My First Cockatoo is a Rescue

How it started:
Hello my name is Erick, and I just recently bought a Cockatoo from a local pet store very recently. The reason I bought him was because when I went to the gym very late at night (anywhere from 1AM- 4AM) I would past a pet store and see him all alone in a cage and I have to say, it broke my heart. Over a month went by as I kept walking past the pet store, stopping to look at him until recently, I decided to visit him. The pet store owners allowed me to see him and pet him through a small opening on the cage. He stuck his head out, craving for a petting. The pet store owner informed me that he was 3 years old and his previous owner kept locked up in his cage at all times. This is caused the Cockatoo (Peanut) to pluck his feathers from is chest and under his wings. Currently, he is bald on his chest, but feathers are starting to grow back because the pet store owners at least interacted with him. I felt that I had to save him. So, I bought him, on impulse, without doing my research...

First day Home:
I brought him home and the first thing I wanted to do was let him out of the cage. He got out and climbed on top of his very large cage I bought for him. I put him and the cage in room where I played my instruments. He would say "Hello" and Peek-a-Boo" to me and my Grandmother. We would laugh and Peanut would mimic our laugh which brought us a moment of joy. He allowed me to pet him and hand feed him, but he was hesitant on getting on my arm or shoulder. My Grandmother tried petting him and he instantly got onto her shoulder. His nails were hurting my Grandmother so she became tense and scared, which did not go well with Peanut. It only made him hold on harder. As she attempted to get him off, he bit her very hard which caused her to bleed a lot. As I tried to remove him, he bit me as well, but not as hard. We put him into the cage and went to take care of her small wound. I then returned to let him out because I knew it had to be something we did wrong. I continued to interact with him as he climbed around the cage. He eventually climbed back inside. I locked the cage and put a blanket over because it was getting late. We closed the door and he started to scream, but for less than 10 minutes. After, he was quiet for the rest of the night.

***I must note that what probably lead to him biting was me petting him the wrong way. I would go from the head down to his back, which I learned can be sexual and lead to aggression.***


Second day Home:

I spent all night doing research and learning what I did wrong on the first day. I went the room early (around 7AM) to let him out. I had a few toys for him and some nice relaxing music playing in the background as I continued to interact with him. I watched a few taming videos, so my goal that day was to earn a little of his trust. He would stand on top of the cage as I invited him onto my arm (which I know was a mistake because he should be below shoulder level) and after a few hours, he stepped onto my arm. I was shocked. He wanted to get on, seemed unsure if he should do so. I spend quite some time standing, allowing him on my arm. Eventually I sat down with him. He eventually sat on my lap, cuddling with my legs and hands. He bit me a few times, but it was nothing serious. When he bit me, I would place him on our empty dresser with his toys. I stood with him from the morning to about 1PM. He started to get excited and display happiness as his crest was up and wings were spread. He would make noises, but nothing near screaming. I would play "Peek-a-Boo" with him which he enjoyed. I had arrangements that day, so I left with my Grandmother there. According to her, he was screaming at first, but later calmed down. My mother came by to visit him and he also allowed her and my Grandmother to pet him. She described him as "gentle." I came home and he was asleep. My Grandmother said he remained quiet and he went into his cage by himself.


:Third day Home:

I had the day off so I spent my entire day with Peanut, 7AM till 8PM. I continued to do I was doing on the previous day and decided to take him to my room. I placed him on my bed and he seemed happy and excited, running around the bed saying "Peek-a-Boo!" I put on the T.V and continue to talk and pet him. I would lay on the bed and Peanut would come to me to cuddle while seeking me to pet him. He was click his beak together which I learned it's a positive thing. I gave him toys and played with him. He then took my belt and started to wave it back and forth in his mouth. He looked like he was having so much fun! He came to me with the belt and due to excitement, accidentally bit me trying to get the belt. He quickly dropped the belt and started to cuddle. As he continued he got overly excite, he came to me and started to hit me with the belt as he waved it back and forth. I tried to get him off my chest as I was laying down and get up from the bed and he instantly bit me hard. Perhaps he was just overly excited. Later I took a blanket and started to pet him while I placed it around him to put him back into his cage since it was bed time.


Fourth Day Home:
This happened on 5/30/17, so it is very recently. I worked from 7AM - 3PM. When I got home around 3:40PM, he was excited to see me. My Grandmother told me that he didn't talk and he was in his cage (opened) with music playing all day. He played with some toys, but for the most part he was quiet and calm in his cage. When he saw me, he started to talk, his crest went up and seemed happy. For 2 hours, I took him into my room and we played and it was fun! We played tug of war, peek-a-boo, and had some cuddle time, but I kept it to a minimum. I made games a priority. I would also take my pillows and lightly surround him with them as he would let out a muffled "Peek-a-Boo" which I thought was cute.

