Renaming cockatoo

[Endlessaley]

Bringing new Moluccan from rescue next week. I’ll be his third owner (that they know of) and his age is unknown but appears young. He goes by “Sammy.” I’m considering renaming him. Are birds ok with being renamed or should I stick with what he’s familiar with ? Also if it’s alright to do so, need name suggestions!

 

[chris-md]

Here’s an honest answer:

They don’t have emotional attachments to such concepts as names like we do. They are essentially attention getting devices: we say their name, they look, and they’re rewarded with attention. Their names tend to function more as a training tool, technically speaking. We humans who do the naming just don’t realize that’s how we use it.

I tortured myself over my own boys name, who came to me with the name Porker. That had to change! I toyed with Kai, but because he could say porker I decided to keep it similar, and named him Parker.

That’s said, he learned to say Parker. And that’s when I realized what we call them is irrelevant. It’s the bond that counts.

So name the bird whatever you want. It’ll be just fine.

 

[Scott]

Congratulations for adopting a beautiful Moluccan! Absolutely agree with Chris above!!

 

[SailBoat]

I have a slightly different belief regarding their name as we have long Rescued Older Amazons, commonly ill and/or abused and no reason to ever trust another Human. Our goal is to restore their health and belief in Humans as worth their love. They have enough to deal with and a name is not something they need to learn at this point.

In addition, we have been very lucky that their provided name had been a good fit and not some dumb, jerk provide name.

FYI: Welcome to Parrotforum!!! Great looking new member of the family.

 

[noodles123]

My bird (a U2) came to me with a name that I kept (even though I hate it lol). It fits her and she already knew it, so I didn't think changing it seemed right. They are already dealing with a lot of change and uncertainty-- I imagine that if their name has been one of the few constants in their lives, removing that could cause further confusion. You could call him Sammy but also incorporate names like Sam, Samson, sammich , samuel, etc lol


Have you had experience with parrots--- specifically cockatoos before? There is a LOT to know about large "toos" in general, so make sure you read all about their hormones and needs (pet on head and neck only, no access to boxes/shadowy spaces, 10-12 hours sleep nightly on a set schedule, how to respond to screaming and keep it from getting out of control etc).

 

[FrancisMom]

Gotta put in my two cents here! You can see that my id on this forum has the name "Fancy'sMom" but my U2 (Umbrella cockatoo) is named Francis. The breeder thought he was a female when he hatched so they named him "Fancy". His previous owner, a friend of mine, took him home at 3 mos., keeping the name and the idea that HE was a SHE for 25 years. They even found a male 'too to breed with "her". Funny how it just never went well. :56:

So at the age of 25, and with all those years being referred to, very lovingly, as "Fancy", I took him on (the friend was getting older and needed to find a new home for her/him), got a sex text done and found out we have a male. By then I'd already joined this forum as "Fancy'sMom" --- oh well.

I never liked the name "Fancy" anyway but he had so many years of being loved and cherished by that name I just felt like I needed to change the name to something as similar to "Fancy" as I could. I asked here at this forum, and someone (I'm sorry I can't remember who it was) came up with "Francis". It was perfect because we could call him "Francie". I'm glad to report that he has taken to it VERY well, and now HE is loved and cherished as Francis, aka Francie.

 

[Siobhan]

It depends on the bird, really. Rocky has always been Rocky and he says his name and changing it would have confused him. I had a Quaker named Jade who was really attached to her name. But my other Quaker showed up at our bird feeder and we never found his family, and we had no idea what his name had been. He accepted his new name with no problem. I had a pigeon whose former family had called her Magic but I like people names and came up with "Maggie" because it sounded like her old name. She got used to that fairly quickly. So if you do change it, pick something that sounds like Sammy and he'll get used to it more quickly. And if you change it, use the new name CONSTANTLY.

 

[Endlessaley]

My bird (a U2) came to me with a name that I kept (even though I hate it lol). It fits her and she already knew it, so I didn't think changing it seemed right. They are already dealing with a lot of change and uncertainty-- I imagine that if their name has been one of the few constants in their lives, removing that could cause further confusion. You could call him Sammy but also incorporate names like Sam, Samson, sammich , samuel, etc lol


Have you had experience with parrots--- specifically cockatoos before? There is a LOT to know about large "toos" in general, so make sure you read all about their hormones and needs (pet on head and neck only, no access to boxes/shadowy spaces, 10-12 hours sleep nightly on a set schedule, how to respond to screaming and keep it from getting out of control etc).

