Gwen is a wiseguy!

[Alison]

So, we (my mother and I) were talking about Pal the puppy yesterday and discussing how much bigger we think he may get, when Gwen piped in and said; "He's not going to grow...HAH!" and then laughed. Then, today, I stepped back and accidentally stepped on Pal's foot and he yelped. I rubbed his head, kissed his paw and told him I was sorry and that I didn't mean to step on him, and Gwen piped in again and said; "Yah Right!". Then tonight at dinner he was asking for some turkey, so I gave him some and he didn't say thank you, so I asked him where his manner were and asked him to say thank you, to which he replied; "NO!" and gave me the raspberry. He is such a brat.

 

[MKay]

Alison, which one is Gwen? Is that your CAG?

 

[Alison]

Hi MKay, Yes, Gwen in my CAG. I have had him since he was 2. He lived through a bad fire before I bought him, that is why his chest feathers are not perfect, in case anyone noticed. Just don't tell him he isn't perfect, he believes he is. Probably because thats what I always told him. At first he actually seemed self conscious about his feathers. I don't know if he really was, or if I just interpreted it that way, but he got over it in time anyways.

 

[MKay]

Alison,

I believe 100% that he was self conscious about his burnt feathers. Parrots are proud, they preen and place their feathers just right. It must've been an awful, painful experience for him. What became of the previous owner? Do they still check on him, or did they ever?

We have been considering whether we should try to bring another adult parrot in. I have a friend that invited us to a meeting, a new group that formed in our area. A few of the folks dropped out of a well-known rescue group for various reasons, and started their own that really DOES focus on the birds. They have a few parrots that need homes. We have three here that had previous owners who did not want them anymore. Two were caiques, and they fit in very well, very quickly. But the last one we brought in that was an adult did not fit in at all. He had been returned to the original breeder after the owner had children. They 'didn't have time for him anymore' so she was reselling him. Full price, of course. He was an atypical pionus. She did not warn us of his antics. Only said that "if you forget to tell him good morning, he'll let you know" He has a huge vocabulary, but very loud screams, very often. I wasn't prepared for that, nor was the rest of my family, including birds and dogs. He really disrupted our household. (not just the humans). I thought I found him the perfect home; someone with conures who was used to loud screams now and again. I was fully honest with her, as I did not want to see him bounced around. Handsome bird.. she stuck it out for a year or so, but has been posting him for sale in the online classifieds, as was pointed out to me. He was meant to be a breeder, and was not being kind to her females. I don't think he really had his own space there, though. Looking back, if the person I bought him from would have been up front with me, I don't think we would have brought him here.

I've since learned that the questions I asked ahead of time only scratched the surface, and there will be more involvement into the past of any that we consider re-homing here. As Dave reminded us, it's no easy task. Maybe in another 10yrs I'll be much wiser, but I have already learned a lot from you, Michael and Dave. And there will be no more jumping the gun when it comes to the balance of our household. You'd be surprised how much anxiety can be caused when a 9-yr-old cannot focus on her homework which has to be done after choir in 30min while she eats before leaving for gymnastics.. such stress already! And my poor golden retriever.. he would just cower and hide when Joey started yelling. Any remedies were short-lived. He just did not want to be here.

The meeting is on the 12th; I've got mixed emotions but fully trust my friends and the company they would keep cannot be that bad.

 

[Alison]

What became of the previous owner? Do they still check on him, or did they ever?

Gwen didn't come in through the Rescue. I purchased him from the owner of the pet shop I worked in many years ago. He was also a breeder and sold only his own babies in the store. Gwen was one of his babies that he thought was a female and kept for himself with the intention of breeding the bird when old enough. After the fire, he decided he didn't want the bird anymore, so he brought the then 2 year old bird to the store to sell. I took Gwen out of the cage to put him in the playpen like I did every morning with the birds there, well, I didn't realize that Gwen was full flight and about an hour later something must of startled him and he flew.....right into the store front window. He was unconcious when I ran and picked him up. I thought he was dead, so I was crying, customers were staring at me like I was insane and then Gwen flinched. Well, he made it through that little fiasco and I paid the owner the $750.00 he was asking for the bird and have had my Gwen ever since. I did a DNA on him and she turned out to be a he. I tried to change his name which was originally Gweneviere, but he didn't think I was funny, so I just shortened it to Gwen. Seems we can both live with it.

As far as bringing in another adult, it is a choice I'm afraid that only you can make. You may get a bird that fits into your life beautifully, or you may get another one that disrupts your whole family. There are no guarantees with re-homes, they all react differently to change. I would just keep in mind that if you cannot handle the new bird, that could mean change again into yet another home, which is not good for the bird. I would get to know the bird a little if possible and try to see if the birds temperment and behaviors are of the kind that would make the easiest transition into your home. There are, unfortunately, some birds who cannot adapt to change, or have been too traumatized and would be better off in a free range sanctuary where human contact is limited. You just can't always tell with birds. I had an Amazon here that was as mean as the day is long. He would dive at everyones face given the opportunity. Then one day, his soul mate walked into my shelter. I never saw such a miraculous change in my life. He instantly became a lovable, touchable, kissable sweetheart. Even I couldn't believe what my eyes were seeing. Thats why I say, you just never know how a bird is going to react and who they are going to decide they like. Good luck to you with your decision. I hope it works out well for all concerned. Sorry about the length of my reply. I have SDS---Spontanious Disclosure Syndrome.

 

[Peta]

I have to say I just love Gwen, such a sweetheart, I also think he was self consious of his feathers. He is a handsome chap with loads of character.

There is certainly a lot to think about when getting a parrot, especially a re-home.

Some really great points made here.