Here is where I had an issue.

First off I forgot to mention that I attempted to tame him with sticks, but it was a no-go. He is absolutely scared of the sticks. He runs away the first chance he gets. I tried help him overcome, but he was just too frightened. I assume that the previous owner took a similar object and banged it in attempt to quiet him down due to the owner keeping him in the cage all the time. I also forgot to mention that it took a long time for him to get out of the cage. It seems he's inexperienced when it comes to flying. It seem to be one of those rare times where he actually was given the chance to explore outside of his cage. During the fourth day of fun games and quality time, he got onto my shoulder and because aggressive. I attempted to adjust my hoodie, which gave him the wrong message which cause him to bite me. I slowly and calmly tried to place him on my bed. He started to hiss at me and when I would try to pet, he attempted to bite me. I have never yelled at him and I try to make the bite pains less obvious for his sake. I placed him into the cage and took a 15min break. When I went in, I let him out of his cage and as he climbed to the top, he started to shake ( he as been doing that since day 1) he would take his toy and put pieces of it into his feathers, but at the same time, he started to pluck. I felt helpless. I felt like I was failing him. I didn't understand how he went from being so happy and playful, to being very aggressive towards me. I felt like we were moving backwards. I got a little emotional because I started to have regret. I asked myself why didn't I research first and also asked, what if I can't help him. I had recently lost a beloved Beagle so I started to cry and my Pandora playing for Peanut in the background started playing a sad song which didn't help. He watched me on top of the cage and started to hiss at me. He did not allow me to grab him to place him in the cage for bed time. I had to leave him and wait on his own freewill.


I know it's only been a few days and I need to give him a lot more time to adjust to me, my Grandmother, and his environment, but I can't help but feel that I made a mistake buying him. I have no experience with birds, especially birds with a troubled past. I look at his bald chest and it breaks my heart. I tell myself, I can't give up on him. I have to keep trying, but I feel so discouraged. I've purchase more toys and books to further educate myself with him, but I am having doubt. It is causing me stress. Any word of advice with be greatly appreciated and I thank you to those who took the time to read. I will probably continue updating on this thread.

All the best to you and your fellow bird friends,
Erick

This is a picture of him.

P.S.
I do plan on taking him to the vet as well

Wow. What an amazing thing you have done for your bird. I don't have any experience with cockatoos but I'm sure other members will be able to help you out. Thank you for rescuing the precious thing from the pet shop. You sound like you are really willing to learn and persist. I hope you get some help here.

Hi Erick, thanks for giving Peanut a home and a check by a Certified Avian Vet is a good idea. You may need to have his nails looked at as they could be a bit long for comfort. Ask the AV to file a little.

Peanut and you have only just met and shows a liking for you but does not understand your emotion, perhaps in time. If I pretend to cry and put my head down in my arms Plum will rush over and push to get in to be near me. It has taken time to achieve this, like they say Rome was not built in a day!

You may find that Peanut does better with a structured day, ie up at 8am and bed at 8pm. Parrots need approx 12 hours rest/sleep per day. A cranky parrot is not a happy parrot. LOL.

Links: http://www.parrotforums.com/cockatoos/
http://www.parrotforums.com/parrot-food-recipes-diet/
http://www.parrotforums.com/general-parrot-information/12857-top-10-hazards-companion-birds.html
http://www.parrotforums.com/general-parrot-information/49144-tips-bonding-building-trust.html

Hi Erick,

First of all I'm glad that you are giving Peanut a new chance for a good life. I'm not saying it will be easy, but with the right care you will have an amazing bird!

Cockatoos can be difficult, and with this one will have to earn his trust, and at the same time make sure that he can spend time on his own.

There are a lot of topics on this forum, and I suggest you go through them. There are also many people with lots of experience who will help you.

Don't try to go too fast, take it at the bird's pace. If he's uncomfortable, take some more distance and try again a bit later.

You could make a day schedule including playtime with you and time that he should play alone with his toys. Perhaps you can read out loud to him, so he'll get used to your voice.

I suppose you are on the UK/European side of the ocean?

Your bird has obviously gone through a lot, and he has to start trusting you. This will take time.

I wish you all the best, and we'll help with advice where we can!

Alex

PS you may want to start thinking about an air-purifier. Cockatoos are very dusty.

Hi You sound a bit like me. I have had my first bird (apart from when a child) just a month now and I talk dog. I have had dogs all my adult life and understand them and talk their language, but I actually think it's not a lot different. The actual care you can learn from a book etc. but the language takes longer. You need to learn parrot and he needs to learn who you are.

I am trying to go back to basics as if my bird was a puppy. Puppies bite if they are worried, frightened, overexcited or tired and lots of reasons in between. Gradually they learn that actually we are not such a bad egg and feed them and arrange good things then they start to trust us little by little and we can move on.

