# Chimi's Training Thread



## Prancer

I picked Chimi up last week Wednesday and gave him a few days to settle in. I spent many hours sitting near him, talking to him and moving around the room so he would get used to me without any pressure.
Once he was more comfortable (Eating in front of me, moving around, etc.) I began by leaving his door open with my hand just outside of it and moved steadily closer, stopping whenever he appeared nervous or started shifting his body away. 








Once he was comfortable again, I would praise him and remove my hand - slowly of course! 
Later the same day, I repeated the process and got closer. Then closer until I had my hand right close to him almost touching.
A little later, I put my finger against his chest and gently pushed against him until he stepped up. Once he was on my finger, I told him "up, up" which will be my command for it, praised him and took a picture lol








The next couple of days were more of the same - inside the cage training. I would play budgie sounds from Youtube and talk to him, work with him on and off with the cage door open as long as I was in the same room.
Finally the budgies on Youtube got him excited enough for him to fly out and explore his play gym.
Which he's king of 








I started his out of cage training, getting him slowly accustomed to the entire room and learning that I am a safe place for him.
Now he's looking much more comfortable  and can handle the real camera in his face instead of just the phone that he's always around. Now you can actually see his four-month pinnies lol


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## StarlingWings

He is beautiful! It looks like he's definitely gaining trust in you  

Be sure to trim the fringes on the ropes so that he doesn't chew on them and accidentally ingest any


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## Blingy

He is the cutest little thing. I just love him. You've made amazing progress in such a short amount of time and it's obvious Chimi has a great bond with you. It looks like he's quite an adventurous fellow, exploring his kingdom. 

Keep up the great work. I look forward to following your journey.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Prancer

StarlingWings said:


> He is beautiful! It looks like he's definitely gaining trust in you
> 
> Be sure to trim the fringes on the ropes so that he doesn't chew on them and accidentally ingest any


Thanks for the heads up, Starling! My last budgie never ate them, just the occasional casual nibble and Chimi hasn't shown any interest, nor is he out without supervision, but I will trim them asap to be on the safe side :blush:


Blingy said:


> He is the cutest little thing. I just love him. You've made amazing progress in such a short amount of time and it's obvious Chimi has a great bond with you. It looks like he's quite an adventurous fellow, exploring his kingdom.
> 
> Keep up the great work. I look forward to following your journey.
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Thanks, Blingy! I feel like I'm so far behind since my sweet old Blue was only ten weeks old when I got him and he was my little velcro budgie right from the start. Chimi is very quiet and reserved in comparison, but, to be fair, Chimi is a bit older and from a pet store while Blue was from a breeder.

In an exciting new development: Chimi let me give him little cheek scritches this morning! :woot: 
I've been clicking at him while gently tapping the tip of my finger against his beak like other birds will when trying to make friends and it just paid off in a big way :biggrin1:
I would've taken a picture, but he was and still is sitting on me.
Longest it's ever taken me type anything


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## Hunterkat

Chimi is just TOO cute, I can't stand it!


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## Prancer

I was out yesterday, so I didn't make much progress with Chimi. I did manage to get a picture of him letting me scritch him, but it wasn't the same as before since it was in his cage and he's a bit more leary of me in there. (The first time, he tilted his head and poofed up his feathers for better access!)









He will now step up fairly regularly, but we're still working on it. I don't want to push him too fast and risk losing trust. I'm trying to make sure I let him be the judge of where his training starts and finishes every day.
He is, at least, growing steadily more comfortable with me. Here we had just finished a step-up session and I was sitting next to his cage with my hand in the doorway when he decided to take a nap! 








