Possible adoption: cage bound Goffin

[PaperLantern]

So I went to visit a rescue today just to visit with the birds and one of them, a cage bound Goffin of unknown age pretty much "chose" me. The bird is extremely aggressive and fearful inside of the cage and will NOT come out for hours even with the door open. If you go near the cage he moves away and almost seems to hyperventilate. After awhile he came out and cuddled right into my neck and would not move for over an hour.

The people at the rescue said that he is aggressive inside of the cage but completely fine outside of it. He doesn't have too much of an issue with excessive screaming but he is a big plucker and often knicks his blood feathers.

I know this is a "problem" bird but he just makes my heart melt. I used to be obsessed with Umbrella cockatoos before deciding that ultimately, it isn't the bird for me. I'm now happily owned by my 4 year old Green Cheek. I'm not the most experienced parrot owner, but I did 3 years of research before getting my Green Cheek and I still constantly do research to make sure he has the biggest cage possible (macaw sized with appropriate bar-spacing), plenty of varied toys, the best diet, and is even on a solar sleep schedule. I don't doubt that I'd be able to accommodate a Goffin, but I do have some questions.

Chubby (my GCC) is like my first child. Could he get stressed out and start plucking his feathers if I bring home another parrot? Would he be unhappy? How do you balance your time between two birds so that one doesn't feel left out especially if they can't be trusted out of the cage together at the same time? If I get this bird I want to make sure I'm the last home he has.

How do you 'too owners deal with the dust? This Goffin is pretty much bald except his head (and a few patches here and there) but I'm assuming he will still make dust.

I will continue visiting with him and spending time, even if I end up not adopting him. I want to make sure I know what I'm getting into. Any advice from Goffin owners?

 

[Flboy]

No answers for you, but I am right where you are at! JoJo is my first love! But I do know he loves all birds, goes into a dance when I do the YouTube thing! He was housed with 30 parakeets, and I swear, he knows every call!

 

[Scott]

Your first sentence says it all. The balance of the paragraph underscores the sentiment!

Goffins are my favorite species, and I live with 2 wild-caught parents and their 3 hand-fed offspring. Each one has a unique personality, so I cannot suggest Goffins are peas in a pod. They respond well to love and tenderness, something likely lacking with your cage-bound example. My opinion is they are quite insightful and have a keen ability to "read" you once a bond is established.

I'm not familiar with GCCs and cannot opine on their interactions with other parrots. FYI my male Goffins can be jealous. In the ideal world you would introduce them, but the realities of quarantine mitigate against.

Goffin dander (dust) seems less prolific than Moluccan or Citron, but of course they are smaller parrots. Unless you or a family member have respiratory or allergic reactions, it's a benign issue.

Thanks for taking a strong interest in this bird! Hopefully you will take him home, but your rational approach is commendable!! Good luck, and keep us advised!!

 

[Dopey]

Once you have been loved by a too there is no going back.

How do I handle the dust? What dust? Seriously I know it is there but it doesn't bother me. It's just there and I wipe it, vacuum it, or sweep it.

The bird chose you. A too chose you! Go and just love the too.

 

[AmyMyBlueFront]

I adopted Jonesy,my goffins,about 6 months ago from my girl friends brother,Jones is about 28 yrs old. I also have a Blue Front,I have had her since she was 16 weeks old and Amy is close to 28 also.

Amy is VERY inquisitive about Jonesy..Arleen <my gf> and I let the two birds out and highly supervise their interactions. It has gotten now to where Arleen and I can sit on the couch next to each other and I can give Jonesy lovin' while Amy gets lovin' from Arleen and there is no jealousy between the birdies. Amy will sometimes walk across the floor to Jonesy's house and say "hi bird" to him..and Jones will raise his little "hat" and do his 'too dance on his roof top..its hilarious!

As far as dander?? OMG Jones is a stripper! I find his clothes all over the place! I swear he should be bald! I still don't know why he does this..it seems like he sheds when he is HAPPY..when he is out with us playing cards in the kitchen,or sitting on our lap watching tv..he just yoinks on "loose" feathers..but if he is left to his own in his house he doesn't do this.

