Distance before hands
Sit near the cage doing nothing for a few days. If the bird eats, drinks, and preens while you are there, that distance is comfortable.
Then sit slightly closer, wait until it is comfortable again, and repeat. One step a day is enough.
- First check whether it eats with you present
- Hold each comfortable distance for days
- Move one step at a time
- Do not loom over the cage
Treats come before the hand
Rather than reaching into the cage, hold a favourite treat outside the bars and wait. Repeated approaches build the experience that a hand is not a threat.
Hold a finger low in front of the feet and let the bird step up on its own. Grabbing undoes weeks of work.
A bite is not dislike
Birds say no with the beak. Punishing the bite teaches the bird to skip the warning, so look for what came before it.
Feathers pressed flat and a step backwards, rapid pupil changes, or an open beak all mean stop for today and start again tomorrow at the same distance.
- If bitten, withdraw quietly without shouting
- Remember the posture that came first
- Never grab the bird
- End the session when it stops going well
Records show the pace
Progress always looks like standstill in the moment. A short note on where you got to, and whether appetite held, makes weeks of change visible.
If appetite drops or fear grows after you increase contact, slow down — and if that lasts several days, contact a clinic that treats birds.