Hi from a new Goffins owner

[purplecleo]

Hi Everyone,

I'm really glad I joined the bird board, I'm having fun satisfying my appetite for all things parrot related.

About a month and a half ago I was given a goffins cockatoo named Coconut (2 years old) who has/had a lot of health and behavioral problems. She was plucking and mutilating, poor diet, was in a very small antique cage with no coating on the bars, and was exposed to a lot of air freshener. The owner was rehoming her for a fee on craigslist but when we met she knew we could provide an awesome home for her so she gave her to us free of charge.

We immediately went out and bought a new cage and all the bells and whistles. We got her vet checked and then went for a second opinion. Coconut has malformed feathers that I was convinced were indicating she had PBFD. We had several rounds of comprehensive tests done including a PBFD test which came up negative (YAAAAY!!!) but now we are back to square one on what could possibly be medically wrong with Coconut. The only hint is that she has slightly elevated uric acid levels. We are waiting to recheck her in a few weeks and in the meantime cutting down on her fats and proteins.

When we first brought her home, and even observing her in her old home, she "convulsed" a lot. This was initially diagnoses as sexual behavior and generally happened when she was being petted on the back (which was often) though since bringing her home she'd had several large, unprovoked seizures.

She tested negative for zinc toxicity and the doc said he didn't *think* it was lead toxicity. She was on a round of antibiotics to keep her wound clear of infection and we also had her in a hard plastic collar for several weeks.

Recently we switched her to a soft collar and while it does allow access to her legs, she is plucking less and redirecting to shredding paper more when she is anxious or itchy. She has not had a seizure in a week and we are hard at work getting her on a consistently good diet. She's quite picky but today we had a breakthrough with pureed carrots.

She's a fabulous talker and picks up new words every day. Her favorite things to say are "Hi Coconut" and "Whatcha doin?" She has learned to give kisses on command since coming home with us and we are working on giving her as much flight time as she wants. She's put on weight and built up her flight muscles over the last weeks and I'm so proud of her for rolling with all the difficult experiences we've put her through to help get her well.

My other fids are: Kuchi the Parrotlet - currently molting and VERY cranky about it, Durga the cockatiel and Squiggle the budgie.

[expressmailtome]

Welcome! I hope that you really enjoy it here!

Matt

[Fruit Basket]

Welcome to Bird Board!

[becca623]

Welcome to birdboard! I hope you enjoy it here. I do. Congratulations on your new addition. Coconut is lucky to have found a family as wonderful as yours who is willing invest so much time, patience, money and love into her well being!