Baby lorikeet..should we keep him or find a new home?

[Steenbokpixie]

Hi guys,

We found an injured baby rainbow lorikeet on the road in Western Australia and upon taking him to the emergency vet hospital they said they automatically put these birds down as they are considered pests. So we took him home and this is his 6th day with us. We're using a cockatiel cage my mom lent us for the time being.*

This little guy is very friendly. He loves climbing over us, nibbles our ears, and is very tame. We can pick him up, kiss his beak, scratch him, etc and he seems to love it. We put an ad out for a found lorikeet thinking he may be someones pet but nobodys come forward. He's only little and he doesn't like to eat unless we hold the food or container with the food in our hands and has only recently started accepting more solid foods than nectar mix or baby food (started eating a bit of tomato last night)

I've grown very attached to this little bird, but I need some advice on whether it would be best for him to stay with us or if we should find him a new home. I work 9-5 and my boyfriend is in uni and works as well. The lorikeet would be at home alone I'd say for a max of 6 hours per day, some days my boyfriend comes home between classes and his schedule is always changing. When I wake up in the morning before work and go in the room his cage is in, change his food and water etc he gets excited and all he wants to do is get on my arm and climb all over me. I hold him and play with him for as long as I can (about 10 minutes) and then go to leave for work. He starts complaining and calling out to me as I leave the room and it feels like im torturing and upsetting the little guy just by leaving

He doesn't have many toys in the cage right now but we haven't seen him play or occupy himself with the ones he does have. This morning I left online radio on for him & he's near a window so he can see out, but he still started calling out to me as I left. He calls out a few times and then just starts chattering in the room, quieting down. When I say "calling out" I don't mean screaming - I mean making one of his loud bird sounds if that makes sense.*

What should we do? What's best for this bird? I can convince my boyfriend to keep him I think but unless I have confirmation that he'll be totally fine and happy in this kind of situation I'll feel unsure and guilty. Should we just find him a nice retired person who's home all the time and can dedicate more time to him?

Thanks in advance for any advice.*

 

[Marnie]

i'm sorry no one has answered you but i would say if you really want to keep this bird then you can make it work. it sounds like you like having him around, so its your call.
i have a senegal and i don't really know what a lorikeet is so i am not a good one to give you any answers.
if you really think he would be better off with someone else you would have to decide that. most people work 8hrs a day and still have pets, the pets adapt to your schedule.
good luck with your decision.

 

[Aussie Ben]

Welcome to the forum, good on you for saving that little lorithey are such beautiful birds. As marnie said, many people work long days and still have pets, including birds. Its just a matter of adapting. Perhaps give it a little while as the surroundings are all new to him and he needs to settle in. I study/work etc and I don't have 'heaps' of time to spend with my birds either. I compensate for this with larger cages, play stands, lots of toys, Radio and television etc. I also use the window as a form of entertainment, but this just makes them scream and yell at the birds outside, however I still do it because they seem to like it. If you come to the conclusion that you just simply don't have time for a bird, that is completely understandable (they are A LOT of work). I myself find it hard to keep up with them sometimes.

Good luck! Any more questions, just fire away.

 

[_Cass_]

Welcome to the forum

As said in previouse posts, I think it would be fine as long as you love him/her.
I have a Green Cheek Conure, and I am usually at school from 8:30-4:30. She doesn't seem to mind... But on the other hand she has a HUMUNGOID cage with a bajillion toys and gets fresh veggies every morning and sometimes some fruit. I leave the window open, so she can listen to the cars and such, I also put on the radio for her. As soon as I get home she is out of her cage until I go to sleep, or need to go out somewhere, and in those long and cold winters when I start up my parrot rescue, she usually has many birds to talk to after they are quarantined. I will also tak her on car rides if I am going to pick up a new cage, or some kind of weird thing I found on Kijiji.... >_<

So, I honestly don't think It would be an issue, but you need to consider getting him/her a bigger cage if you are going to keep the lil' fella'. The MINIMUM cage for a small Lorikeet should be 30x30x30 with the bar spacing under one inch.

