# Taming Advice Please....Is this normal?



## chino_bud (10 mo ago)

Hi all,
I purchased a baby budgie a little over a week ago from a pet store. I've had many budgies in the past, but it's been a while. I have been talking to her daily, resting my hands in the cage multiple times a day and offering her treats but she still seems petrified. I (possibly mistakenly) was asking her to step on my finger and saying, "up" and she would do that, but reading some the other posts I think maybe that was scaring her more. She has a mirror perch and sits there all day unless she comes down to eat. She won't eat lettuce, apple or other treats I've put in the cage. She will eat millet, but will not come anywhere near me if I offer it in her cage from my hand. I have yet to see her drink water, but I imagine she has since she's still alive. She does clean herself and occasionally chirp. I'm at a loss....my other birds tamed up quickly. I feel like I'm torturing her instead of bonding. Any suggestions?


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## Siklo (Nov 21, 2021)

I think you might be going a bit too fast. I wouldn't try offering her anything from your hand or putting your hand in the cage at all for now. 
Wait until she is comfortable enough with your presence in the room and being close to the cage that she chirps and plays and doesn't show signs of distress. 
This could take several weeks. 
You have to be patient and let the bird approach you, it's always better when they are the ones setting up the pace. 
My Pico was extremely fast to tame like your previous birds but I think it's best to always go with the mindset that the next bird will be afraid and give them space. They'll trust you a lot quicker if they see you respect their boundaries. 

Also you should remove the mirror immediately.


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## chino_bud (10 mo ago)

Siklo said:


> I think you might be going a bit too fast. I wouldn't try offering her anything from your hand or putting your hand in the cage at all for now.
> Wait until she is comfortable enough with your presence in the room and being close to the cage that she chirps and plays and doesn't show signs of distress.
> This could take several weeks.
> You have to be patient and let the bird approach you, it's always better when they are the ones setting up the pace.
> ...


Thank you for your reply. Why should I remove the mirror? That seems to be the only thing that gives her comfort.


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## Siklo (Nov 21, 2021)

Mirrors cause behavior problems. 
Budgies can't tell their own reflection aapart from a real bird. 
So she thinks it's another bird, which can make her ignore you in favor of it and develop an unhealthy relationship with it, doing dangerous things like obsessive regurgitation to feed the mirror bird, then get frustrated that the gesture is not returned... It's just better to not have mirrors at all. 
Instead maybe you can partially cover the cage so she feels like she's in a cozy, safe space where she's not seeing possible threats moving around.


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## FaeryBee (May 9, 2011)

*The purpose of this forum is to promote the BEST PRACTICES in the care of budgies for their optimal Health and Well-Being*
*Locating an Avian Veterinarian*

*It is not recommended to have mirrors in your bird's cage as interacting with the mirror can contribute to your budgie becoming aggressive and/or territorial.
Additionally, some budgies will begin regurgitating to the mirror to the point where they actually become malnourished. You would be better off to give him shredding toys instead.

Budgies need a minimum of two weeks to settle into their new home and you should not be trying to touch or tame them at this time. They are often submissive initially because they are terrified.

You can cover the top and three sides of the cage to help them feel more secure. Play music or the TV for them when you are not around during the day.

Taming and Bonding is all about helping your budgie learn to trust you and it takes a great deal of time and patience on your part.
You should never grab your budgies or force them to be touched.
To bond with your budgie, you need to build their trust in you.
They will have to learn over time that you will not hurt them, grab them and try to force them to allow you to hold them.

To build your birds’ trust, sit by their cage and read, talk or sing quietly to them for a period of at least 10-15 minutes, 3 or 4 times day. After about a week, rest your hand on the outside of the cage when you talk to them so they will learn that your hand is safe and will not hurt them. 

After a week of resting your hand on the outside of the cage, rest your hand inside the cage when you talk.

Don’t make sudden moves, don’t try to touch them.
Let their get used to the idea that the hand is now in their safe place and not harming them.

After 2 weeks, begin moving your hand slowly toward your bird. If they become agitated, stop moving your hand and just hold very still until they calm down. When they are comfortable with your hand near them, you can offer them a bit of millet or a few seeds.

Always work at your birds’ pace.
Move slowly and talk reassuringly and calmly to their whenever you interact with them.

Bonding is when a bird chooses to be with you.*

*A Healthy Diet for your Budgie*
*Quality Seed Mix*
*CuttleBones, Mineral Blocks and Manu Clay Roses*
*Safe Foods for Budgies*
*The Truth about GRIT*

*Please take the time to read through the Site Guidelines, the FAQs, the Budgie Articles and all of the Stickies located at the top of each section of the forum.
Truly, the very BEST advice anyone can offer you is to take the time to read ALL of the stickies throughout the various Talk Budgie forums as well as the Budgie Articles we have posted.
(Stickies are threads “stuck” at the top of each forum sub-section)*

*These are great resources for Talk Budgie members and have a wealth of reliable information which will assist you to learn the best practices in caring for your budgies for their optimal health and well-being.*

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*Cage sizes.*
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*Resource Directory*


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## StarlingWings (Mar 15, 2013)

Hello and welcome to the forums, 

You've been given great advice and resources above and I agree totally. Meanwhile, you've come to a great place to learn even more about the best of budgie care practices. Please be sure to read through the links provided above to ensure you're up to date on everything. If you have any questions after doing so, please be sure to ask as we'd be happy to help. 

Hope things go well with your little one, please keep us posted! 

Best wishes 👋


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