All About Training Cockatiels
Cockatiels, like most small parrots, are easy to train to simply step up on your finger or just hang out on your shoulder with you while you go about your day. They can be taught to "recall" which just means, fly to you on command from anywhere and they also have the ability to learn tricks, talk and whistle tunes and songs.
My family has a cockatiel who sings "Winnie the Pooh", or moreso whistles the tune of it. Cockatiels are capable of so much if we would only know how to train them.
Training a cockatiel is easy as they catch on fast and can be taught with small objects as they don't require as much space as the larger parrots to learn how to fly or perform in front of people.
The best thing to teach a hissing cockatiel who won't come out of its cage is to touch train, this means to teach it to touch the end of a stick or what is called "a target". This stimulates your cockatiel's mind in learning something while at the same time, developing trust with you and learning it's OK to come out of his or her cage and be with you.
Using touch training also makes it so that you never get bit during the training process! Wouldn't that be nice? No more band aids for you!
From my experience, cockatiels work best for spray millet which should only be given during training as it is not healthy for them to soley eat by itself. Touch training begins INSIDE the cockatiel's cage so no border is broken and everything becomes the parrot's choice.
Once your cockatiel is touching the end of the stick and earning a bite of millet each time, he will be eager to follow that stick wherever it goes! Even if it happens to go above your hand or finger where he must step up to get his reward. This is a great method for teaching a scared or timid parrot to step up on your hand or finger. Touch training can also be applied to flight training and used to teach your 'tiel to fly to you on cue.
My family has a cockatiel who sings "Winnie the Pooh", or moreso whistles the tune of it. Cockatiels are capable of so much if we would only know how to train them.
Training a cockatiel is easy as they catch on fast and can be taught with small objects as they don't require as much space as the larger parrots to learn how to fly or perform in front of people.
The best thing to teach a hissing cockatiel who won't come out of its cage is to touch train, this means to teach it to touch the end of a stick or what is called "a target". This stimulates your cockatiel's mind in learning something while at the same time, developing trust with you and learning it's OK to come out of his or her cage and be with you.
Using touch training also makes it so that you never get bit during the training process! Wouldn't that be nice? No more band aids for you!
From my experience, cockatiels work best for spray millet which should only be given during training as it is not healthy for them to soley eat by itself. Touch training begins INSIDE the cockatiel's cage so no border is broken and everything becomes the parrot's choice.
Once your cockatiel is touching the end of the stick and earning a bite of millet each time, he will be eager to follow that stick wherever it goes! Even if it happens to go above your hand or finger where he must step up to get his reward. This is a great method for teaching a scared or timid parrot to step up on your hand or finger. Touch training can also be applied to flight training and used to teach your 'tiel to fly to you on cue.
Training Tools for You & Your Cockatiel
Getting started in cockatiel training
When training cockatiels you can use natural behaviors, capturing and shaping to put behaviors on cue and you can also use birdie props with your parrot! Both are great, mentally stimulating and fun for your cockatiel.
Capturing natural behaviors is easy as long as your timing is right. If you reward one wrong behavior, it can set you back days or even weeks in your training so be careful!
Clicker training is a great technique to use to train your cockatiel correctly and most effectively. This just means giving your bird what is called a "bridge" which tells him at the exact moment that he did something you want and will reward him for. A bridge can be a clicker, or the word "good". It can even be a whistle.
If you don't understand the basics of clicker training, learn here at "Getting Started with Clicker Training". I promise it's SIMPLE and very easy to get started today. Training session only need to last a few minutes, they go quick and normally you have to stop earlier than you want just to keep it interesting, fun and positive (for both you and your bird).
When buying trick training props for your smaller bird, such as a cockatiel, make sure they are the appropriate size. Sometimes the ads can all look the same but look at the size and get the right one for your bird. It's important for your tiel to be able to lift the objects if that is the behavior asked.
There are many videos out there on how to get started on training your cockatiel.
For master training techniques, courses and other helpful hints visit Cockatiel Training and browse the website of free videos, information and how to get started. If you aren't quite ready to teach tricks, you can start with simply training your cockatiel not to bite anymore. Trick training will give you that result anyway and you can start with very simple behaviors.
Parrots are naturally curious creatures and it is easy to introduce them to new props and tricks as long as you are doing it often.
Wondering where to get your parrot props? Here are some sites to get you started found by a quick search engine search!
Cockatiel Props & Tricks
Parrots & Props
Roller Skates & More Parrot Trick Props
If you prefer step-by-step processes and being told exactly what to do and when, basically to be walked through how to train your cockatiel then you will want to invest in a full trick training course for small & large parrots.
Capturing natural behaviors is easy as long as your timing is right. If you reward one wrong behavior, it can set you back days or even weeks in your training so be careful!
Clicker training is a great technique to use to train your cockatiel correctly and most effectively. This just means giving your bird what is called a "bridge" which tells him at the exact moment that he did something you want and will reward him for. A bridge can be a clicker, or the word "good". It can even be a whistle.
If you don't understand the basics of clicker training, learn here at "Getting Started with Clicker Training". I promise it's SIMPLE and very easy to get started today. Training session only need to last a few minutes, they go quick and normally you have to stop earlier than you want just to keep it interesting, fun and positive (for both you and your bird).
When buying trick training props for your smaller bird, such as a cockatiel, make sure they are the appropriate size. Sometimes the ads can all look the same but look at the size and get the right one for your bird. It's important for your tiel to be able to lift the objects if that is the behavior asked.
There are many videos out there on how to get started on training your cockatiel.
For master training techniques, courses and other helpful hints visit Cockatiel Training and browse the website of free videos, information and how to get started. If you aren't quite ready to teach tricks, you can start with simply training your cockatiel not to bite anymore. Trick training will give you that result anyway and you can start with very simple behaviors.
Parrots are naturally curious creatures and it is easy to introduce them to new props and tricks as long as you are doing it often.
Wondering where to get your parrot props? Here are some sites to get you started found by a quick search engine search!
Cockatiel Props & Tricks
Parrots & Props
Roller Skates & More Parrot Trick Props
If you prefer step-by-step processes and being told exactly what to do and when, basically to be walked through how to train your cockatiel then you will want to invest in a full trick training course for small & large parrots.
Parrot Related Lenses
Need Help with Your Cockatiel?
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Srena44 Nov 17, 2011 @ 3:40 pm | delete
- nice lens
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benzwm021
Nov 8, 2011 @ 6:14 pm | delete
- Thanks for the great cockatiel info. I have a rescued male cockatiel named Manny who has brought such joy to my home. Check out my lens on bird cage info at http://www.squidoo.com/bird-cages-for-sale
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SheilaSchnauzies
Nov 7, 2011 @ 7:10 pm | delete
- Very informative lens! I had a rescue Cockatiel named Tweety Bird for about five years until he passed away. I really miss that little guy! Your lens is being blessed today by a SquidAngel on a Quest for things that are yellow!
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by jamieleigh
jamieleigh
My name is Jamieleigh and I'm a fashion model with BMG Models in Orlando, Florida. I have a huge flock of parrots that I train for outdoor flight amon... more »
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