Tell me about your Rosies/Galahs!!!

OK, so I had my heart absolutely set on getting a yellow collared macaw as my next bird. I even had the opportunity to play with a bunch of babies and I loved them! However, the more I think about it, the more I need a family bird that would be less prone to becoming a one person bird. A YCM has a powerful beak, and I don't mind, but that's a different story for the rest of my family, so I am starting to think a rose breasted cockatoo would be a better choice. I have been doing my research and love their social nature and trainability. I would love to hear your experiences with them. Have you found them to be overly hyper, or more laid back? Is yours flighted or clipped? I would probably keep mine flighted to help prevent fatty tumors. Thanks!

Others will chime in regarding the personality of the rosie, but I can tell you their beaks are no less powerful than the YCM. My partner had a YCM when we met and he wasn't a one person bird, but every bird is different.

Thanks, I'll keep that in mind

Alice is a complex little thing, all things considered. She's generally sociable with people and likes to be in the thick of it when there are guests around. Some people she's utterly besotted with and flirts outrageously, and I've only had one experience of her taking a dislike to someone. She's usually keen to cuddle up to people but easily spooked once on a stranger's arm and will bite if she feels threatened, so I'm usually reluctant to let her socialize as much as she'd like. A couple of friends ended up with bloody fingers when I was learning that lesson!

Biting isn't generally too much of an issue with Alice: they have small beaks relative to their body size, and although she's very beaky where fingers are in range she's never drawn blood on me, even in the early days trying to wrestle her into a carrier for vet visits. I suspect if Betrisher chimes in on this thread she might say something different to this though!

People aside she's a real scaredy-cat, hates loud noises and new objects, gets panicky if I leave her anywhere other than her cage, doesn't like the phone ringing and is scared of the laptop when it makes noises - although we successfully managed to Skype whilst I was on holiday! I don't think she recognized my image but when I talked to her she was popping her crest and making her little intimate squeaks that she usually saves for when she wants a cuddle. So I'm not sure if laid back is the right term, but there again she's very obliging about letting me get on with things about the house, as long as I let her come along for company. She also steps up whenever I hold my hand out and never fusses about going back in her cage when she needs to - although she still throws minor tantrums over bedtime.

What else? She's a bit hit and miss with toys, but I'm getting the hang of her tastes, and she's awful with food. in her world, pizza, curry and lasagna are all extremely exiting, broccoli is poison and beans are positively frightening. No, she doesn't get pizza, curry or lasagna, but it's not easy keeping her off them at meal times and trust me, trying to clean lasagna out of a parrot's legs, chest and tail feathers after an unexpected ambush didn't go entirely as planned is not an easy process!

I think the general philosophy with galahs is that they struggle to maintain good health without the exercise that flying provides, so even setting aside the general arguments against clipping to me it seems important that they're kept flighted unless it's absolutely necessary to clip. Alice is fully flighted now, but a very reluctant flyer and it's something we'll be working on in the new year.

All in all, there are many species of parrot that I love seeing and reading about, but at the end of the day the galah is the one species that I truly love. So, highly recommended!

Oh I do have to agree with thekarens on that score! You should see my forearms!

Having said that, though, my family had four Galahs when I was growing up and they really are a lovely family bird. If nothing else, the soft, fluffiness of the feathers combined with a great desire to be snuggled makes them very attractive. Add to that a comical personality and a huge inquisitiveness and you've got a wonderful companion!

The price of owning one of these lovely birds is that they are, like all parrots, highly intelligent. You can't just put them in a cage with a toy or two: they need constant socialisation and stimulation, just like a toddler. If they don't get it, then unfortunate habits can arise. Like screaming. Plucking. Aggression. Self mutilation.

This is what I'm dealing with in Dominic, my inherited Galah. After seven or eight months, he's finally starting to play, forage and call like a normal Galah. He still plucks and probably always will (but we'll see...) and for some reason, he *loathes* both me and my daughter but loves my husband and son. I dunno what that's about, but I continue to work with him every day. He still bites me (but far less often now) and is even learning to do some simple tricks at age 25+. He has a cheerful disposition and likes nothing better than to bury his head in my husband's beard and snuggle there. Just recently, he learned to jump into the rubbish bin and shred all the paper rubbish! I love him dearly!

LOL! Jayyj, I just read your post. It's truly amazing how a healthy dose of loathing can influence the effect of a bird's bite! When Dom latches on to my flesh, he grabs a beakful (about half an inch's worth) and *twists*. Oww! Unlike the Beaks (who have the crushing aspect of a large bill), Dommie's bill is like tiny pincers. He sure does pack a wallop!

