Is it normal for older toos' to be this mellow

emyoung858

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Hi guys, some of you may have read some of my other posts but I adopted my umbrella cockatoo about 1 month ago and she is doing really great for the most part, she doesn't mind when I leave and doesn't screech anymore. She is just so mellow and all she likes to do is either sit in her perch and eat her big shelled walnuts or chew on stuff under her blanket on my bed. Is her mellow behavior possibly due to the fact that she is somewhere in her 40s? Do these birds mellow out as they age? Or should I be worried that she is sick?? She never really seems to get too excited about anything and seems to lack a lot of energy, I try to get her to play but her energy levels seem to be decreasing. She seems to like her very mellow quiet environment that I have her in and when I take her out of my room she gets very bad anxiety and starts to shake. She also had anxiety around other people such as my dad and boyfriend and if they come in my room she will charge at them, my boyfriend tries to spend time with her every dsy but even if she's in her cage and he's in the room she gets really anxious and starts shaking. Any advice on what could be done about her relationships with other family memebers and also if this behavior of hers is normal for an older cockatoo??


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MrsBigE

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Has she been to the vet and had a full work-up of blood and droppings? If so, anything unusual?

Do you know what her life was like prior to living with you?

My U2 is very young, just 7 months so my actual experience is very limited. I ask the questions above because from reading everything I could get my hands on before deciding to get a U2 I found that these two things have a lot of bearing on the personality of the bird.
There's a lot of experience here so hopefully someone knowledgeable will respond soon.
 

Jayyj

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It's worth bearing in mind a month is still quite a short period of time for a mature too to adjust to a new environment - it could be a good while longer before she's fully comfortable. A quiet bird is a lot less noticeable to predators than one that is constantly making a show of itself, so their natural instinct when they're not sure of their surroundings is to keep it down a notch and keep a close eye out for anything new that could be a threat. A vet visit is always a good idea if you have any health concerns, but my guess is she'll relax and come further out of her shell over time.

Then you get the 'It's obviously safe here... now, I wonder who's in charge?' phase!
 

plumsmum2005

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Hi guys, some of you may have read some of my other posts but I adopted my umbrella cockatoo about 1 month ago and she is doing really great for the most part, she doesn't mind when I leave and doesn't screech anymore. She is just so mellow and all she likes to do is either sit in her perch and eat her big shelled walnuts or chew on stuff under her blanket on my bed. Is her mellow behavior possibly due to the fact that she is somewhere in her 40s? Do these birds mellow out as they age? Or should I be worried that she is sick?? She never really seems to get too excited about anything and seems to lack a lot of energy, I try to get her to play but her energy levels seem to be decreasing. She seems to like her very mellow quiet environment that I have her in and when I take her out of my room she gets very bad anxiety and starts to shake. She also had anxiety around other people such as my dad and boyfriend and if they come in my room she will charge at them, my boyfriend tries to spend time with her every dsy but even if she's in her cage and he's in the room she gets really anxious and starts shaking. Any advice on what could be done about her relationships with other family memebers and also if this behavior of hers is normal for an older cockatoo??
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Hello and thank you for taking an older parrot especially a 'too into your heart and your home.

The decreasing energy levels concern me and if she has not had an overall health check recently then it would be wise to know how she is? I now realise that my 'too who was so well behaved, not very active, no bother, was in fact covering a major illness, underneath another. It has taken a while to manifest.

Aged 40 is there anything that needs attention? The other thing is diet, what are you feeding her? Go easy on the nuts, if she eats these readily there is a chance that the good stuff is getting bypassed because she is not hungry?

Try taking it slow, lots of reassurance and play real estate agent with her, take her on little trips round the house, tell her what the room is, lots of talking to her, even ask her is she likes the curtains LOL? If we do any changes in the house I take Plum for a nosey round to get reacquainted, he ooh and ahs at it usually. The charging, she is protecting you that's all. Looks like you have developed a strong bond with her quickly. :)
 
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fayah

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I've met very old 'toos who are as spry as a hatchling. In fact my 20 year old was more active than my 7 year old. I think if you notice a decrease in energy level you should be somewhat concerned for sickness. Since she recently came to your home, her immune system may be weaker from the stress. My 'too was somewhat chill when she arrived but then I found out she was sick. It may be part antibiotics and part familiarity but my 'too is a lot more cheeky and active now a month later.

