Help with cockatiel

[Tiellove]

This post is kind of a continuation of my previous one, but this problem keeps occurring, so I would like to see what you guys think I should do. Anyways, I got a new cockatiel that was just weaned when I got it, and I have had it for about two weeks now. When I first got him, I let him chill in the cage and explore on his own. Now he is really comfortable with his cage, and is very vocal and active inside his cage. He recently started accepting treats from my hand (millet, sunflower seeds), and I decided to take it one step further.

I started target training him. The first time I introduced it to him, he was very curious and started to get the hang of it. But after about maybe five or six times touching the stick, he gets afraid and goes away, with the crest up. I wait for him to calm down, and then I try to give him a treat, but he won't take it. This problem also occurs whenever he comes out of his cage. I haven't finished building his bird playground/stand yet, so he just walks around. Whenever he is out of his cage, he just tries to go away and avoid me. After he goes back in, I have to start from square one again (getting him used to me giving him treats). It's as if going outside "resets" his brain and makes him now know me anymore. I have tried to leave his treats outside and sit a distance away so he can get used to me and him being outside in pretty close distance. How can I get him to trust me? I have NEVER used negative reinforcement with him, and I do not plan on using it on him ever.

[Tiellove]

Another detail I forgot to add was that the cockatiel is in the living room, and that's the busiest part of the house. It's also the loudest. I read in many places that the bird is supposed to be in a busy part of the house, so that's why I put the cage there. Becuase of this placement, I HAVE to train him in the living room, because he will not even attempt to move if I place him and his cage in another room during training. The odd times he does train, either the other birds, or my family members make a loud noise, and he becomes afraid and is even more reluctant to bond with me.

[Wolf]

The first thing that comes to mind is training time, is someone is always distracting the bird and scaring hi why can't you just move training time, or let family members know of the problem and ask for half an hour of low noise so that you can train your bird?
Next, I went back to refresh my memory, about your bird and you, You have a bird whose personality type appears to be a little insecure or shy and this always means more time not only to reach a given point but time spent o that level before moving to the next level. I mostly recommend that for the first month a least that you don't concern yourself with training and spend your time specifically on bonding with the bird. And that is for a bird that is not shy. Now you have had this bird for two weeks and gone from not taking treats to taking treats to beginning target training. That is fast for a non shy bird.
Ideally you go from a bird who doesn't know you and won't take treats to a bird that takes treats through the cage bars, to a bird that takes treats directly from your fingers in the cage door, to a bird that will step on your hand to get the treat to beginning target training.
Now, when you begin target training you only ask the bird to touch the stick a maximum of three times and then back off to the previous step and reinforce that level again then end the session and come back next session. Otherwise you risk flooding, which it sounds to me has occurred. So go back to square one and begin all over with getting him to accept treats through the bars of the cage while you just talk to him. When he takes the treats, no more than 3, willingly as well as calmly throughout one complete session, start the next training session by talking to him with the door open and offering treats directly from your hand. Continue in the same manner through him stepping onto your hand to get the treat and then begin target training.
It appears to me that although he was beginning to do as requested that he did not have enough time to start to trust you. Go a little slower this time and see if this solves the problem.

[Pajarita]

I disagree, Wolf, it's not that the bird is shy, it's that it's a baby! He got the bird when he was first weaned and it has only been two weeks so this is, most definitely, a little baby. And, Tiellove, I am sorry but you are going at it all wrong. You say that you don't use negative reinforcement but, my dear, you are not offering security and you are flooding and that's as negative as it can get and as damaging, especially with a baby. And mind you, you can easily mess up a baby for the rest of his life by doing this. Babies do not like 'busy' places. Babies stay in their own cozy and quiet 'cave' nest until they are ready to leave it and that means months. They are like human babies, they might love been in the middle of the family group quietly interacting but they get scared and anxious when exposed to loud noises or too much hullabaloo. Babies need to feel safe and loved and a lot of people and a lot of ruckus is not conducive to it. Neither is training. You started training too soon, you insisted way too many times (five or six as per your posting), if you spend hours every day bonding and loving him you did not say so I am inclined to think that you don't, and you put him in a too busy spot (stress and insecurity). I am not scolding you, I know that you did not mean to do this, I am trying to point out to you what is wrong so you can correct it.

Forget about training him. Put his cage in a quieter place against a wall and at eye level, and just spend hours with him bonding. Let him come out and do NOT ask for anything, just talk, sing, whistle, offer him a treat (it doesn't matter if he won't take it the first few times), work on your computer, watch TV, play games -not loud- let him perch on your shoulder and turn your head his way every few minutes and talk to him -use lots and lots of praise, etc. He is feeling terribly insecure and lost his trust in you and that's why he runs away from you but he does need the affection and company and that's why he keeps on trying to get close to you (the 'resetting' of his brain, as you call it) but then you go and mess up again and that's why he stopped accepting the treats you offer (because he knows there is a price for then and, in his mind, he should not have to pay a price for food from a parental role).

Training a bird to do a few things is a good thing but it's not the alpha and the omega of birdkeeping, it's just a little something that one can do to enrich the bird's life but it needs to be done the right way, at the right time and SOLELY for the bird's benefit and NEVER for the human.

[Wolf]

I still think this bird is a shy one, although I am not disagreeing with anything else that you said.
Here is a cute little gem that you might like.

http://www.redorbit.com/news/science/19 ... ne_levels/

[Pajarita]

NICE!!!! Thanks, I saved it to my 'Birds' archive. And here it's one for you: http://newsofbird.com/2014/09/19/study- ... an-humans/

And a real goodie on the photoperiodism argument: http://newsofbird.com/2014/09/05/nightt ... al-clocks/

[Wolf]

Thanks, I didn't have the first one and thought to give you one more that I thought to be relevant though it isn't on photoperiodism.

http://www.abcbirds.org/newsandreports/ ... 30513.html

Hope you enjoy it.

[Tiellove]

Thank you for your input, and yes I have taken what you said into account and moved his cage into my room, which is quiet most of the day. But when you said

let him perch on your shoulder

, I don't think that would apply to me because he has just recently started taking treats from my hand (before I moved him), but when I introduce my finger in front of it, he shies away and eats the treat from a different angle. I have also introduced the sound of the clicker to tell him that he will get a treat, and every time I "click", he whips his head around in anticipation of a treat. Although you guys might have a better analysis, I (hopefully) have gotten back on to the right track. My next question is: how do I know when the bird has started to bond with me, in other words, how will I know to take training to the next level? I also enjoyed the articles you guys shared

[Wolf]

Try to hold the clicker differently as it is a sudden loud sound and it sounds like it scares him so try to muffle the sound of it a little bit.

[Pajarita]

Oh, don't worry for a single second about not knowing, you WILL know, trust me on that! When the bird wants to be with you all the time, he has bonded. It's as simple as that. But to give a few pointers of what to look for: he gets excited when you first walk in, he approaches the side of the cage closer to you, he flutters his wings at you, he flies to your shoulder, he preens your face and hair, kisses your ears or gently grabs your ear lobes in his beak and 'tastes' them, he calls for you when you leave the room, he tries to kiss your lips and feed from them - these are all typical signs of a bird which loves you. Now, I'll be honest with you, I've never had a cockatiel that did ALL these things because I always try to get the ones that were hand-fed and human-imprinted to bond with the other tiels (it's healthier for them and makes a happier life than depending on a human) but the two hand-fed ones I've had would ALWAYS fly to my shoulder, preen my face and hair and take treats from my hand even though I never did anything to get them to bond with me.