Heres some info on the species. Just in case
Rainbow Lorikeet - Information | Bird Breeds
Rainbow Lorikeets as Pets: GoArticles.com
Lorikeet …Get Facts, See Pictures And Read What Owners Of Lories Say.

Heres a couple links to some good cages:
Corner Play Top Parrot Bird Cage, Powder Coated Wrought Iron - FREE SHIPPING!
32x23 Play Top Parrot Bird Cage, Powder Coated Wrought Iron - FREE SHIPPING!
40x30 Play Top Parrot Bird Cage, Powder Coated Wrought Iron - FREE SHIPPING!

Good luck on your new fid! (Fid=Feathered Kid)
Keep us posted on what you decide!!

 

[Bobby34231]

Hi and welcome to the forum, I have to say I'm really appalled that any vet or pet healthcare provider would choose to simply euthanize rather than treat because they feel the animal is not worthy, very sad, I guess I would say if you feel you are qualified enough to raise and nurse him back to health, go for it, if not find an experienced wildlife rehabilitator if one exists in your area, whichever way you go I wish you and the bird all the best of luck, good on ya for rescuing the little fella

 

[Steenbokpixie]

Hi and thank you for everyone's replies. My apologies about not responding sooner, things have been all over the place around here!

I'm trying to convince my boyfriend to keep the lorikeet. We live together so I can't just decide to keep him without consulting the other half (unfortunately). A few days ago he was set on giving him away (to a good home only), but now he isn't so sure. Fingers crossed, anyway.

Bobby, unfortunately wildlife rehabilitators around here would have the same stance as the emergency vet clinic. Lorikeets are pests in Western Australia as declared by the WA government. From what I've read they were accidentally released into the wild from a university years ago and bred, and now threaten the habitats of parrots native to WA. In that sense I understand why an emergency clinic wouldn't treat a lorikeet when brought in as rescued wildlife. What annoyed me was that the vet hospital wasn't even going to tell us that they just put rainbow lorikeets straight down - I only happened to ask what they would do to treat him and they said standard procedure was to just put them down! I almost signed the release form, I'm so glad I asked.

We took the lorikeet to our local vet today (this time booking him in as a pet, not just bringing him in as a wildlife rescue) and she said he looks happy and healthy. I was worried about beak and feather disease, but she said he's showing no symptoms. She felt his left wing and says that it does seem like there was some sort of damage done to the joint. He might not ever fly properly again (she wasn't sure), but the wing doesn't seem to be hurting and he does flap it around and such, which is good.

He also developed an obsession with apples and a great love for bananas. He's getting there with tomatoes as well, I'm trying to feed him as many different types of fruit etc as I can manage to get him used to everything.

One question: I read that if they don't receive enough stimulation as babies parrots can grow up to be "mentally retarded" as adults :S this is a pretty scary thought - how much stimulation should I be giving him? Should I be training him and getting him to remember tricks? Puzzle games? I'm not sure where I would even start teaching him to solve simple puzzles. He doesn't seem to like toys - I got him a wooden swing and one of those hanging toys with a bell, rope, and wood for him to chew on today but he doesn't seem to care about them at all. I read that play is very important to parrots at a young age, how do I teach him to play?

 

[_Cass_]

Well, I don't think they become "Mentally Retarded". LoL. But they sometimes do have problems not knowing how to play with thier toys, and you just have to teach them, thats all. And sometimes if not taught correctly, they can get some biting habits. Just get him/her some foraging toys, and all-around toys for his/her cage, and spend time with him/her, and all should be great.

Heres a link on mental stimulation:
http://www.avianenrichment.com/mental.htm

 

[Quantumcat]

My Scarlett isn't interested in toys either, but she does love doing tricks. She'll do them over and over again and I always get bored before she does. So if your guy isn't interested in toys, try teaching him some tricks. Although rainbows are known as being extremely playful so it's a bit strange he doesn't want to play! Foraging toys are a good idea, the lure of food will get him going and before you know it he'll realise how much he loves ripping stuff up. If you look on the do-it-yourself forum you may find some plans on how to make some good foraging toys. A simple one is just wrapping something yummy in newspaper and tying it off like a lolly wrapper, and the parrot has to rip it apart to get the something yummy. Also, you'll find that everyone who's had their bird for a while has developed special games they play with them that just developed over time without it being on purpose. For instance Scarlett and I have a game where I whistle the first half of the wolf-whistle and she whistles the second, or she whistles the first and I whistle the second. So you may find you develop some special games between the two of you without any planning! Good luck! (By the way, does he have a name?)

