
Budgies are small birds. Anyone looking for a pet bird chooses budgies because of their beauty. Moreover, you can tame a budgie fast.
People have heard that they are easy to raise so they bring them home. But they often fail to tame the parrot due to lack of knowledge and experience. Instead of gaining his trust, they make him an aggressor and their enemy.
If you have experience buying a budgie from a pet store, you may have noticed that there are too many other birds in one small cage. They don’t have enough space to fly. Extreme temperatures can further increase their stress levels.
First, they were in a prison-like state. Secondly, they don’t get the love they need from humans. This innocent little bird is afraid of humans. So, you have to make him trust you.
Taming budgies is a simple but time taking process. There are seven things you should do to tame a budgie fast.
- Give your budgie time to settle in your surroundings
- Show your presence
- Talk to him many times a day
- Feed your budgie with your hands
- Start putting your hand in his territory (cage)
- Train him to be on your finger
- Discover the other rooms with your budgie
These steps look simple and easy but if not done properly can turn your bird into your worst enemy. Some newbies failed because of a lack of courage. Remember patience is the key to achieve this goal.
There are some other factors that can slow down the process of taming you should know and tips you can follow to boost this phenomenon. Stick to the article for becoming a taming expert.
Contents
Steps to tame a budgie
If these steps are not done correctly, this can scare the budgie as well as aggressive. No need to worry just follow the below details because these works for both aggressive and scared budgies.
1.Give your budgie time for settlement

Previously, your budgie was living in very harsh conditions. He had never been treated so well before. A large group of crickets were living in a small cage. The situation was tense.
Moreover, parrots are sad when they move from one place to another. Insecurity is their main concern. If they are sitting on a perch, they will stay there. For the first 2 to 3 days, they may sit on the floor of the cage to feel secure.
To make them comfortable, it is important to give them some time to settle. This is done to appease.
A new location can be unsettling for your little bird. He may try to avoid and fear you. To calm him down, we need to make him feel that this place is safe for him.
One thing to always remember is that the cage should not be too low or too high above the human eye. It should be kept at eye level.
As budgerigars are small birds. We make them look great. They see themselves as the prey and us as the hunter. If the cage is on the floor, he feels unsafe.
As you give him time to settle in, he will get used to your location and adjust himself accordingly. He will gradually feel comfortable with time. Give it at least a week. Give him toys too.
2. Show your presence to tame a budgie
As you’re giving your budgie time to settle, you shouldn’t forget to show your presence. Place the cage where this little bird can see you.
You can read books in front of it. Sit in front of the cage. walk around These things are done to make him realize that you are not a predator. As the environment becomes normal for him, your presence will become normal for him.
Some owners do this mistake. They place the cage at the wrong place where budgies wouldn’t see them. You don’t have to forget him. Showing your face frequently will boost the taming process.
3.Talk with low tone

Budgie is scared or maybe aggressive as he changed the environment. As soon you bring him home and place him in the cage, start talking to him.
Sit near his cage. He can go to the corner. You should speak in a low tone. Speak slowly and calmly. Talk like a mother or father addressing their newborn. There should be love in your voice.
This will surely touch his heart. Your budgie will start trusting you. He starts feeling comfortable in your company.
Remember he will not understand your language but
The language of friendship is not words but meanings
Henry david
4.Hand feed the budgie

Now it’s time to take one step more. For the first few days, you don’t need to hand feed him. You can try. If he eats, it is a good sign.
But in the early days, the majority of the budgies avoid feeding. They are sad and scared. This is a normal phenomenon, You don’t need to worry about it.
For 1st week or 1st 3 days, place the food and water inside the cage. he will eat by himself. The food you are going to hand feed him should be his favorite food. I recommend starting with pearl millet.
Budgies love to eat pearl millet. Remember don’t feed him in the cage in the bird feeder. Your bird should get this only from your hand. So, he knows if he has to enjoy this treat, he would only get it through your hand.
In early phage, feed him from outside the cage. So, he can feel more secure and have trust in your hand. Hand-feed is done so that the budgie can feel secure and comfortable with your hand.
Note: If you don't have pearl millet you can use any favorite food of budgies available to tame them
5.Put your hand inside the cage
Your bird is taming slowly but effectively. He is now trusting you. Even he will fear from you when you put your hand inside the cage.
Place your hand on the perch a little far from him. He may move away. Remember don’t move your hand towards him, it will make him insecure. Don’t show any movement. Keep your hand still for up to 5 minutes. Do this 3-4 times a day.
By doing this, we make our budgie believe that he can trust us. We are not going to attack him. Placing your hand inside the cage will help your budgie to sit on your hand.
6. Train him