If you can, try getting a scale with the traingular perch thing and regularly monitor your birds weight. Mine dropped a few gram since she came to my house which was also a good sign of sickness or stress

As for helping with the outside anxiety thing, my best advice is take it slow and stepwise. Like maybe try to just get her to your doorway, open your door, wait for 5 seconds calmly, then praise/treat her with a small treat and return her to her safe area. Then next time take a step, then 5, then 10...also do you have a play area for her outside your room? It may also help if she has some sort of outside safe station. My bird has her sleep cage then two outside play gyms she feels comfortable hanging around
 

Scott

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They do not necessarily become sluggish with age. My two wild-caught Goffins are in their 40s and remain just as active as their 3 hand-fed offspring. Perhaps even more! The female has some signs of arthritis in her feet, but has no difficulty functioning. They are also far more skilled flyers.
 
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emyoung858

emyoung858

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My dilemma right now is just her crazy aggression, I can't even let her out of her cage when my boyfriend is already or she will try to violently attack him, it really scares us but we don't let her know that we are scared, yesterday I tried to work with her by allowing her to come out of her cage but if she charged after him I would wrap her up in a towel and put her back in her cage until she cooled down and then try again, it didn't seem to work and she still flips out whenever he's near her, I don't know what to do to get her to realize that he is not a threat or for her to realize that she is not in control of our house. I hate having to leave her in her cage, she seems so sad but I just don't know what to do in terms of discipline, she would never hurt me and she trusts me, but I can't handle the stress of her not being able to be in the same room as my boyfriend, we all live together so this situation is becoming worse, daily


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Your too may have been teated badly by a male sometime in her past. The BF should just take it easy maybe start by him just sitting quietly in the door way for a few days, maybe a week, and going just that little bit closer each day after that. She has to know he is not a threat. I would avoid toweling her , that is never pleasasnt for a parrot.
 
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emyoung858

emyoung858

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Your too may have been teated badly by a male sometime in her past. The BF should just take it easy maybe start by him just sitting quietly in the door way for a few days, maybe a week, and going just that little bit closer each day after that. She has to know he is not a threat. I would avoid toweling her , that is never pleasasnt for a parrot.



See I figured she might have been abused but her previous owner was a young male, they even look similar and her previous family said she was not like this at all, ever... should I just keep her in her cage when she's around him?? Someone else suggested that she's protecting me so I am getting really confused and frustrated because this is very scary behavior for me,


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plumsmum2005

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Could be both so yes keep her in her cage for now.

If she has been abused by a male similar looking to your BF it is going to be a long haul which will require both time and patience.

Ask your BF to give her cage a wide berth for now, walk the long way round. He should still speak to her, say hello etc. It is only by her observing him over time that any progress will be made if and when she feels fit. She will not like any shows of affection between you two so in an effort not to annoy her anymore keep this for out of sight. You can also speak to her if she is agitated with him, tell her it is OK, it's only ****. Ask your BF not to make direct eye contact with her, look down rather than at.

I guess the worse her past has been will make her want to cling to you without sharing all the more. She clearly feels safe and loved with you. Time will tell if it is just your BF or all males. Just you and her time will be needed even more every day. It's not really about behaviour at the moment but fear and trust with her. Attack or be attacked.

Make her cage a really good and happy place for her. Loads of toys, foragers, wood to chew, even FP musical toys for kids, how about having a go at making one of Allee's fleece swings? Aiming for something in her cage that is a comforter to go to.
 
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emyoung858

emyoung858

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Oh it's just so sad to see her like this[emoji80] it's affecting my relationship too I'm a mess because my boyfriend is starting to get annoyed and pissed off because l pretty much have been neglecting him for her, I'm very protective but I'm torn but I think I will just try to slow down and keep them seperated for a while. He sleeps on the couch now because her cage is in our room (we have an extremely large room) I was thinking of maybe moving her age downstairs because I think she might be acting territorial over the room too,


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plumsmum2005

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Yes good idea and you two need time together as the couch is no way to go forward with your relationship. She may be seeing it as yours also. Try and find a good place for her cage where she can watch but not feel threatened, so not next to your BF's fav chair LOL.