After eying me suspiciously to make sure it was safe


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## JRS

Chimi looks to be settling in brilliantly- such a cutie


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## FaeryBee

*Chimi is precious and looks like he's becoming quite comfortable with you.*


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## Prancer

I'm starting to wonder if Chimi will ever chirp without Youtube budgies getting him excited :mellow: I spend many hours with him every day and he isn't really active without budgie stimulation :sad: I know he just needs time, that he'll bond with me and consider me his flock, but it's not easy to wait. When he does chirp, I do answer him, so, maybe someday he'll actually respond when I say his name. Maybe he's just planning to keep quiet until he can talk :001_tongue:
I'm currently getting him used to sitting on my knee, which he isn't the biggest fan of. He won't go on my shoulder either, though he's not afraid of it. He just likes sitting on my finger best :001_rolleyes:
















He hardly ever moves away or dances about anymore when I ask him to step up now - even in his cage :woot: 
I don't know if it's the exact right way to go about it, but I give him millet after every training session. It seems to work well enough. He's not really enthusiastic enough for me to use it for each step - it'll hardly lure him at all 
















Now that he's a little more settled, I'm trying to get him to eat more veggies and pellets. He was, sadly but typically, on an all-seed and millet diet at the pet store. I think he may have nibbled on some parsley I gave him, so that's a huge step in the right direction! I'm hoping to find a fruit or veggie that he'll love so I can have a better reward system than millet.


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## StarlingWings

You just got him, so it's normal for him not to chirp a lot yet. It's possible that the budgies on YouTube are actually stressing him out as he's looking for the other budgies. It's best to play some music in the background to make him more comfortable, and keep on talking to him often as you have been doing :thumbsup:


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## Prancer

Thanks, Starling! I stopped playing the budgie sounds for him. He's now even quieter than before, but that's okay. Time will tell 
As for behavior, everything is still going really well. I almost got a good flying picture and did get a fun one of him playing to share.


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## Hunterkat

Oh my goodness :laughing: I love the picture of Chimi being a little bat-bird!


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## FaeryBee

*Chimi is just precious and I'm totally smitten with him. :001_wub:*


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## Prancer

Right? He's so cute and funny! Finally starting to chatter to himself a little and he watches me very closely when I talk to him, so here's hoping he's listening for a reason 

We've settled into a bit of a routine now. I sit with him and talk to him for at least an hour a day, have him do some step ups, give him treats etc during that time. I've taken him out of his cage a few times, but he's not that interested in it at the moment. To be fair, he's finally just starting to play and chirp, so, baby steps.

And his usual adorableness. I mean, just look at that face!


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## StarlingWings

He is so precious  


I'm so glad he's doing so well!


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## Blingy

Chimi is a little darling and it sounds like he's settling in beautifully. Keep up the great work and please keep us posted on his progress.


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## Hunterkat

He is so cute! You're making wonderful progress


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## Goldenwing

You are making good progress with Chimi! I especially like the pictures!


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## Prancer

Chimi went through a few days of thinking that I'm the enemy. I looked it up and found that it's a normal reaction around the three-week mark. He spent a few days hopping around and avoiding me, looking nervous and being extra flighty. 
I just kept at it - talking and working with him - and he's back to being his chill Chimi self :XD: He actually ran towards my hand to step up today!
He's also doing more exploring outside of his cage, though he still doesn't want to be out for very long. He's quite the reserved little guy - something I'm still getting used to. My last budgie was super outgoing and was eager to go and do anything new. I hope Chimi will come out of his shell more as he gets a little older and more confident in himself and in me. 
I've started taking him to another room to bond with him so he doesn't get anxious about going 'home' during his out-of-cage training sessions.
So far, so good


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## FaeryBee

*Chimi is such a handsome boy and it sounds as though you are making great progress with him!
:thumbsup:*


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## Prancer

He's doing absolutely fantastically :XD: He lets me pet him a little now along with his usual scritches. I'm starting to get him used to my hand being above him in the hopes that I'll be able to hold him eventually without freaking him out or losing trust  
I'm planning to move in a month or two, so I got him clipped a few days ago to get us both used to it. I never had my last budgie clipped, but we were always living where there was no danger of him escaping out a door or window. Since we'll be traveling, I decided that clipping him is the safest option for right now. That may change later (and I hope it does since I don't want to keep him clipped).
He's doing just fine with the clip. He can glide to the floor or go short distances without trouble thankfully.
So, all is well with my little shy guy


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