Cardi Bird’s Progress Thread

[CardiBird]

So another bird was dropped off at the animal hospital. A lot of birds get dropped off apparently because we have a macaw in our kennels and the other vet has an umbrella cockatoo at their office. On a good note, the lady had ALOT of bird stuff so I get to look for perches and toys Wednesday.

 

[CardiBird]

Thats fear conditioning and it is not the way to gain trust. You would basically restrain the bird from flight or fight - it screws with their mind. Member what we've said 3 steps forward and some time 5 steps back. Best I can give you is sit next to the birds cage and read aloud to her. Now if she screams and lunges when your right next to the cage, bring the chair back until she calms down, and then read. each day you want to move a tiny bit closer, just untill she exhibits the lunging etc, and back off a bit. This will take time . It may not be your ideal parrot now, but she has so much potential!

Yea I’m just letting her do her for now. I let her out and we watch tv and talk. I have confidence that she will like me eventually.

 

[CardiBird]

Well pistachios are a huge hit! She loves them.

 

[CardiBird]

And now she just flew off her cage to try and attack me. I think she’s bipolar tbh. I don’t know if I’m going to be able to let her out of her cage anymore she’s just too aggressive.

 

[CardiBird]

Cardi got a whole cage full of toys and some left over so hopefully she will be less bored durin the day.

 

[Scott]

Ah, so pistachios are a favorite treat!

Can you leave music for Cardi Bird or possibly a TV on during the day? Parrots can definitely view a screen and are aware of the motion and images.

 

[CardiBird]

Ah, so pistachios are a favorite treat!

Can you leave music for Cardi Bird or possibly a TV on during the day? Parrots can definitely view a screen and are aware of the motion and images.

I do. She watches the little monkeys from Madagascar lol

 

[CardiBird]

Cardi also attacks shoes and stuffed animals

 

[CardiBird]

So I have found that Cardi is actually less aggressive when she’s in the cage. Which seems kind of opposite to me. Today she kept bowing her head to me like she wanted scratches, but backed up when I went to scratch her. She did let me touch her though so that’s an improvement. She’s still very aggressive out of the cage.

 

[CardiBird]

Cardi Bird now lets my scratch her head. Huge step in the right direction. She also does the worm lol. I don’t know how to upload a video or I’d share. I’ve also found that if I whistle when I leave the room she doesn’t scream.

 

[Jen5200]

Sounds like you are making progress! My conures holler unless I whistle while I’m out of the room too.

 

[Scott]

Appears Cardi Bird is quite territorial and bonded to her cage. Do you have a portable stand to move with her to another room, or at least out of sight of the cage? Now that she is more familiar, she might be more trusting.

Best way to uplink a video to PF is to first upload to a YouTube account.

 

[CardiBird]

Well I thought the whistling worked but only sometimes. The weird thing is that she lets me scratch her in the cage so I don’t know if she’s really just cage aggressive. She definitely wants to be the boss. She chases the cat and dogs around the house. She no longer chases me. I point at her and say no and she backs off. She’s been out of her cage walking around and I think she is really enjoying it. She’s really making progress. I think her main issue is getting over stimulated. I guess she may not have gotten a lot of attention with her previous owner but I’m learning how to read her body language and I think we may start step up with hands soon.

I did see her do something weird yesterday and I made a thread but it hasn’t gotten my response. She was spreading her legs really far apart and holding her wings out from her body while making a distinct chirping noise and kind of bobbing up and down.

 

[CardiBird]

[ame="https://youtu.be/jD_qTE8Guzc"]https://youtu.be/jD_qTE8Guzc[/ame]
Here’s the video

 

[Scott]

Well I thought the whistling worked but only sometimes. The weird thing is that she lets me scratch her in the cage so I don’t know if she’s really just cage aggressive. She definitely wants to be the boss. She chases the cat and dogs around the house. She no longer chases me. I point at her and say no and she backs off. She’s been out of her cage walking around and I think she is really enjoying it. She’s really making progress. I think her main issue is getting over stimulated. I guess she may not have gotten a lot of attention with her previous owner but I’m learning how to read her body language and I think we may start step up with hands soon.

