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Hi Donna,
My first bird was a year-old, wild caught Timneh Grey, half-crazed with
fear. As an experienced bird owner, I now know that such a bird has
very little pet potential. However, at the time I got her (an impulse
purchase, and I didn't know much about birds!) I didn't know any such
thing, so consequently, she turned into a beautiful pet:-) She
developed an incredible personality (much more independant than a
handfed), a 200+ word vocabulary, and became so tame that I could pick
her up around the back, flip her over and hand her, upside down, to a
total stranger.
The key is patience. It may take a year or more before your Meyer's
will even be willing to take treats from your hand.
Put the bird in a room where you spend a great deal of time, and where
there are no other animals. Have the vet clip his wings. When you
enter the room, open the cage. Let the bird choose his own pace. Be
there, hang out, talk and sing and whistle to him. Anything he likes
or responds positively to, do more of. Find out what his favorite
treats are. Put them on the floor in front of the cage so that he has
to climb out of his cage to get them. Gradually (over a period of
weeks or months) move the treats closer to you and further from the
cage. He may someday be willing to take them from your hand. After
that it is pretty much downhill.
I cannot emphasize enough that with a wild-caught, timid bird, you must
work at the bird's pace, not yours, and have the patience of a saint!
You will, however, get incredible satisfaction and companionship from a
wild-caught that you have won over, and a pet that is totally different
in personality from a hand-fed.
/Rita
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| Hi Donna,
The wild-caughts need all our patience and love for different reasons
than the hand-feds, who need as much love, and sometimes the patience
too! The ones available have made it through a tremendous ordeal.
So you've got one of the tough ones. That's the good news. The 'bad'
news is that if you are in a hurry, you will be disappointed quickly.
I completely agree with the three preceding replies. Here's my story:
When we got our first bird, an orange-winged Amazon, he was a bedragled
mess and in a horrible situation in, yes, a pet store. When we talked
with an experienced parrot breeder about his condition and were told
that it could take a year to two to get the bird back into good health
and feather, my heart sank. I didn't know if I could look at him in
such a pitiful state for so long and not know if he was improving or
not. What happened, though, was that by not thinking too hard about
the prediction from the breeder, my husband and I took it day-by-day
with the bird, doing as Rita (above reply) said, letting the bird gain
a sense of his own territory. We put him in a home-built flight that
gave him adequate space to flap his wings and climb around for
exercise, since we were told he would not be likely to venture out of
the cage for some time (which turned out to be true). The cage was
2'Wx2'Dx3'H, with natural brances for gnawing on (helped him stop
picking his feathers). Another thing we did that you might want to try
with your Meyers was put the cage so he was ABOVE our eye level when he
was on the top branch, which seemed to make him more secure. He didn't
eat for almost a week, but seemed to be taking some water. He wouldn't
touch any veggies or fruit for months, having been on an almost
exclusively sunflower seed diet for too long.
Our orange-wing didn't make any noise when I was in the room for a
couple of weeks. To say he was terrified would be an understatement.
He had his own room for awhile, then we got a pair of budgies because I
thought they might provide a positive distraction for the parrot. It
seemed to work, if it counts that when I would sit quietly in the room
and read, just to be around the parrot, I would catch him watching the
little guys play. The first time he took a peanut from my hand, I
had tears in my eyes. This was months after we got him, but worth
the patience it took to get there!!
This approach also worked with our first blue-front, another wild-caught
who had been kept in a basement in a dog crate for months. He was put
in a small, warm, well-lighted room we had available, on an open
climbing tree/playpen arrangement that my husband built for him. That
bird would not even tolerate eye contact for a couple of months, even
though he was, indeed, king of the roost up there on the top branches
(about five and a half to six feet high--table had the big tree-trunk
chunk going through the middle of it--with 1"x4" boards around the
table edge to keep the mess in, and clean paper on the table surface
to be able to monitor droppings in this at-first very ill bird--we get
the paper from a local moving company).
The blue-front took about six months before he stopped plucking
feathers and started to get new growth in. The orange-wing took
longer. Peace and quiet and visits at a predictable time help a lot.
Once the bird is less shy, putting him in a more trafficked area is
great, because this will help alleviate the boredom.
In terms of worth, I think Meyers in this area (Boston/New Hampshire)
go for about $300, wild-caught, give or take a little...higher if
from a pet store. Best of luck to you and your expanded pet family!
