Thinking of rehoming my Common Mynah...how do you decide!?

[Jottlebot]

Hello,

I'm thinking of rehoming my Common Mynah, Spock. She does not enjoy the lifestyle I can give her and she is becoming increasingly frightened of me and my husband. We have to towel her to get her back in her cage each time she is out. It stresses her out so much and she is starting to be fearful when we walk past her in her cage, which breaks my heart. She is so active and should be flying about, but it's so unpleasant having to put her away that I'm reluctant to let her out as often as I should.

Her and her needs are so different from a parrot (obviously!), I love that she is my little wild thing, but I'm beginning to think that it's affecting her wellbeing living with me.

I have never rehomed an animal before. I don't know if it is the right thing to do or if my motivation is sound. We have a giant dog who is very reactive, we got him as a rescue and we have had to change our lives to work for him so even thinking about giving an animal away does not feel comfortable.

Does anyone have any experience of making this decision they would be happy to share?

 

[wrench13]

Just be super selective about who you rehome her with. I don't think there is a large pool of people who are looking to adopt mynah birds, as compared to parrots.

 

[T00tsyd]

Hello,

I'm thinking of rehoming my Common Mynah, Spock. She does not enjoy the lifestyle I can give her and she is becoming increasingly frightened of me and my husband. We have to towel her to get her back in her cage each time she is out. It stresses her out so much and she is starting to be fearful when we walk past her in her cage, which breaks my heart. She is so active and should be flying about, but it's so unpleasant having to put her away that I'm reluctant to let her out as often as I should.

Her and her needs are so different from a parrot (obviously!), I love that she is my little wild thing, but I'm beginning to think that it's affecting her wellbeing living with me.

I have never rehomed an animal before. I don't know if it is the right thing to do or if my motivation is sound. We have a giant dog who is very reactive, we got him as a rescue and we have had to change our lives to work for him so even thinking about giving an animal away does not feel comfortable.

Does anyone have any experience of making this decision they would be happy to share?

Hello I don't have quite your experience but am at least in the UK where things work a bit differently. I have a GCC and did panic a little as I am now retired with a 3 years old bird and was worried for his future. I didn't do it in the end and we are still together but finding someone proved really difficult. I tried word of mouth which produced some interest but generally they weren't prepared for the work involved. Advertising him felt really dubious and I heard so many awful stories that it put me off.

Syd is my first bird so I am not a great authority but towelling is supposed to be the worst thing you can do pretty much. Is there no other way? You are losing so much trust and can already see the knock on affect that is creating.
I can see it upsets you to do it but Syd and I have a bribe system. He has learnt that going into his cage results in a treat. We now never argue about it. As long as I have the treat (sunflower seed in his case) in my hand he will go in on command, watch me close the doors etc and then gets his seed. It took a bit of time to set up but it is pretty fool proof now.

I just worry that if you don't find a new home quickly you will have a bird that has real problems if you have to continue like you are. It's an awful problem for you and I do understand.

I also had a large rescue dog who passed a couple of years ago. Again it takes work. If yours is so reactive then you have to keep them separate. That's tough but I now look after my daughter's 2yr old lab and he has learnt to leave the room now without command. Again it takes consistent work. He sits outside a glass door so he can see Syd flying around and he looks quite plaintiff but I don't completely trust that Syd won't attack him even if his training is pretty good. My old dog was very obedient after arriving here as a hooligan but he responded to consistency again. It can be done with the right determination.

I don't know if this will be any help and I do understand your dilemma. I have learned over the years that it pays sometimes to give things time and with the right approach things tend to work out. Training looks like being the answer to most problems and I include the adults! I do hope you come to a conclusion that makes you happy.

 

[Jottlebot]

Thank you both

I'm in the UK too.

I started by being able to put mealworms in her cage and she would hop back in to get them, but she learnt that she would be shut in and stopped going in. She wouldn't eat or drink anything - because she wouldn't go into the cage for it - and they have such fast metabolisms they pretty much need to eat at least every few hours, so overnight without food is risky. We've gone backwards instead of forwards. It's been gradual as I have had her for over 5 years, it's been a slow decline.

When I noticed things going wrong I started to offer meal worms from my hands, but even doing it 3 tines a day and not giving mealworms any other way she wouldn't take them. I tried keeping a hand near a feeding bowl with meal worms, but she wouldn't go near it until I'd moved away.

I don't let my dog anywhere near her don't worry. Her cage is off the floor and they are NEVER together when she is not in her cage. I mentioned him more to explain that I'm not adverse to adapting for the needs of an animal so that isn't why I'm thinking about rehoming.

 

[texsize]

Is there any way Spock would step up onto a perch you hold?

I have 2 birds that won’t step up onto my hand but I have found other objects that they will step up on.

