Rescueing Penny

[Laurasea]

Thank you for letting me share. Maybe someone else will be inspired to Foster or rescue....it's only day two! And we had a hunger strike this morning! She wanted those sunflower seeds..after not eating till 1 pm, I decided to make oatmeal and soaked and mashed up pellets in her portion, we sat side by side at the breakfast bar a d she dug in! I never thought about the words or sounds my new Penny would make, lol. This morning the curse word caught me by surprise, abd this evening she was feeling particularly happy and settling in. Neptune was going through his words, I'll have to make a thread for him, he was the reason I joined. Anyway Penny was chirping happily along, the belted out a barking dog noise!!! Shocked the whole flock every one started screaming! It was priceless! Then dead silence and Penny added a car alarm noise, and some other mechanical sounds..none if these noises are my favorite thing to hear. But I know it means she is settling in, abd now I can't wait to see what else she will do. Shortly after that Neptune said no beuno, which is just as surpriseing as no Spanish is spoken here, this was something he heard in his hatching home. It's amazing what they are picking up while being hand raised! I got Neptune as a fluffy fledgling before he spoke. Once he started speaking he throws in laughing like the breeder, gimme a cookie like their five year old son, and no bueno, like the husband. No bueno just showed up yesterday, so I'm not sure what else he had stored away to surprise me with!

 

[Laurasea]

The honeymoon is over lol. This morning I placed Penny on top of her cage while cleaning instead if my shoulder. When I went to get her she nailed ne on my knuckle, painful gash .. I left her up there and every time I passed she got a yummy treat. Then only yummy treat if she stepped up, then I let her go back on top of cage. After an hour of this she is politely stepping up again. But the bite right on my knuckle is a good reminder that we don't know each other well yet. Abd last night she plucked many more feathers...

 

[Jen5200]

Ouch! It’s early days yet, and she (and you) are still settling in. You have accomplished much in just a couple of days.

 

[Laurasea]

It occurred to me after reading some biting posts, that I need to go into some more detail. Why did Penny bite? My top three thoughts were fear, agression territorial, or manipulation. I went with the thought she was biting, hissing, because she was out, and this had worked in the past to let her stay out on too of the cage. Going with that I wanted to show her she can trust me, abd she won't be imeadately stuffed back in the cage. So I pretended to be busy having to pass by her cage often, abd spoke quiet hello Penny here's a treat, then treats only for stepping up, then treats for stepping up and going back in her cage for a second, then back up on top. Being extremely gentle and slow. Today is set aside for parrot day, so we have been reappearing this often. I have had a couple of threats but no more biting. We are building trust, but I'm sure we will have many more learning opportunities, she had seven years before we met.

 

[Laurasea]

Well I'm getting the chance to do pkeny of learning! Penny is a monster on top of her cage!! She easy to get in and out of her cage, easy to get off and on my shoulder,but put her on top of her cage wowza a beast! I have to remember it's only day four. So back to trust bonding, and repition. She is only feather picking at night... not sure how to address that? I had been covering her, so left her uncovered last night still picked ..

 

[Inger]

I don’t have any thoughts about her plucking, but can you avoid putting her on top of her cage until you two have a better understanding?


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[Laurasea]

Good advice, I'm kinda stuck on where to plant her, cuz she is still in quarantine..don't want to contaminate any of my play stations...I guess I will try something different tomorrow..

 

[Laurasea]

Penny can make a lot of loud mechanical alarms, sounds, abd barking day noises.... hope I can switch her to more word vocalizations!

 

[Laurasea]

Today Penny and I had our first cuddles!!!!! She had let me hold her or put her on my shoulder since I rescued her a week ago. But this is the first day she has let me pet her! So happy, she even rubbed her face against mine. She doesn't allow srcitching yet....abd I really want to help her with the pin feathers on her head! But I just need to keep building trust. She is getting much better about the top of get cage. I can usually talk her out of the attitude now.

 

[SassiBird]

Thank you for caring for Penny.

 

[Laurasea]

Aww I was ment to find her.....I know it sounds silly, but I had dreamed of a feather picked green Quaker several times a few weeks before I found her, had even told my best friend.....Anyway as I write this my Penny is screaming, she is a BIG screamer... starting to think that's why she was given up.....lol will have to go read about screaming parrots now ...