Pls. keep us posted as you work with your bird. Did you name him yet??
Linda
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| Hi Donna,
To try to answer some of your questions, and add my usual 2 cents
worth:
SIGNS OF STRESS
*Some* signs of stress include: watery droppings, not eating, sitting
fluffed up with head tucked behind a wing, sitting on the perch turned
away from the front of the cage (occasional is fine, but if it does
this all the time, it could mean he is trying to hide but has no place
to go). Yes, these are signs for sickness too. Hard to tell unless
you have a fecal analysis and some other lab tests done by a vet,
or a blood test may be in order, but this in itself is stressful,
especially for small birds (budgies, finches, canaries). Whether it is
temporary stress or stress caused by illness that needs to be treated
is usually best determined by a good avian vet.
If your bird is new, and you see no major signs of illness (falling off
the perch a lot, head down and listless, closed eyes all the time,
discharge from the eyes, vent, or mouth, regurgitation, diarrhea, to
name a few), then maybe you would want to consider doing the following
to make the transition to your home easier on the bird:
STRESS-DEADLY THREAT?
Re: stress killing a bird - I suppose if they don't eat for a very long
time, obviously they would starve themselves to death. Small birds can
have what appear to be heart attacks and die when they are frightened,
so maybe larger birds can fall victim to this too. I lost a Bourke's
Australian parrakeet once when it went in for an X-ray to locate a
possible tumor - and I know of two budgies who died of fright/stress
when they had their beaks trimmed, but these may be rare cases. Anyone
else have any experiences with this? I wouldn't think the predictable
stress of going to a new household would be in this category?
CAGING
Try to duplicate *exactly* the environment the bird just left (except a
quarantine station or bad pet store situation!!), including general
location in a room with regard to windows/no windows, birds/no other
birds, type of cage and perches and food dishes and their placement
inside the cage, etc. -- usually not possible, but sometimes we can,
especially if the previous owner was thoughtful enough to insist that
the cage be sold with the bird, so the bird goes through the transition
to the new space with at least its old 'home' still there. (Sometimes
sellers will loan a cage for a transition period, if they don't want to
sell the cage or you don't like it or want to buy it outright.)
Beware of moving a new bird who is used to one size cage into a cage
that is dramatically different in size or shape. Sometimes birds are
actually *more* comfortable in a small cage, as least for awhile,
especially if they were confined to one before you got them. A huge
cage after a small cage is a form of stress in itself. Bird Talk
magazine had an article on this recently.
A BIRDIE HIDEAWAY
Try placing a large beach towel or light blanket across the back and
over the sides and top of the cage to give the bird a sense of a 'cave'
or personal space for awhile after you first get them. The bird may
react to the first placement of the cover by cowering and making nasty
noises, but usually they settle down once you walk away from the cage
and don't keep adjusting and moving the cover around. (We partially
cover the cage for at least the first week with any any new bird that
comes here, whether it is a zebra finch or a big Amazon parrot, and
especially if it is wild-caught.)
Gradually unfold the cover toward the back as the days (weeks?) go on,
as the bird becomes comfortable. Watch for how much time the bird
spends 'hiding' in the darkened, protected space, and how much he seems
to prefer sitting out on one of the more exposed perches. At some
point, when he is really comfortable, you may find that covering only
the back of the cage or no cover at all is necessary.
QUARANTINE SPACE
We have a 'quarantine' room in the house that is away from any major
commotion, so this adds to the security factor for the new birds.
Avoid closets and bathrooms for quarantine areas because of the lack
of light and ventilation in one and the moisture and danger of open
water in the other (birds drop like stones in water--an open tank
is likely death by drowning, even for large parrots). If you can
spare the space in a little-used room in your house, that's great.
A bedroom is often a logical place for a temporary location until
the bird is relaxed and can take more random foot-traffic coming
by its cage.
ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS
Also, kitchen cooking smells, exhaust fumes if near a garage or open
windown overlooking a garage or street with lots of traffic, and
cigarette or pipe smoke may add to the stress of a new bird if they
are not already used to this.
