Galah questions?

I will be getting a new baby Galah next week. She will be 5 months old tomorrow and is weaned. I have decided to use a raised cage on stand for her baby cage and then get a big Macaw type cage when she's older. The cage is 24" x 24" with the inside height of 48". 3/4" bar spacing. She is being shipped to me and I am so excited and so nervous! We had the opportunity to care for a Goffin's for a week and I fell in love. One of the things I'm wondering about is what to have in her cage for her? Should I get a hanging blanket or hanging stuffed toy? A big swing? A rope perch? I bought a big manzanita branch and a big pedi perch but wonder if I should have softer things. I have one picture of her snuggled up next to her mother. I am also buying a rolling playstand and a travel carrier. Thanks for your advice! BTW, I retired early and have tons of time to give a Cockatoo. I also talked to my teen granddaughter about taking her if she outlives me.

And one more question please? I have had puppies shipped in the past and they arrived safe and healthy. My Galah will be flying through a Pet Safe airlines. But what should I look for when she gets here? Should I hold her right away, put her in her cage, leave her in shipping carrier for a little while? What is the best thing to do for her?

If she's already weened you don't need a baby cage, that's very small for a galah. Rosie came to me in a cage that size and she couldn't do anything in the cage at all, their wing span barely even fits and if you add a toy(which is a must) that wing span room is instantly taken away.

Here's her new cage, it's 38" x 27" x 68" with 1" bar spacing. This cage is deeper then her old cage was wide and is just a little small for a macaw. She is honestly a different bird in this cage, so much happier.


This photo shows the size the best, even though it's not finished yet XD

LivLaughLov said:

And one more question please? I have had puppies shipped in the past and they arrived safe and healthy. My Galah will be flying through a Pet Safe airlines. But what should I look for when she gets here? Should I hold her right away, put her in her cage, leave her in shipping carrier for a little while? What is the best thing to do for her?

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She's probably going to be scared when she arrives, and your a new person so don't feel down if she acts negatively towards you at first. Put some food, water, a couple toys, and two nice nice perches in her cage and let her settle in for the first day. You can talk calmly to her but don't try petting her unless she is asking to be pet.

Rope perches are comfy and feel nice on there feet, also grape wood perches. Be careful of Manzanita and Java wood because it's more often then not very slipper and birds can get bumble foot from always sliding a little.

Thank you for your input. Her wings are clipped right now and I plan to have her out of her cage most of the time but maybe I'll need to get a HUGE cage sooner than I planned. I ended up with a big swing with wood perch and a rope perch for her cage. Her stand is put together and ready and just waiting for her travel carrier. I do want her to have LOTS of room, I was just worried about her falling.

LivLaughLov said:

Thank you for your input. Her wings are clipped right now and I plan to have her out of her cage most of the time but maybe I'll need to get a HUGE cage sooner than I planned. I ended up with a big swing with wood perch and a rope perch for her cage. Her stand is put together and ready and just waiting for her travel carrier. I do want her to have LOTS of room, I was just worried about her falling.

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a healthy bird is unlikely to fall Rosie's leg had been broken and never set correctly so at first she was falling a lot! It was so scary! I re-arranged her cage so her perches are halfway up(I originally had them all very high). Before the rope perch was all squiggly so she slipped easily and since I've straightened it out she hasn't fallen. I wouldn't worry to much about your galah falling. If Rosie can do it you'll have no problems, and you can also start off with lower perches. Rosie's lower leg bone slid over her foot, her knee cap is out of the socket on the side of her leg, and her hip is healed out of the socket.

Are you going to let your birds wings grow in? Unfortunately with Galahs they need to be fully flighted or they don't get the proper exercise giving them fatty liver disease, obesity, and fatty tumors. I'm not for or against clipping, but with Galahs a healthy diet and being fully flighted will extend their life span drastically. Galahs can live to be 65+ years old but many die around 40 from fatty liver disease.

Here's a pic of Rosie when I took her outside to fly for the first time in her harness with a 100" light rope.



I'm excited to see your galah when he comes

On the being scared thing... expect it. Prepare to be offended. LOL

I had a galah, my best buddy in the world, my beloved pink and grey feathered baby!

But the first day I brought him home (and mind you this was just a 40min car ride to our house from the pet store, not a stressful plane ride) he was in NO MOOD for anybody. In fact he bit me quite hard when I tried to get him out of the carrier and I was quite upset. He was hissing and lunging and acting very scary for a new 'too owner.
I was totally broken hearted, I thought he hated me.
But he didn't know me, he was stressed and in a new place.

A week later he was actively taking interest in his new human housemates...

and three weeks later we were his new family who he followed around asthough we'd always been meant for each other

So don't freak out if he doesnt love you instantly. The bond takes time but they bond very deeply.

Also the cage is definitely too small.

Galahs greet the sun every morning and dance at the suns retreat every evening... which involves a lot of displays and noise and wings flared right up, crest up, wiggling, screeching, swinging, tail fanning fun!! They need a heap of room to do that and will be a happy (and quiet) bird if they are allowed to do it. You should accept that fact now as well Every day, every morning and evening. But its so gorgeous, you can see their absolute joy at being alive.

I adore galahs.

At 5 months old she's adult size... I would just get her the cage you want for her as an adult, and start with perches down low, and then raise them higher, as soon as you can see she can handle it... One toy down low to begin with..

In the wild she would be out of the nest, and probably wont need any soft things... She would have finished snuggling up to her mother...

I see that her wings are clipped, and I hope she learned to fly, before they did that, and that they didn't cut too much off... It can drastically impair a bird's balance...

Galahs are probably the best cockatoo for a pet, along with the corella..

Congratulations....

Thank you for the awesome advice and encouragement! I had a nightmare last night that my baby was smooshed into a too small cage! The cage we planned to put her in is an old, heavy King's cage that we had a Goffin's in while we "babysat" him for a week. The cage is quite awesome so we are having it professionally refinished and it will be done today. But I see I was wrong! She will need a Macaw cage right away! My baby is missing her nails off one foot due to being attacked by her first time parents when hatching. One of the reasons I was worrying about the falling.

Yes, she was fully flighted and learned how to fly but is clipped for safety right now. And yes, I plan to have her fully flighted with a harness as I read that about Galah needing to fly.

She will be arriving tomorrow. Thank you SO much for all your input! I am so excited!

Re: Galah questions? Update cage size?

My baby Galah is arriving today at the airport. I'm a nervous wreck but will try to remain calm for her. My husband brought the professionally refinished cage home last evening and it is beautiful!

A friend on a bird group I am in has a cage that is 36" X 28" X 65" high with 1" spacing for sale. Do you think this is big enough or should I continue to look for bigger?

Thanks!

I'm looking forward to seeing pics of your new Galah.

Rascal is 24 now and LOVES being outside digging in the ground and digging up dad's seedlings.

Galah's will bond and bond for life and I guarantee, if you give him/her the care and attention needed, you definately won't regret it.

My best recommendation is keep the fruit and veg up and remember how smart they are! Before you know it your new Galah will be working out how to open cage doors and do any number of things!