Coco in his cage...

March 20, 2012


I opened the door and let Lucy (Congo African Grey) and Gracie (Timneh African Grey) smell and hear the rain through the screen door.  The feathers raised on Lucy's neck and her eyes pinned as she took in the sights and smells of the rainy morning.  With one girl on my right shoulder and another on my left, we stood and listened and watched the heavy rain.   Rain. Thunder. Wind.  I love to watch their natural spirits kindled by something as simple as the cool wind blowing on their faces.

A while back, I had Coco (Lesser Sulfur Crested Cockatoo) in a cage by a big window.  The rain came down that afternoon in a tropical torrent.  It was warm rain and the air temperature must have been about 80 degrees.  I watched, fascinated as he danced on his perch inside his cage, imitating a rain dance a wild bird would do... given the chance... when a welcome summer rain came down in the forest.  I took Coco (who is always well-trimmed so that he cannot fly away) out of his cage and to the deck.  We stood in the pouring rain.  Coco did his rain dance with wings spread open wide and tail feathers wagging with joy as I watched in utter joy.  He's never wanted to repeat the experience.  I've tried.  But, he knows what it feels like to be a bird, dancing in the summer rain.

I keep all my birds' flight feathers trimmed.  I've heard too many heartbreaking stories about pet birds that flew away, never to be brought home safely again.  They usually cannot survive on their own.  But, it's my experience also that "trimmed birds" can still do stupid stuff outside and get themselves into trouble.  Bobby panics and once landed in the pool... where I scooped him out quickly....  It could have been worse.  The grey girls are more nervous outdoors than the boys, so they are more prone to panic... and therefore, more prone to accidents.

When the weather turns warm again later this week, I'm going to take Bobby (timneh African Grey) and Coco outside while I work in the yard.  I have two small aluminum carriers that are safe and I put them on the picnic table, under an umbrella.  I am always in sight of them.  My phobic Bobby watches and enjoys outdoor time and when he comes into the house he is, for once, relaxed.  Coco can chew his way through 10 pounds of cardboard box in a day if I'd let him.  Outdoor time seems to excite him while he's there and calm him when he comes back inside.

Training:  Ongoing.  Nothing new.  We're maintaining and reinforcing what we've learned these past months.  I've learned that I need to vary the routine so the birds don't know what to expect.  Coco has been obstinate and unwilling to come out of his cage.  Bobby has chewed off all but one tail feather.  Hormones are bugging birdie boys.  Lucy and Gracie LOVE LOVE LOVE their foraging wheels and they get those about every 4th day.  When Lucy can't get the nut out, she says "hello," to it in hopes that it will "reward her" with the nut like Mama does!  I could cry it makes me so happy.  Her "person" is growing and she is evolving.

Gracie goes through EVERY single things she knows to get her treats.  What she lacks in efficiency, she makes up for in enthusiasm.  When I got her she would only let you touch her head through the cage bars.  Now, I can lay her in my arms and kiss her head, neck, and back and she is pretty darn relaxed.  She is starting to whistle some of Lucy's songs!!!  Gracie is evolving.

I can still get Bobby to stay on my finger for the 10-count WHEN he isn't being totally phobic.  I count progress with him in "pools of calm moments."  I know he's happy when he overcomes his fears.  I sing to him.  He likes it even if I'm off key. {:

My neighbor had a 36 year old cockatiel that we bird-sat when they went out of town.  Statler died this past week.  She was able to be with him when he passed.  What a long and beautiful life for that little bird.   Here's a video I did last year.  It's not very good, but he was a little scare of the camera.  He always knew my whistle when I came to visit.  RIP little buddy.

Gracie has been her 2 whole years!

Gracie Lou is 12 years old and she's been living with us for 2 of those years.  I took this picture on her first day with us!  She is such a character and, believe it or not, has trained more easily than the other parrots here... who are half her age.

Gracie (TAG) likes food!  She doesn't like "sticky" though, and therefore doesn't like peanuts, mashed stuff, or even noodles.  She likes to be hand fed like a baby, as do all the other greys.  Coco won't do the baby food thing.  His comfort food is "primate biscuit" soaked in warm water.

Training has been ongoing, but more sporadic.  It's not that I've been "lazy," but rather the birds have been hormonal and we have had a LOT of BIG house projects going on since January. 

Lucy and Gracie answer to "Are you a birdie?"  And, of course, Lucy nods "yes," and Gracie shakes, "no."  Adorable and "down pat" nowadays.  Bobby is still doing stuff (TAG), but he's been a nervous wreck, so we have gone easy on him.  Coco is happy to train for treats, but I haven't had time to focus on new tricks.

The foraging toys are a big hit.  They don't get them all the time, but about 3 times a week.  Those days they don't train well because they're full of nuts and stuff from the foragers.  Lucy has taken apart her foragers in as many ways as they could possibly come apart.  She (CAG) is tenacious and strong.  We lost 1 part, but, oh well...  <:

Right now the "kids" are watching their little TV with the Birdie Show playing.  It's been months since I've put it on for them.  Coco (LSC cockatoo) was thrilled to see a 'too eating and the greys are captivated by all the birds and noise.  (:

Time to think of new tricks to teach the birds and launch the new ideas!