My Cockatiel steps up onto a wooden cook spoon and 1 amazon will only step up onto my iPad (wierd but hay it works).

I know nothing about myna birds but I did see and watch one in a pet shop.
They remind me more of a toucan in there movement. They both like to jump around and need lots of space. As opposed to parrots that almost exclusively climb of fly.

I hope you find an answer or a good home.

 

[T00tsyd]

Thank you both

I'm in the UK too.

I started by being able to put mealworms in her cage and she would hop back in to get them, but she learnt that she would be shut in and stopped going in. She wouldn't eat or drink anything - because she wouldn't go into the cage for it - and they have such fast metabolisms they pretty much need to eat at least every few hours, so overnight without food is risky. We've gone backwards instead of forwards. It's been gradual as I have had her for over 5 years, it's been a slow decline.

When I noticed things going wrong I started to offer meal worms from my hands, but even doing it 3 tines a day and not giving mealworms any other way she wouldn't take them. I tried keeping a hand near a feeding bowl with meal worms, but she wouldn't go near it until I'd moved away.

I don't let my dog anywhere near her don't worry. Her cage is off the floor and they are NEVER together when she is not in her cage. I mentioned him more to explain that I'm not adverse to adapting for the needs of an animal so that isn't why I'm thinking about rehoming.

I admit that I am plucking at straws but it sounds as if you need to almost go back to the beginning and concentrate on building trust again. I was thinking about where to rehome her if that's your decision. There is Pets4homes if you decide to sell. There are lots of adverts for people wanting birds promising to give them a good home for free, but then I heard that they usually resell them or even get them to feed to other pets - without putting too fine a point on it. That really put me off. Having said that I bought Syd from an advert there and rescued him from a determined 2 yr old hell bent on killing him, so it does work out well some of the time I guess. Another I saw before deciding on Syd was obviously from. a flipper, and really put me off. I wasn't at all sure about Gumtree either. What about an avian vet that you go to I wonder if they might know of something. There are refuges, where they promise to have them but you pay for ever more. The RSPCA put them in a cage and seem to only let parrots go to aviary owners and I didn't think that would suit Syd who was hand reared. I guess I love him too much to just let him go anywhere and I keep hoping that a really good knowledgeable owner will just appear where Syd will be happy, but we are really bonded.

I will be interested to hear how your research/decision goes.

 

[Jottlebot]

Texsize, no, there's no way she would step up onto anything I was holding. You're right, they're more like toucans than parrots. They move all the time hopping from place to place or flying. She has a swing in her cage she seems to like, but she never stands on it while it moves, she'll just hop on and off.

I've reached out in a Mynah group on Facebook so I'll see what comes back. I'm going to be fussy about where she goes.

I feel stuck.

 

[fiddlejen]

Is the bird's cage nice and large? Is there interesting stuff to do inside the cage, carefully placed so as to allow full movement?

DO you have the ability to dedicate one room to the bird? I have a pair of budgies, one of whom is determined to live life on HIS terms. Before we all went to work-from-home, he was getting more and more resistant to returning to his cage before I left for work. I resorted to curtaining the room with room-darkening curtains, closing them before leaving time. For a while that worked, when the room got dark he would return to cage. Then he figured out, it was a trick, and went back to refusing to enter cage. I had gotten to the point where I was prepared to leave him Out in the room, just as I do when I am home.

Well that all happened just before we went to work-from-home. Nowadays I let the budgies have free access to two large rooms. They are happy enough with this arrangement that, 90% of time, if they see me preparing to leave, they trust I'll only be gone a few hours, and they put themselves back into their cage.

So I am wondering if you might possibly have a room available which you could make MynaBird-Safe, and in which you could allow him the freedom to live in or out of its cage as it pleases? IF so, you could place its food & water on or near its cage so it understands its freedom. The perhaps after a while -- maybe even, a Long while, like months-- you could start with placing treats In the cage and regular food Outside it, and move on from there?

Also you want the bird to understand that going In the cage does Not automatically mean being Locked in the cage. This is quite important to my own budgies. -- and I believe there was a thread on here elsewhere, where someone else had to work with that.

 

[T00tsyd]

Just bumping this to see if anyone has more advice for you.

 

[noodles123]

Just be super selective about who you rehome her with. I don't think there is a large pool of people who are looking to adopt mynah birds, as compared to parrots.

I wanted a mynah so badly...first bird I ever looked into owning lol! We are out there. I don't know that they are very common in the US at all these days, because I looked and it seems they have a special status of sorts.

 

[Jottlebot]

Hi fiddlejen, she has a big cage, but it's not huge. It's not big enough for her to live her life in. I've really been trying with the enrichment, she doesn't chew things up, but she likes aggressively foraging and moving things around from one place in her cage to another and ripping up paper things.

