Cockatoo adoption

[Ewilson1013]

I am looking for a cockatoo that needs rehoming. I am located in North Mississippi, right outside of Memphis, Tn. Thanks!

 

[noodles123]

I don't know anything specific about birds in that area, but do you have experience with parrots?
I have an Umbrella. I ask because I just want to make sure you know what you are getting into.

 

[Ewilson1013]

I had one as a kid growing up. His name was Woody. Played outside and everything. My Mom rehomed him due to baseball schedules at the time. I’m 33 now and have been wanting to get another one. I’ve always had lovebirds and now 2 parakeets.

 

[noodles123]

I want to be totally honest with you-- adopting an Umbrella or Moluccan Cockatoo is often HARDER than having a 2-year-old child with special needs and it can last up to 80 years (whether or not your parents had one when you were a kid)....THE COST....THE WORK...THE LACK OF FREEDOM. My degree is in special education and applied behavior analysis (this is VERY popular among parrot owners, as it works, but it was developed for humans)... I am very good at my job and I love my bird. I know cockatoos are great and loving (in small doses and when they belong to someone else), but research AND/OR childhood experience doesn't even scratch the tip of the complicated behavioral ice-berg...there is a reason these birds are re-homed MORE THAN ANY OTHER....
EVERYONE who meets my bird LOVES her---The vet just said she is their favorite...but that is not how she is 100% of the time (even though I trust her and she loves me!)

What happened to the one you had as a kid?--BASEBALL SCHEDULES...What if you get married and have a wife or a baby???THAT WILL BE WAY HARDER ON THE BIRD UNLESS YOU CAN DEAL WITH THE BEHAVIORAL BACKLASH AND JEALOUSLY (it will likely be intense for a long time) AND NONE OF IT WILL BE THE BIRD'S FAULT!!! What if you want to stay up late? You cannot do that with a cockatoo--they need 12 full hours of uninterrupted sleep to maintain sanity, immune function and feather health. You will always have to be home to put it to bed at the same time, and forget sleeping in, because if you ignore it when it wakes up you will likely be dealing with a loud/compulsive/upset bird.



They can live past 80 years of age.

This is coming from someone who has a VERY "thick skin" and a lot of experience with kids and animals (including "owning" other birds).

My Umbrella Cockatoo is like a child to me---but with parrot needs....I am not insane, and I want you to understand this. I also tend to be pretty willing to let others make mistakes, except when it could harm them or another living being.....say, you, or your future bird, or both.

My Umbrella had 3 homes before me, and she is 10! As much as I believe your intentions are pure and as much as I believe you THINK you know what this will be like, you probably don't (I didn't and this is my "thing")
...Imagine a 2 year old child with Autism who has the spatial reasoning of a 4 year old and comes to you with significant behavior issues.....and can fly...and can shred anything with 1000 lbs of bite force (3-prong bite which is unique to them).....and can be killed by candles, and teflon, and anything scented (air freshener, hairspray, perfume etc etc) and has to have a special diet, and is prone to deadly self-mutilation (tearing its skin and feathers out and off) when its needs aren't met---and you may not know what those needs are. Those needs could involve you attending to the bird 200% of the time (if that is what the past owner did at ONE POINT)...Those needs could be removing the orange couch from your living room....Those needs could be a buzzing sound in the wall or a pattern on your shirt...YOU HAVE TO BE ABLE TO ANALYZE BEHAVIOR and even then, you will often feel lost. You will deal with the fallout and the screaming etc etc...Visit mytoos.com
Your parents were the main caretakers....I am not even joking...I swear, I know I sound radical, but I am a VERY patient person who is used to dealing with children who have EXTREME emotional problems (knives on the bus, smearing poop, biting, etc etc)....and a cockatoo is a CHALLENGE for me. I wouldn't change it, but my family could not handle her without me in the room (And is still learning how to respond--she bullies them because they don't know better, even though I am not her favorite person) and it is a real challenge because she can bite hard if she wants to--she is getting better, but you will be tied down , HARD. I have only discussed a few of the myriad challenges I have faced with a cockatoo (whom I love dearly). Again, I am a behavioral specialist and I STILL feel in over my head, even though ABA (Applied Behavioral Analysis) is what bird experts recommend for training cockatoos...


This doesn't mean owning one is impossible, but you really almost have to be trained (or you will be manipulated) and end up with a very unhappy (and loud/plucking) bird.


Honestly, if a human child (2-3) scares you, that is like the SUPER-easy version of an adopted cockatoo...


That having been said, if you REALLY understand this and are ready for the bumpiest ride of your life, then I wish you luck. Sorry if I sound condescending---that is not my intention...It is just SO hard to care for one well and if you cannot, that is NATURAL, as humans don't typically take on projects that require so much time and effort. I just would abstain from purchasing one if any of this sounds intimidating...they are emotional birds and the more they are re-homed, the harder it is on them.

 

[Laurasea]

There is an umbrella cockatoo at a pet store I visit. She had been sold three times and returned for screaming biting feather pulling. She is now the store bird never to be sold again. She is only happy with attention from a hundred people a day, at night she had a 12 foot by six foot by 10 foot enclosure she lives in with a ton of toys she destroys nightly. It's terrible what she's been through.. and it was a real eye opener to hear her story, and see how much attention she requires