 

[Aussie Ben]

For instance Scarlett and I have a game where I whistle the first half of the wolf-whistle and she whistles the second, or she whistles the first and I whistle the second. So you may find you develop some special games between the two of you without any planning! Good luck! (By the way, does he have a name?)

LOL I play the same whistle game with my ekkie

 

[Steenbokpixie]

Thanks everyone. I was reading an article yesterday about encouraging parrots to play with toys and it suggested that one of the things they like the most is ripping up paper, and that they also want whatever you have and mimic you, so last night I spent 20 minutes making paper airplanes on the table in front of his cage, making and ripping up paper balls and thrownig them around, etc. My boyfriend said I looked like an idiot The lorikeet did seem to get curious for a while, but then lost interest.

He doesn't have a name yet, no. I'm not sure if the boyfriend will let me keep him yet and we've been tossing around some names casually but haven't really sat down to come up with anything in particular. At first I started calling him Benjamin, but the bf hated that name. Then I thought of Admiral Ackbar and wanted to call him "Ackbar" and teach him to say "It's a trap!" when someone enters the room, but the bf didn't like that idea either He's such a party pooper.

I'd like to get a target stick and start clicker training, I just wish my boyfriend would let me know if I can keep him or not for sure I don't want to spend money on too many toys etc and then have to give him away.

 

[Steenbokpixie]

Well, after a bit of an emotional discussion the bf said that he's letting me keep the lorikeet provided I take sole responsibility for him. I wasn't trying to guilt him into letting me keep the lorikeet, I did get upset when he initially said no, but I wasn't upset at him, just at knowing that I'll have to give away this little guy.

Anyway, it's been an eventful evening and now I'm a little scared - I'm going to be responsible for raising this little baby bird by myself. I'm not getting cold feet, I'm just hoping I won't majorly screw something up! What if I feed him wrong? What if he develops a behavioural issue as he matures and I won't know how to deal with it? What if he doesn't get enough stimulation? And what if I let both the lorikeet and my boyfriend down by not being able to handle this whole thing? I feel like it's a little baby relying on me (this is funny, because my maternal instinct for human babies is nonexistent at the moment).

I hope you guys don't mind that I'll probably be coming here with a lot of questions. I've been doing tons of reading on lorikeets and parrots in general online, but it feels like I can never find out enough and like I'll always be missing something really important.

And now with the freaking-out rant over, here's a photo and a couple of videos of him. Does anyone hazard a guess at how old he is? I was told he's still a baby (or at least very young), but have no idea of his age in weeks or months.

Below is a photo of the day we first brought him home. You can see that his wing is drooping - it was visibly hanging the first day and at one point he had it splayed out and couldn't move it. The wing is much better now and he can now glide short distances (as opposed to falling on his head when he first started trying). We thought he was going to die that first evening, but thankfully he livened up and started getting better the next day.

After a shower. He's such a messy eater, his entire head was covered in fruit jelly and bits of apple

Hopefully I'll get some better photos soon..

 

[_Cass_]

Oh wow, when you said baby, I thought of a 'matured' baby with those big eyes but
he's... a BABY!! SOO CUUTEE!!!

Don't worry, you'll do fine! Contact a local breeder or vet and ask them your questions

P.S: What do you use to catch poop at the bottom of the cage? I know this
may seem like a silly question, but newspaper is the easiest to clean up
and the least harmful to your bird.