I don't have a room that I could repurpose, that would be amazing! We're renovating quite a lot so there are often gaps and holes on the house at the moment so it's just not safe to let her (or any of my pets) have free access.

I know you're tight about not always locking her in. I've gotten myself into a bad habit, it's such a long process to get her in I then just lock her up straight away.

It's like all the rules I find myself following with my parrot have just failed me with Spock.

 

[Laurasea]

Work on target training.
Zoos successful use target training for all sorts of animals and birds, some of which are wild caught. They use target training for dangerous animals they can never touch. So this works and you can also use target training for some fun and interactive things too. Like teaching to fly through hanging hoops , fo sn obstacles course of things to climb, duck under ect. These are smart birds that like to be active by all accounts.

My budgies are completely wild to. When I want them to go back to the cage, I stand behind them and point to their cage and say time to go back.. then i use my body to slowly heard them back. They will fly away from towards the cage, when they land, now slight closer to the cage i wait a few seconds ( fint want panic flying) then i point to their cage and repeat time to go back, and move a step forward again . At some point they land in tge outside if tge cage, I praise them and give them a minute to work their way in. After a few times of this, over time, it evolved to me just being able to point to the cage and tell them to go back and they do...m

 

[Jottlebot]

Thank you Laurasea, I haven't thought of target training. I think I will start with an object and target to that so I can be further away. I'll get some meal worms, which are the most rewarding treat tomorrow and start.

I've been in touch with someone who is a mynah bird specialist via a Facebook group I belong to. He has 3 planted flights "with lots to do" in them where he keeps his birds and has asked if I would want her to live somewhere like that. We haven't managed to talk yet, but I'm keen to see what he says.

I'm deciding what my "good enough" would be in terms of being happy she is living a fulfilling enough life and also what a potential new owner would have to be able to offer her.

Thank you for all your input everyone. I was feeling quite hopeless, but you have really helped me think about it all and feel there are a few options I can think about further.

 

[T00tsyd]

Thank you Laurasea, I haven't thought of target training. I think I will start with an object and target to that so I can be further away. I'll get some meal worms, which are the most rewarding treat tomorrow and start.

I've been in touch with someone who is a mynah bird specialist via a Facebook group I belong to. He has 3 planted flights "with lots to do" in them where he keeps his birds and has asked if I would want her to live somewhere like that. We haven't managed to talk yet, but I'm keen to see what he says.

I'm deciding what my "good enough" would be in terms of being happy she is living a fulfilling enough life and also what a potential new owner would have to be able to offer her.

Thank you for all your input everyone. I was feeling quite hopeless, but you have really helped me think about it all and feel there are a few options I can think about further.

Hang in there - the right answer will come to you when the time is right. Keep us posted and good luck with your decision.

 

[Jottlebot]

Just wanted to update. I never heard from the keeper from the Facebook group I was hoping to, but I'd still be interested in rehoming her there if he does get in touch. We've just gone back in to national lockdown due to coronavirus, so I'm not particularly worried that he hasn't been in touch.

In the meantime, she will now take food from my fingers from outside the cage, so that's progress. She will also hop over to where I am when she is in her cage and I am outside it, although when she sees i haven't got food she hops away again quite quickly. Hands being inside the cage remain very scary for her, but I really hope that comes. I'm going to start targeting her to touch an object so I can put it in the cage and she will hopefully hop in after it! This weekend I'm also going to change her cage around a bit with more flat surfaces so she can stand flat and wear her nails down.

Letting her out remains very difficult. I admit I haven't let her out for a while now due to the stress of getting her back in, but the last time I did she fly away from me and my husband and went into her cage, but I'm pretty sure it was an accident. It would be FANTASTIC if she did it on purpose though.

Thank you all for your input.

 

[plumsmum2005]

Hi hun joining in with some ideas from the UK. Why not contact Tropical Birdland at Desford, Leicestershire firstly for some ideas, help and advice on how to keep her with you but maybe it could develop? If this is no good please PM me as have another suggestion.


Just doing some reading on these fascinating birds and wonder if you have read this? "Mynah birds enjoy playing with toys, such as mirrors, bells, bottle caps, and other small items. Toys will keep them engaged. Avoid rope toys because they can get caught in your bird’s tongue or toenails" Also to give lots of natural perches in a large cage for plenty of movement. Is it possible to move the cage re her being scared atm, it may be an idea to talk to her often as they do like interaction and this can gain you some trust?

 

[Jottlebot]

Hi Plumsmum2005, I hadn't thought of getting in touch with them and I've even been before! Thank you.

She has quite a bit to do in her cage, she seems to like toys with paper in where she can pull it out bit by bit and I put other little toys she can pick up and hop about with. She likes moving them about in her cage. She does like bells, but I haven't tried a mirror

I will try to engage with her in her cage more.