*SIGH* in depth experienced advanced help required

Thingamagigs

New member
Oct 13, 2012
627
1
Brisbane, QLD, Australia
Parrots
Mana the manic female galah; yet to be named male corella
Before I get into my story here, I want to make a few things clear. This is not my first bird, or my first galah. I know whats normal and whats excessive and I am not over-stating anything here.
I am an experienced, dedicated owner who goes above and beyond for her animals. I don't want any inexperienced or basic advice, I don't want any guesses or lectures on basic care. Its just likely to infuriate me further... I am already extremely angry right now. :mad: You will see why.

I will start with my story and then get to the current problem.

A girl in the same suburb as me advertised some handreared galahs for sale... so I casually went around to have a look... according to the girl, these were galahs she handreared and had been extensively socialised with children and strangers and everything.... particularly appealing for my situation (being concerned about breeder raised birds who are raised in a bird room with little human contact except for feeding).

When I got there, the birds were out on the lounge. They were all disgustingly filthy, underweight and two of them were obviously injured. One particular guy was very friendly and my heart just couldn't bear to leave him. He held his wing funny, away from his body and down.

248272_297582213694373_809964752_n.jpg
598531_297582133694381_1269916071_n.jpg


(I had washed him in this photo, I wish I got a photo of him prior to being cleaned up!!)

Another one's foot was very swollen and she limped on it, she couldn't balance to perch properly and was clearly in pain. I asked her if she was going to take them to the vet or knock the price down ($350 without DNA sexing or any health testing... very expensive for my area of Aus) so the new owners could. She said no, both accounts (she didn't answer directly but made it clear she wouldn't). I told her I would go home and think about it.
My partner could tell I wanted to take him home... he got the money out and told me to get in the car and we'd go pick him up (God bless his sweet heart!! <3 I love that man!). We went and picked him up, he was in the cage they had been kept in when we got there... a little conure cage with one perch and no toys that all three lived in. I wanted to take the other one which was up for sale as well but I simply did not have the money to purchase and treat both. :( :( So with a heavy heart I left her there (I think it will haunt me... you will find out why later in the story).

I looked outside and noticed she had a little cavalier chained up outside... she noticed I had seen her and said "Thats my breeding *****, she has puppies for me, she just weaned her last litter. We should have more puppies available in february... she's usually got babies, thats her thing now, thats just what she does..."
As a long time rescue organiser... I felt my face turning red with anger. I looked at her and said "we have to go", I put the money on her table and walked out the front door. Strangely she followed me chatting all the way. As we were putting our new bird into the car she mentions the injuries...
"I think they got hurt in the crate on the way up here..." I gave her a look so she continues...
"I bought them from an aviary in South Australia for $120 each plus $50 shipping. Its a really good deal so we'll probably be doing that every year for a little bit of money. They were in a crate together on the plane for 5 hours so I think they got freaked out and hurt on the trip."

She hadn't handreared these babies at all. Someone else in south australia did. Whats worse is, in South Australia, it is perfectly legal to take galahs from the wild... you do not even need a permit as they are an exempt species. I don't know if my bird is from a long line of aviary bred stock, or if he or his parents were taken from the wild. The aviary where they came from, does not advertise that they breed galahs and when I asked them if they do, they did not reply. If I was smart, I would have asked for my money back on the spot and taken him back in and forgotten about it... got myself a bird from someone with ethics. :mad:

On advice I had him tested for psitticosis & PBFD and got a DNA test at the same time (still waiting on results). His wing is sprained, probably from a conpletely incorrect wing clip prior to fledging. All his wing feathers have been cut straight across on one wing only. We balanced it out by cutting the other so he could at least land properly... we couldn't afford imping.

I am in a way glad I didnt take him back, he deserves a chance. He is such a character, I love him to pieces... and with rest and time and a little TLC his wing should heal up. He is already putting on condition and his feathers look amazing compared to when I picked him up.
However I paid a heck of a lot for him and will end up paying a lot more with time.

I remained in contact with the girl I purchased from initially, I thought she was simply ignorant. I thought I could guide her to a more ethical course of action and get her to take limpy to the vet. At one point she even suggested we take them to the vet together... but she ended up ignoring my efforts to arrange that. And after speaking to her for some time I realised she was malicious and feigning ignorance! And so now I am even more mad than before. She had them DNA tested (online) but did not get them health tested or take them to the vet!!! She claims the limping girl is better now. I got the feeling if she cant sell her, she intends to keep them and breed them!!!!!!!!!! They turned out to be a boy and a girl. She claims she has no money to buy them toys (HELLO I gave you $350 for the bird!!!) so I gave her ideas on how to make some home made toys from safe household or cheap supermarket items... all she said was one word.. "thanks".

