Owning a cockatoo

[Therapyparrot]

Yeah, I would love nothing more than to have an umbrella cockatoo, but after reading this, and a bunch of other posts, l just dont think l would have the patience. Hats off to all you loving cockatoo owners

 

[Scott]

Yeah, I would love nothing more than to have an umbrella cockatoo, but after reading this, and a bunch of other posts, l just dont think l would have the patience. Hats off to all you loving cockatoo owners

Umbrellas and Moluccans are perhaps the most challenging of cockatoos. Other species such as Goffins and Galah/Rose Breasted can be more independent, less neurotic and destructive. If you are seriously interested, try to spend time with the smaller varieties and carefully observe a number of individuals to assess potential! I have a family of 5 Goffins and they are incredibly wonderful companions.

 

[Therapyparrot]

I'll have to do that sometime. Is there any particular reason why the bigger species are so much more difficult to work with? Or is it just how their wired?

 

[ParrotGenie]

Yeah, I would love nothing more than to have an umbrella cockatoo, but after reading this, and a bunch of other posts, l just dont think l would have the patience. Hats off to all you loving cockatoo owners

Umbrellas and Moluccans are perhaps the most challenging of cockatoos. Other species such as Goffins and Galah/Rose Breasted can be more independent, less neurotic and destructive. If you are seriously interested, try to spend time with the smaller varieties and carefully observe a number of individuals to assess potential! I have a family of 5 Goffins and they are incredibly wonderful companions.

Umbrellas and Moluccans are the most challenging of the group and any parrot species for that matter. I dealt with pretty much all species of Cockatoo's and they are by far the most complex to deal with. They are highly intelligent and have the intelligence of most raptors and adapt faster then any parrot I dealt with over the years and can even learn complex stuff on their own without even training them. Like Baby my female U2 bite off a piece of her wood toy shimmed it down tried it to get it between door and lock of her cage, shimmed it smaller till it fitted between door frame and locking part and then successfully opened the door and took her a few minutes to figure it out. Next time around she removed the bolts to the food tray and bend the bar to top pivot point to frame and pushed it out and escaped cage again, while I was at work, then let all the other birds out opening the doors to each cage. Of course came home to a huge mess in bird room, thankfully no birds were hurt. They make great companions if you understand them and have the time to deal with them. The problem is most people get them on impulse thinking they make great pets like a domesticated dog, or cat and they are far from that, they are not pets. They are wild and have the intelligence of a primate even and pretty much need 24/7 interaction. They are very social and require constant attention and mental simulation to keep happy, otherwise they will become destructive and act out as a result.

Very rewarding when you treat them like companions and understand them and treat them as such. As my U2's are now free flighted and know directions better then I do at times as she finds shortcuts to park for example I use to walk with her and notice it on the GPS data as first time she was lost for about 3 minutes and figured it out by 3rd time around she manage to figure out a quicker way and will wait for me. She also knows not to come down low till I am there. They are great to interact with, yes they get into trouble, but as well can be very well behaved as Baby knows when I take her out in public to stay on my shoulder come down when needing to go poop and not to poop in stores, or car and wait till outside, they trained themselves as after a week she figure it out. When Cooper my male U2 want to fly somewhere, or to someone he knows like next door neighbor lady that baby sit him once in a while, he will put his head up and bounce to ask. If he to lazy to fly and want to use me as a Uber he lean over the direction he wants to go. He flock call the person over looking directly at them and wings heart shape out, Baby my female U2 taught him that one. They also remember places like the vet, Baby knows when we pull up to the vet building she aware it the vet as she hides behind me as soon as we walk towards the building. But at the stores she social, so yes they remember buildings, people and etc well.

Yes originally wasn't even going to adopt a Cockatoo as was setup and planned to adapt a african grey a friend at the rescue was going to give me at the time. Took a large project at store to do renovation. Then saw the birds they had as they had 4 birds at the time and one was Baby my female U2, hearing how dangerous she was and being a bird person since a kid and a work at a wildlife sanctuary and a master falconer and use to dealing with large aggressive birds. I felt bad for her and decide to train her for the third owner during that time as they feared her as she would attack and bite people, even to the point of chasing people and was pretty much unapproachable, they could only let her out of cage with a stick to put on a play stand to give her out of cage time once in a while and they wanted to be able to at least handle her better. So trained her and them for free of charge on the side. She on first day step up, so she had some training before and didn't bite me and everyone was surprised, then next day she begged me to pick her up, by screaming and putting her arm out. I ignored her as didn't want to enforced the screaming and then after she was quite I would go to pick her up and started training her. Then she started climbing down looking for me as she was clipped at the time and ended up bonded to her pretty much. I ended up buying her off of them as couldn't stand to leave her there and she pick me as owner stated and now won't even think about ever re-homing her again, she will likely outlive me. What happen was last owner before the 3rd owner pass away of COPD and kids didn't treat her right she bit them hard enough to sent the son to the hospital and he decide to sell her to 3rd owner for quick cash 3rd owner having some experience with birds felt bad and tried to socialize her, they just couldn't. Now that bird a companion and goes pretty much everywhere with me on my shoulder, free flighted and well socialize where even kids can even handle her without getting bit she way more tolerant of kids as she knows they are kids. She taught me more then other birds have dealt with over the years as she was one of the most complex to train as had a few behavior issues and etc I had to work out. I ended up rescuing my second male U2 Cooper and made the mistake again a couple years later. LOL

