# Ongoing Question Thread re: my new 8 week old budgie



## FeatheredFriends90 (8 mo ago)

I bought my budgie today off a breeder for the first time. I'm not sure how used to people he is as he was outside in shed with other young budgies and a few other birds and she had to grab him to get him out the cage.

He's the youngest budgie I've ever owned so I don't know if that makes them slightly easier to tame. He seems to he settling in well and has already started eating (he's had nothing to drink yet) and he's had a little chew on one of his toys.

It's been awhile since I've had to tame a budgie so what's the best way to start. I've just been talking to him alot and I put my hand on the cage while he was eating which didn't seem to bother him too much


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## srirachaseahawk (Sep 5, 2021)

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 hope 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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## FeatheredFriends90 (8 mo ago)

srirachaseahawk said:


> 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 hope 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.
> 
> ...


I'm not sure how hands on the breeder was with him. He's currently grinding his beak and he's been chewing on one of his toys a bit.


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## srirachaseahawk (Sep 5, 2021)

FeatheredFriends90 said:


> He's currently grinding his beak and he's been chewing on one of his toys a bit.


Both good signs!


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## FeatheredFriends90 (8 mo ago)

srirachaseahawk said:


> Both good signs!


I had to put my hand in to remove a perch off the top of the cage so I could put his blanket on and he didn't freak put.


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## FeatheredFriends90 (8 mo ago)

Now I only got him on Saturday but he seems to be settling in well. I can put my hand in his cage without him freaking out and he will let me stroke his chest and will sometimes step up onto my finger. 

Just curious when I can let him out of his cage. I was going to let him out probably in either the living room or the bathroom as there are less places for him to hide and get into trouble.


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## ChickWas (May 6, 2021)

You don't realise but you're actually going to be causing issues in the long run when it comes to earning your bird's trust. His whole life has been uprooted, he went from somewhere he's known his entire life with his friends and family, to all of a sudden being in a brand new environment where everything is different and scary and he's by himself with no backup. He's letting you stroke his chest and is stepping up because he's extremely vulnerable and submissive right now. Put yourself in his shoes, you're so completely frozen in fear and then a giant hand reaches in, you wouldn't want to move or startle whatever this thing is. You _definitely _wouldn't trust it. It's been a few days, he needs a couple of weeks at least.

You need to ease up and just let him settle in without interfering. Let him get used to his environment first, and then start getting him used to you. The only thing you should be doing right now is being nearby to let him get used to your presence, but you shouldn't be invading his personal space. I hand reared my two girls and when we moved apartment (they were a year old), they were terrified for 3 weeks, I gave them their space to acclimate, and that's with two birds who utterly trust me.

As for letting him out the cage, it's way too soon. But when you do decide to let him out, he isn't going to hide or get into trouble. He'll go for the big landmark items to land on just because he'll be feeling overwhelmed at the new experience, stuff like curtain rails, AC split units, pullup bars, the top of his cage. Just make sure there's nothing he can hurt himself on, like uncovered mirrors or windows.


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## FeatheredFriends90 (8 mo ago)

ChickWas said:


> You don't realise but you're actually going to be causing issues in the long run when it comes to earning your bird's trust. His whole life has been uprooted, he went from somewhere he's known his entire life with his friends and family, to all of a sudden being in a brand new environment where everything is different and scary and he's by himself with no backup. He's letting you stroke his chest and is stepping up because he's extremely vulnerable and submissive right now. Put yourself in his shoes, you're so completely frozen in fear and then a giant hand reaches in, you wouldn't want to move or startle whatever this thing is. You _definitely _wouldn't trust it.
> 
> You need to ease up and just let him settle in without interfering. Let him get used to his environment first, and then start getting him used to you. The only thing you should be doing right now is being nearby to let him get used to your presence, but you shouldn't be invading his personal space. I hand reared my two girls and when we moved apartment (they were a year old), they were terrified for 3 weeks, I gave them their space to acclimate.
> 
> As for letting him out the cage, it's way too soon. But when you do decide to let him out, he isn't going to hide or get into trouble. He'll go for the big landmark items to land on just because he'll be feeling overwhelmed at the new experience, stuff like curtain rails, AC split units, pullup bars, the top of his cage. Just make sure there's nothing he can hurt himself on, like uncovered mirrors or windows.


Now I've had lots of budgies as a kid and I do remember one of them letting him out straight away and he tamed really quick.


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## FeatheredFriends90 (8 mo ago)

He will also eat millet from my hand and chirps and grinds his beak when I talk to him


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## FaeryBee (May 9, 2011)

*I am changing your thread into an "On-going" thread and changing the title.
Please ask all questions you may have regarding your new budgie in THIS thread rather than starting multiple threads for every question you think of. Additionally, please read all the stickies and budgie articles prior to posting.
Most questions have already been answered in the stickies and articles.

PLEASE slow down with regard to your taming and bonding desires.

Although your budgie is from a breeder, it still needs time to settle into its new environment.

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 budgie or force him to be touched.
To bond with your budgie, you need to build his trust in you.
He will have to learn over time that you will not hurt him, grab him and try to force him to allow you to hold him.

To build your budgie’s trust, sit by his cage and read, talk or sing quietly to him 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 him so he will learn that your hand is safe and will not hurt him. 

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

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

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

Always work at your bird’s pace.
Move slowly and talk reassuringly and calmly to him whenever you interact with him.

Most budgies once they pass the "baby" stage, do not like to be petted or touched. 

If your budgie does like to be petted, you should only ever pet his head, neck or chest area.

Stroking a budgie's back and/or tail stimulates its breeding instinct,

Bonding means allowing your budgie to choose to be with you.

Before you post, 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.
Most questions have already been answered in the stickies and budgie articles.

I'm closing this thread. It is asking a very similar question to that of your other thread:
Taming an 8 week old budgie*


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