He is a very happy little guy it seems..very talkative and REAL loving..hopping from my knee to my chest then snuggling under my chin to be scratched to he falls asleep..I really need to get some pics of the four of us together lol...I never had a 'too before,but now I'd never give him up ever!

Jim

 

[Siobhan]

I have eight birds, all different species. Not all want to be handled, so I talk to and play with them without touching. The ones who do want to be handled have to learn to take turns. Two birds live separate from the others and from each other and I juggle my time to make sure every bird gets the attention they need. It isn't easy, but nothing worth doing is. Each one would prefer to be an only child. LOL As for dust, two of mine are cockatiels and one's a cockatoo and yes, they make tons of dust. Luckily, I'm not allergic, so it's just a matter of sweeping up as needed, and in the case of Rocky, remembering to brush off my dark clothes before I leave the house after he's been sitting on me leaving big white smudges all over my shirt. If that bird made a connection with you, and you want to bring him home, do it. You'll make it work.

 

[Birdman666]

I had a very neurotic plucking G2 that was the same way.

In fact, the first time that bird had ever come out of his cage, was to hop on my arm, rather unexpectedly, and then refuse to go down. This bird was plucked down to his very last head feather, and was covered in sores... he plucked himself down to bare skin, and then kept right on going until he had about a dozen open sores, and no feathers...

"YOU HAVE TO TAKE HIM. HE WON'T GO TO ANYONE ELSE!"

The bird wasn't so much cage bound, as FEARFUL. The cage represented safety to that bird. And he needed to be within site of it at all times. We tried to change the cage, but he had none of that... ANY CHANGE SET OFF A RAIN MAN/BUT ITS TIME FOR JUDGE WHOPPNER MOMENT.

I suspect that the bird you are describing has a similar neurotic bend...

What worked with that bird was a set routine. The same thing happened every day. As the bird was gradually handled more and more... He became comfortable with us.

Unfotunately, I tried to get that bird to obscess with preening toys instead of his own feathers. While it worked, and at the time he died, he had regrown down, and actually had tail feathers coming in again...

HE ULTIMATELY INGESTED SO MUCH PREENING ROPE THAT HE DIED FROM AN INTESTINAL BLOCKAGE.

We gave him a happy life for a few short months... that's about it.

 

[MonicaMc]

Chubby (my GCC) is like my first child. Could he get stressed out and start plucking his feathers if I bring home another parrot?
It's possible, yes, but unlikely. Parrots are flock creatures, it is ABNORMAL for them to be alone. As much as we may think otherwise, humans do not make ideal flock mates. It's rare for the first bird to start plucking when a second one is brought in.


Would he be unhappy?
It's possible. You wont know until you try. Every bird is an individual, and as much as we may know our own birds, we don't know how any one else's birds may react in a situation. Heck, a bird may react one way in one situation, but may act completely different in another situation.


How do you balance your time between two birds so that one doesn't feel left out especially if they can't be trusted out of the cage together at the same time?
You could try separate out of cages times, or even have separate play gyms for each bird so both can be out at the same time but not necessarily on you. Hands off attention can be just as important, if not more so, than physical attention at times.


How do you 'too owners deal with the dust? This Goffin is pretty much bald except his head (and a few patches here and there) but I'm assuming he will still make dust.
If dust is an issue (and a healthy cockaoto *will* produce dust!), you can get a HEPA air purifier. Just stay clear of ionizers! Or if you happen to get a unit that has an ionizer in it, be sure you have the option to turn it off!

Plus, plenty of bathes! And it wouldn't hurt to lightly spray the cage papers either while changing them.

Otherwise, normal vacuuming and cleaning as usual. I don't have a cockatoo, but I do have cockatiels!



BTW, have you seen Barbara Heidenreich's webinar on working with rescue and rehomed birds???

http://www.parrotforums.com/trainin...omed-parrots-barbara-heidenreich-webinar.html