Quick, short window to mess with Gus's head

[Kentuckienne]

Mess with his head in a good way. His human left for a 10-day vacation on Thursday afternoon, leaving him alone with me and a couple of house guests. I didn't bother Gus too much while the company was here - I let him sleep on top of his cage and only picked him up when he wanted to be carried across the room to poop. He doesn't like to bestow boons on his cage. That's one big blessing: his cage is easy to clean. But the guests left yesterday, and I still have a week plus to get on his good side.

He sits on top the cage all day, won't step up from there, when he does go on a poop voyage he is frantic to get back to the cage. Today I thought to get him to at least go in the cage, so I removed the pellet and water bowls from the playtop. He has full bowls of both inside the cage. He wouldn't go in all day. So around 5 PM, I showed him a pistachio nut, let him watch me drop it in the food bowl, then swing the bowl back into the cage. No go. I put a big tortilla chip in the food bowl and left it swung to the outside. He clambered down, clumsily, picked it up and clambered back on top to eat it. I put another chip in the bowl, closed it. No good. I put some tangerine sections in his top food bowl near the outside perch, and he climbed over to eat them. While he was there, I let him see me put another piece of chip, a cashew nut, and a pistachio nut in the bowl and close it back in the cage. You should have seen him give it the side eye! I turned my back and walked away, and he climbed down into the cage to eat and drink. I think people have used that trick to trap him inside the cage before.

I'm thinking, he was shut in a cage so long without relief, who can blame him he doesn't want to go back. He is pretty good about not climbing down - for now I'd be glad to leave the door open even at night, I just wish he would go inside now and then. There are times he needs to go in, like when we leave the house, and right now I can't put him in without traumatizing him. He hates sticks and won't step up onto one. He gets weird up on top: sometimes he will rip paper and sometimes he just sits. For that matter he's weird all the time. We've never seen him sleep normally. You go see him any time of night: he's sitting down on the perch. He doesn't put his head under his wing or pick up a foot. Is he even sleeping? Either we are waking him up or he sleeps with his eyes open.

My dream is to use this home alone time to develop a bit more bond, so he will allow me to pick him up, maybe even give him scritches. Does anybody have any sneaky tricks I can use? I sit by him, eat dinner by him, give him tidbits when asked, talk to him. I'm resigned to him not being my bird, but if there is some way to break him out of this fear/isolation/just sitting cycle I would do it. He has a home here forever no matter what, but it would be such a dream to have a cuddly sweetie in the house.

 

[SailBoat]

As you know, to move forward, the past needs to be released. Easy to say, darn difficult to make happen.

The cage harbors huge fear of being locked away. And, if there is anything that will help release the past its finding a way to either making it go away or be easily opened by Gus anytime he wants or needs.

Take a long look at it being opened widely and the option of making it go away. Neither is easy at first until you start using your mind to define possibilities!

 

[Kentuckienne]

I'm leaving it with the door wide open for now. But it's a safety issue if I go out...it's an open floor plan, a log house, with only one bedroom on the main floor. There's no place for a parrot room where he could roam freely. If he wanders around on the floor there are electric cords and other chewy things that could kill him. But you are right, it was so terrible him being locked away for eight years. If there were some way to let him be out, on a stand that he couldn't climb down from... but I have several medical appointments this week and I hate to leave him out all day unsupervised...

 

[Kentuckienne]

I feel rotten. I was being so clever, putting Gus's food and water inside the cage. I was even clever enough to tempt him to the food bowl briefly. But just now I held up a plastic goblet of water - he likes to drink from glasses - and he drank like two ounces. I made him be thirsty all day with my cleverness. I put the extra food and water bowls back up on top. I'm sorry.

 

[SailBoat]

I'm leaving it with the door wide open for now. But it's a safety issue if I go out...it's an open floor plan, a log house, with only one bedroom on the main floor. There's no place for a parrot room where he could roam freely. If he wanders around on the floor there are electric cords and other chewy things that could kill him. But you are right, it was so terrible him being locked away for eight years. If there were some way to let him be out, on a stand that he couldn't climb down from... but I have several medical appointments this week and I hate to leave him out all day unsupervised...

You have a wonderful abstract mind that when a concept is allowed to simmer with time ideas come to the surface.

Idea #1: It may be the same cage, but what if the complete front face opened?

Let that wonderful mind of your's simmer!

 

[Flboy]

Nothing to give of any help, but you really are very special! I hope the old man of the house sees it! I know Gus does!

 

[GaleriaGila]

Oh, my darling Kentuckienne...