Now you are very close to eating the fruit. If you have done the previous steps properly, your budgie will be hand tamed in a day. It’s time to train him to sit on your hand. He starts trusting you.
Train to sit on the perch
For the initial step, you need two things to train your budgie. One is the perch and the other is their favorite treat (Pearl millet).
Take the perch (stick) and pearl millet into the cage, close to the budgie. First, take the stick closer to your bird and food a little far from the stick.
If budgie has to take the treat ,he has to climb over the stick. This is done to finger train him.
Train to sit on the finger
The fruit has ripened now. You have got the trust of your budgie successfully. Put away the stick and use your finger instead. He will climb on your finger to eat the treat.
For the first time, your bird may fly away but will surely come back on your hand. Keep your hand motion slow and steady.
If the bird is not climbing on your finger, you can gently press against his chest. This is just to encourage him.
You can use words to train him. For example, you can urge him to climb by saying “step up” or jump or any other word you want to train him. Repeat this process several times a day.
Budgies will learn this behavior and whenever you say “step up”. They will climb on your hand
7. Show him your house
Congratulations your budgie is befriended with you. The bond is still weak. It’s time to make your bond stronger.
To do this, start discovering your house with your budgie. As he is now on your hand. Bring him as it is. Slowly and calmly move your hand. Go to other rooms. Show him the world outside the cage.
Initially, he may fly back into the cage. But keep trying and give him time. Offer him food in the other rooms too. So, he knows that another location of the house is safe for him too.
If you follow all the above steps with care, you will get a pet bird that will love to spend time with you. He will eat from your hands, climb over your shoulder and fingers. Spending time with your budgie will help to get rid of the daily worries of life,
You should feed him in other rooms so he knows that the whole house is safe for him.
How long does it take to tame a budgie?
Taming a budgie takes 2 to 5 weeks (14-35 days). It requires a lot of patience and hard work. Taming time depends upon the budgie’s previous interactions with the humans and the current environmental conditions.
Some factors can boost the taming which includes a good clean and peaceful environment, frequent training, and feeding.
Mistakes You should avoid while taming budgies

Taming a budgie is not hard but time-consuming. All you have to do is to keep patience as it is the key to success. There are some mistakes people do. Instead of befriending they turn them into their enemies. Budgie may bite them because of their aggressiveness.
Here is the list of things you should not do with your budgie
- Do not yell at your budgie
- Don’t follow or grab him tightly
- Avoid staring in your budgie eyes
- Do not bring the partner if you want to tame him quick
- Keep training. Don’t lose patience
- Keep him in the cage for fast taming
- Don’t force him to eat, if he avoids
- Taming too much
Here get into the details for useful tips.
Do not scream
Screaming at your small innocent bird will make him scared. It is a common factor that slows down the taming process. Sometimes little children around him make such harsh and high pitched sound that feels him uncomfortable.
It mostly happens when you are feeding your pet, or when your hand enters his territory. He will defend his cage by biting you. You may see this while hand training. Remember to keep yourself calm.
Do not yell at him. Keep yourself ready for this.
Do budgies bite hurt? When you put your hand in your bird’s cage, he may bite you. Because you are in his territory. His bite doesn’t hurt. You should remain calm for faster taming
Never chase or grab the budgie to tame
Look yourself. How giant you are in front of your budgie! If you grab your pet, he will consider you as a predator. Let’s take the example of the snake.
The snake moves slowly towards his prey. When he reaches close, he attacks at the last moment. Some owners do the same like this. They try to grab a sitting budgie.
Having this behavior makes your bird feel that you are a predator and going to attack him at any moment. Even after the taming, if your bird flies away from your hand or shoulder, let him be. Do not chase him or try to catch him. By doing this there are chances you start losing trust.
It doesn’t mean that you can never hold him. In short, don’t chase or grab him like a predator. There are many occasions you have to do this while feeding medicine or putting your budgie back in his cage. Just grab politely
Don’t look in his eyes
Looking in the eyes of budgie will make them feel uncomfortable. They are small and prey birds. Any predator before the attack looks into the eyes of prey.
In the wild, they have experienced this behavior. Moreover, it is in their nature. If you look directly in the eyes, they will feel danger and try to flyway.
Do not Free him before taming
Some people after bringing the budgie home, set him free without showing him his actual cage. At this stage, it is difficult to control him. To catch him, you have to chase him and grab him which will scare him more.
I recommend you to keep your budgie for almost 1 week in the cage. So, he knows about his territory. Moreover, it is easier to tame in the cage than in the whole room.
To catch your budgie, close all the lights of the room. In the dark, he can’t fly. When he sits down, grab him politely and place him in the cage. For taming quicker, it is recommended to keep him in the cage.
Keep Consistency
Consistency is the key to success. You have to show your presence to the budgie daily. Spend some time with him. Talk to him. Hand feeds him daily.
You don’t have to lose hope. For some birds it takes time. As
Trust take years to built and just a matter of seconds to lose
Gaining trust requires hard work and patience. Keep acting on the steps I told you. You will surely eat the ripened fruit soon.
Don’t bring Partner
Taming two budgies is hard. They will not be tamed easily. You have to put in too much effort. I recommend you to not bring another budgie if you are planning on bonding with one.
These small birds live in groups in the wild. They are social birds. If you bring another fellow, why would he interact with you? He will be happy with the other. Both will spend time with each other. They will ignore you. It will make it much harder to interact with them.
It is not impossible but it requires a lot of hard work, time, and patience. For newbies, you should go with a single one.
One pet bird is alone. He would need company. Need someone with whom he loves to spend time. At that time you can take responsibility. Get his trust and can enjoy yourself with your new friend.
Do not force him to eat
If your bird refuses to eat from your hand, do not force him. This can irritate him. He may get stress. There are chances he may not like the food or he is filled. Changing the food may solve your problem
When a budgie move to a new place, it is normal that he may not eat the food. If this happens for more than 2 days then you should call a veterinarian. But mostly he will start eating after 1 day and will start returning to his normal routine slowly.
Taming too much your budgie
You should train your bird 3-5 times a day. If tamed too much he may be bored and will not give you a response. And if this happens, return after some time. If he still doesn’t give any reaction, he is tired. Tame him the next day
Factors affecting the taming process

