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## Stranding (Apr 25, 2016)

merpirate said:


> So far he's not interested in millet, So i'm trying to find something he finds tempting before letting him out haha.


Very good idea! Bit surprised by him not being interested in millet, which seems rather unusual. My young budgie loves coriander seeds-- something to try? Others will have good suggestions too I think. Good luck!


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## FaeryBee (May 9, 2011)

*You can use "positive reinforcement" training to teach an untamed budgie to go back into its cage.

Initially, when I was ready for my budgies to go back in their cage, I would first dim the lights and pull down the shades in the room. 
If the radio or TV was on, I turned it off.

Then I would stand by their cage ringing the bell on one of their toys while telling them, "It's time to go in your cage now!"

Once they went back into the cage, they were given a small bit of millet. 
(If your budgie has a favorite fruit, or vegetable you could reward with that) 
Of course, they were also lavishly praised and told what good budgies they were!

This method worked well and very quickly they learned to go in the cage when asked to do so without the lights being dimmed or the blinds lowered and the TV or radio could stay on.

These budgies were never hand tamed but always went in their cage when asked to do so once the training was complete. *


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## Laceychica (Aug 19, 2015)

FaeryBee said:


> *You can use "positive reinforcement" training to teach an untamed budgie to go back into its cage.
> 
> Initially, when I was ready for my budgies to go back in their cage, I would first dim the lights and pull down the shades in the room.
> If the radio or TV was on, I turned it off.
> ...


I never thought to try this during the day! I have waited hours for them to go back in. How silly of me, at night when I turn on my bedside lamp and turn the big light off they go right in thinking its bed time.. during the day all I would have to do extra is close my window drapes so it seems like its dark out! Thank you for sharing!!!


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## merpirate (May 20, 2016)

@Stranding That's a great idea! I even have some coriander seeds unless I'm mistaken. I will definitely be trying that out!

@FaeryBee This is an amazing suggestion. I will give this method a try once I've found his sweet spot haha


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## RavensGryf (May 8, 2015)

Definitely harder to get an untamed bird back into the cage, and you'd need to do it at a time where you're not in a hurry. You've been given some good suggestions! 

One of my late budgies, and one of my parrots who is not as tame have learned the "in" command with voice and hand gestures. Praise and treat when they go in. They're very smart, and when you teach something with consistency, the same way every time until they get it, they should learn quickly.


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