However, it amazed me to read your description of Alice's personality, because Dommie's is very similar. He's also wary of loud or sudden noises and is likely to take against people at random. And, like Alice, he also loves to follow me around the house as I do chores. It is *vital* that I wear stout shoes during this process, however.

Dom has always been fully flighted, but living in a tiny cage for most of his life hasn't helped. He is flying now, but only when absolutely necessary. I'm reluctant to push him to fly more because his fatty tumours are still so big as to present a balance problem. I do think the personality of a Galah far outweighs whatever minor drawbacks they may have (as I'm sure you'll agree). Dominic sends his very best Australian squawk to Miss Alice. (NB. Our dog is also called Alice - she's snoozing right here beside me as I type. Dommie's in bed.)

We've had our galah for a few weeks now; chili is 6.5 months old. One of the reasons we chose a galah, opposed to another amazon, was their disposition to be family birds and cuddly.

Chili's wings are currently clipped, but I'll be letting them grow out- clipped wings don't stop him though... He still tries to fly wherever he thinks he needs to be, and he's also starting to maneuver mid-flight instead of the semi-graceful downward flight. I have a harness, and we'll be doing harness training so he can go outside eventually. I think for galahs it's imperative that they be able to fly for exercise because they're prone to fatty tumors.

He's mischievous though. He's always investigating, tasting, destroying, or eating stuff. I have multiple stations for him to be at throughout the day, and constantly have to make new, interesting toys because he either destroys them quickly or he gets bored of them.

He loves hanging out with all of us though, our 1.5 yr old son especially- he likes to watch him and tries to follow him sometimes to check out his toys or whatever he's packing around. I don't worry about Chili biting him though- he hasn't bit anyone since we've had him.

Oh and he's incredibly smart too- he figured out the first day he can use the baby gate that barricades the kid from the bird corner to get around- either to the couch and recently he's figured out how to climb DOWN the baby gate bars to the floor where he can roam about picking up crumbs and whatever other random specks he finds.

He doesn't seem to be scared of too much [yet]... He has a window perch and loves to sit and watch what's going on outside- he went bonkers the other day watching the wild fids swooping and soaring through the trees in their morning ruckus. I also think the color orange might be an issue lol but other than that he seems pretty receptive to anything.

I don't have a galah, but the closely related corella which has similar traits. He wasn't hand-raiised, in fact he landed in the yard of the daughter of the lady who cleaned my previous office and she gave it to me. He had some very strange behaviours, still does in fact, like talking in a language no one understands He's also very cuddly and affectionate (to me, and to our male eccy) but doesn't like my wife and she's scared of him. Corey also chases other birds including our male tiel. When he's frightened or cranky he will bite HARD and he's drawn much blood from me

I have a friend who often minds his son's galah, a female which hates human females! This bird took up residence on the son's apartment balcony and was obviously an escapee (as was our corella) so of unknown training/raising origin. She's very sweet towards my friend and his son, but she soon makes women very wary of approaching. It amazes me that parrots can even tell the gender of humans- perhaps it's the pitch of the voice because my wife gets better vocal responses from any of our birds than me. Apart from Corey the Corella, whose own voice sounds like a human using one of those machines when they're lost their vocal cords to disease.

So, as for whether a galah can be a sweet and cuddly companion for ALL the family is a matter of "luck of the draw" in temperament, and the training and attention given to the young bird. I wouldn't have the patience or ability to train a bird out of bad habits (nor, due work, the time) plus we have several birds.. well, lots really but Corey has improved over a couple of years possibly because he has a friend (Alex) plus cuddles and pats every day from me.

Ive had 2 galahs [This is Owen]. I had him flown to me in June.{Hes a lot like GetWozzys guy .Hes 6 months old. My breeder had visitors come in 3 times a week [so he would be used to everyone. How much their socialized makes a HUGE !!!!! difference. Ive never experienced this with my other birds. He loves my whole family. He also flys to where he wants. This picture hes flown out to get Elises pencil and paper LOL Shes yelling at me "mom this isn't funny " as im looking for my camera LOL

Thanks everyone, galahs are more complex than I thought, but I still love them! Definitely something to think about. He doesn't have to get along with everyone, just as long as he isn't overly protective and attached to me, since I'll be the primary care taker. I have the opportunity to hang out with both rosies and YCM where I work, so it will probably come down to the individual rather than the species. Price is also a big deal, at the store I will be buying from, the YCMs are 1400 and the Rosie's re 2500 :O, but I think the right bird is worth the extra.