I have found that it pays not to assume anything and take each moment like it's the first moment. Until you learn how quickly your bird accepts new things then softly softly catchee monkey is perhaps the way to go. I'm sure there will be plenty of advice coming your way - they are very good here, but as another rookie I understand your worries/pain

Just keep watching and trying and I think eventually we will find that we can talk bird. Wow!

I'm from the United States. Reading to him sounds like a great idea! When I have music playing, I often sing out loud. When I do, he lets out this soft low pitch sound as if he's trying to sing along.

Thank you for the posts everyone. I've been doing a lot of reading and your posts help me feel more confident. I can't lie that I feel I may have rushed into getting him, but I want to help him and I am determined to do so. Just have to be patient!

plumsmum2005 said:

Hi Erick, thanks for giving Peanut a home and a check by a Certified Avian Vet is a good idea. You may need to have his nails looked at as they could be a bit long for comfort. Ask the AV to file a little.

Peanut and you have only just met and shows a liking for you but does not understand your emotion, perhaps in time. If I pretend to cry and put my head down in my arms Plum will rush over and push to get in to be near me. It has taken time to achieve this, like they say Rome was not built in a day!

You may find that Peanut does better with a structured day, ie up at 8am and bed at 8pm. Parrots need approx 12 hours rest/sleep per day. A cranky parrot is not a happy parrot. LOL.

Links: Cockatoos - Parrot Forum - Parrot Owner's Community
Parrot Food, Recipes and Diet - Parrot Forum - Parrot Owner's Community
http://www.parrotforums.com/general-parrot-information/12857-top-10-hazards-companion-birds.html
http://www.parrotforums.com/general-parrot-information/49144-tips-bonding-building-trust.html

Click to expand...

Thank you for the private message. I feel more confident and determined to help Peanut. I'm not going to give up on him. I do plan to update everyone on Peanut in this thread in the future as he makes progression. Thank you again!

You are welcome also have a search for Allee's posts about her 'too Poppy as I think you will find those interesting.

You are doing so much better than you think you are honestly.

Be prepared for the testing stage which will occur when Peanut feels he has his feet firmly under the table, standard cockatoo testing phase (of yours and everyone else's patience). You will need to have a set of firm boundaries in place and know how to deal with unwanted behaviour, it too shall pass though.

http://www.parrotforums.com/cockatoos/64495-my-temperamental-too.html

http://www.parrotforums.com/cockatoos/61272-poppy-s-room-had-happen-pic-heavy.html

Welcome to you! Happy adventures!

You did a very kind thing by giving Peanut a home and have done the right thing turning to experienced parrot owners for help. You have certainly jumped head first into the deep end when it comes to bird ownership with a large too! But so have several other members I can think of who absolutely love their cockatoos. Something drew you to him as a person who has never thought about owning parrots before, so he must be a pretty special bird. When he bites or acts up (they all do, comes with owning parrots) just remember what you saw in him and what made you want to bring him home. And while I'd never advocate buying a parrot on impulse, now he's home with you and needs you to have the information, support and tools necessary be dedicated to his lifelong care. Cockatoos need very strict routines, to be taught independent play and are voracious toy destroyers (Allee has some great threads on making her U2 toys, for ideas if you need some). We have some very knowledgeable cockatoo owners on here (I am sure this post will be seen by some of them today), I will let them offer advice specific to Peanuts behavior.

My amazon took over a year to see any real progress from building trust and training him. Patience, persistence and understanding. Also helps to learn a bit about their natural habitat and behaviors so when they are doing something perplexing in our homes, you have an idea of why. These special creatures didn't ask to be taken out of the jungle, stuck in a cage or mistreated by a prior owner(s). A few days is a drop in the ocean in the lifespan of a parrot. You must work on their time table in regards to training and socialization. Many do indeed come around quickly and with a 3 year old bird who's already out of his cage and interacting, I have no doubt that a few months of hard work from now, Peanut will be a fine companion and may even be growing some feathers back Please do keep us updated!

Welcome and be welcomed. You are doing great with Peanut. Go slow, at his pace for doing anything.

Welcome to the forums Erick, thanks for joining! While Peanut may have been an impulse purchase, your dedication shines through the posts. Large cockatoos are challenging but with persistence, consistency, and a lot of love you'll have a lifelong companion.

The links plumsmum2005 selected are immensely helpful. I would also recommend this: http://www.parrotforums.com/macaws/56384-big-beak-o-phobes-guide-understanding-macaw-beaks.html While written for the macaw forum, it contain essential truths applicable to cockatoos!

A well-check with an avian certified vet can rule out hidden illness, as birds are masters of illusion. Their staff can also trim the nails to better protect your grandmother's sensitive skin.