So yeah... I'm mad!

And now we get to our problems.

1. He was clearly not weaned properly... I have no idea how old he is, the aviary he came from no longer get back to me after my question regarding galahs and the stupid girl I purchased him from has been advertising them as 10 weeks old for the past 2 weeks. I asked her specifically how old they are and when they were weaned... she said "They are 10 weeks old and were weaned a few weeks ago". :mad: He begs for food, scratches or for a reason I just can not understand. He is eating reliably on his own though I will have to cut peas out of his diet because he will only eat the peas and refuse everything else and screams if there is no peas in his food!!
He does not take handfeeding, he will take a small amount and then just continue his begging behaviour while rejecting food. As you can probably imagine, having a loud begging baby who cant be satisfied is a little frustrating. Having handreared bubs before it seems like a clear sign of a baby who was force weaned. We have had some success with diverting his attention to toys but I am wondering if anyone has any other ideas that may help improve this behaviour?

2. He screams. By that I mean they are especially loud contact calls (the galahs long distance contact call, a high pitched "cheep cheep", which he repeats every 40 seconds to 2 seconds depending on how worked up he is). He already knows I have to leave of a morning to take my daughter to school and from the moment he knows I am awake he will begin screaming. As it gets closer to time to leave, the screaming gets louder and more intense. He literally threw a tantrum today when we left (anyone with a galah will be familiar with their tantrums LOL). He screams every time we talk, whether in his cage, on his play gym or on the floor. He screams when I give him his fresh food and there is no peas in it LOL We are attempting to combat this by answering him only when he makes a noise of an appropriate level. He is already beginning to talk so I can definitely see the light at the end of the tunnel, I just get the feeling the tunnel is a long one :( He gets very worked up and I am already thinking he may be a bird that requires the company of another bird. Thats not something to jump into lightly, so I am going to get his behaviour under control as much as I can manage and have a long hard think about getting him some company. I wish I could go pick up that other little one! She has shown no intention to budge on the price. *SIGH*

Is there anything else anyone can suggest for this?

If anyone suggests clicker training, checking his diet, foraging toys, bigger cage, more out time etc I will scream LOL Sorry ;) But he has the largest cage available on this continent that isnt an aviary, he has many foraging toys plus fresh branches regularly, he has destructible toys and perches, heaps of out time and we have already begun clicker training. :)

Argh my head... screaming has started again. Currently its a contact call every 10 seconds. We are in the same room, we aren't talking, my partner is moving around a bit but I am sitting still. He is in his cage, he was on his play stand but flew to me and started begging so I put him in his cage with some food. He screamed for a while but was talking happily for five minutes until now. Any help greatly appreciated, I have a pretty bad headache and its hard to stay perfectly calm with a pounding head and a screaming bird.
 
Last edited:

Pedro

New member
Dec 15, 2010
1,583
3
Australia
Parrots
2 Budgies, 3 Cockatiels, 6 GCC'S, 2 Crimson Bellie Conures, 9 Sun Conures, 2 Major Mitchells, 12 Eclectus parrots of various ages, 2 BF Amazons, 2 Hahn's Macaw's, 1 Red Tail Black Too
If i was in your situation & had a bird that was clearly hungry but wouldn't eat I would crop feed him. Just before the times he starts to make a racket. Offer him soaked/sprouted seed mix, i use breeders choice soaking seeds. Sprout sunflower seed, they will eat that.

That's about all i can offer without having to duck for fear of you throwing something at me. LOL.
 

Featheredsamurai

New member
Aug 24, 2011
4,172
19
California
Parrots
African Greg
2 cockatiels
Oh your story is so sad :( When I go to bird fairs and I see the poor parrots in bad health I want to cry and I wish I could afford to save one and give it a good live. I've seen so many malnutrition bored birds sifting their beak through a mix of sunflower seeds and or safflower seeds and each time I want to cry at how ignorant people are.
And the poor dog! I'm so happy you managed to save one hopefully one day karma will get that lady and she is completely shamed by what she does.