ONE BIRD's STORY - long, but maybe of help
As an example, I recently received a call from somebody about where
to get a new budgie (parakeet). They then went out and bought a bird
from a reputable breeder in the area who housed the birds in a large
flight with the back wall solid and the top covered with Vitalites,
next to a similar flight of cockatiels, so only one side and the front
was really open. This bird went to his new home, where he was put in
a small, typical, budgie cage, with another budgie who had just lost
its mate to liver disease (non-contagious), in the middle of a living
room, a foot from a window, with all sides and the top exposed, kids
around, etc. The person wanted to know why the bird wasn't eating
(after 48 hours). She was in the process of trying to force-feed it
oatmeal when she decided to call me, since I had recommended the
breeder and she thought I should know the bird was 'sick'. Besides
advising against the force-feeding (the bird was an adult, not a
hand-fed baby), I suggested putting in millet spray on both sides of
the cage and double food and water dishes for awhile, so the new bird
would not have to compete for nourishment. I explained to her that the
bird was probably eating when she was *not* looking at it, because it
was in a foreign environment and unusually cautious about making any
moves to perch on the food dishes. She admitted that her mother, who
lived with the family and was home during the quieter times of the day
when the family was at school/work, had reported seeing the bird moving
around the food and water dishes and had heard it chirping.
This woman's first bird had started eating right away, so her point of
comparison was that. By way of history: the bird she got from the
breeder comes from a place where, if anything, they over-pamper all
their birds...feeding them top-quality seed, cooked grains, veggies,
and fresh fruits, so it is entirely possible that her first bird was
very hungry and underfed when she acquired it, and the new bird was
content (the vet later verified that the new bird was a little on the
plump side.....).
I also asked her to consider the stress she was putting the bird
through by catching it, holding it down, and forcing strange food into
its mouth, not to mention the danger of aspiration (food breathed or
forced into the airway and lungs--VERY dangerous, more so than eating
lightly for a few days). I also suggested she cover the cage as
described above.
If this family had had available a second cage, that would have been even
better because this new bird was used to a 4' flight with about 12-15
other birds, with plenty of personal space. Time in a separate cage
placed next to the other bird's cage would have allowed the bird get used
to his new partner and new home from a safe distance at first. The good
news was the other bird was leaving the new one alone. The owner had
rearranged the perches and dishes before putting the new bird in, which
I'm sure helped for the previous occupant to not feel as territorial as
it might have if those changes hadn't been made.
This owner cared very much about the welfare of the new bird but forgot
to imagine think about the impact of the change in environment on her
new bird. She had driven 100 miles round-trip to buy the bird. She
paid top premium for a quality close-banded bird. Being a conscientious
bird owner and having just lost a long-time pet bird to a fatal
illness, she decided a trip to the local avian vet was in order when
she was not able to observe the bird eating or drinking (although she
said there were signs of both sprigs of millet having been eaten and
the bird was perky and alert, sitting up straight and calm on the
perch), and lo and behold, there was nothing wrong with the bird but
transition stress, which will pass with time as the bird adjusts to
its new home. The new owner also said she would start hanging greens
for the birds to eat, which she had not been doing for the many years
she had owned the other birds.
She spent more on the exam than on a second cage, which she could have
kept as a spare hospital cage or whatever, and more than she had spent
on the bird, for that matter, but at least she had peace of mind about
the general health of the bird. It is always a good idea to have any
new bird checked within the first week, or *before* purchase if you can
arrange it with the seller, so there are no surprises.
TO TRY TO SUMMARIZE...
Give the bird a place to retreat to for awhile and be sure he has
an option about whether to be hidden in the corner of the cage or out
in the open. If he is sharing cage space with another bird, don't put
them together at first if you can help it, since this won't necessarily
speed up the process; it might actually slow it down.
This note is just a continuation of the themes above in other
replies...give the bird choices and let him choose...don't force him or
rush him. Good luck!! I'm sure you and the new bird will do just fine.
If he gets back in the cage without trouble, you've got one of the
major battles already won!!
KEEP ASKING QUESTIONS
Having learned a lot of this stuff the hard and painful, tearful,
way...through my experiences or those I have read about here or heard
about, I try to short-cut the learning process for others if I can,
to save them paying the same price many of us have when we were too new
or too confused or too shy to ask. My phone bill is outrageous, but I
could be spending the money on worse things ;')
We all need to learn these things. Nobody out there, especially me, was
born with knowledge of how to successfully keep and raise cage-birds!!
As I keep saying -- and so do others here -- we all need to keep
writing our questions and experiences to see how it is done, keeping
in mind that all are just suggestions, since not all of this works all
the time for all of the birds!! I have saved time, money, and
heartache by the help I have gotten here from others. Keep writing,
everyone!!!!
Linda
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