Leaving bird at home during vacation

[AnimaliaPrime]

Hi, I really hope someone or multiple someone's answer this! I have a female 2 yr old GCC named Piper, who I've had since she was 3 months old. I got her from a breeder so she is very friendly, sweet, playful, and bonded to me and my husband. She is fully flighted and has the run of the house for many hours per day (we both work at home). When not loose in the house, she is loose in her "bird room" (my office) with her cage and play stands. When we are gone of course, she is locked in her cage.

The question is, being that she is so social and bonded to us, will it be devastating to her to leave her home for 10 days while we are on vacation? This is our first vacation in 10 years. My previous bird, a rescued Quaker was never very friendly and rarely left his cage, even though it was open all the time. He was a bit of a mess, but leaving him home alone (with people coming to feed him) was never a problem.

I don't feel safe bringing Piper to a boarding facility, unless someone knows of a really good person in the Milwaukee, WI area. If we leave her home, our neighbors will come in twice a day to feed her and put her nighty-night. But she will get little to no fresh veggies/fruit (she gets this every day now) and she will have no one around most of the day and be locked in her cage the entire time we're gone.

Any suggestions or advice would be welcome.

I DID think of bringing her along with us--we're driving and staying in a cottage in the Smoky Mountains, with maybe 1-2 day stops in other spots, in a hotel. It just seems too risky and stressful for all of us to bring her along. Being fully flighted, she would have to wear a harness and/or flightsuit when loose in the cottage so she doesn't get out a door or poop all over the rental. I have a travel sized cage for her, but in the car she'd have to be in a carrier with no food or water for long drives. Just doen'st seem real possible.

Thanks for reading!!

 

[ChristaNL]

I would go for taking her along.
you will have less stress taking the bird than leaving her behind, and she gets to stay with her flock.

Equiping a travelcage with a waterbottle (start training her to use one if she does not know how) and a bowl is supereasy.

Cleaning poop is not that hard
(and a flightsuit is supposed to prevent all that mess anyway)

 

[AnimaliaPrime]

Thanks for the advice! She doesn't know how to use a water bottle, but it probably won't be hard to teach her. I'd probably have to get a different carrier. Right now all I have is a little cloth dome one--that's sold for guinea pigs and such. Just to get to the vet and back, etc.
She also hates her harness, so I imagine a flight suit won't be much better. LOL But I will consider all this. We aren't going until May, so I have time to get her ready if I decide to bring her.

As far as poop, I'm more concerned about the furniture, rugs, etc. This little tiny Green Cheek has the hugest poops I've ever seen from a bird this size! LOL

Thanks again!

 

[noodles123]

I take mine without a water bottle----fruit/veg for the journey and then water in a bowl when we get where we are going. Side-note: make sure wherever you are going doesn't cook with Teflon or use stuff like Glade-plugins...
And remove all air freshener from the car ahead of time if this is a road trip.



I think 10 days could be traumatic...I mean, the bird would get over it eventually, but especially because yours is 2 (aka approaching puberty) I would avoid "upsetting the apple-cart" too much.
For poop, buy those cheap rolls of carpet protector that they sell at wal-mart and then just cut them up or leave them whole. They do need to off-gas outdoors (once unrolled) for a day or so, as they have a strong plastic smell at first and they are cheap plastic.

 

[ChristaNL]

Oh fruit is a great idea as well. *

Just use paper? (poopprevention)


("but mine do not fling pieces of waterbottle all over the car, they will throw undesirable pieces or fruit everywhere though)

 

[Amsterdam]

I take mine without a water bottle----fruit/veg for the journey and then water in a bowl when we get where we are going. Side-note: make sure wherever you are going doesn't cook with Teflon or use stuff like Glade-plugins...
And remove all air freshener from the car ahead of time if this is a road trip.



I think 10 days could be traumatic...I mean, the bird would get over it eventually, but especially because yours is 2 (aka approaching puberty) I would avoid "upsetting the apple-cart" too much.
For poop, buy those cheap rolls of carpet protector that they sell at wal-mart and then just cut them up or leave them whole. They do need to off-gas outdoors (once unrolled) for a day or so, as they have a strong plastic smell at first and they are cheap plastic.

i agree with noodles i defo would consider bring the bird with you if thats a option

 

[itzjbean]

Leave your bird at home -- after all it's a vacation and it may not be much of one if you are constantly trying to make sure your bird is not stressed, Is eating and drinking and pooping normally during the trip. Doesn't sound like much fun.

I'm leaving for Hawaii for a week in February and although I will miss my birds, they will be safe in their cages and looked after. That is really the top prirority here, making sure they are SAFE while you are gone. Yes she may be mad about no veggies or being out of the cage very much but she WILL get over it. You have to think about yourself sometimes, too and what's best for you.

Your bird, just like my birds, will be FINE at home, and she is getting visited twice a day to ensure she is safe and sound. So go on your trip, trust your neighbors and enjoy your vacation. That's what they are for!

 

[OutlawedSpirit]

Whether you leave her or take her is really up to you and her and how she would respond to travel. My amazon goes everywhere with us, he loves it, but our grey hates it so he stays with a friend of ours if we go anywhere for a few days. If you are looking for an option where she would get more interaction without having to take her with, I am in Northern Illinois if you are willing to go a little out of your way on your way to the smokies. PM me if you want to talk about it.

Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk

 

[Allee]

No one knows your bird better than you do, it's hard to say what would be more more stressful for her, staying at home in her comfort zone without you or going on a possibly stressful adventure with you, I do think you should consider the best option for yourself and your family too, how much more stressful will your trip be if you do take her.

The longest I've been away from my flock of eight at the time was an eight day trip to Oahu, my mom birdsat for me, she came over, fed them, let them out and cleaned their cages. I had daily updates and got to talk to the birds almost every day. I know they missed me and had less time out of their cages but I know they were happier in their own home with a sitter than in a boarding facility (boarding wasn't even an option for me, I'm not that trusting with my pets). I was so excited, I brought them macadamia nuts straight off a farm on the island, I couldn't wait to see my loves and give them their gourmet treats, about five of my eight darlings launched the macadamia nuts right back at me without even tasting them. They only punished me for a couple of days after I returned, in the end it was worth it, I don't think they suffered too much.

 

[Laurasea]

I have flighted birds and I am proud flight. But the only way I would take a bird on a trip is with a wing clip, no way would I trust that an accident couldn't happen. Too much risk, so my suggestion is if you do take the bird get a wing clip, the feathers will grow back again..

 

[AnimaliaPrime]

Thanks everyone! Great tips and advice. I am leaning towards leaving her at home, because yes, I would be VERY stressed trying to keep her safe and unstressed. I have taken her out on walks in the neighborhood (with her Aviator harness) and she doesn't like it that much--she was terrified of a little girl on a bicycle. Some of that is is a learning curve I know, but we live a pretty isolated and quiet life here--not a lot of company and she's always a little freaked around new people. So I don't think she'd enjoy herself at all. And I agree it would be safer to clip her wings if I brought her along, but I couldn't do that to her. It took her about 8 months to be able to fly again after the breeder clipped her wings (she had been flying for a couple weeks before that happened and she was SO unstable and unsteady with short wings, it was really sad to watch. She LOVES to stretch her wings.

So, now I have to decide if I leave her at home. The breeder I got her from has offered to keep her at her house--but her house is SO chaotic--dogs, cats, dozens of species of birds, kids and it's a very small house despite all that. LOL She is truly an animal person, but she clipped my birds wings before I got her because she has a "killer Macaw" who kept killing the youngsters when they flew over to his cage. And I think Piper will just freak at all the cacophony.