Molluccan Cockatoo

[crewchief]

We just got a 22 year old that had been with its owner for 16 years. He seems to be adapting well, but he keeps making a sound like he's grinding his beak. Can anyone tell me what that is or means? Thanks.

 

[Molcan2]

Congats on your new fid . It could be contentment or nervousness. Its nice of you to take on an older one. My M2's previous owners had her for 14yrs. We went through one honeymoon month, then seven or so months of non stop screaming. Around our year mark is when she really settled in and even though its been over a year, shes not completely settled in yet but were getting there. Welcome to the forum.

 

[crewchief]

Thank you for the quick response, so here is another question. He seems to want to explore the room, so we built a floor perch, how do we get him to go to it, or is it something that will just happen in time when he is ready

 

[Molcan2]

I would let him explore on his own and let him go as far as he is comfortable with. One thing that you could try, is to sit next to the floor perch and put his favorite treats on or near it. That way he'll see it as a positive fun thing to be on. I personally encourage mine to be on the floor and explore the house. Just see how his personality is, if he starts getting aggressive on the floor then don't allow him to be there. Mine has zero aggression so we allow her to do a lot (i.e. floor freedom, rides on our shoulders). You'll just have to feel him out and set boundaries where ever his personality warrants them. What you can do with one bird isn't necessarily okay to do with another.

 

[paulhanlon]

I hope you know what you have taken on a cockatoo requires the most experianced hands and is one of the hardest birds to work with in the right care these beautiful birds are extreamly sweet and cuddly but very loud as you will find out I'm sure also has he/she got a name?

 

[crewchief]

His name is Addison. He seems to be settling in just fine. We know it will take a lot of time and patience. This is our first parrot. We did get to spend time with him and his previous owner.

 

[paulhanlon]

I hope you can put up with the antics of a cockatoo I really think you should have started with a smaller species one that you know you will be able to cope with as I stated these are beautiful birds but need experianced hands to deal with them i wish you all the look in the world and your going to need it also I hope you can cope with him and can keep him for the rest of his life as it would be sad to get rid of him all because you could not handle his screaming vice versa

 

[crewchief]

I appreciate your input, however I feel like you're putting us down for wanting to help someone in need with their bird. We are FULLY aware of what these birds do and are capable of. We have a friend that is a vet tech and a friend that rescues all types of parrots, etc. I would prefer to have more positive feedback.

 

[DebsFlock]

I don't have a 'too, but my husband once did. They do have a reputation of being rather difficult birds, but they can also be wonderful pets. They are very smart!

Are his wings trimmed or can he fly? If you don't have other pets, you could let him have a wander around the room, just make sure he can't get into anything that might be dangerous, like power cords he could chew on. Will he step up for you?

Some people say to leave a new bird pretty much alone for the first few days, just sitting by the cage and talking. Others suggest handling them as much as they seem comfortable with.

You may want to get a library of books and read up on birds. There are a lot of things that can cause them trouble that you might not think twice about. In that way they are sort of like horses, only I think more so! You might also want to post in and read through the "Cockatoo" section of the website. You may find others who have adopted older 'toos who have some advice.

When will we get to see some pictures?

 

[PortaPerch]

Beak grinding: Chewbaca does what sounds like that at odd times, usually when she's content. She earned this name, because she chews everything, although that seems to be slowing down a little..

Chewy at 70 mph.

 

[brianlinkles]

Generally speaking beak grinding is usually a sign of contentment. Yes, you are definatley jumping right into the deep end of the pool so to speak however I too sort of did that. My first larger bird was a rescue amazon that was 15 and had LOTS of baggage! I am not a believer that you need to first start with a smaller bird. In fact I find that way of thinking sort of insulting to our smaller perhaps easier to deal with feathered friends almost as though they are alright to be "tried" out. I believe that everyone should be very informed of the bird they choose to add to their family. If it happens that your dream is to have a cockatoo, macaw, grey then you should read, visit, prepare for that bird. I think that it is more important that you have the desire, drive & dedication to make the best possible home for your bird. Yes you do have one of the more difficult loud birds however they can also be one of the more lovable , cuddly, smart birds around. I think that the best advice is to read everything that you can find about your new family member. I would take it for a trip to an avian vet and write down any questions you may have come up with. If at all possible I would search out a good bird store/aviary that may have some good people working there that could help you as well. This forum is also a terrific place to search for answers as well as ask questions. I think that you will find that most people here are very enthusiastic about their birds and take owning one of these amazing parrots very seriously! Sometimes this may come off as harsh comments however I think that many times it is not exactly what the poster meant it to be. Please keep asking questions and know that we all want you to be successful with your new parrot! We would love to see pictures, we love them here!

 

[crewchief]

Generally speaking beak grinding is usually a sign of contentment. Yes, you are definatley jumping right into the deep end of the pool so to speak however I too sort of did that. My first larger bird was a rescue amazon that was 15 and had LOTS of baggage! I am not a believer that you need to first start with a smaller bird. In fact I find that way of thinking sort of insulting to our smaller perhaps easier to deal with feathered friends almost as though they are alright to be "tried" out. I believe that everyone should be very informed of the bird they choose to add to their family. If it happens that your dream is to have a cockatoo, macaw, grey then you should read, visit, prepare for that bird. I think that it is more important that you have the desire, drive & dedication to make the best possible home for your bird. Yes you do have one of the more difficult loud birds however they can also be one of the more lovable , cuddly, smart birds around. I think that the best advice is to read everything that you can find about your new family member. I would take it for a trip to an avian vet and write down any questions you may have come up with. If at all possible I would search out a good bird store/aviary that may have some good people working there that could help you as well. This forum is also a terrific place to search for answers as well as ask questions. I think that you will find that most people here are very enthusiastic about their birds and take owning one of these amazing parrots very seriously! Sometimes this may come off as harsh comments however I think that many times it is not exactly what the poster meant it to be. Please keep asking questions and know that we all want you to be successful with your new parrot! We would love to see pictures, we love them here!

Since a few have asked, here some pictures of our Addison.