I would check out these videos, they had a extremely neurotic galah that had serious issues and it didn't end well, but they may have some tips from their experiences with him. foxersartist's channel - YouTube
 
Last edited:
OP
Thingamagigs

Thingamagigs

New member
Oct 13, 2012
627
1
Brisbane, QLD, Australia
Parrots
Mana the manic female galah; yet to be named male corella
  • Thread Starter
  • Thread starter
  • #4
Ha ha thanks Pedro :D He eats of his own accord... he loves peas, he eats the "tails" off the sprouted seeds I give him, he loves corn on the cob and even eats pellets. No matter how full the little chook is, he STILL begs (I got video of it, I will upload it this evening in offpeak and link it here so you can see). He is increasing his weight slowly but surely. The vet and I both think his sprain will have some sort of permanent consequence :( :( Which just breaks my heart I have to say!

Thank you for that link copperarabian! I will go have a look now. Its hard isnt it... once I saw them... being a long time rescuer there was no way I wasnt going to take one, as it is I feel guilty I couldn't buy the second one as well!! How is that, its her that should feel guilty! If I had left them both I would have had sleepless nights for months :(
As it is, the whole situation is so unfortunate and uneasy that I feel guilt and anger and I am slightly overwhelmed ... only because I know there is nothing I can do about it.
 

lene1949

New member
Sep 26, 2011
1,701
1
Brisbane, Australia
Parrots
Cory: Short billed Corella -
Echo: Galah -
Max: Alexandrine -
Skye: Yellow Sided conure -
Luka: Green Cheek Conure -
RIP Shrek: Quaker
Birds, who are spoon fed, are often dirty... Have you tried a spoon?

The reason I say this, is because Paulie, my eclectus, came to me with awfully dirty feathers from spoon feeding...

Feed him what he loves to eat... Sprouts are really good for them...

I'm amazed that she told you the price and shipping for the birds... Surely she's got some lettuce missing in the sandwich...

I just can't believe we have people like that here in Brisbane...

I currently have 3 cinnamon conures ready for their new homes... and reading your story, I'm quite afraid of who will get them...
 
OP
Thingamagigs

Thingamagigs

New member
Oct 13, 2012
627
1
Brisbane, QLD, Australia
Parrots
Mana the manic female galah; yet to be named male corella
  • Thread Starter
  • Thread starter
  • #6
Take the video of that poor bird with him desperately scooting back and forth along the bars crying... only make the cry an even louder, deeper more desperate sound ... and you have Manny. He only cries when we are right next to him, otherwise he is calling loudly, regardless of our proximity. He does have quiet moments and he sleeps through the night very happily without a sound. I can even sleep in without issue though I pay for it with a longer period of crying when I do wake up.

He is definitely very very insecure, he has no regard for his safety and is so desperately afraid of being separated that he frequently falls while climbing along the front of the cage. I am hoping I wont have to get him a smaller cage for his own safety :( Hopefully we actually have success with him... clearly that other birds owners did not try to work on his behaviours adequately.

I am sure having a companion will help, the problem is, how long do I leave it before I resort to trying to find him a companion? I don't want to leave it too long, to the point he develops severe issues like that little guy... but I don't want to get him a companion unnecessarily either.
 
OP
Thingamagigs

Thingamagigs

New member
Oct 13, 2012
627
1
Brisbane, QLD, Australia
Parrots
Mana the manic female galah; yet to be named male corella
  • Thread Starter
  • Thread starter
  • #7
Nah these babies weren't dirty like that Lene... they had broken feathers and were covered in feces... I was quite disgusted by it and when she put the little limpy one on my shoulder I could smell it... :mad: I had washed him up in the photos... but if you look near his tail in that photo you will see a stubborn patch of muck I couldnt get off. My little guy was in the best condition out of all of them. I wish I had made an excuse to take photos of them when I first turned up!

Be very careful who takes them Lene... but its not possible to know for sure they are or arent going to a good home :( Thats the hardest part.
 

MikeyTN

New member
Feb 1, 2011
13,296
17
Antioch, TN
Parrots
"Willie"&"Lola"B&G Macaw,
"Dixie"LSC2, and "Nico" Scarlet Macaw.
I'm with Pedro there about the crop feeding! BUT since he is eating pretty good, just make sure he's got plenty of food and make sure his weight don't drop, that's about all you can do for him.

It is very unfortunate we have ignorants like that lady that SHOULDN'T be raising birds or have any period. When I raise my babies, I would NEVER do such a thing! IF my babies have any sort of issues that the vet ok to be healthy, I keep them regardless. There's been people that tries to buy my adult birds that I keep just as pets, but they fell in love with them, but my answer sticks, a no is a no. When I open my home to take them in the first place is not to have them go out to some place else, they usually have some sort of issue that I feel only I know how to deal with it properly.