If you are doing everything right and provide him all things which he needs, your budgie will start trusting you in Less than a week. However, some factors can slow down this bonding which you should need to know.
Environment
Environment plays a very important role in the budgie’s behavior. The surroundings should be clean. There should be sunlight coming to the cage. A dark room can lead to stressful behavior.
There should be balance in the light. In the daytime, sunlight is recommended but for the nighttime, you should darken the area along with the dawn. It will keep his sleep well. There is no better therapy than a good sleep.
The cage should be out of the noise. The area should be calm and peaceful. Rush, noise, screams can lead to aggressive behavior.
Stress
Stress is one of the main factors that affect taming training harshly. Other pets like cats and dogs are their predators. Budgies may feel fear in their presence. This can affect their stress levels.
Also when they move from one location to another, separation from their fellows or recent owners, noisy environment or any new member in the family can boost their stress levels. You can entertain your budgie easily.
When budgies are under stress, they can show these symptoms
- Remain quiet
- Biting
- Decreased hunger
- Feather picking
- Stay at the same place (don’t show much movement)
- Eat less
If you feel these symptoms try to provide them a calm environment. Place the cage close to the window and show him the outer world.
Size and location of the cage
Birds love to live in a wild. That is their natural habitat. Living in a cage is hard for them. You have to provide them a big cage. A shorter cage can lead to stress in them.
Moreover, a cage lying on the floor is not a good option. You will look giant in view of your bird. This makes the budgie scared. Instead, keep the cage at eye level. This will make your bird comfortable.
Questions that can help you
Should I let my untamed budgie out?
I will recommend you keep your bird inside the cage. It is difficult to tame him outside. Keep him inside until he recognizes his territory so he knows where to return.
You can set him free in the evening time for few minutes so he can open his body. If he doesn’t return to its cage. Close the lights. Keep the environment dark because budgies can’t fly in the dark. He will remain still at its place. Just grab him politely and leave him in his home.
The best idea is, to keep your bird inside the cage until he is untamed
Are male or female budgies easier to tame?
On the internet, you will see people are talking about that males are easier to tame. Is that really the case?
In reality, it does not matter you are taming budgie of which gender. If you start taming in a good way and at the young age of your bird, gender will not affect it. Although males got an edge because they are easy to handle.
Females have egg-bound problems and hormonal changes that make them aggressive at that time. While males are friendlier than females. As a beginner, it is a good choice if you go with males.
Can you tame two budgies together?
You can tame two budgies together but it is harder and time-consuming than a single one. If you bought two birds, I will recommend you train them in different cages for taming faster.
Think yourself why they will interact with you, if they have another partner. You can finger train them both but too much patience is the key to success.
How do you tame a scared budgie?
You can get his trust by providing him a peaceful and good environment. Talk to him politely. Feed him his favorite food. If he is terrifying to you, you should leave him for some time and get back again after some time.
Usually, when these birds move to another house, they worried. If there is any other pet like cat or dog, move him away also
Why is my budgie not getting tamed?
Getting the trust of your bird takes time. Some budgies need more time and care than others. Follow the above steps to get him to believe that you are his loyal friend and are not going to attack.
Is taming a budgie easy?
Taming a budgie is easy. That’s why it is the first choice of beginners’ pet bird. Although the task is easy but time-consuming. You have to keep patience and don’t have to lose your temper.
Just deal with him politely and feed with your hands. Also, talk slowly and peacefully
Summary
You can’t tame your budgie in 30 minutes or a day. It requires time and dedication. Those who say it is possible, do not believe them. You just need to keep going. Gaining trust is no small feat, it takes time, care and consistency.
Just follow all the steps, don’t make expert mistakes, give it a good environment and try to get your confidence faster than before.
Hope this helpful. You have any problem with bird and you can comment below. to help