Plugging along... waiting for Spring

Why no update for such a long time?  Easy.  I've been lazy. 

Here's what we've been doing:  We train a little "here and there" throughout the day on some days, train heavily at cage cleaning time on some days, and do very light training on other days.  I've had to mix it up so that my flock isn't sitting there, hungry, waiting for me to show up with the goodies... and them skipping that dry bird food all day long.

I got new foraging toys for all 4 birds.  Bobby was too scared for the first two weeks to have it in the cage.  It's in the cage now, but still untouched.  His phobia comes and goes, but the hormonal season takes it's toll on him.  He's cut off two or three tail feathers, but his chest feathers are growing back in.

Coco's been ok, but not great.  He's hormonal, too.  He chews a lot of cardboard and sometimes will not train at all in spite of the fact that he hasn't been given any sunflower seeds all day long.  I've decided to "try" and if he's not in the mood, just back off.  Three days in a row he wouldn't train, but by last night he was STARVING for some seeds and complied eagerly.  (: 

Lucy shakes her head vigorously up and down for "Are you a bird," and Gracie shakes hers in a "no" for the same question.  This new trick seems easy and fun for the girls.

So, as I said, it's been hit and miss these past weeks, but we aren't joining the circus and there isn't any deadline.  I enjoy interacting with them when they're up for it and try not to be too disappointed when they want to just do their own thing.

No bites.  No screaming. No extreme phobia.  Lucy is getting to like head pets. 

What's new?

Lucy

There are a few small new things going on with the flock.  First, they've been a little less hormonal the past week, thank goodness!  Bobby is slightly less paranoid and Gracie less "panting and wing-fluttering" also.

Gracie is learning, reluctantly, to lay in my left hand and release her feet from my right hand.  It's frightening for her, so we have gone slowly.  She is releasing ONE foot currently for a nut.  Maybe we'll get to TWO feet released next week.

I've been teaching Gracie and Lucy to answer Yes and No.  It started with asking them, "Are you a bird?"  To this I wag my forefinger horizontally and puff a little air in their faces... creating a head shake.  LUCY decided that the answer to "Are you a bird" was a YES head shake before I blew on her... so a YES head shake is being rewarded with a nut.  Might as well go with the bird's natural response, right?  Gracie is slow on the uptake with shaking her head no and the hand signal.  She sees the hand signal and thinks I want her to turn around or flap her wings.  Occasionally, she does get it right, though... and what more can you ask for?

Coco is doing the same stuff for sunflower seeds and is in the groove with the whole business.   I purchased a foraging wheel where I can put lots of kibble and sunflower seeds for him to forage for.  It took a few minutes, but he got it and spends quite a lot of time fishing out those seeds.  He has a cardboard box in his cage to chew on as well, but still manages to shred his chest feathers.

We purchased a few more preening toys and a couple of talking boxes for the birds.  Most of that stuff is hanging on the outside of their cages until the birds are no longer threatened by their evil presence.

Weight:  The birds have actually gained a few grams from the switch to kibble plus training.  They aren't fat, but nicely filled out.

Lucy is the only one that is eating fruit, but she is being picky.  Coco won't eat much of anything other than my homemade birdie bread and scrambled eggs... if I hold them while he eats.  So, I pulled out some of my mom's home canned black berry juice and offer all the birds a little bit during the day.  It isn't sweetened, but they love it... except Coco.

I did notice that the birds were, in general, not eating much during the day as if they knew they would get nuts at training time and so were not motivated to that birdie kibble.  Therefore, I've been switching up the training now and then so they don't "EXPECT" nuts at any given time.  At times, I give them just a few seeds/nuts at training and quit while they're still hungry.

Bobby and Gracie got a shower today and Lucy got one yesterday.  Coco didn't want to come out, so he's a dusty mess.  {:  We

Hormones emerging... >;

I've noticed that all of the birds are having spurts of hormones... just "spurts," but never the less, making life less peaceful.

Bobby (TAG) is in heightened-fright mode and training is limited because he drops the seed.  He's too scared to do his stuff right, and then acts so desperate.  For now, minimal training every day followed by a portion of seeds to munch on, for the pacifier effect.

Gracie (TAG) is panting and wagging her wings for attention and is a bit distracted.  She's doing her stuff for treats, but almost bit me when I went to replace her into her cage. Gracie bit me lightly ONCE just before she came to live with me.  She bites everyone else, but has always respected me.

Coco refused to train despite going all day without his favorite sunflower seeds.  He is madly chewing boxes to shreds.  He did step up and got a seed ball this morning.  He got  6 sunflower seeds "free" in the cup.  He needs a "primer" sometimes to get him started on the bird food.

Lucy, yesterday, bent her head for a scratch (yes!  She's learned to trust me from the training!) and then lifted a foot to step up...  retracted her foot and bet down and bit my finger!!!  It wasn't a big bite, but just a little one, but it hurt and drew blood.  She got returned to her cage, placed gently on the floor of her cage, and didn't hear from me for a little bit.  (Grrrr!)

