Behavior Help (Major Mitchell)

[MissJD]

Hi guys, I need some help with Olly.

What a beautiful boy, but unfortunately it seems his early life may have been a little turbulent. When I bought him, I found out that he had apparently been 'hand-raised' (though I'm not too sure about this) by an elderly man, then stuck in an aviary for a while before eventually being returned to the shop because the man went travelling.

I would normally prefer not to buy an animal in a shop, but he seemed to really want to come home with us. And his backstory made me feel like he deserved a forever home.

He chattered and chirped happily the entire ride home!

For the next 9 months he lived in our home with another galah (my ex-partner's bird) and although they never spent time outside of their cages at the same time, they were usually kept in the same room. It seems the galah was very happy about this, and loved going and sitting on Olly's cage during her outside time.

During those 9 months, we were both continually amazed by how quiet Olly was - It was very rare to hear him screech and he just seemed so happy and placid!

In early February, I moved away from that house and Olly was so well behaved the whole trip down. He almost seemed to enjoy the car ride actually..

His cage got put into my room, because Mum used to smoke inside the house and wouldn't stop just for him. This also meant that whenever I'm on my computer, he is right next to me.

It didn't take long after that for the screeching to start. I haven't noticed any real definitive pattern - He often screeches if he is left alone in the room even for a short period, but not all the time. Sometimes he will screech even if there is someone in the room with him.. Sometimes he will be silent the entire day.

I know that cockatoos make noise, and sometimes screech just for the sake of making noise. But it's a different sound.. When he screeches it's his loudest voice, piercing and repetitive, over and over and over for a pretty long time.

At the beginning my mum and brother, AGAINST my instructions, would go up and talk to him when he was making this excessive noise. It took a few weeks to drill it into them that they must not do that, lest he learn to screech for attention all the time. Sometimes when he screeches non-stop for a prolonged period I would come into the room without looking at him, cover his cage then walk right out again. It was the only way to get him to calm down! After around 10-15 minutes of quiet I would come back in, talk to him and give him a little treat.

Then my mum and brother started coming in to cover him anytime he began screeching if I was not home (at the shops, etc). Again, it took many explanations to get them to STOP.

And now comes the wildcard spanner-in-the-works.. I recently found out that I am pregnant. At this stage I'm 9 weeks.. I have been living down here for just under 8 weeks. I know that animals can sense these things - My cats have become very reluctant to leave my side and have taken to laying across my stomach - And I wonder whether this is affecting Olly. (Mum has now stopped smoking inside as well)

He still won't allow me to touch him, but he'll happily fly over to my bed and walk all over me (while I'm under the blanket), he will take treats from my hand very, very gently and he flew to my head a couple of times in the old house. I can walk by very close to him without him caring as long as I make no quick movements. Sometimes he appear to sort of cower if my hand is above his head for any reason and this has also led me to wonder whether he was hit or mishandled by his previous owner.. Perhaps he bit and got hit or slapped?

Some other background information that may or may not be relevant:

Olly gets fed Vetafarm Nutriblend pellets which he seems to really love, as well as various fruits and veggies. I have recently started giving him a small amount of seed mixed in with his pellets as well. He gets given natural nuts as treats on occasion as well.. He adores these and perks right up if he hears the packet rustling.

He has plenty of chewing blocks and things to destroy in his cage, a rope perch and a couple of those concrete perches which seem to be his absolute favorite... At this stage he doesn't have a wood/branch perch - Maybe I should find one for him?

Anyway, as much as this screeching is hard for me to handle I want him to be the happiest he can be, so I have to address this. Not to mention that in 7 months there will be a baby in the household and I want to help him to be ok with that, as well as not have him screeching constantly and upsetting the baby who will cry, which of course might upset Olly again.

Unfortunately at this stage my bedroom is the only place for him, though we will be moving into a bigger house soon and the plan is to have him in a communal area where there will usually be a person in sight.

