Not stepping up when outside the cage :(

[Snoopy_the cockatiel]

Hi Friends mainly cockatiel owners,My cockatiel is 2 months old when I brought her home.She has learnt to step up without any hesitation when I take her out of cage and feels safe and fun in my hand.I touch her beak,feathers,scratch her head,she allows me to do it.When I leave her on the floor or somewhere,she just roams and do what she likes.But refuse to step up on my hand.When I keep my hand near her,she just goes away.So this becomes a problem after I let her out of the cage. Any suggestions?

[Eurycerus]

Sounds like you're doing great! You should make stepping up fun outside of the cage. When she steps up give her a treat and don't just have her step up to go back in her cage, as Michael's article points out. She's probably just having fun and doesn't want to be put back.

[marie83]

Sounds like you're doing great! You should make stepping up fun outside of the cage. When she steps up give her a treat and don't just have her step up to go back in her cage, as Michael's article points out. She's probably just having fun and doesn't want to be put back.

Exactly this, do lots of practicing at times other than when you put her in the cage. You may need to work in a room she is not familiar with first. Also when she is good at stepping up you can practice putting her away, rewarding her then letting her come straight back out.
You can also use targetting so she has to step up in order to reach the target to start off with.

[hoovopolis]

a vocal cue works for mine - i say "up" and rub his tummy with the nuckle of my index finger. he is a baby and like to nibble and complain a little, but that also helps - affirming his movement with words/verbal affirmation

[Snoopy_the cockatiel]

Thanks I will try to do target training.Its not even one month after she came home but she is learning so fast.So I am confident that she gets more bonded in few days.And I dont ask her to step up only to take her back to cage,also to play with her,to help her preening and to train tricks.The worst time which she never likes is "Bath time".She don't like sink or a bowl or even a sprayer.She goes to all the corners and try to fly.
One thing I forgot to say - when I keep a stick on one side of my hand asking to 'step up' and my tiel is standing on the other side,she just circles my hand and come near the target.Very brilliant to escape from stepping up.

[Wayne361]

Good advice so far. One thing I might add is that you cannot force a bird to do something he/she doesnt want to do, or you risk breaking trust. Sometimes my will decide to fly on the ground and explore. I dont intervene as exploring is part of what birds do. I will let him come to ME....then I put hand down to step-up. I have also heard some people have trained their bird from stepping up by inadvertantly creating a game of "lets see the big human run around the room trying to pick me up" If this senario is created then it becomes harder to break this behaviour. Since your bird is so young I would keep re-enforcing that stepping-up has positive consequences.

Wayne

[Eurycerus]

I have also heard some people have trained their bird from stepping up by inadvertantly creating a game of "lets see the big human run around the room trying to pick me up"

I could totally see that happening :] I crawl around with Nika so that she doesn't get herself into trouble but I don't intervene. She comes to my hand, aka charges at me excitedly, when she's done.

[marie83]

Forget about the bathing issue for a while, get her trust and get her stepping up reliably first and preferably recall. Both of these two will help you out if she ever gets herself into a potentially dangerous situation. Cockatiels aren't heavy bathers anyway due to where they are from and it won't hurt to leave her a while until she trusts you. It will then be easier to teach her bathing is safe and fun.