 

[Quantumcat]

He's gorgeous. I'm glad your boyfriend let you keep him. Here are some names I thought of that are appropriate for a lorikeet:

-Skittles
-Rainbow (corny I know!)
-Blossom
-Sakura (means cherry blossom)
-Fern
-Coral
-Honey
-Peach
-Joseph (for joseph's technicolour dreamcoat)
-Loki (norse god of mischief)
-Iris (means rainbow)
-Ziazan (means rainbow)
-Zephyr (because they take life nonseriously!)
-Tricho (their scientific name is Trichoglossus haematodus)
-Chantel (chanter means to sing in french)

 

[Bobby34231]

I like Loki, nothing better than a mischievous Lori to keep you on your toes :11:, plus I like norse mythology :09:

 

[Quantumcat]

Ever since I visited a bird park as a kid and had twenty lorikeets land on me and fight over my apple, I've dreamed of having one as a pet, and naming him Loki ... sigh. Maybe when we get a bigger house I'll get Scarlett and Sugar a new lorikeet friend

 

[Steenbokpixie]

Cass, we line the tray at the bottom of the cage with newspapers Normally we have way too many useless newspapers laying around that come into our mailbox, but over the past week I haven't been able to find enough! The lorikeet is so messy and his poos are so wet that I have to put down three to four layers of newspaper at the bottom.

Thanks for the name ideas, Quantumcat! I really like Loki and Tricho. Both my boyfriend and I are a bit of a nerdy couple, so I'm also looking into various PC game or sci fi names. I really like Ackbar, but the bf isn't so fond of it (I'm still persisting with teaching him to say "It's a trap!" though).

I've been trying to ask around and find some instructions on the quantity of food for him. Some people say I should leave food for him in the cage constantly and others say he can get overweight if I let him eat as much as he wants. He's constantly chirping at me for fruit - should I be limiting his fruit intake or can I just give him as much as he wants?

 

[Quantumcat]

If it's just fruit he wants let him go for it. With some variety it contains exactly the stuff he needs in the right proportions. If it's stuff off your plate, bread, chips, seeds, that sort of thing don't let him have very much.

I used to feed Scarlett in her cage with three or four bowls with different things in it, but when we started getting ants coming in I decided to just feed her two meals of fruit a day and leave pellets with her the rest of the time. Lorikeets are probably just as messy or messier so depending on how often you want to scrub your cage and your walls you may want to feed him 2 meals a day also

Also you may want to look up in either the cages or do-it-yourself forum, somebody made a PVC screen for the back of the cage that stopped stuff (mushed fruit, poo...) from getting onto the wall. That may come in useful! Another option is getting that sticky plastic stuff kids put on their exercise books, and after thoroughly washing your wall, sticking that stuff on it. Then you can wash it easily or if it gets too gross, peeling it off and putting up a new one.

I haven't played a video game in a long time (sigh :-( ) but what about Zelda? I used to absolutely love Ocarina of Time

 

[_Cass_]

I just leave a bowl of her pellets in at all times, and in the mornings I give her, her breakfast, which could mean, veggies/pasta/birdiebread etc.. and in the evening I give her a mix of beans, lentils, noodles, corn, peas, rice, peppers, broccoli and carrots. She is not overweight, and I have been doing that same 'ritual' for years with all my rescues and fids. I have only had one problem where my rescued Cockatoo would throw her pellets all over the place, which ment she got food a scheduled times....

Cass, we line the tray at the bottom of the cage with newspapers Normally we have way too many useless newspapers laying around that come into our mailbox, but over the past week I haven't been able to find enough! The lorikeet is so messy and his poos are so wet that I have to put down three to four layers of newspaper at the bottom.

Now what you said..... Hmmm.. His poops are wet? Like really watery? That could be a sign of stress, or
maybe your parrots diet has just influenced his poop. Who knows.

I know this isn't the loveliest topic, but heres a few links... about bird poop (LOL!!!!!!)
That I think you should take a look at.. just in case

What Your Parrot’s Poop Can Tell You
http://www.avianweb.com/poopology.html
BirdsnWays - Evaluating Birdpoop - Eclectus Forum March 1997

P.S. Congratulations on keeping him!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Bobby34231]

The primary food in a Lories diet is nectar, pretty much wet diet in, wet diet out :11:

 

[_Cass_]

The primary food in a Lories diet is nectar, pretty much wet diet in, wet diet out :11:

Ahhh... Yes. I forgot that they eat nectar!!!!
Silly me!