Your story also reminded me when we got Malachai, he was not completely weaned. The cry was super bothersome as I was unsure what was the method they used to feed him or what they were feeding him in the first place. But he seem to like the warm nectar we make for him on a daily basis. When I couldn't find any nectar in the area, then my online order arrived damaged with holes all over the bag, no way I was gonna use it. I searched everywhere and begged around for some. I cried my eyes out cause I thought I was failing him. Then the very next day my prayer was answered as my long term breeder friend came to the rescue as he had two bags on hand to tie me over until we get our replacement order. I was so relieved afterwards.

It's a wonderful thing your doing even though you knew the bird had issues and you still paid for him. I don't blame you for not taking the other one because that idiot refuse to lower the price as vet care for sick bird can get pretty expensive. But like what she said, she was gonna continue in getting babies and resale, by people buying from her, it's only fueling her to do more.
 

Aims

New member
Jun 23, 2012
300
0
Perth, Western Australia
Parrots
"Jax" Red-sided Eclectus ~ "Peaches" Lutino Lovebird ~ "Skid" Peachface Lovebird ~ "Bo" and "Peep" Cockatiel's ~ "Opie" Galah
That is all so awful. I'm sorry you are having all this trouble (& noise) but you have done a wonderful thing taking him into your home and away from that terrible place. I have owned a Galah but he was a gem so I don't really have any advice for you. But I just wanted to thank you for buying the little guy. Have you given him a name?
 
OP
Thingamagigs

Thingamagigs

New member
Oct 13, 2012
627
1
Brisbane, QLD, Australia
Parrots
Mana the manic female galah; yet to be named male corella
  • Thread Starter
  • Thread starter
  • #10
Hi name is Manny :D And he just said his first word (Hello).

Though the talking was short lived, he heard my daughter walking around so now he is once again, screaming. :(
 

MikeyTN

New member
Feb 1, 2011
13,296
17
Antioch, TN
Parrots
"Willie"&"Lola"B&G Macaw,
"Dixie"LSC2, and "Nico" Scarlet Macaw.
Have you tried talking to Manny while she's screaming? The only 3 that screams more then anyone else here in the house is Willie the B&G, Java the U2, and Malachai the Black Lory. All I have to do is go up to their cage and have a chat with them and rub them through their cage they calm down and stop screaming. At times when I'm trying to get side loads done around the house, Java is the main one that wouldn't stop screaming and I resort to ignore cause no matter what I do, the moment I walk off he screams. He's a lot better now since he knows it gets nowhere when he screams cause he will be ignored. I just bought a clicker to try to clicker train him cause he's the most stubborn of all my birds, he just wants to get to the clicker and kill it...lol....He's too smart for his own good....He'll kept accepting treats from my hand as long as he don't see the clicker, once he sees it, all he want is the clicker, stops accepting treats immediately.
 
OP
Thingamagigs

Thingamagigs

New member
Oct 13, 2012
627
1
Brisbane, QLD, Australia
Parrots
Mana the manic female galah; yet to be named male corella
  • Thread Starter
  • Thread starter
  • #12
Manny does what Java does LOL Unfortunately he will scream right through us talking. If we go to pat him through the bar he starts the begging behaviour and the second we leave he screams and starts rushing all over the cage to come out. If he is on one of his play gyms, he will climb to the closest branch and then attempt to jump to us LOL
Unfortunately Manny screams whether we are talking to him or each other. In fact he screams more if we talk. If we are silent in the morning, he screams less. Interestingly I did an experiment... I grabbed my keys, my bag and walked into the garage... as usual this caused him to escalate and start non stop screaming... I opened the garage roller door and he had his galah tantrum... but I didn't go anywhere... I stayed in the garage, closed the garage roller door and listened. Once the garage roller door went down there was silence. He made the occasional quiet contact call (the type we try to praise him for by responding to) and that was it. He barely made a sound until I opened the door back up and came inside and he started screaming again LOL
At least I know he is not distressed when I am actually gone (not at this stage anyway). Thats a good sign :)
 
OP
Thingamagigs

Thingamagigs

New member
Oct 13, 2012
627
1
Brisbane, QLD, Australia
Parrots
Mana the manic female galah; yet to be named male corella
  • Thread Starter
  • Thread starter
  • #13
Another interesting thing about Manny... he makes no attempt to "talk" to outside birds (the conures aren't here until Manny's tests come back negative). If a galah flies over, thats different... but the neighbours noisy IRN makes no difference to Manny.
 

Supriya

New member
Dec 8, 2012
31
0
India, WB & UP(in laws)
Parrots
3 alexandrines
I really wanna praise you for ur efforts dear........i've often seen many birds here who cannot be helped as their health has been deteriorated drastically.