... I've started to introduce "shaking the head NO!" with the two girls, but just barely.  We manage to get through every other trick we've conquered, but just barely.  It's hard not to just feel discouraged, but then I have to remember that hormones are natural and will diminish over time until everyone is happy and pleasant again.

Now, I am giving the 3 greys juice (Coco hates it) to get some fruit in them.  They've all decided fruit and veg are not good.  I give Coco papaya squares for his fruit.  The greys throw that stuff on the floor.  I fixed some nice canned salmon (wild caught) and all the birds liked it AND the dog. 

We will continue to train and play every night for as long as hormonal birds can hold their attention.  I shall not get discouraged!!!  Hahaha!  These birds can live very long lives and giving up is just not an option even if they are spoiled rotten and grumpy!

Happy Valentine's Day next month.  Hopefully, these guys will be "over it" by then.  :D

Just a little update...

There isn't a thing going on that is exciting, but there are some subtle changes around the bird room.  The timnehs both seem a little "needy" lately and I'm wondering if hormones are kicking up again.  We're still doing the training with both and Bobby (phobic Bob) is improving every day.  During "brave moments" he will cross his entire cage to "target" now and he's definitely clued into the training sessions... able to focus and put his "fright" to the back while he does stuff for food.

Lucy says "hello" all day long, hoping for a treat.  Getting her to sound like a chicken on command has been totally without gain, so far.  Her attitude about training is soundly positive and she runs all over the place for a sunflower seed... something she threw away a few weeks ago.  I'm just giving the PRIZE PISTACHIOS randomly now as a sort of jackpot and you should see her eyes light up when one pops up after a simple trick.  (Earlier I showed her the treat and then she would only respond if she saw the pistachios.  Now I put my hand into the treat bag, but do not show her what her reward will be.)  Anyway, Lucy has not shown any aggression for weeks.  I did note that she was nervously chewing on a spongy toy last night and my intuition tells me that foraging birds still need that "forage" to eat and relax at the end of the day.  She got a small dish with pine-nuts (in shell), cashew pieces, and a few safflower seeds.  The other birds got seed mix as they prefer, but no sunflower seeds, because those are exclusive to training.

Coco taking a nap on the bird stand.

Coco is plugging right along, doing as requested during training.  He still refuses to step up most of the time if I don't show a treat.  When he does step up without a treat offered, I make sure to give him a really good experience... a trip to the kitchen counter, a visit to the back door window, a mom-play time, and a little seed-ball when he returns to the cage.

What I want from my birds is to see them happy and interactive.  What I am getting is an amazing amount of affection back!

I do switch it up with the training.  We were busy this weekend, moving 7 tons of rock and dirt to landscape with, and I was simply too tired to do much with my birds.  Instead of training, they got clean cages, a pat on the head, a "training" at intervals as we were inside for lunch and dinner... and a nice bowl of their favorite seeds to much on before bedtime.  We got chickens at Sam's Club and the timnehs got leg and thigh bones to marrow out, something they all love.  Again, it's foraging work and good for them.  Coco doesn't like bones, but he loves the double-thick-glossy boxes from Sam's Club, so he gets those to keep him busy. 

Personally, I think the silly birds look forward to training and running like silly chickens to give me a kiss for a sunflower seed.   I can't believe the difference in our little flock!  We will always do training because it is the best time we spend together and so rewarding.

Happy New Year! An even better bird year!

Bobby, the hyper nervous Timneh Boy!

He has been improving, Bobby, that is!  When I started the training, he was too afraid to step up and could hardly accomplish his old tricks of waving and meowing on command.  He had been absolutely too afraid to walk toward me to get a kiss.  He panicked whenever I introduced the "target" stick and was too scared to "turn around" or "flap your wings" on command.

Guess what?  He is still "always shaky-nervous,"  but now I've got him approaching the target-stick (nervously!) and walking the 6-10 inches towards it to target for a treat!!!   I started asking him to "flap your wings" when I had him out for his 10-count-step-up and after a few frightening failures, he actually did it!  He also realized, by himself, that it was too stressful to try to do training when he was on top of his cage and now... when he sees that treat bag come out... he makes a beeline for the inside favorite perch.

Baby steps, but steps in the right direction.

We have been practicing the same-old-stuff with all of the birds, but stretching them a little bit by targeting a little farther away and asking for 2-times on tricks now and then... instead of once... to get the treat.  The bird should realize that it has to do stuff to get stuff, but it also has to understand that "sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, and sometimes you win a really big prize!"  So, occasionally, I hide the treat in my hand and they don't know what they'll get for the "trick."  Lucy was startled when she got a big old pistachio for simply waving and then later, got just a sunflower seed for saying "hello" on command.  It is a gambling thing.  People play the lottery, hoping for a win and sometimes a big win.  They keep coming back for more unless they lose too often.  I'm hoping that I can interest the birds in gambling a little bit so that they will do stuff on command, not knowing if they will be treated (or not) or if they'll get a really big treat.  <%  I NEVER let them become frustrated with the game.

More later.  Happy New Year!