Well I'll be hanging out here after all :)

Welp, it looks like this will be my hangout. The suns I was going to see sold before I got to see them and the orange wing was totally uninterested in me today. Just totally aloof. Haha he was good and let us hold him but I didn't feel any kind of connection with Angus. So, the U2 I saw yesterday comes home next weekend. Rosa is 8 years old and her mum has had since she was weaned. In the last 9-12 months Rosa has begun to pick, shred and break her feathers. She's picked herself naked on her chest and between her wings. Her mom had a behaviorist (David longo ?) in who took Rosa to his home in an attempt to sort her issue as well as did in home work with her. His final advice was Rosa needed a family who can make her a priority in that she is involved in their lives all day everyday. Her Mom works from home and could offer this to Rosa, but Rosa is cage bound and refuses to leave the kitchen where her cage is. Her mom does not wish to rehome her and has not placed her for sale, but saw an ad I had placed detailing our home and family and contacted me. Our meeting yesterday was wonderful, as the three of us bonded over some birdie cuddles and silly singing and dancing. When I called her today to tell her we would like to welcome Rosa into our family she cried and confessed she had prayed for us to choose her bird. So, plans are in place to go pick her up next weekend. . Being a feather picker I know she is going to need a lot of help, and I know you guys will be a wonderful source of encouragement.


Excited but a little nervous. I really want to help Rosa. Hopefully my love and determination will be enough

You have THE biggest heart! Bless you for taking in Rosa! I'm sure it will be quite the adventure.

And I bet next weekend now cannot come fast enough.

Thanks. Honestly, I prefer to house a 'needy' pet. I thrive on the neediness. Hahahaha I also really enjoy a challenge and have only met one animal so far I haven't been able to help once I've committed. And so, I am hoping to add Rosa to that group. She deserves to be happy, and I hope I can help find that happiness and stability. I think the fact that I do not feel guilty or sad about her plucking will help a lot. Her mom feels really guilty about Rosas issues and I think because they are so close it makes the picking worse actually. So, I guess in time we will see. I'm so glad I've got this forum though, the wealth of knowledge is going to be a blessing for us I think. And yeah, counting down the days until she is here.

Glad you found her! These kind of things (all the other birds selling/not working out) always happen for a reason. I hope Rosa will be very happy with you and your family. Those big cockatoos are big balls of love.

I just saw your private message too. Congrats on making the decision

The aloe is awesome to use as a regular spray along with lots of baths to keep her skin from drying.

You mentioned in the private message about chamomile. If you have a good herbal or tea shop, you can usually easily find organic chamomile in the tea section that is nothing but the little blooms. I pick it up from Wegmans and its much cheaper then anywhere else I've been able to find. You can feed this to Rosa in her food bowl or put an extra water bowl into her cage and drop some chamomile in it, kinda a tea for her. Another herb that is great for pluckers is red clover, we are ordering some with Folger just coming home. You can do the same with the red clover, if she nibble on it or put it into water to make a Too Tea Here is a great article listing what teas work best for what. Tea For Parrots

Congrats and can't wait to see pics of Rosa. Welcome to the growing rescue Too club that keeps growing on the forums!!

Good luck with Rosa! They're one of the harder ones to deal with so I hope for the best for you!

Thanks everyone. I was surprised when I met Rosa how SMALL she was. Prince, the male I care for was enormous.... Is it normal for U2 females to be uber tiny? The DYHA was at least twice the girth and weight of Rosa...

Also - with regards to the chamomile and the red clover, I am going to find some this week for sure. Rosa LOVES tea I am told, and so that would be perfect, if I can offer that to her (I dont do tea or coffee haha) that would be awesome! Thanks for the link. Ill be checking it out after dinner

Thanks for the well wishes, we will need them.... I feel confident, and Im normally pretty good about knowing what I can and cant handle. Im excited to get started on loving her and helping her to integrate into our everyday.

You have pictures of Rosa??

Have any pics of her? A umbrella cockatoo should never be smaller than an amazon. Are you sure it's not an "optical illusion" thing due to her being plucked? A naked bird looks a lot smaller than a fully feathered one. There are also some smaller cockatoo species, so maybe the prior owner is a bit confused as to what she is?

Its possible its just an illusion. But she is small, I am sure of that. I dont have pictures >.< I meant to take some yesterday and got so caught up in hanging out with her I forgot to snap some. Gah. I did email her Mom and asked if she could send some. The DYHA was WAY heavier, like I actually was surprised at how much heavier.

Are there smaller species with the huge crest like that though? Ive been questioning what she is too, but she has the crest... Could she be a hybrid perhaps?! Rosa was purchased in a now defunct big pet store chain (super pet). Ill certainly post pics once I get some.

Well, no other species has a crest *quite* like an umbrella. DYH are one of the larger amazons, and can become obese if not fed a proper diet. Still, the average U2 is 18-20" with a weight between 500-630 grams. A DYH, is between 15-17", and maxes out at 500 grams IF they're a particularly large bird. Average weight is about 430-450 or so grams. Don't really know how plucking affects weight (feathers weigh something), and it certainly affects apparent size. I'll be interested in seeing her

Hmmmm. Thats interesting. The DYHA, was pretty girthy. Haha Its possible shes overweight and maybe Rosa is a little under? Methinks Ill have to buy a scale and see. Ugh, I am so annoyed I didnt take a pic now. Haha

The common cross for an umbrella is a Umbrella Moluccan cross. The Umbrellas were way smaller then I was expecting them to be up close. Though that beak is big. The double yellow headed amazon we met was HEAVY I did not know that amazons could be that heavy but I would not say that he was bigger than an Umbrella.

I can't wait to see pictures of her! Wether she is an Umbrella, Umbrella cross, or something else... I'm glad someone else just jumped on the crazy I just lost my mind and decided to get a white too train

I just looked up a goffin/umbrella hybrid and it was tiny but still had the umbrella look! So maybe that is what she is...

Ah I can't wait to see pics now

Yay! I am so excited for you and Rosa! I am also very happy that you will be hanging around

riddick07 said:

I just looked up a goffin/umbrella hybrid and it was tiny but still had the umbrella look! So maybe that is what she is...

Ah I can't wait to see pics now

Click to expand...

Never knew these 2 could be crossed:11: Seems like that could be a real possibility though, since it looks like a goffin-sized too, with the crest of an umbrella! Definitely see the goffin in the birds pictured online though. I'm really curious to see Rosa now.

How awesome of you to offer Rosa a great new home. I can't wait to see her and follow her progress. I'm new to the Too world, with just a baby still but love to get to know others with Too babes.

This is the image of the cross that I found on google... has a lot more pink then a normal umbrella but has the big crest. Also, could she be a ducorps cockatoo and not an umbrella? They look similar but the beaks are different colors. Umbrellas have black and ducorps has a white beak.

Actually riddick, that looks a lot like Rosa... Lol hmmmmakes me wonder now. Hah

I have a female Goffin's and a male U2. I believe my U2 would eat her before he would mate with her but if there was a breeding, I think the babes would look just like this photo, riddick! I am also curious to see pics!