Giving him up, like some have suggested, is NOT an option - I promised to give him a forever home and that's what I intend to do. A good mother addresses her babies' problems for a happy future, she does not abandon them.

I am also aware that there won't be a quick-fix to this and it'll take time, so the sooner I get onto this, the better for everyone.. I will be happy to hear everyone's suggestions and answer questions if needed..

Can anyone help me??

 

[Kiwibird]

Giving him up, like some have suggested, is NOT an option - I promised to give him a forever home and that's what I intend to do. A good mother addresses her babies' problems for a happy future, she does not abandon them.

Good for you! That is the RIGHT attitude to have with a bird.

I don't know too much about MMs (they are quite rare), but my first thought reading that is does he miss the galah? Cockatoos are huge flock birds, and while they may have been different species, he may have interpreted the other bird as "one of his own" and now misses it. They make DVDs that are basically just parrots in an aviary, no narrator, just bird noises and birds playing. Perhaps Olly would benefit from watching some of his own, especially since he never interacted with the other bird, just watched it He may also be suffering a bit from being in the bedroom, away from his human flock. Understanding that you will be moving soon, about all you could do about that is spend more time in your room, and even have your family come up there so Olly sees the humans he interprets as his flock more. My last thought is he might be irritated by the cigarette smell. They do have sensitive lungs, and even if your mom hasn't been smoking indoors recently and no one ever smoked in the room, that smell gets into stuff. Birds have sensitive lungs and mucous membranes in their throat, noses and eyes, so that may be bothering him. Possibly run a little air filter, and maybe convince mom that she should smoke outside from now on even after you've moved. Best of luck with Olly.

 

[MissJD]

Thanks Kiwibird =]

Thankfully, Mum no longer smokes anywhere in the house since learning of my pregnancy. She will continue to smoke outside in the new house as well - I'm buying it for my child and I, she will simply be living there. She is currently fighting advanced breast cancer but I do not know if Olly can tell..?

I spend the vast majority of my time inside my bedroom with Olly, only a couple of hours a day is usually spent outside of the room.

My best guess is that he probably does miss the galah a bit (even after 8 weeks) and can sense the change in hormones relating to my pregnancy. Plus being in a new kind of environment (we used to live in the city, now we live in a coastal town just a few hundred meters from the water).. All of these things combined are probably contributing to this behavior..

So with the DVD/video of other birds, how should I go about doing that? Like should I play it for an extended period or just a little bit each day, etc? I had seriously contemplated getting him a companion birdie friend but right now I have no space for another cage and I know MMs can be a bit violent with other birds so I can't risk giving him another friend to share his cage with. It's a shame, as I would LOVE to get him a companion, perhaps adopt a bird who is already tame enough to interact happily with me as maybe their example could help him. But it's just too risky!

*Another thing I did not mention is that he often does this thing where he kind of stoops down a little and holds his wings out from his body, often they're quivering just a bit. I have previously been informed that he is begging when he does that, or asking for something. He very often puts his head up against the bars of his cage and 'begs', which I interpret as wanting to come out. The thing is, once out, he still does it pretty regularly! On top of the 'begging', he does this cute little head nod accompanied by a little squawk... I just can't figure out what he wants!

I have also wondered whether he will prefer being given a place in an aviary outside once I have the space. That would make me a little sad but if it makes him happy then it is worth it! Oh I wish I could just ask him!!

 

[Betrisher]

My Galah, Dominic, really needs lots and lots of stuff to chew on. I mean LOTS of stuff to chew on! He gets wood and cardboard and paper things every single day and he would turn his stuff into two or three shovelfuls of confetti. What I'm saying is, try giving Ollie some good chewing fodder. Give him varied textures, like chopsticks, paper straws, plastic bottle tops, wood chips, corks (ask at your local pub or restaurant) and branches. My Beaks enjoy it when I tie a few chewy things to a length of paulie rope: it takes them a while to fish the rope up to their perch and get hold of the chewy. Then, if they drop it, they have to fish the rope up again. It's all about keeping the bird working and figuring things out.

