Cockatoo Rescure Stories?

[RyCockatoo]

Just wondering if you guys would like to share your rescue stories of your cockatoos? Pictures of before and after would be nice too! I have just rescued a Umbrella Cockatoo that I will be picking up in the next couple of days and he is in bad shape and I just need a little light at the end of the tunnel that he WILL get better. He is beautiful either way though . He is thin and his feathers are in horrible shape, but hopefully with a little TLC and a good diet he will come around! Any advice is welcome! I need all the help I can get!

 

[BillsBirds]

I've had 2 'toos pass through my life. One, a Moluccan that I re-homed, and was only the middleman for. The other was my beloved Snowflake, a Sulfur Crested. She was the victim of a dog attack, and the owners wanted her put to sleep because of her injuries. The vet was a friend, and after amputating her leg, and part of her left wing, asked the family if she could be re-homed because her injuries were not life threatening. They didn't want her, and agreed that I could have her. It took a few months before she was over her ordeal, and trusted me. But, I persisted, and we became friends. She was a good bird, and with patience, and love, she had a good life. She was a picky & cranky bird, but, given her space, adjusted to things very well. She lived with me about 4 years, and died suddenly. The vet thought it might have been due to post traumatic conditions from her attack. So, I gave her a good 4 years, and she gave me a few scars, and some great memories. She did not get along with any of the other birds that I had at the time. But, when she died, they all seemed to know, and were particularly quiet that day. I felt as if they mourned her passing as much as I did. Rest In Peace, my Snowflake!

 

[BillsBirds]

I realize there is no advice for you there, except maybe "Be patient with her." these are very intelligent birds. Plus, they are very clingy, and jealous. Once she understands who's the flock leader, things will be on a good track. Yeah, right!

 

[MikeyTN]

Thats awesome your taking him in but i hope you know your in for a ride on the roller coaster....is that the cage they stick him in, in the background? That is one tiny cage for a big bird!!! Looks like theres no toys or anything....he just need a nice bath and good diet, plus some love and care for him to do well.

We have two Cockatoos, Dixie is a Lesser Sulphur Crested Cockatoo and she was placed in a dark basement with no windows and a single 60w light bulb in a laundry room. She used to be a heavy plucker, was abused by her first owner, they were her second, we're her third owners. So we took her, give ger better diet and love. She's doing a lot better, she barbers a bit but I can tolerate that better then plucking, not easy to get them to stop once they start! She is no longer afraid of coming out on our hands and I taught her to step up to a perch, 7 years later shes one happy bird.

Java our latest bird is a U2 like yours. He was in a smoking home, drinking coffee, fed bad diet, allowed to do as he pleased, etc. I got his diet changed in two months that she couldn't do in 7 years. He barbers his chest feathers and try to run me over so we're still working on those issues. Still working on him stepping up to a perch, he used to be terrified of it but now its a game to him where he grabs it and start banging it on the floor or where ever he's at. His hormones is kicking in lately so it hasn't been easy to train. But he's making great progress by gaining some weight as he was very skinny, still need a little weight gain. He's given me a few nasty bites that was pretty bad but he's doing a lot better then he was before .....

 

[Mayden]

I rescued a ducorps/solomon island cockatoo, and he was a little charmer.

He was terribly afraid of people, especially men except from my boyfriend. We'd spent time in the pet store getting to know him for a while, in there every day from open till close and decided to take him with us to get him out of there. He was kept in a tiny travel cage with one toy and he couldn't spred his wings or 'hide' when he felt unsafe.

We got him a cage, some toys, proper wooden perches (with bark he could strip!) and even though his cage was too small for him it was only a temporary thing as I just needed him out of that store. He flourished in the new home he had, he'd start chattering on to everyone, we'd let him out for a good stretch of his wings (and usually vocal cords at the same time ) and he got much less fearful every day. We had him for just over a month before we found him a permanent home. Where he has someone with his 24/7, a huge cage, natural perches, plenty of toys and most importantly a lot of love and tlc from the man, which "Mister" took to instantly!

 

[MikeyTN]

Bill, darn you with snowflake story....that made me tear up.....it was wonderful for you to care for her in the last few years she had with you!!!

 

[LuvMyToo]

I rescued my Saffron, a female moluccan cockatoo who had been neglected and her wing had been badly broken. She had a couple surgeries to mend her wing and though she will never fly, is once again in excellent health. She is the first bird I've owned that I didn't get as a baby, but she has the most special place in my heart. It took a lot a time and patience to earn her trust. I gave her room and as much attention as she wanted. Little steps worked well. If you would like to read her story, she has her own Facebook page under Saffron. Good for you giving your wonderful bird a new chance for a loved life.

 

[luvmytooo]

Bill, darn you with snowflake story....that made me tear up.....it was wonderful for you to care for her in the last few years she had with you!!!

I agree.

 

[PaperLantern]

I'm rescuing a cockatoo in a few days. I'm only keeping her for a week or two before she goes to a sanctuary but I'm sure it will be quite the experience.

She has been kept in a dog crate with no toys and no perches for years. They never take her out because "she chews the furniture" when she is taken out of the "cage". Her diet in mainly seed, french fries, popcorn, and peanuts in the shell. I went to visit her a few times and she was so happy to come out of that little cage. She is a VERY loud girl, screams constantly. But I have a feeling a lot of that has to do with the situation she is in.

She's going to a sanctuary that will keep her for life. It is a beautiful place, and she will have access to her own outdoor flight aviary. She should be very happy there!

 

[Mare Miller]

These stories break my heart! and make me cry! God bless all you folks that care and give a ****! I don't have rescues near me but have contacted some in California, I was honest with my story of free flying Amigo. Not one has gotten back to me. I would love to be able to help a bird in need but I'm thinking that they might think I would just cut the bird loose as soon as it got here, not true, I would never do that. I would just love to help.

