How to Get a Cockatoo to Trust You?

Published on Oct 14, 2021 by Bilal Qamar

Last Updated on November 18, 2022

Getting a cockatoo to trust you is challenging and demands lots of patience. But if you do it the right way, you can win the trust of any cockatoo within days. Let’s discuss how you can do it.

You can win your cockatoo’s trust when he starts feel safe around you. Never try to grab him, touch him if it scares him or shout at him. Give him some time to just start accepting your presence around him. Once he get comfortable with your presence, try feeding him with your hand. Once he starts taking feed from your hand, you can start making more interactions.

Cockatoos are very talkative and social pets if they once trust you. In order to make them trust you, creating a comfortable environment is very necessary. Give some freedom to your parrot, and do not try to catch them if they are not willing. There are the following ways to make them trust you.

Allow Your Cockatoo to Explore Their Surroundings:

Always give some time to your Cockatoos when it first enters the home. Try to make them feel comfortable and allow them to explore their surroundings. When you rush towards them and catch them, they will get afraid of you. 

Give them some space out of the cage and move them where they want to move under your observation. They will explore the things and surroundings, and they may jump to anything from one thing, do not catch them. In this way, they feel comfortable with you, and this will be the first step in trust-building.

Allow Your Cockatoo to Explore Their Surroundings

Try to make this thing a habit in the early days and do not catch them. Within a few days, they will be familiar with your nature, that you will not hurt them and allow them to play. So they will feel comfortable with you and automatically will trust you.

Begin with Gentle Interaction with Your Cockatoo:

When you enter a room, do not rush to the parrot directly but begin with a gentle conversation. Always start with a greeting, you can say Hello to your dear Cockatoo, and gradually they will trust you and respond to you. 

Every morning you can say Good Morning to them, and they will be habitual to it and gradually repeat this phrase after you. Cockatoos really love to listen to their owner’s voice, and they also like music and the sound of the television.

When you speak words or phrases in front of them again and again, they will try to copy you. So you can train them by saying greetings to them later they will adopt this as a habit. 

Begin with Gentle Interaction with Your Cockatoo

Play Tricks with Your Cockatoo and Avoid Catching:

Cockatoos really like to play tricks and impress their owners. Some Cockatoos are very good learners, and they perform very well. The main point is that they will learn when they trust you. You can move their claws and act in front of them, and then they will try to copy you.

While playing with them, do not catch them from behind and don’t touch them if they’re not willing. Always start with gentle touching with your finger and avoid catching. When they act similar to you, touch them gently with your finger so that they can feel your love and trust you.

Best Ways To Bond With Your Cockatoo:

Bonding with your parrots is very necessary for their activeness, health, growth, and for many things. When there is a lack of bonding, they will not eat anything from you and won’t play with you, and ultimately they fall ill. In order to make a perfect bond with your Cockatoo, you need to follow a few steps, which are as follows. 

Share Your Food With Cockatoo:

If you are eating some food, like fresh fruits, Berries or something which cockatoo also likes, then share your food with them. You can cuddle them and ask them to do anything, and give them the food as an incentive. Continue this behavior with them, and gradually they will start loving you. 

Share Your Food With Cockatoo

Cockatoos are very social and friendly parrots, and they really like sharing food. You can give their favorite food to them. Then they will come to know that their desires are fulfilling; in this way, they form strong bonds with their caretakers. 

Sing and Read In Front of Your Cockatoo:

Cockatoos really like Music, and they love to sing when they see their owner is singing, they try to copy them. When you play their favorite beat and enjoy it, their bond with you becomes deeper. Cockatoos respond to different beats; when they do not want the beat, they make noise, and when they like it, they start dancing and singing.

They are very fond of human voices, and when their owners sing in front of them, they love to listen to them. So try to interact, sing and read something to them, then they will be more comfortable with you and share a very strong bond.

Give Some Attention to Your Cockatoo:

Cockatoos are attention seekers, and they really enjoy the time with their owners. These parrots always want to grab the attention of their caretakers. Sometimes they play tricks and try to utter a few words to grab their attention. When their owner responds to them, their behavior is rewarded. 

When you give attention to your Cockatoo by establishing a proper routine for them, this will strengthen your bond with them; gradually, they become habitual of it and start loving you.

Conclusion: 

Cockatoos are very social, and they share a wonderful bond with their caretakers. In order to get the trust of your Cockatoos, you just need to tackle your feather friends with care and patience, and gradually, they will be habitual to your presence. 

Tips mentioned in the article will help you understand how to make strong bonds with your cockatoo and how they trust you. 

Also Read About: Why Do Cockatoos Hiss?

Bilal is an aviculturist who loves to write in free time. His personal experience with bird care and breeding enables him to share valuable tips. So far, he has contributed more than 100 blogs to this site. His goal is to promote bird-keeping and save endangered species.

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