Other people make foraging toys out of TP cylinders or cupcake papers or whatever. If you look in 'Parrot Toys', you'll find a few ideas. Or google 'do it yourself parrot toys' for others. Just yesterday, we gave Dominic a long, skinny wine-bottle carton with some yellow plastic wadded into the bottom of it. He had a great time winkling the plastic out again and hurling it onto the floor. All my birds just love rustling the yellow plastic wrappers from Maggi noodle packets - guess why? I always give them a bit of the dry noodle whenever I open a packet. This means that Maggi yellow plastic is a Very Meaningful toy for the guys. Also the cardboard from Aldi's weetbix packets.

If you can get hold of some branches of bottlebrush or melaleuca, they make terrific toys for parrots. My guys just love tearing long strips of fibrous bark off the branches - and then afterwards they can be used for perches in the cage.

So, try to think of ways to keep Ollie busy throughout his day. If you have to, hide his pellets inside a toy that has to be chomped open (eg. TP cylinder or rolled-up cardboard). It's all about giving him problems to which he must find the solutions. Good luck with him and I hope you find a solution!

Oh - and heartiest congratulations on your coming little one!

 

[Gizmomania]

Perhaps his hormones are kicking in and he's looking for a mate.

 

[MissJD]

Thanks Betrisher, I will try all of these things!

Perhaps his hormones are kicking in and he's looking for a mate.

Possibly, but how would I go about trying to find him a compatible mate while I've got the issue of space and no second cage? Or is there something else I could do to help him? Also what is the best way for me to confirm this? ie; What signs should I look out for? He likes to flap his wings and hang upside down squawking, like a morning dance but randomly during the day.. And he has shaken his tail a couple of times which is the CUTEST thing!

 

[RavensGryf]

Just curious... The breeders here in the US sell MM babies for around $5,000. I was interested in knowing what they go for in Australia.

It has been said they have a different personality from a typical white too, and aren't as hands on.
I used to have a Slender Billed corella which you guys in AU see more often than here. She wasn't very interested in cuddling, but OMG was she active. ACTIVE was an understatement. Now she has an aviary to fly in.

Anyway, back to Olly, give him natural wood perches of a few different appropriate sized diameters. Shreddable toys, foraging toys. Bad habits may take time to break. It will be nice when you get into your new environment where you and he can sort of "start over". Hang in there

 

[MissJD]

Just curious... The breeders here in the US sell MM babies for around $5,000. I was interested in knowing what they go for in Australia.

Over here they're nowhere near as pricey. Though they don't pop up nearly as often as galahs or sulfurs. Olly cost $350, which my partner at the time said was a really good 'bargain' as they can often sell for twice that.

I'm experimenting with playing different sounds and videos to him right now and filming some of the results.

So far he is chattering along to the talking bird videos more than the wild bird videos..

Though he also keeps going back inside his cage (the door is open) and doing that begging thing on his perch.

 

[MissJD]

I have been thinking.. How safe would it be to get Olly a birdie friend to share his cage? I mean what are the chances of them not liking each other enough to harass or attack the other?

 

[RavensGryf]

Ooh no, Olly would say 'Nooooo!!!!' Unless they're really young, parrots are territorial about their cage. How about a stranger (human) moving into your bedroom, dropping their suitcase and saying "hi, I'm going to be sharing your bedroom with you from now on!" LOL

 

[MissJD]

That's what I thought.. My mum has a couple of cockatiels in a cage outside, just aviary birds.. I could try sitting them side by side during Olly's outside time maybe..?

 

[MissJD]

UPDATE: I have been playing wild cocky sounds to Olly for about 45 minutes, I have now stopped and Olly continues to chirp away. He hasn't screeched yet, though we'll see how well it all works when I'm not in the room. =]