Beginner Bird Taming?

[Mitori]

About a month and a half ago, I got two lovebirds that are "less than a year old". They were not hand trained as babies, and I'm new to birds, so I want to know how to tame them. I've heard that two birds together is hard to tame, so I was afraid I wouldn't be able to. I've been sitting next to their cage since I got them for 30 minutes to an hour everyday. They tolerate my presence and face, but whenever I put my hand on the cage, they seem to breathe faster and scramble away. The closest my hand has ever gotten was probably 5-8 inches away. I put millet in the cage to let them taste it (they love it), and then I've been trying to lure them onto my hand by holding millet in their cage for 5 minutes, but they stick on the other side of the cage and eye my hand. What can I do to get them to trust me?

Here's a picture of my birds:
http://s15.postimg.org/fcdfry05z/IMG_4908.jpg (http://postimg.org/image/fcdfry05z/)

[michael]

About a month and a half ago, I got two lovebirds that are "less than a year old". They were not hand trained as babies, and I'm new to birds, so I want to know how to tame them. I've heard that two birds together is hard to tame, so I was afraid I wouldn't be able to. I've been sitting next to their cage since I got them for 30 minutes to an hour everyday. They tolerate my presence and face, but whenever I put my hand on the cage, they seem to breathe faster and scramble away. The closest my hand has ever gotten was probably 5-8 inches away. I put millet in the cage to let them taste it (they love it), and then I've been trying to lure them onto my hand by holding millet in their cage for 5 minutes, but they stick on the other side of the cage and eye my hand. What can I do to get them to trust me?

Hi Mitori. Welcome to Lovebirdsplus. .. I would simply continue as you are, spending time near their cage, and offering treats such as millet or other healthy foods both inside and outside of their cage. What I suspect, is that given your only spending a limited amount of time of at most an hour a day, gaining their trust may take awhile. Thus, placing your hands inside their cage at this point probably isn't helping much either as that's the only place they likely view as being safe and secure since having brought them home. May I ask... Have either of them ever ventured out of their cage?

[Mitori]

I am not sure if the previous owners have, but I leave the cage door open every now and then, and they never try to come out.

[linda040899]

I am not sure if the previous owners have, but I leave the cage door open every now and then, and they never try to come out.
Hi and welcome to Lovebirds Plus Community!

Do they live in a cage that you bought for them when you got them or did they come with the cage they were living in at place of purchase? It's not a real big deal but the bottom line is that they consider their cage as a safe place. It's their home and they aren't feeling safe enough to go out and look around. This is very normal, as parrots learn trust by experience. You know you mean them no harm, but they still haven't learned that you don't intend to make them your next meal! Birds are prey animals so this is a defensive mechanism.

The more time you can spend near them now, the quicker they will learn trust. Their are websites on the Internet that will tell you how to tame your bird quickly but the technique is desensitization and merely forces the bird to accept something they don't like or really don't feel comfortable with. They need to experience that your hands aren't hurtful and some parrots just don't like to be touched, period. They will sit with you, interact with you, love you, but hands off! I have an African Grey who is this way and she's lived with me for 25 years!

Try spending more time near them. If their cage isn't in a place where you at least pass by them frequently when you are home, relocate it, if possible. Eating a meal near their cage should get their attention fairly quickly. Lovebirds are very social and enjoy company when eating.

Just a few thoughts that I hope will be helpful! :)

[Mitori]

Hi and welcome to Lovebirds Plus Community!

Do they live in a cage that you bought for them when you got them or did they come with the cage they were living in at place of purchase? It's not a real big deal but the bottom line is that they consider their cage as a safe place. It's their home and they aren't feeling safe enough to go out and look around. This is very normal, as parrots learn trust by experience. You know you mean them no harm, but they still haven't learned that you don't intend to make them your next meal! Birds are prey animals so this is a defensive mechanism.

The more time you can spend near them now, the quicker they will learn trust. Their are websites on the Internet that will tell you how to tame your bird quickly but the technique is desensitization and merely forces the bird to accept something they don't like or really don't feel comfortable with. They need to experience that your hands aren't hurtful and some parrots just don't like to be touched, period. They will sit with you, interact with you, love you, but hands off! I have an African Grey who is this way and she's lived with me for 25 years!

Try spending more time near them. If their cage isn't in a place where you at least pass by them frequently when you are home, relocate it, if possible. Eating a meal near their cage should get their attention fairly quickly. Lovebirds are very social and enjoy company when eating.

Just a few thoughts that I hope will be helpful! :)


The birds are in the same cage I bought them with! Because I had no school today, I spent about 3 hours next to them and left the door open. They've both come out, but now I'm not sure how to get them back in. Does leaving their cage mean anything spectacular?

[michael]

The birds are in the same cage I bought them with! Because I had no school today, I spent about 3 hours next to them and left the door open. They've both come out, but now I'm not sure how to get them back in. Does leaving their cage mean anything spectacular?

Only that its not uncommon for curiosity to finally get the best of them. :) Really though, its a positive step that if handled with continued patience (and steps to assure they can't escape anywhere), i'm certain the road ahead will be exciting. Um, now to get them back into their cage. Have you tried seeing if they'll "step up" onto, maybe not your hands, but your arm/elbow/wooden perch or dowel rod? If possible, you might also try dimming the lights. .. Bribery by offering their favorite treats another option as well.

[Mitori]

Only that its not uncommon for curiosity to finally get the best of them. :) Really though, its a positive step that if handled with continued patience (and steps to assure they can't escape anywhere), i'm certain the road ahead will be exciting. Um, now to get them back into their cage. Have you tried seeing if they'll "step up" onto, maybe not your hands, but your arm/elbow/wooden perch or dowel rod? If possible, you might also try dimming the lights. .. Bribery by offering their favorite treats another option as well.

It took a while, but one flew back to get food and the other followed. They were out of their cage for over 3 hours and one of those hours was me attempting to get them back into the cage. They still flew away from my hand/arm/stand, so I spent most of the time 'getting them into their cage' by standing there. I guess they wanted to be out of their cage for a little longer. Sadly, they still avoid things that have my hand holding it, even if it's treats or just a stand :')

[linda040899]

Try offering them a perch to step up onto and see if they will be less shy. They have not learned that human hands are not evil! That takes time and experience with you. When you have a pair of lovebirds, they will follow each other. Many pairs quite literally function as one bird. Amazing to watch! :)

[KiwiAndGuava]

I was pretty much in the same situation with my birds, although mine were younger. (cute birds by the way!) It took a long time to tame them, and sometimes it seems like they will never like you, but have patience! My birds are almost a year old now and they are not shy at all! To start, I found out they liked grass seeds(you can use millet, I just happen to have birds that don't like it:rotfl), so I offered it to them from outside of the cage so I was respecting their safety. Then I found out that they LOVED seed mix, so I put a bit on my open palm and they were a bit cautious, but eventually came on! Just be patient and kind to them, and they will eventually learn to trust you :)