How to train a fearful cockatiel to step up without flying away?

Question

Hi. I have a 5 months old male cockatiel hand fed as chils. He is still not tamed but does somethings which shows a bit of taming such as eating foods from hand or walking on carpets while we are on it but with stress(he is searching for danger by his eyes)My question is: I tried "step up" training action which must bring a hand under his chest and make him step on your hand. But not successfully because whenever I do that he flys away. What to do to make him not fly away and do step up plan? Pet's info: Bird | Unknown - Bird | Male

Jessica Desrosiers · Accepted Answer

It sounds like Cheeko still is wary of you, and honestly, you need more time to bond before focusing on tricks, especially if he is still flying away from you. Going back to a previous step such as hand-feeding, just being near his cage and spending time with him, petting him without handling, etc are all good previous steps to work on. You can then begin step-up training with a dowel or other object instead of your hand, that may help him train without being frightened by your hand or being handled. Training birds takes time and patience, so just keep trying, and if he seems fearful, give him a break, go to the previous step that worked, and then move forward from there.

How to train a fearful cockatiel to step up without flying away?

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