How do I train my cockatiel?

[Skip]

Hi,
How do I train my cockatiel?

I'm getting a cockatiel on wednesday. So I want to plan everything out. Well, I have school. I leave for school at 7:15 am and get home at 3:45 (exact times). So I'm gone for 8hrs & 30mins. And I have a bedtime(which is lame) at 9:00pm. So I only have 5hrs and 15mins to spend time with it. How do I train it in that time? How do I get it hungry so it would be motivated to do tricks?
Can you please help? Please?


Thank you

[liz]

Would you want your Mom to not feed you until you did your chores? Never withhold food or try to work with a hungy being. It is cruel.

Your Mom would reward you with a treat after you finished your chores. Find something it really really likes to use as a reward.

You haven't even bonded with the little guy yet.

[cml]

Would you want your Mom to not feed you until you did your chores? Never withhold food or try to work with a hungy being. It is cruel.

Your Mom would reward you with a treat after you finished your chores. Find something it really really likes to use as a reward.

You haven't even bonded with the little guy yet.

I agree with Liz, I dont believe in withholding food, Ive found that our little fella is just as motivated to train anyway, he loves trick training and really enjoys it, whether its before or after he's eaten. He always has access to his food (pellets), and eats when he wants during the day.

I think you should bond with your new friend, and work with basic taming (michael's guide is good, check that out!).

[Skip]

How do you train you parrots then? I've heard that you need to fast you parrot in order to get it motivated. Although I never did that with my budgie.

Plus, my future cockatiel will go on a non-colored pellet diet, so maybe it will want to have something with color in it. Like, carrots or fruit for for treats.

P.S. My mom knows nothing about parrots.

[liz]

You don't plan to give it fresh foods? It needs fresh foods.

Aftr you get a chance to bond you could use shelled sunflower seeds as treats.

[GlassOnion]

Don't use veggies as treats because it's something they NEED to eat but they don't go crazy for it. By fasting, don't do it more than 2 hours. It's very, very dangerous for birds to not eat. THey can get sick really quickly.

Offer millet as a treat, my birds go CRAZY for millet. Just use millet as the treat, feed pellets and veggies as much as he'll take because he needs to it.

Just make sure that you save millet just for training.

[Skip]

I'm gonna give it nuts and seeds as treats. But shelled sun flower seeds? I thought you have to break the shell off for it!

[Skip]

Change in plans. I'm not getting another bird. Because my mom doesn't want to buy another cage. When my dad is really paying for it. She thinks that it's okay to keep two different types of parrots in one cage. Even if you have one budgie and get another with no cage and put your second budgie in the current cage as the other will fight.

[cml]

Skip, I think its great that you are interested in parrots, but from your earlier posts, you are quite young, and if your mother doesnt share your interest, perhaps you should wait with a second bird until you are older and can take full responsibility for it. Owning a bird is a huge commitment.

You have a budgie and they are very cute and smart birds, if you are intent on getting a second bird, why not get your budgie a friend instead?

[liz]

I agree with cml. Budgees are parrots too. They are just in tiny little packages.

Years ago before my father died, he was basically an invalid. He stayed most of the day in a recliner in the living room. I had two budgees at that time (but really knew nothing about their little personalities) that kept my father entertained.

He would talk to them and they would tweet back. If he fussed at them they would really chatter. If it turned into an agument between them the sunflower seeds would fly. They actually threw sunflower seeds at him. That was interaction.

These two budgees never got out of their cage and were never handled but they communicated with my father. Thinking back those budgees were really deprived. I regret that even today.

ust think what your little budgee could be. Key into YouTube to see what they can do.