I love sammich! 😂 I’ve never owned a too but have had birds from childhood into my 20s. I’ve been doing months of research and have been going to a local rescue to get familiar with the birds. They have about 20 cockatoos and so have seen all the screaming, biting and hormonal behavior and have picked everyone’s brain regarding care and behavior. And so although I guess you can never know what it will be like, I feel prepared enough to take on what comes with owning one of these beautiful creatures. I’ll also be coming here a lot with questions as well! I live alone in my own house with mom down the road to help with care if needed.

 

[noodles123]

My bird (a U2) came to me with a name that I kept (even though I hate it lol). It fits her and she already knew it, so I didn't think changing it seemed right. They are already dealing with a lot of change and uncertainty-- I imagine that if their name has been one of the few constants in their lives, removing that could cause further confusion. You could call him Sammy but also incorporate names like Sam, Samson, sammich , samuel, etc lol


Have you had experience with parrots--- specifically cockatoos before? There is a LOT to know about large "toos" in general, so make sure you read all about their hormones and needs (pet on head and neck only, no access to boxes/shadowy spaces, 10-12 hours sleep nightly on a set schedule, how to respond to screaming and keep it from getting out of control etc).

I love sammich! �� I’ve never owned a too but have had birds from childhood into my 20s. I’ve been doing months of research and have been going to a local rescue to get familiar with the birds. They have about 20 cockatoos and so have seen all the screaming, biting and hormonal behavior and have picked everyone’s brain regarding care and behavior. And so although I guess you can never know what it will be like, I feel prepared enough to take on what comes with owning one of these beautiful creatures. I’ll also be coming here a lot with questions as well! I live alone in my own house with mom down the road to help with care if needed.

AWESOME to hear-- they can be amazing, but you have to set the boundaries and pour a lot of enrichment etc in. SO glad you know this going in. I'd 300% urge/even require hands-on for anyone adopting a too
For me, mitigating hormones has made a huge difference long term. They will crack you up and drive you crazy every hour or so off and on lol. Welcome.


They love to push boundaries and test them and while that is part of what makes them hilarious, just be prepared to engage in sustainable behaviors-- if long term you can't keep it up, make sure you consider that before making something a routine.

 

[Laurasea]

Thank you for taking in a rescue! Welcome to the forum!

Name changes, sometimes it helps as a new beginning. I think especially if tgey have been abused, not so much if they had to be given up for other reasons , if they have good association with name I keep it.

My quaker I rescued from terrible situation was named Chloe. I changed it to Penny that first day. Pikachu a re home I kept his name.

Orbit spent 2.5 months being called Oliver at the pet store. I think he said his new name tge second day I had him . But it became his alarm call.....ugh so I call him Obi

And keep in mind when you first get them home, they can grieve. They can miss the person st the rescue or other birds. This can show in anger and acting out, or retreat into themselves, or a mix, or being extra clinging. It can take 6 months for all that to dort out. So if he is completely different when you get him home. Just be patient. Thus is a very intelligent individual, and big change has happened without him making the choice, and being able to understand what's happened. And there can be a testing phase, to see how you react.... and sometimes it just perfect from tge start.

Pikachu was thrilled, and more affectionate and trusting with me day one than with his daddy. And he had a great daddy, who cared for him excellently, and loved him dearly.

So be prepared for anything. Looking forward to reading your journey

 

[FrancisMom]

My friend Peg gave me Francis because she was getting too old to keep her birds anymore, and I'd made a connection with him years before. The big problem was that I was NOT a "bird person". I was a quintessential crazy cat lady. I knew NOTHING about birds -- of any kind! The biggest help for me was watching the podcasts at The Chloe Sanctuary for Cockatoos. It's on YouTube and it's VERY educational about cockatoos. Beyond that I've gotten a lot of great advice and help here on this forum.

 

[fiddlejen]

IF you decide you want your bird to have some completely-different name... let's say, "Robert" for an example (and I do Not mean that as a suggestion!)... one way to make that transition would be to start calling the bird "Sammy-Robert," and use that name for a while, then start occasionally dropping the first name, thus eventually transition to only calling the bird "Robert."