Training a parrot can be a pain in the ass, especially when some owners get the bird feral or too young and no previous owner has trained it ever. And the pain is going to be much more if the owner himself is still a beginner.
And one of the most basic tricks that every owner would love to teach his parrot is jumping and sitting on the hand. This trick can lead to a very healthy relationship between the owner and his bird, and it’s one of the best ways to build trust and erase any concerns towards the owners.
And honestly, what is the point of having a parrot that doesn’t like, want, or fear sitting on the owner’s hand.
So, how to train a parrot to sit on hand?
To train a parrot to sit on hand, tame the parrot first. Taming the parrot before any type of training is essential. After that, make the bird feel like he is trapped or cornered, so your hand looks like the only choice to feel comfortable.
And in this article, we will show how someone can train a parrot to sit on hand, even if he was a beginner. And you will know what do you need for this to succeed.
So, let’s get into this…
Training a Parrot to Sit on Hand Steps
There are many ways an owner can follow to train his parrot to sit on his hand, and these methods need the parrot to be tamed. An untamed parrot can cause failure in the training attempt. If your parrot is tamed, he accepts touches, and won’t attack when you come close, Etc.
Note that bonding and taming a parrot are two different things, the tamed parrot is well-socialized that won’t get scared of any human being, while the bonded parrot is also a well-socialized parrot who is bonded to a certain person, and won’t mind sitting on anyone else’s hand.
However, the first method I am going to show you is possible to perform with any feral parrot, but you will need to protect your hand from bites, and you will need to clip the wings to prevent your parrot from flying away.
This training can work with any type of parrot and other birds as well, and it’s very easy to perform. All you have to do is prepare the best treat that your parrot loves, and follow the instructions.
Here are the steps to train your parrot to sit on hand.
First Step
The first method and the one that I use personally when someone I know asks me to train his parrot to sit on his hand. This method has the biggest success rate, at least in my experience.
The concept of this method is to take your tamed parrot and put him in any of your house corners, try to make him feel like he is trapped by blocking all the exits in front of him, use your body to do that.
And try to put your hand under the parrot chest, use any word that you would like to make the command for jumping and sitting on your hand. If the parrot is confused and doesn’t know what to do, just give him a little push upwards, backward, or whatever works for your parrot.
The other thing is to choose a corner in your house that has solid ground. Solid ground is uncomfortable for parrots or any other bird. They want something to grab on, like a perch or a stick. So, the idea behind this is to make your parrot uncomfortable unless he steps on your hand. No carpet, no rug, just solid ground.
You can use this method with a feral parrot, but you will need hand gloves to protect your hand, and you will have to clip your parrot wings. This method can also be a way to tame your parrot. However, it’s not very effective. There are multiple and effective ways to tame a parrot.
Try this and repeat few times, you can take advantage of using treats as well, so when the parrot steps on your hand, give him praise and a treat.
Remember, when you use this method, try to avoid any hesitation when protracting your hand toward the bird. Any hesitation might make the parrot think you are just playing, so he might use his beak to touch you or even bite you. Just put your hand under the chest without giving your parrot the chance to use his beak with your hand.
The tamed parrot will ignore your hand when it’s under his chest, while the feral parrot may bite, so you have to wear protection.
Second Step
The second step is after your parrot is used to sit on your hand for comfort. Now you will have to change the place of the training from the corner to the cage or the stand.
In this step, you will teach your parrot that it’s ok to sit on your hand for comfort. You are telling him that your hand is also on his perch.
And to start, open the cage, and protract your hand toward your parrot, say the command you used to say when you were training the bird in the previous step.
Again, if the parrot is not cooperative, then give a little push backward, make him feel he is about to fall, and then he will step on your hand, praise him and give him his favorite treat.
Third Step
The third step is optional. It’s up to you whether to do it. And it’s about calling your parrot to come when he is on your stand or cage. At this stage, you will need to use the command word your parrot used when stepping on your hand. And without this word, there is no point in taking this step.
And to do, all you have to do is to protect your hand in the air, make it visible to your parrot while he is on the other side of the room, and start calling him repeatedly until he flies to your hand.
Note that if you didn’t use treats and command words in the previous steps, the success rate will be lower. Besides that, if your parrot is not trained to fly around in the house, perform this step gradually. You will need to be closer to your parrot at the beginning when you call him and distance away after every successful attempt.
Repeating this step every day with a very young parrot (a parrot who just learned how to fly) for a couple of months will give you a parrot who won’t fly away from you, even outdoors.
And I have written an article about how to train your parrot for free-flight outdoors. This article will teach you how professionals do it. It is highly recommended.
How Do You Train a Parrot to Stay on Perch?
To train a parrot to stay sit on his perch, all you have to do is introduce it to the parrot, and make it think that this perch is safe and exciting.
This process must be taken slowly and gradually in a period of a month r 2 months, and luckily I have written an article with easy, practical, and safe steps. Here it is (How to Keep a Parrot Without a Cage)
How Do You Get Your Parrot Used to Your Hand?
Repeating the training step can help with that. Treats and praise can also help your parrot to get used to sitting on your hand. Playing and cuddling while on hand is also a great idea.
Summary
In a summary, training your parrot to sit on your hand is very easy, and may not take longer than a few minutes for him to step on your hand for the first. Sitting on hand for the first time is new to parrots, and sometimes the parrot may think that he may not step up.
So you will have to encourage the parrot by giving him a little push, treating him, and praising him when doing it every time, or at least at the beginning of the training. Don’t worry about failing, it’s really easy, just follow the instructions and you are all good.
And yes that’s about it, hope you find this article informative and easy to digest. Thank you for reading…
Hello, my name is sadeq and I am obsessed about parrot And I am here to share everything about raising pet parrots and how to be good owners to your bird.