Do I recommend adopting a Cockatoo. A ASTOUNDING NO to most people as they are dangerous can seriously injury you and destructive overall very loud and can get as loud as a jet engine and require attention of a toddler and need a room, or very large cage/enclosure as a hawk would, not just a small cage and hours a day of out of cage time and attention. Hence why they get re-homed more then most birds do. They are a life time commitment as they can live 60 plus years and sure be consider a companion not a pet. Honestly they sure have never been bought into captivity in the first place.

 

[noodles123]

Yeah, I would love nothing more than to have an umbrella cockatoo, but after reading this, and a bunch of other posts, l just dont think l would have the patience. Hats off to all you loving cockatoo owners

Umbrellas and Moluccans are perhaps the most challenging of cockatoos. Other species such as Goffins and Galah/Rose Breasted can be more independent, less neurotic and destructive. If you are seriously interested, try to spend time with the smaller varieties and carefully observe a number of individuals to assess potential! I have a family of 5 Goffins and they are incredibly wonderful companions.

Umbrellas and Moluccans are the most challenging of the group and any parrot species for that matter. I dealt with pretty much all species of Cockatoo's and they are by far the most complex to deal with. They are highly intelligent and have the intelligence of most raptors and adapt faster then any parrot I dealt with over the years and can even learn complex stuff on their own without even training them. Like Baby my female U2 bite off a piece of her wood toy shimmed it down tried it to get it between door and lock of her cage, shimmed it smaller till it fitted between door frame and locking part and then successfully opened the door and took her a few minutes to figure it out. Next time around she removed the bolts to the food tray and bend the bar to top pivot point to frame and pushed it out and escaped cage again, while I was at work, then let all the other birds out opening the doors to each cage. Of course came home to a huge mess in bird room, thankfully no birds were hurt. They make great companions if you understand them and have the time to deal with them. The problem is most people get them on impulse thinking they make great pets like a domesticated dog, or cat and they are far from that, they are not pets. They are wild and have the intelligence of a primate even and pretty much need 24/7 interaction. They are very social and require constant attention and mental simulation to keep happy, otherwise they will become destructive and act out as a result.

Very rewarding when you treat them like companions and understand them and treat them as such. As my U2's are now free flighted and know directions better then I do at times as she finds shortcuts to park for example I use to walk with her and notice it on the GPS data as first time she was lost for about 3 minutes and figured it out by 3rd time around she manage to figure out a quicker way and will wait for me. She also knows not to come down low till I am there. They are great to interact with, yes they get into trouble, but as well can be very well behaved as Baby knows when I take her out in public to stay on my shoulder come down when needing to go poop and not to poop in stores, or car and wait till outside, they trained themselves as after a week she figure it out. When Cooper my male U2 want to fly somewhere, or to someone he knows like next door neighbor lady that baby sit him once in a while, he will put his head up and bounce to ask. If he to lazy to fly and want to use me as a Uber he lean over the direction he wants to go. He flock call the person over looking directly at them and wings heart shape out, Baby my female U2 taught him that one. They also remember places like the vet, Baby knows when we pull up to the vet building she aware it the vet as she hides behind me as soon as we walk towards the building. But at the stores she social, so yes they remember buildings, people and etc well.

Noodles is my joy, SHE CRACKS ME UP and she loves me/I love her!!! but she IS MY LIFE...and she is pretty good as U2s go...even though I am her 4th home, and that is WELL below average for her 11 years and re-homing stats for U2s...I think people need to let those statistics sink in and remember that everyone who gets one thinks than can do just fine...I'd die before I let her go, but if we didn't have this bond and I knew what I know now, I doubt I would do it again...Just because it is so much work for something no one understands (which makes finding the time etc --with a job and significant other) VERY difficult. Keeping her sane and happy is a ton of work and she is always "on".