Its a real good work tht u managed to save manny's life, but reading ur story, i think i'm gonna have nightmares too about those other birds with tht girl, hope they end up like manny..............and for u and ur family ...........a big salute and good wishes......:)
 

kc_y0

New member
Nov 17, 2011
1,530
Media
2
1
Sydney
Parrots
Eclectus Female - Audrey.
Art - Budgie.
Astro - Budgie.
Mini - Budgie, RIP gorgeous girl.
And this is why I hate people!!! :( How can they get away with that ugh! Bless you for saving Manny! May he live a long and happy life with you!
 
OP
Thingamagigs

Thingamagigs

New member
Oct 13, 2012
627
1
Brisbane, QLD, Australia
Parrots
Mana the manic female galah; yet to be named male corella
  • Thread Starter
  • Thread starter
  • #16
I got some really bad news last night about where Manny came from.
Please keep your fingers crossed that his test results come back negative... because other birds have come from that aviary with PBFD and it is suspected that they are wild caught babies, which they purchase from local handrearers and sell on all over Australia. While we wait for his results, others who have seen PBFD in galahs have their suspicions that Manny does indeed have PBFD as he has suspiciously black legs.

Reading up and learning as much as I can, Manny definitely has emotional issues due to trauma (most likely from being in a crate with two other unweaned baby birds and making a huge trip which could be anywhere from 5 hours to 8 hours straight). Its a bit overwhelming, but at this stage I think its best I don't expect any improvement in his behaviour. I will continue to work on it with him but to expect change would be foolish. I guess I will need ear plugs LOL

At least he is a happy bird when he isn't panicking about not being right on me all the time.
 

lene1949

New member
Sep 26, 2011
1,701
1
Brisbane, Australia
Parrots
Cory: Short billed Corella -
Echo: Galah -
Max: Alexandrine -
Skye: Yellow Sided conure -
Luka: Green Cheek Conure -
RIP Shrek: Quaker
I got some really bad news last night about where Manny came from.
Please keep your fingers crossed that his test results come back negative... because other birds have come from that aviary with PBFD and it is suspected that they are wild caught babies, which they purchase from local handrearers and sell on all over Australia. While we wait for his results, others who have seen PBFD in galahs have their suspicions that Manny does indeed have PBFD as he has suspiciously black legs.

Reading up and learning as much as I can, Manny definitely has emotional issues due to trauma (most likely from being in a crate with two other unweaned baby birds and making a huge trip which could be anywhere from 5 hours to 8 hours straight). Its a bit overwhelming, but at this stage I think its best I don't expect any improvement in his behaviour. I will continue to work on it with him but to expect change would be foolish. I guess I will need ear plugs LOL

At least he is a happy bird when he isn't panicking about not being right on me all the time.

OMG... I really pray that he hasn't got PBFD.. Please keep us updated...
 

Aims

New member
Jun 23, 2012
300
0
Perth, Western Australia
Parrots
"Jax" Red-sided Eclectus ~ "Peaches" Lutino Lovebird ~ "Skid" Peachface Lovebird ~ "Bo" and "Peep" Cockatiel's ~ "Opie" Galah
Who said something about his legs. I can't find any information anywhere relating to PBFD affecting leg colouring. So don't let that panic you.

Plus I found this and thought it might ease your mind a little too. "Coloured parrots seem to be less affected by the disease, often able to spontaneously recover. For the white cockatoo species, the prognosis is much worse"

If he does have it though you'll have to keep him well away from the Corella you are planning on getting, if that's still happening and Piña and Colada too.

Fingers crossed you get Negative results.
 

MeganMango

New member
Oct 13, 2012
522
Media
3
0
Guelph Ontario
Parrots
1 red bellied parrot (Mango), 3 cockatiels (Bugsie, Alfie, and Bananas)
This is so sad! Please keep us updated! Is there anyone you can report this to? What a horrible situation! That stupid girl needs someone with power to go get those poor animals out of her care. What a useless human being.
 

MikeyTN

New member
Feb 1, 2011
13,296
17
Antioch, TN
Parrots
"Willie"&"Lola"B&G Macaw,
"Dixie"LSC2, and "Nico" Scarlet Macaw.
I sure hope he doesn't have PBFD cause if he does, that means you can't have any other birds in the house or let him come in contact with any birds period. Then you need to inform that idiot lady and post ALL over about the PBFD with her birds so no one will have to go through that. I wonder if it's against the law in your area to sell birds with PBFD.
 

Most Reactions

Latest posts

Top