confused galah owner

[BOSSTOE]

hello there, Please please please give me some advice, I just got a given a 12month old galah. I've had him for a week now. I thought we were getting along OK and he was started to let me scratch him a little bit before trying to bite me, I sit and talk to him while he is in cage. I let him out on top of his cage and he comes up to me. If i put my hand out he runs away or sometimes tries to bite it. I put some gloves on today and tried to put my hand out for him to step up but he got scared and ran kept backing away so I just left took of the gloves sat down and just kept talking to him - gave him a bit of a scratch and then after about 30mins he just lunged at me and bit my nose hard...made it bleed and then I had a struggle to get him back into the cage. I put the glove back on he did step up on my hand then flew off....hit the wall....then again i got him to step up but this time i held him close to me.....he flew off again hit the wall... so then i got a sheet, covered him with it and picked him up...put him in his cage. Now he seems very angry and is snapping at me when i got next to the cage. He usually accepts food out of my hand while he in the cage but not tonight. Have I lost trust forever?

[mamalovesrico]

Is Kim Bear still here to help the above member?

[DJspets]

Do you have any history on this bird? Was he always a biter? Sounds to me lake the honeymoon is over and he is really showing his true colors. If this bird was just given to you at no cost that should have been your first warning. Thats how most cockatoos end up in rescues. Every pre-owned bird comes with baggage. It's going to take awhile for him to trust you again since you used a glove to handle him. First thing I would do is get his wings clipped so he's not flying into the walls. Second now that you know he is a biter never let him close to your face and never on the shoulder. It's going to take alot of patients on your part to earn the birds trust but he's still young and the bad behavior can be worked out of him.

Good luck Donna

[DJspets]

Sorry guys I thought I was in the cockatoo forum not the experts.

Donna

[Cindy215]

Originally Posted by DJspets

Do you have any history on this bird? Was he always a biter? Sounds to me lake the honeymoon is over and he is really showing his true colors. If this bird was just given to you at no cost that should have been your first warning. Thats how most cockatoos end up in rescues. Every pre-owned bird comes with baggage. It's going to take awhile for him to trust you again since you used a glove to handle him. First thing I would do is get his wings clipped so he's not flying into the walls. Second now that you know he is a biter never let him close to your face and never on the shoulder. It's going to take alot of patients on your part to earn the birds trust but he's still young and the bad behavior can be worked out of him.

Good luck Donna

Sorry clipping will not fix anything and imo will cause this bird to become even more paranoid.

I would say the bird is simply upset and needs time to adjust. And now even more time after this dramatic event.

Please start out by giving him proper sleep in a dark room the same amount of dark as it is outside. With no artificial lighting after 3 pm. Give dawn and dusk.

You cant evaluate them untill they are rested and the sensor in the brain is wired correctly by the right amount of light. If the bird's hormonal it will take time to fix that especially now since breeding season begins in mid March in the NOrthern Hemisphere with the daylight and nighttimes both being 12 hours.

I don't think I'd call him a BITER just now. That was caused by the OP by forcing things too soon and especially wearing gloves. It takes a full month before the birds actual personality comes out after coming into a strange place unless you're really lucky. A week is nothing.

BOSSTOE just go back to giving excellent food, sleep and enrichment. Pretend it didnt happen and be calm and cheerful. Have a predictable routine so he knows what his life is about now. REmamber he just lost everything he knew and is stuck in a new place with someone he doesnt have a clue about. Someone who wore gloves.

Let the bird decide what he wants to do. Open the cage, put a perch out there under the door to sit on. Dont pressure him or stare at him its predatory to them....DONT clip as a reaction....it wont help and will cause a setback. Having wings gives him the peace of mind of knowing he can escape a fear even by 6 inches.

I believe he submitted to you out of fear but when you pushed him too hard he reacted the only way he could. Theory based on not being there or having other facts, of course.

[kensbuns]

Give this guy some time you have only had him a week right. Its takes months to form a bond, Keep trying and dont show any fear. When you command step up, make him do just that!! Then reward him. Keep trying!! Good luck!! And yes clip him, the last thing you need is a flying biter in your house!!!

[Cindy215]

Originally Posted by kensbuns

Give this guy some time you have only had him a week right. Its takes months to form a bond, Keep trying and dont show any fear. When you command step up, make him do just that!! Then reward him. Keep trying!! Good luck!! And yes clip him, the last thing you need is a flying biter in your house!!!

Sorry. The bird did not fly and bite. Here's the narrative:

put some gloves on today and tried to put my hand out for him to step up but he got scared and ran kept backing away so I just left took of the gloves sat down and just kept talking to him - gave him a bit of a scratch and then after about 30mins he just lunged at me and bit my nose hard..