 

[Laurasea]

A sweet funny and gross update on Penny. Today she let me pet her for the first time like I posted earlier. I just had her out again and was recling with her on my chest. I was finally able to rub her head, she was so happy. Then she decided to to regurge for me and was trying to stuff it in my mouth! I had my lips tightly shut am trying to figure out how to get her off me without making her scared. The while time she is trying to stuff her beak in my mouth. It was so sweet and gross and she got so mad that I wouldn't open up. I feel like I turned down a marriage proposal, lol and she was fuming... Lol

 

[Laurasea]

Not so funny after all. When I woke up at seven, Penny was still mad ,upset, feeling rejected? Yesterday was the first time she had allowed me to pet her, maybe the first time she had been petted in a long long while... Then she tried to feed me her regurge and I wouldn't let her. Today she wouldn't come out of her cage, she wouldn't step up for me. She screamed when ever I came near her and threat displayed. I tried sitting and talking with her, I tried giving her treats but she would just try and bite. I tried on and off for hours. Finally I got her taking a seed treat only to spit them out. I reminded myself this is day nine, we had a backslide, we will get there. Then I sat with her again and apologized for turning down her food. Told her I still want to be her very best buddy, please trust me. She finally came out of her cage and stepped up, maybe she could feel what I meant. This was at 245 pm I had been trying since 7 am. I was so happy, we sat for a half hour with her on my shoulder just talking, not trying to pet her. Then after an hour she wanted me to pet her. We enjoyed each other's company. I was reading a book and she climbed down and stuck her head in my hand, she wanted some scritches again!!!! Only second time she has let me. I'm so happy! I know we will have more bumps in the road, but she is worth it. Do you think all this drama earlier was from rejecting her last night when when she wanted to stuff regurge in my mouth??????

 

[ChristaNL]

Your girl is going to the extremes indeed!
That is okay: you don't want to kill her - but you also dont want to mate with her -> this she knows.
So now you both can work in finding the middle way: be great friends, but not a broodpair.


You are doing *so* great here!!

 

[EllenD]

Your girl is going to the extremes indeed!
That is okay: you don't want to kill her - but you also dont want to mate with her -> this she knows.
So now you both can work in finding the middle way: be great friends, but not a broodpair.


You are doing *so* great here!!

Well Penny is definitely going through some "hormonal" episodes, that has quite a lot to do with the "mood swings", and they really do have mood-swings based on their hormonal rushes. So this too shall pass.

On a side-note, did you have Penny DNA-tested, or were you given a DNA-certificate? I'm asking because most of Penny's hormonal behavior is indicative of a male bird, not a female.

 

[Mariar]

What awsome updates! Keep up the good work! !

 

[Laurasea]

Thanks! I plan to have Penny DNA tested, was just told she is a girl....
So ??? After some reading I'm think you are right could be a boy... Need to get the test done she/get was very good today.

 

[Laurasea]

Penny is improving on coming out of her cage, and stepping up without bites. She is spending much less time screaming!! And more time talking and whistles, she can say pretty pretty burdie, and good burdy. Today everyone had oatmeal with pellets mashed in. Since the flock was all happy I started introductions. I just rotated everyone near each other, one on my shoulder one eating oatmeal, one on a rope swing ect. Went very well everyone seemed to just ignore each other. Though when Penny's back was turned I see Ta-dah was given her a once over.

 

[Laurasea]

Penny has trust! She is just progressing so much faster than I ever thought. Her featheres sparkle, her eyes twinkle! She looks so beautiful I can't believe she is the same bird. Her mobility and flexibility has improved, we have been working on wing stretches. After being crammed into that tiny Finch cage, her body is unclamping. She just seems to very happy, like she looks forward to each morning now. She gobbles up veggies, but nope on pellets ( unless I have warned and mushed them into something else. It makes my heart glow to see the changes in her. Unfortunately my other quaker Neptune has added her worst screaming vocalizations to his daily song... She has not picked one feather in days!! Still no bites just occasionally threats. Haven't been able to get her melded into the flock yet, so still a lot of work to balance every birdies time with me. Looking back on her first dirty bird pictures I just can't believe she came so far so fast. I could wait to keep seeing her personality unfold.

 

[Laurasea]

Recap in pictures

And now!