Please be extremely cautious with Peanut on the shoulder! That is a go-to and vulnerable spot. An angry parrot can cause serious damage to the face/neck. It ought be an earned privilege of trust!

Good luck, please continue to post your questions and observations!

I just want to thank everyone again for the kind words. You guys gave me so much more confidence for myself and for Peanut. Someone here suggest I give him back and I told them it wasn't going to happen. He's a sweet bird, but has problems that needs fixing and I'm ready to take the challenge. I'm thankful to have you guys will aid us in this long life journey!

So, for the fifth day home:

Yesterday made me feel doubtful because we were playing so much. He looked like he was having so much fun too. I made up a few games off the top of my head and he seem to enjoy them, but then suddenly he became very aggressive. Today my mother came to seem him and I guess there were too many people for him to deal with so he started to shake again and act tense.

I have this idea and please let me know what you think
Maybe I was moving too fast by letting him out of the cage and into my room. According the the pet store owner, he practically never left his cage. He was always locked in. This must have been a new and crazy experience for him. I was think of just keeping him in the cage for now. I will read to him and interact with him by petting and so on. When I try to hold him, he instantly wants to get on my shoulder. I want to stop that behavior by keeping him in the cage and taking it slow. Maybe after a week or so, I will start to teach him how to step up. Any advice on how to make him stop going on my shoulder?

Thank you again, everyone!

Hi, firstly give him back to spend the rest of his life imprisoned don't be daft, you doing good!

Peanut probably had an excitement overload so in order to play mad and exciting games you need to develop a calming cue or risk bites from him as an outlet for that energy, it gotta go somewhere! Now with Plum I can draw him in for a snuggle and this then dissipates the excess energy. This doesn't happen overnight, trust has to come first, once you have that it is so much easier. Re shaking if he needs reassurance, be the one to give it to him, it's OK Peanut etc, etc. And at the risk of repeating myself and everyone else 'socialise, socialise, socialise'! He will know people and remember from the shop and now needs to learn trust and that it is OK esp if you are around.

Shoulder: https://www.petcha.com/should-your-parrot-be-on-your-shoulder/

http://www.mytoos.com/forum/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=249014
Have you tried bending your elbow, arm out flat and blocking his progress either with your other hand/towel draped and the words firmly said "NO Peanut" if he obeys he needs a treat and praise "good boy Peanut". Have you tried the step up routine as this is the first step to him recognising your vocal instructions, your voice and its inflections. They do not come already programmed and he will need to learn this from you.

One thing that will be useful is a stand for him to hang on that is not his cage. Need not cost a lot ie DIY, there are instructions on here.

http://www.parrotforums.com/do-yourself/

Hi, Erick.

I got a pet cockatoo when I was a teenager. Sadly, she died several years ago after an operation to remove a hernia. She was twenty four. I bought her because I felt sorry for her. In her case, the other cockatoos in the store had bitten some of her toes off. When I brought her home, in many ways, she was just like how you describe Peanut. On her first day home, I picked her up and she bit my neck, drawing blood. She was not tame. But over the years, she bonded very closely to me. She would even lay eggs in my lap as though she had pair bonded with me. I got to trust her so much that I allowed her to fly around the neighbourhood. She would often sit in the neighbours' trees before she came home. I would even let her sleep outside up an elm tree. The point is, it took many years for her to get this tame. In fact, after I brought her home, it took quite a few months for her to sit on me. It was a very slow process, which involved me letting her out of her cage each day to do her own thing. Then one day, she walked up to me and jumped on my knee.
From my experience, I'd say just be patient.
As far as feeling guilty about the feather plucking goes, don't. It's not your fault. It might be psychological. Peanut might not stop doing it until he's fully adjusted to his environment and you've established a bond with him and he feels safe and secure. It can take a long time for parrots to recover from feather damage. Don't expect instant results.

As you know by now, Erick, cockatoos are highly emotional! What you experienced is a heightened state that is a perfectly normal reaction. How *you* react as the "alpha parront" is crucial. Stay calm, deliberate, and reward negative behavior with a gentle "NO!"

Good observations re cage out-time. Caged birds ought be weaned from the cage slowly. Try consistent and regular outings, and reward good behavior with a treat and a longer period handling Peanut.

You'll have to "block" Peanut from running up your arm to the shoulder! He obviously enjoyed this position in the past, but do be careful!

Wow Erick first and foremost welcome to this forum. You have done the right thing by rescuing him so DO NOT REGRET at all. With birds it takes a lot of time. I just bought a baby alexandrine and i am letting him accept me and my family. You are on the right track just go slow and positive things will happen...getting bitten is just part of the process in building the bond with your birdie this is what i am learning...Yusuf comes onto my right hand no issue as soon as i put my left hand he is ready with his beak because he is curious to know about my left hand...today i let him bite me and than gradually it slowed down...so don't worry everything will work out....


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