It was stationary when it bit. Then after that the bird flew...into the wall twice ...after the OP persisted and followed the bird and demanded it step up. The poor bird flew into the wall again trying to get away. All the while the OP was wearing the GLOVES, STILL.

For me, this bird is innocent and just traumatized. It is not an attack bird.

[BOSSTOE]

Thankyou everyone for your advice, I haven't tried to scratch my bird since, I have just left him in the cage, I'm scared he will fly away again and straight into the wall. I was going to get his wings clipped but now I am not so sure. I feel so terrible for wearing gloves now. I read that was a good idea on some other site but it really spooked the bird. I still talk to him in the morning an evening and give him attention. I touch his feet thats about all. He's been saying a few new words too - so surely that must be a good sign. I let him out of his cage again yesterday for a while and He didn't fly off, he went back into his cage himself. So Should I keep letting him out to sit on top of his cage or do I towel him and take him to another room or just leave him be. Should I pat him while he is ontop of the cage? I have never owned a bird before,so I really do need all the help I can get. There is no way he will step up onto my hand, He either backs off or starts biting, His last owner told me he was very cage bound. He did the same thing with her. Actually while I was there she tried and he flew straight into the wall.....hmm now I think about it what else did i expect???

[Cindy215]

OK just leave him go at his own pace. Patience, patience patience. Open the door all the time when it's safe, no cooking or unlocked doors or standing water or cutlery in the sink and no big full trash cans of dangerous stuff around. Put a perch outside the door for him to step out and sit on. It takes time for them to feel comfortable always at least a month before you see even the makings of the "real bird".

Dont make alot of sudden movements and when he's sitting out on the perch or cage top dont go running over there just say "good boy" or whatever. Then slowly after a bit go over and offer at treat.

If he never learned to fly properly he may have wings but cant really use them. Like giving a kid a drivers license at first. But birds are luckier flying is TOTALLY natural to them and with small flights in a calm environment they will not bang into things. Put decals or covers on the windows if they look clear at first same with mirrors.

Touching a wall or even a bump isnt really that serious if he doesnt have any growing blood feathers. Flying needs coordination, gauging distance, depth, timing, learning to hover, land stability....If they never were fledged properly they may have trouble learning later. But they will. Or they just wont fly.

If the wings arent fully grown in just partially or partially clipped they are off balance so in any case what you see in "flight" at first isnt really flight it's an attempt. Also it'd be good to have a place to fly to , a destination. Like a table with a play top or a stand with toys or something.

Patience and routine and compassion is the way to go, all positive. If he flies toward or around you stay STILL dont be flailing arms up in the air to land on he probably wont. IF he appears to fly to you to bite you that's another story but this bird doesnt seem the least bit interested in that. He's just scared.

Eventually he will drop his head down or show you some interest in you. THey are flock animals wired for companionship 24/7. They dont want to be all alone and are totally curious but safety is first in their minds so he needs to feel safe and trust you. All things come from that afterwards. Food is always the best thing,,,bribes lol. Something he loves, and always give fresh foods alot of dark greens veggies, grains, fruits on a big plate in different sizes even if he doesnt eat them. He will. And it is bonding he knows then that you have good intentions. Make a big fuss "Oh look what I have" stuff like that when delivering the food.

Dont forget a good long nights sleep in a dark room and giving dusk and dawn it regulates the sensor i the brain that controls hormones. A tired bird is confulse, agitated and nervous. Sleep is only a good thing. Mimic the number of daylight hours you have outside, right now it's 13 night and 11 day and or so and will be 12 and 12 mid March when breeding starts (here in the Northern Hemisphere). Mimic dusk and dawn with a dimmer in a lamp on the floor if you have to because of working hours. So he can go to sleep and wake up naturally.

Thank you for reconsidering the wing clipping and at least waiting for a last resort (which I never believe in anyway)...before altering him for a whole year for no reason. A clipped bird will always be more paranoid and unpredictable since being able to "fly" 6 inches to the side is something they psycologically depend on when they percieve danger. It makes all the difference. People who live with flighted birds know this from living with them. Truth is they dont fly around all the time anyway especially larger birds.

[ThSchultz]

Hi,

I have two galahs too. I read and learn so many about galahs that i wrote a german webside about galahs, but i never hear before that a galah will be always bite.

I think that what Cindy215 wrotes is ok, but I would like to get more informations about his history. I think something is happen.
The other side is, one week is not enough to say anything. You need much more time, the bird needs more time.

PS:
When we get our galahs they stay 2 week in cage, and only on the top.
I ask myself why i build the cage 2m high. After two weeks they come to the middle and two or three days later to the ground.