Mr. Mathnerd and I seemed to have gained a bit of a reputation in the local parrot rescue community for our transformation of our macaw. Before we took her, she had been considered too aggressive, to unsocialized, and too far gone to ever be rehabilitated. We actually had to use protective gear to even get close enough to feed her at first. Now, while she still has a long way to go, she's Miss Snuggle Bug to Mr. Mathnerd, and tolerates everybody else. So because of that, I get notified when "lost cause" birds are looking for homes. I've generally been saying no because I didn't think Charlotte was ready for the stress of meeting a new bird. She does great with the birds that were already here when she got here, but introducing a new one was something I haven't thought she was ready for. I've also been kind of sort of wanting to add a new bird to my flock since Cookie (my elderly cockatiel) passed away in September, and have met a few birds, but none seemed "right", so I haven't taken them. I was actually looking for something small like a lovebird or a parrotlet, but refuse to buy from a breeder, and those guys actually don't show up in rescues or rehome sites very often.
Anyway, last week I found out about a 12 year old Goffin cockatoo in need of a new home. He'd been with one human since he was a baby and that human passed away. He went to the humane society who adopted him out to a family who really did want him, but found out quickly they were not a suitable home for a bird. They just had too much else going on. He hadn't been handled in the two months he'd been there (which means no baths), was on a terrible diet (they probably didn't know better), and were changing the paper lining in his cage, but the toys and other stuff were just caked in bird poo. He seemed like he wanted to be friendly but was scared. Birds aren't domesticated like dogs and cats and can revert to "wild" pretty fast, and he was well on his way.
Well, there was just something about him. I visited him a second time and while still not sure I wanted to put Charlotte through the stress of a new bird, I told them if they ran out of options to call me. Wednesday they called me. I went and picked him up. So far he's doing great. He started stepping up fairly easily Thursday morning (but demands an appropriate amount of head scritches first), and is responsive to informal training attempts. He needs to learn boundaries and he is afraid of any and all fresh foods, so converting his diet is going to be a challenge. He's not sure about this "bath" thing, but tolerates it, which is good because he reeks of dog and has so much dandruff he snows whenever he moves.
So, meet Oscar. He's here for the long haul.
Anyway, last week I found out about a 12 year old Goffin cockatoo in need of a new home. He'd been with one human since he was a baby and that human passed away. He went to the humane society who adopted him out to a family who really did want him, but found out quickly they were not a suitable home for a bird. They just had too much else going on. He hadn't been handled in the two months he'd been there (which means no baths), was on a terrible diet (they probably didn't know better), and were changing the paper lining in his cage, but the toys and other stuff were just caked in bird poo. He seemed like he wanted to be friendly but was scared. Birds aren't domesticated like dogs and cats and can revert to "wild" pretty fast, and he was well on his way.
Well, there was just something about him. I visited him a second time and while still not sure I wanted to put Charlotte through the stress of a new bird, I told them if they ran out of options to call me. Wednesday they called me. I went and picked him up. So far he's doing great. He started stepping up fairly easily Thursday morning (but demands an appropriate amount of head scritches first), and is responsive to informal training attempts. He needs to learn boundaries and he is afraid of any and all fresh foods, so converting his diet is going to be a challenge. He's not sure about this "bath" thing, but tolerates it, which is good because he reeks of dog and has so much dandruff he snows whenever he moves.
So, meet Oscar. He's here for the long haul.
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