I did see her do something weird yesterday and I made a thread but it hasn’t gotten my response. She was spreading her legs really far apart and holding her wings out from her body while making a distinct chirping noise and kind of bobbing up and down.

Cardi Bird has great rhythm!

I think you are making good progress. Very easy to overstimulate amazons, watch for the eye-pinning. Assume you have read this thread about body language? It is excellent! http://www.parrotforums.com/amazons/54250-amazon-body-language.html

 

[CardiBird]

Well I thought the whistling worked but only sometimes. The weird thing is that she lets me scratch her in the cage so I don’t know if she’s really just cage aggressive. She definitely wants to be the boss. She chases the cat and dogs around the house. She no longer chases me. I point at her and say no and she backs off. She’s been out of her cage walking around and I think she is really enjoying it. She’s really making progress. I think her main issue is getting over stimulated. I guess she may not have gotten a lot of attention with her previous owner but I’m learning how to read her body language and I think we may start step up with hands soon.

I did see her do something weird yesterday and I made a thread but it hasn’t gotten my response. She was spreading her legs really far apart and holding her wings out from her body while making a distinct chirping noise and kind of bobbing up and down.

Cardi Bird has great rhythm!

I think you are making good progress. Very easy to overstimulate amazons, watch for the eye-pinning. Assume you have read this thread about body language? It is excellent! http://www.parrotforums.com/amazons/54250-amazon-body-language.html

Lol yea she does. Yes I have read that thanks! Any thoughts on that behavior? Could it be some kind of hormonal thing? I can’t find anything on it.

 

[Scott]

Given the time of year, it could be hormonal. If you believe her age is about 15, we can rule out the sexual maturity ordeal. Amazons can be very stubborn, it just may take a while for her to feel comfortable.

You only know an oral history of her past, impossible to know the details. Like people, parrots have long memories and carry the baggage of their past. Cardi Bird is the summary of her life experience, the best you can do is be patient, show her love, and earn her trust. I believe you are on the right track.... but know there will be two steps forward, one step back at times!

 

[CardiBird]

I was just wondering if you thought the legs set really wide with wings out from her body and bobbing was a hormonal thing. It was a really weird behavior I had never seen. I think the way she’s acting is just amazon/ overstimulation.

We just had another step back when she was on top of her cage. Usually when I give her a treat and she’s going to bite she will fan her tail out and I step away but she gave no warning and gave me the worst bite I have ever had and she does not let go so I had to pull her off of the cage and pull her off of me and I started bleeding and when I saw my own blood my blood pressure got so high I almost passed out. I’m just going to avoid direct interaction when she’s on the top of her cage. I don’t understand why that is when she is most aggressive.

 

[Scott]

Haven't noticed that particular behavior. Would be interesting to see if you can video.

Cardi Bird sounds a lot like my Gonzo when he was younger. Somewhat territorial, but the clamp-biting is rough. Had to flick him off; it was so hard and deep, impossible to ignore and show who is stronger!

Best bet is to learn her red zones and try not to interact where a confrontation is guaranteed. Might have to use a stick/perch to mover her from dominance (cage) to a safe but more vulnerable position before engaging.

 

[CardiBird]

Haven't noticed that particular behavior. Would be interesting to see if you can video.

Cardi Bird sounds a lot like my Gonzo when he was younger. Somewhat territorial, but the clamp-biting is rough. Had to flick him off; it was so hard and deep, impossible to ignore and show who is stronger!

Best bet is to learn her red zones and try not to interact where a confrontation is guaranteed. Might have to use a stick/perch to mover her from dominance (cage) to a safe but more vulnerable position before engaging.

Sounds good. Thanks for the advice.