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My budgie bites. How can I get her to trust me and allow petting?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Bird | Unknown - Bird | Female | 1 year and 4 months old

My budgie wont let me pet her, she bites and flies away when i try. Can someone help... Is there a way I can make her comfortable with being petted?

3 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Jessica Desrosiers

Veterinary Technician

Published on May 22nd, 2018

Time. Patience. And Treats! Take some time every day to just sit near Star's cage without interacting. Once she seems a bit more comfortable, you can start to offer a favorite treat such as spray millet from your hand, or tossed into the cage. From there, you can work up to offering it from your hand, or petting her gently while she eats it. If at any time she becomes too scared, revert to the previous part that worked (IE going back to offering from your hand) until she is comfortable again. This takes time, and likely won't happen overnight. It can take weeks or even months to bond with a new bird, so remaining patient and giving her time to get more and more used to you can help.

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1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

Other Answers

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    Answered By Jessica Desrosiers

    Veterinary Technician

    Published on August 7th, 2018

    When you have two or more birds, they can sometimes bond better with each other than with you, so it may be that they are finding they are closer to each other. That said, you can still get them more used to you by simply spending time together, talking to them outside the cage, calmly tossing a treat they love to them, etc. Once they are used to you being around, you can then move on to offering treats from your hand, and from there reaching to pet them with food in hand. This takes time, and it can take several months for each step, so keep at it. If they become too stressed out, take a break, and return to the previous step they were comfortable with. If you find they have a favorite food, that can be offered only when you are around to help them associate you with positive, fun things, instead of scary.

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    1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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    Answered By Jessica Desrosiers

    Veterinary Technician

    Published on September 6th, 2018

    That's a big question! You can, however, get started by finding a treat your budgies really like. Once you find it, gradual steps and a lot of patience can help. Start by just tossing the treat into the cage every time you observe or near your birds. Once they are comfortable with you being around, you can start offering the treat from your hand by placing it in the cage. Once they are comfortable with that, moving on to petting them while treating them, and then handling them more and more is best. If at any time they become too nervous or stressed out, taking a break until they are calm and then resuming fro the previous step they were comfortable with can help. Taming does take time (and some birds just don't bond completely with their human companions), so a lot of patience and gradual building up of time spent together can help.

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    2Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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