Over Loved Cockatoos

[FoxersArtist]

I want to share an idea with those of you with cockatoos, especially umbrella cockatoos.

Almost a year ago my husband and I got a phone call regarding an umbrella cockatoo who had a serious screaming and biting problem. His current owner only had him for a month and though she loved him dearly she was unable to keep him. During his stay with her he screamed most of the time and bit her badly enough to warrant a trip to the hospital on two occasions. She had been his 4th or 5th home in several years.

In our care this cockatoo has really come a long way. He is not screaming 24/7 like he once was and has really bonded with me but still has a great deal of anxiety whenever he is not sitting in my lap for a preening session. When he screams now it is not for attention but rather to release his ever building levels of anxiety (bacause his environment is not safe when he is not with his safe person.) He has never bitten me but does try to attack most other people who get close enough to him. He would flat out try to take my husband or children out if given the chance, so I am careful to socialize him in private, away from potential victims. Socializing him with stimulation in his environment will almost certainly cause him to have a melt down as he feels extremely vulnerable and he will just scream and scream while rocking himself, even if he is in my lap. I feel that even though this U2 loves me, it is not fair to lock him up for the majority of his day, in solitary confinement, until it is "safe" to have him out. He is in the same room as other parrots (seperate cages), but still he is anxious at the slightest noise or odd movement and the others feel his anxiety.

I feel that as a young bird, this cockatoo was over-loved and spoiled by a well-meaning owner who showed no restraint and gave him no clear boundaries. She did not teach him how to be a bird, how to entertain himself, and likely only rewarded behaviors that directly related to his contact with her. His interactions with her were most likely confined to long cuddle sessions and he became insecure without being pressed against her. The bird was used to spending all of his time with her and when she had a devastating accident and could no longer keep him, she had created a very anxious cockatoo that could not cope with life without his special person.

I have seen this extremely anxious behavior in other birds that have been "over loved." I seems to me that the more time these specific types of birds get with their chosen person, the less they realize that they are a parrot and the more neurotic and extreme their behaviors become. They become more vocal, more needy, more demanding. I have found that intigrating these types of birds into a flock setting where they can be with other avians of their species relieves the anxiety of feeling alone and vulnerable. They have other creatures with them 24/7, as they had previously grown used to in a past life and become calm once again. They teach each other how to be parrots.

My husband and I would like to build a very special habitat for male umbrella cockatoos who have the same problem as our guy - who we feel would be miserable even in an experienced home. An outdoor colony would be best, but where we live we feel it would be too hot during the summer and too cold during the winter so we would like to construct a 50 foot long, indoor building for the birds where they can exist in a colorful free flight enclosure. We have not offered ourselves as a sanctuary for parrots in the past - we do rescue and rehome our fosters after rehabilitation. We do not want to risk burning out by having too many parrots but feel that if we dedicated ourselves to this one species, we could do justice to the ones in our care.

We have no idea how we will realistically make this dream come true but I believe that where there is a will there is a way. It may be years in the making but I feel determind that this is the right thing for our little umbrella and some others who are out there - struggling to be pets but longing to be parrots.

Perhaps I feel so called to walk in this direction because I myself am responsible for over-loving the very first parrot I ever owned - a little cockatiel named Cooper. I smothered her and created a neurotic monster! She is happy now, intigrated into her own little flock of cockatiels, and I still enjoy her love. I saw what I caused her to become, even though I meant nothing but the best for her and it makes me sad to see the same problems in other parrots that we have fostered, but especially those cockatoos, who are already a challenge to live with.

Please offer your thoughts, suggestions, ideas. I think that it is valuable to hear from other cockatoo owners. What would you do with a U2 like this one? Do you have any suggestions of how we can keep him more comfortable while he is waiting for his new home (it could be years in waiting)? Do you know of other cockatoos like this guy - what are their owners doing to help them to become parrots?

I know we can help this U2 to be happy, the way he was meant to be and will do everything in my power to see him through until he finds his place. In all of this, patience is often the hardest part but having faith that it will work out is the most important part. Thanks for reading the long rant!

-Anna

[tamaran2]

I'm not even going to go into my thought process of cockatoos. I have way way too may emotions on that issue. But after reading your post, this site came to mind.
Home page Cockatoo Rescue and Sanctuary

You might want to spend some time on their site. Then contact them for more info. Their aviaries seem affordable and doable, but they can tell you more.

[FoxersArtist]

Thanks for the info. Actually, Bhodi was set to go to The Cockatoo Rescue. I spent quite some time getting to know the owner and the setup and have based our curent flight ideas off her designs. I left her half a dozon messages in the last 6 weeks regarding having Bhodi sent to her but have not had a return call and am moving on to plan B. I still think that place would have been wonderful for him and was the only place in all of my searching that I had felt comfortable with.
-Anna

[Bird_Lover2]

When I first saw that Sanctuary, I was so impressed!! Out of every place, I think they got it right. Unfortunately it says that the Umbrella Colony is full and they aren't accepting any more Umbrellas..... so this might be why you aren't getting a response. It might be that the colony became full after you had met with them and now they can't take another?? and it might be easier for them NOT to respond to the calls rather than have some people beg them and they have to say no, then they feel badly. ?? It's a thought. It sure looks like a great place though.

[May]

Originally Posted by FoxersArtist

Almost a year ago my husband and I got a phone call regarding an umbrella cockatoo who had a serious screaming and biting problem. His current owner only had him for a month and though she loved him dearly she was unable to keep him. During his stay with her he screamed most of the time and bit her badly enough to warrant a trip to the hospital on two occasions. She had been his 4th or 5th home in several years.

In our care this cockatoo has really come a long way. He is not screaming 24/7 like he once was and has really bonded with me but still has a great deal of anxiety whenever he is not sitting in my lap for a preening session. When he screams now it is not for attention but rather to release his ever building levels of anxiety (bacause his environment is not safe when he is not with his safe person.) He has never bitten me but does try to attack most other people who get close enough to him. He would flat out try to take my husband or children out if given the chance, so I am careful to socialize him in private, away from potential victims. Socializing him with stimulation in his environment will almost certainly cause him to have a melt down as he feels extremely vulnerable and he will just scream and scream while rocking himself, even if he is in my lap. I feel that even though this U2 loves me, it is not fair to lock him up for the majority of his day, in solitary confinement, until it is "safe" to have him out. He is in the same room as other parrots (seperate cages), but still he is anxious at the slightest noise or odd movement and the others feel his anxiety.

I highly recommend clicker training your bird. It is a very effective training method that will enable you to communicate with him in a way that he will understand. You would be able to teach him to get along with your family members, to play on his own, and to feel more confident.

Originally Posted by FoxersArtist

I feel that as a young bird, this cockatoo was over-loved and spoiled by a well-meaning owner who showed no restraint and gave him no clear boundaries. She did not teach him how to be a bird, how to entertain himself, and likely only rewarded behaviors that directly related to his contact with her. His interactions with her were most likely confined to long cuddle sessions and he became insecure without being pressed against her. The bird was used to spending all of his time with her and when she had a devastating accident and could no longer keep him, she had created a very anxious cockatoo that could not cope with life without his special person.

-Anna

Another way to increase his confidence is to allow his feathers to grow in & teach him to fly indoors. You'll need to have him fully clicker trained first. If you want any more information on any of my suggestions, please feel free to contact me.