I just did an equally "clever" manipulation concerning my weighing nerd-ness (Adventures in Weighing).
Totally abused the Rb in the name of guarding his welfare.
Gah.
I would flagellate mysslf but I'm squeamish.

 

[Kentuckienne]

I'm somewhat redeemed. I left Gus alone after dinner, and after a while I heard him squawk, I looked, and he was doing the poo dance at the edge of the cage door. I ran over and put out my arm, he practically jumped onto it, then I ran him back to the tree perch where he unloaded a mammoth boon. He stayed there the rest of the evening. Had a chip, let me touch him ever so briefly. When he started to look sleepy, I tried to tempt him back to the cage with a vanilla wafer. He would have none of it. I gave him most of it anyway. I tried turning on the light over the cage so he could see it, and turning down the living room light, and he seemed like he wanted to go but wouldn't step up. I had to get the Gauntlet and swoop him up. He makes this awful noise when he's stepped up unwillingly, like I stepped on his tail. He does that to both of us, limited vocabulary but I know what he means. I promised him I would leave the door open and eventually got him on the perch inside. He was mad, shook the hanging toy, but I left the door open and told him goodnight. He waited a few moments then climbed back to the play top. He will be ok up there tonight. Things could be worse. He does want company, he does want to share food, he does ask for a poo lift. It could be worse.

I'm building him a pvc stand that will have lots of perches and places to hang things. I've been working on it a while, adjusting things so he can climb up and down. It still needs a flat board around the top and to get glued up for solidity. I think I can fix it where he isn't able to climb to the floor from it, and then he could sit there relatively unsupervised. I think if something scared him to the floor, he would just waddle over to his cage and climb up. I'm still not going to be comfortable going out with him loose. Maybe he will accept a temporary confinement as long as he can stay out while people are home.

 

[Kentuckienne]

Oh, my darling Kentuckienne...

I just did an equally "clever" manipulation concerning my weighing nerd-ness (Adventures in Weighing).
Totally abused the Rb in the name of guarding his welfare.
Gah.
I would flagellate mysslf but I'm squeamish.

It's so hard to know what's best for them. When is something really for their own good, and when is it just a habit? When am I being respectful of his personal freedom, and when am I allowing him to get in a dangerous situation he has no ability to understand? It's going to be trial and error, and I hope the errors aren't too bad. Sailboat's idea of a more open cage is great...but he has this expensive new Kings cage that has a big door but no way to open the whole front, it's welded together. Don't believe I'll be allowed to take an angle grinder to it, so I better work on the new stand...

 

[Kentuckienne]

Gus: don't come near me. Give me some of that breakfast food. Get away from me.
Gus: Come here right now! (Sitting on edge of open door).
K: Runs with Gus too poo stand. Gus created enormous boon.
Gus: take me back to the cage right now! No I don't want to sit on the couch. No I don't want to look out the window...wait, what's that? Take me back to my cage. No I don't want to look in the bathroom. What's that in the mirror? Take me back to my cage. I don't want to go in the kitchen. Wait, is that a corn chip? Can I have one can I have one can I have one put me back on my cage NOW get away from my chip you thief!
K: you be good bird.
(Time)
Gus: come here right now! (Sitting on edge of door). Not you, you go away!
(Time)
Gus: come here right now! (Sitting on door of cage.) Not you, go away.
Repeat 3X
Gus: come pick me up right now! Take me to poo city! Now I condescend to sit on your knee but I don't like it at all. Don't you dare touch me. I don't like this one bit. I want to go back to the cage. Don't you touch me! Ok, you can touch that feather, I can't reach it. Oh yeah. Ok, you can rub my shoulders. That feels relaxing. Don't touch me! Well maybe just a little head scritch. A little more. Don't touch me! Maybe just a little more, pinfeathers in my neck, now I really do want to go back.
(More time, time to fix dinner)
Gus: come pick me up now! No I don't want the perch. I want shoulder. What are you cooking? Is that for me? Give me some. I don't want to wait. I don't care if it's raw egg. What's raw? What's egg? Never mind. Is it done yet? Why do you have a plate, where's my plate? Is that my bowl? Is that for me? Give it to me give it to me put me down right now. Nom nom nom nom.
(Time)
Gus: come here now. Don't touch me. Why won't you ever be the right person? Why do you keep coming over here when I'm obviously calling the Person? No I won't step up. I'll sleep right here on the door. I don't care if it's not safe I might fall. Why are you making me go on top? Go away.

Such progress!