Cheney is FINALLY here!

[MJJean]

Cheney had a minor setback and stayed with the breeder longer than I expected. She just wouldn't stop eating baby food and go over to big bird food until a few days ago. So, the bird i was going to pick up at 14 weeks old came home at 17 weeks.

Now I am a wreck! I brought her in, set her up in her cage with 3 food and 3 water dishes. Brought in my American Bulldog because he is super gentle and calm and Cheney went off like a tornado siren. We talked to her calmly and let the dog sit a few feet from her cage for a few before taking him back to the other part of the house.

Soon after, we get this HUGE thunderstorm! A lot of hard rain, a bit of hail and big, booming, thunder. Cheney is sitting on a perch stretched as tall as she can and just looking ahead. Strtorm is still ongoing. I am totally afraid she is traumatized....or maybe she is just sleeping since its almost 9pm and dark out.

Any insights and how the heck do i tell if she is ready for bed or terrified???

 

[schristensen13]

I would just cover her up for the night and let her rest....take it nice and slow over the next few days so she can get used to everything at a nice steady pace. I would wait a few days (if you can) to introduce the dog again....get her nice and comfortable with her surroundings and the humans in the home first. Even though your dog is calm and gentle, dogs are predators and Cheney doesn't know the difference...she is on high alert right now with the move I'm sure.

 

[MJJean]

Ike will no longer be an issue. Poor dog. Cheney went down to the lower portion of her cage to play with a toy, Ike came upstairs and walked over all casual like. Cheney scared the snot out of him and now he won't even come into the livingroom.

We actually have 4 dogs, but were introducing them one at a time so she doesn't get overwhelmed. I think we'll just keep them in the basement family room or the yard for the next day or two and then try introducing them starting with Ike and working our way down the line.

Storms still raging, but Cheney started exploring more of her new home and is playing with her toys. I am so relieved!

 

[merlinsmom13]

Have fun w/Cheney! Just let her move @ her pace. It will be great!

 

[suebee]

as merlin said let them at there own pace, but i would keep a set bed time, and the tall skinny look, you might see for a few more days to new situation cheney comes across, means she's scared an very un sure, other then that keep us up dated as i am sure she will settle in an start ruling the roost soon

 

[kitt]

Aww, the poor baby just had a lot to deal with the first day home.....
I agree with everyone....just take it slow and things will fall into place...
I live in Michigan also and the storms we had last night were bad...we even had some trees down....
My birds don't freak over storms but they become very quiet and calm.....as dark as it got they probably thought it was bed time when the storms rolled through.LOL
Good luck and keep us updated.

 

[upcgirl]

I know what you are going through, MJJean. I bring home my almost 1 year re-homed Senegal in a few short hours, and though I have raised birds for over 18 years, I am nervous. I haven't had a baby in the house for a very long time. When I was a teenager, my parents brought home two Amazons--Ricco, my Mexican Red Head, and TJ, a double-yellow who resides with my sister.

Your Cheney reminds me somewhat of TJ. We used to let the birds out of their cages and play with them on a playmat. My sister had to make a covered wagon for a school project, and Ricco had decided to climb through it. Our 120-pound Rottweiler (Kato) was sleeping in the corner. TJ, being a very gusty, and beaky baby, decided to sneak up on Kato. Kato never bothered the birds. To my recollection, he never really even showed interest in the birds. Now, the first time we saw this, we got TJ to step up and we took her back to where we were. However, she was determined. She snuck up on Kato again, who was snoring away, and BIT him right on the nose! All Kato could do was cry like a baby.

 

[MJJean]

Well, it's been a few days and things are going pretty well. Cheney is such a sweetie and we love her to pieces already. She is chittering, squeeking, squealing and such when the mood strikes her. She still doesn't much like the dogs, though. They are well behaved around her and just come up to the cage to look now and then. No jumping or obnoxiousness, but once one of them gets up to the bars Cheney will let out this horrible sound and they run away. Cept Owen, the Basset Hound. Him I have to tell to go away and leave the birdie alone or he'll just stand there looking real confused,lol.

She is a bit of a picky eater and we are working on making new foods seem cool in hopes she will try it.

I can't wait til she says her first words and then sentences. I'm working on "Hello" and "Good morning". My son, who is 10, is determined to teach her to say the word "tweet" as he thinks it would be funny to eventually get her saying something like " I'm Cheney. I'm a bird. Tweet."

 

[kitt]

Glad to hear things are going well.....she sounds like a little sweetheart....try to post some pictures when you can...thanks for keeping us updated.