First I'll just say that I'm by no means an "expert," and this is mostly based on my own experience in RE-taming my quaker after I had some major jealousy problems with her. Before the problems, she'd been a sweet, handfed/handraised baby, but the methods described below should still be helpful for most birds.
Depending on the age of the bird and how long you've had him, it might take a bit of time and patience to tame him. Getting his wings clipped is definitely the place to start. Once you start working with him, remember to *always* be gentle and use slow movements around him. After getting him clipped, start by getting him out of the cage and work with him away from the cage (you might have to use a towel to get him out of or away from the cage). It will usually be much easier for you in "neutral territory" where the bird won't be trying to protect his home. It will probably be even better if you take him to another room, especially if it's one that he's never been in before.
Once you get him into neutral territory, just try observing him at first, and see what he does. Perhaps you have him on a table in front of you--you might even put some toys on the table. Does he explore? Does he come over to you and seem to want to interact? Does he try to bite or attack you? Does he seem afraid of you? If the reaction is neutral or good, just try interacting with him. If you move slowly, will he let you touch him? If he seems scared, just stay still, talk to him softly and calmly. At first, you might just want to spend some one-on-one time with him. If he acts really aggressive, you could probably go ahead and start "training." If he's scared or friendly or neutral, don't be too rigorous with the training--just intersperse the following steps with "playtime" and just spending time with him.
The first thing to work on in actually training would probably be the "step-up". Each training session should be short (like 5 min), and you might want to work with him once or twice a day. I'll describe your goals for the entire training procedure, but how far you get in each short session will depend on how he's acting.
If he's biting or trying to bite a lot, you might want to start with hand-held perches instead of your fingers (anything about the right size with a surface he can grip will work). It's probably easiest to start with him standing on some kind of perch so he can't back away. Bring the hand-held perch (or your finger if you want to) up from below and gently but firmly press it against his lower belly or where his legs join his body--at the same time saying "step-up" (or phrase of your choice)--until he steps onto the perch. Once he does this, lots of praise, and maybe even a small treat (one he can finish quickly). Then have him step onto another perch, held with your other hand, with the same process. Having him do a series of step ups from one hand-held perch to the other is called laddering.
Once he's doing that pretty well with the perches, and doesn't seem to be trying to bite, you can start off laddering with the two perches, and then smoothly put down one of the perches and replace it with your finger--doing a few more step ups between your finger and the remaining perch in your other hand. If you do this relatively fast, he shouldn't have a chance to bite. Always praise after he does well. Then transfer to laddering just between your two hands (or fingers). If he starts biting, you can always back up a little and go back to the hand-held perches. If he doesn't show any signs of biting, slow down on the laddering until he's just sitting on your finger.
This process should get him used to perching on your finger and not biting. If during these sessions with him in a neutral area, you've also been just plain spending time with him--talking to him, watching him, playing with him--he's probably a lot more used to being around you. He may even automatically be starting to let you touch and pet him. As always, just be patient, and move slowly around him, especially when you're working up to petting him. In time, your bird may begin to like being touched and cuddled, and seek it himself. Cockatiels and other birds have such potential for being wonderfully interactive pets--so much more than just a bird to be listened to and watched though cage bars.
-- Jennifer
J Ng -- jjng13@juno.com
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