Does anyone have a suggestion on how I could help out a bird in need, through a rescue? I suppose I could not be honest about Mi Amigo but that would not be honest.

 

[BillsBirds]

First, I'm sorry I never saw the responses from Mikey & Luvmytooo. Snowflake was a special bird that took a piece of my heart (along with a few pieces of my hands!) with her. As for Amigo being free flighted, I don't see that as a problem for future rescuing. It shows that you can control & train birds. Your heart is in the right place, and a rescue will come your way. If I still was "in business", I'd give you a bird.

 

[RescueMe]

My first rescue was Pretty Bird, a U2 that we all fell for. She was the sweetest thing and had been moved around a lot. Someone who met her at my house became interested in her and I decided to adopt her because I couldn't let her go. I have done a lot of rescues and this has only happened a handful of times. Tragically she was killed by my dog in a freak accident. We were absolutely devastated, we loved her so dearly. We have had plenty of rescues since, but I must say I have become a bit of a commitmentphobe. I have to say that now every time I see a photo with a dog and a bird I cringe. Thank you for your help, we all have a responsibility to care for these birds that ask so little from us.

 

[Mare Miller]

Thanks Bill, I would give me a bird too. If these people really knew me, they would give me many birds. My dad's health issues are coming to a close, he's going to be o.k. and I'll be home most times now. I'm thinking I might just go get that macaw up in Oregon now! If he's still available!

 

[solobaby]

i think the fact that you free fly your amigo is great and it shows that you know what you are doing

 

[terry52449]

I have the highest respect for those of you who put your lives on hold to help a desparate parrot in need of a home and love. I would love to be able to do that but I am to selfish to give up the other parts of my life. Before we took Cameo in I talked to my wife and let her know exactly what would be involved and I`m glad I did because my wife has been a huge help with Cameo.
Mary Kay, who runs an Aviary Rescue in Neenah, Wiscinsin out of her small home is an Angel. Although her home is crammed with cages and birds she was very protective of when it came to letting me adopt her. She would not let Cameo go unless Cameo and I clicked. Even then she called me a week later to see how things were going.
Knowing how much time is involved in taking care of one bird, can`t immagine having a house full.
I salute you all with my utmost respect.

 

[Featheredsamurai]

My galah was a rescue bird. My friends were going into pet club and a lady was sitting out front with Rosie in a Budgie sized cage. She asked my friend to take her because her husband was going to kill her When they brought her home they had to cut her out of the cage because it was too small. She was missing feathers and the one's that where still there where yellow tinted and oily. She also had a broken leg and a small section of her upper mandible was missing, and she was terrified of people, especially men. If you walked by her cage she would throw herself to the bottom and injure herself in her fear. My friends had her for 4 years and made her start to trust people again. They unfortunately never took her to the vet so her leg isn't healed right and was extremely weak(lower leg bone slid over her foot, knee cap healed dislocated to the side of her leg, hip bone is healed dislocated). They also didn't give her any toys and made her stable diet sunflower seeds, jelly beans as treats, occasional sips of coffee, and some healthy grains and fruits on occasion.

She was given to me in august and since then she has improved so much. She gained a lot of weight(She had been 250grams) and is slowly getting her feather dust back, meaning her calcium is getting better. I taught her to step up and did months and months of leg exercises so she can finally walk pretty normal. Her bad leg used to be pretty stiff and she had a bad limp-waddle walk, sometimes she even lost balance and fell over. It took pretty long but I got her off of seeds and onto a pellet diet, and also gave her toys that she learned to play with. She is a completely different bird, so full of life of energy.

My main goals now is to help her learn to vocalize like a normal bird, and to get her to stop plucking her back and under her wings. We're slowing getting there though

First photo I took of her a few months after my friends got her.

When I got her

and how she looks now

 

[Mare Miller]

Rosie is soo beautiful and what a fortunate bird to have made her way to you! I'm tellin' you though, an umbrella will help with her voice lessons!

 

[luvmytooo]

My Galah was a plucker and a shredder ! She still shreds , but doesn't pluck anymore, Oslo we are halfway there. She can fly around now , which says a lot because when she first came she wouldn't even try anymore because she would only flop to the ground .
On many occasions she would hurt herself doing that . But finally the owner made up her mind to give her to me. Se really loved her birds , but she was overwhelmed with sudden family health crisis among other family stuff . Im so happy to have my Rosie aka Akala.
She loves Yoshi and they are good friends. She has come a long way in a short time and she continues to improve and amaze us , lol.

 

[lene1949]

I got Cory, short billed corella, from a family, where most of them were afraid of her... They contacted me through a clicker training site, where I was moderator... Cory was gorgeous, and never attempted to bite me, still hasn't...

A few years later I got Echo, Galah, from a friend at work... Same story... They were afraid of her... She has never bitten me, either... They are both now housed in an aviary on my patio, close to my back door...

Cory still shaves his front body, but they both seem happy, and they are both in excellent condition...

 

[Featheredsamurai]

Rosie is soo beautiful and what a fortunate bird to have made her way to you! I'm tellin' you though, an umbrella will help with her voice lessons!

It also might scare her lol I love Umbrella's, but I don't think I could ever have one. Having a bird with a funky leg sometimes means getting bitten as she gets off balance and grabs onto my face or arm. Whenever this happens I say I'm glad she isn't a large white cockatoo because In don't have to head to the hospital for stitches.

After I graduate art school and (hopefully) get a good job, or at least a decent job I plan to get another parrot, possibly another Galah