If it is a large room could you accommodate another couch/chair and TV for your BF, in case he needs a refuge to go to at any time?
 
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JustineBird

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I would say take the bird to the Vet just to be sure there is nothing wrong.

Justine is almost three and she is hyper, but sometimes when I am with here she is mellow a little bit. If I am around people she does not know she just sits behind my neck and not move. ill be sitting and watching TV and she would just sit there on one foot and doze off. Sometimes..

However I think the best thing would be the vet. They can do tests to make sure she is eating right or if there is anything wrong.
 
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emyoung858

emyoung858

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I would say take the bird to the Vet just to be sure there is nothing wrong.



Justine is almost three and she is hyper, but sometimes when I am with here she is mellow a little bit. If I am around people she does not know she just sits behind my neck and not move. ill be sitting and watching TV and she would just sit there on one foot and doze off. Sometimes..



However I think the best thing would be the vet. They can do tests to make sure she is eating right or if there is anything wrong.



Thanks yes I am taking her to the vet soon, her dropping are liquid and brown not the usual color or consistency they used to be, her diet is not very good she won't eat anything except seeds nuts and pellets


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emyoung858

emyoung858

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I have been trying really hard to get her to eat healthier, do you have any tips?? I was told to only allow her to have her nuts once per day


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Siobhan

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You can't trust what her previous family said. If she's afraid of males and her previous owner was male, it's highly likely that he's the reason. A vet check wouldn't hurt just to rule out anything else, but our Rocky was pretty quiet and mellow for weeks after he came to us, and the more time went on, the more noisy and active he got. He had quite a spell of noisy and active and now he's sort of settled into a groove. He feels secure now and has quit thinking every new person is coming to take him to yet another new home. Yours hasn't had time to go through all that settling in yet and she doesn't know who to trust except you.
 

plumsmum2005

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I have been trying really hard to get her to eat healthier, do you have any tips?? I was told to only allow her to have her nuts once per day
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What? Just make sure the daily amount is not overall excessive. By making them smaller pieces each time is one way to reduce it a little. :)

They are usually interested in what we eat, flock eating. If you have a plate of fresh veggies and she is nearby, offer her some. Plum wants everything I have 'cos I am a soft touch and give in too readily ie something off mine that he can have. Rome wasn't made in a day and it will take time, little steps.
 
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emyoung858

emyoung858

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You can't trust what her previous family said. If she's afraid of males and her previous owner was male, it's highly likely that he's the reason. A vet check wouldn't hurt just to rule out anything else, but our Rocky was pretty quiet and mellow for weeks after he came to us, and the more time went on, the more noisy and active he got. He had quite a spell of noisy and active and now he's sort of settled into a groove. He feels secure now and has quit thinking every new person is coming to take him to yet another new home. Yours hasn't had time to go through all that settling in yet and she doesn't know who to trust except you.



Thanks, she seems to be doing better, she's my first large bird so it's a very different experience for me but is definitely teaching me patience, every single change freaks her out, I bought her a new perch and she won't even go near it, I set it by her cage and put her food in it so hopefully she'll get used to it soon, is it normal for toos' to be so scared of everything?? Even a perch?? I'm just wondering because her vet told me she was probably abused so I don't know if there is a correlation with her strange fears


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fayah

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Ohh yeah typical bird behavior- be scared of everything lmao they are prey animals afterall. Most of my rescue birds are like that. I find my more couragous / bold ones have had a very sheltered and positive childhood. It also probably doesnt help that your bird still needs time to feel completely comfortable in your home and around you.

I had a new playgym for my bird and she didnt go on it for the first two weeks untIl i started playing and and eating delicious things on it and she got tempted. Now she crawls all over it like a monkey

Training and patience and leading by example are all important things to do when owning birds, especially more shy ones
 

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