My Owen was 1250 [from Brightwood aviarys] in Georgia. I live in Newyork. Don't be afraid of shipping birds [I had a great experience].

ann said:

Thanks everyone, galahs are more complex than I thought, but I still love them! Definitely something to think about. He doesn't have to get along with everyone, just as long as he isn't overly protective and attached to me, since I'll be the primary care taker. I have the opportunity to hang out with both rosies and YCM where I work, so it will probably come down to the individual rather than the species. Price is also a big deal, at the store I will be buying from, the YCMs are 1400 and the Rosie's re 2500 :O, but I think the right bird is worth the extra.

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Those prices are really scary! Especially for a bird I see almost every day, even in my yard. But then galahs are native to Oz, and we pay ridiculous amounts for exotics like macaws ($5000) and up to $10,000 for african greys.

We paid $1450 (including shipping and crate fees) for Chili; he was shipped from California to Oregon and did really well.

Mike- how much are galahs in oz????

getwozzy said:

Mike- how much are galahs in oz????

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Wozzy, they vary from around $150 for aviary bred to around AUD400 for hand-raised. Varies a bit between bird- or pet- shops. We have some 'tiels which'll be for sale soon, $60-70 for us but $150 in bird-shop. Proven breeding pairs might be $500-600. Depends on location, too, birds tend to be dearer around Sydney for some reason. I'm wanting a corella-galah cross, which are somewhat less common than pure birds, last one I saw was $400 hand-raised. So it varies but rarely more than $4-500 for hand-raised galah.

I haven't had my girl for very long. We are getting to know each other. She likes to sit and eat, she likes climbing on me (she is very determined, she marches up my arm and onto my back and I am hunched over and can't get her off ). I was told that she'd bite you if you did something she didn't like, but I don't find her "bitey". She will do a sort of nipping "game" where she sort of bites, but it's not real bites because it doesn't really hurt, she just sort of nibbles at me. She can say "hello" but she doesn't say much, she's very quiet most of the time, she's not a chatterbox (maybe that'll change?). She's very calm about everything, she hasn't batted an eyelid at moving house, moving people, meeting dogs, meeting cats, meeting my other birds, anything.

She was staying with some people before she was rehomed, and her wings were clipped quite short. The former owner recommended clipping them, but not as short. I really have more research to do about that and would like to try to get her to accept a harness. I'd love to let her fly about, but I'm terrified she'll fly away and I'll never see her again.

strudel said:

I haven't had my girl for very long. We are getting to know each other. She likes to sit and eat, she likes climbing on me (she is very determined, she marches up my arm and onto my back and I am hunched over and can't get her off ). I was told that she'd bite you if you did something she didn't like, but I don't find her "bitey". She will do a sort of nipping "game" where she sort of bites, but it's not real bites because it doesn't really hurt, she just sort of nibbles at me. She can say "hello" but she doesn't say much, she's very quiet most of the time, she's not a chatterbox (maybe that'll change?). She's very calm about everything, she hasn't batted an eyelid at moving house, moving people, meeting dogs, meeting cats, meeting my other birds, anything.

She was staying with some people before she was rehomed, and her wings were clipped quite short. The former owner recommended clipping them, but not as short. I really have more research to do about that and would like to try to get her to accept a harness. I'd love to let her fly about, but I'm terrified she'll fly away and I'll never see her again.

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I've noticed since moving back to WA that lots of people here call them "pink and grey galahs".... as if they come in any other colours

I call them pink and greys. At least you know exactly what's being referred to - you say that and everybody gets the image of the cute little bird. We also used to (still do) call them "cockies" which doesn't tell you anything about which bird. White corellas, pink and greys, all called "cockies".

Well, but galahs are cockies. I have trouble getting my mind around the word ''too' for 'cockatoo' instead of 'cocky'. It just doesn't sound right. Why would you call it a 'too when it's a cocky? And why would you say ''tiel' instead of 'weero' or 'quarrion'? AFAIK, no-one in Australia calls them 'cockatiels' except authors of bird books. I'm not sure what Corellas are called overseas, ('Bare-eyed Cockatoo'?), but wouldn't you think the birds' names would have gone with them when they were first exported from Oz? I'd love to know who the bright spark was that coined 'Rose-breasted Cockatoo' for 'Galah'! LOLOLOL! What a mouthful!

Well, that's interesting, because when I said on a forum that I'd adopted weeros, they didn't know what I was on about. They over east knew them as cockatiels. Maybe it's a Melbourne thing? No matter what you call them, cockies are great birds.