Rescuing a 20 year old Goffin - thoughts?

[nostromosigningoff]

Hello,
I'm new here I currently have a 14 year old BH pionus female, a very sweet bird we've owned for 6 years after her previous family could no longer care for her. A year and a half ago I began working fully remote and I've been kind of lonely and thinking of getting a second bird to keep me company, primarily because our Pi, while very gentle and mild, is bonded to my husband. So when my husband is out at work I'm just the housekeeper We've been very spoiled with our bird, since she is so chill and easy. She is a bit standoffish but very calm and quiet 90% of the time, except for morning ear splitting flock calls during her hormonal season. She has been around other parrots and tolerates them but isn't really interested. She's also fully flighted but not a big flyer. Important to note, I also have my darling two year old son, who knows not to touch or approach birds.

I've been working with a wonderful rescue who recently recieved a 20 year old male Goffin that they're looking to rehome. He has plucked his tummy and back. I met him yesterday and he is just a doll! He was so sweet, friendly, and calm. Where all the other birds were screaming and posturing, he sat quietly in his cage until we approached and then lowered his head for scritches. He does not step up but is gentle enough that he can be made to step up without biting. The rescue owner said she hadn't noticed any plucking since he'd come to the rescue and wondered if it was permanent feather damage from previous plucking. She said he is pretty chill and quiet for a cockatoo, only calling in the morning and otherwise hanging out in his cage. She said he did not seem to be much of a chewer, which was surprising for what I've read about Goffins. One concern is that he seems to prefer women, and flew at a male volunteer at the rescue, although he landed on the volunteer without biting and it's not clear exactly what the intention of the behavior was.

My hestitation with adopting him is that I've heard endless horror stories of cockatoos and what they're like to have in the family. We have a really low maintenance Pi right now so it might be jarring to end up with a bird that dominates the household. I need a bird that can spend time alone without severe behaviors (I work from home, but of course we go out to the zoo or out to do things on weekends etc), is not flying to attack people, and can tolerate his chosen person also being a mother with a toddler hanging off her a lot of the time. I would provide a good diet, lots of quiet sleep time, the company of another similarly sized parrot, plenty of toys and foraging opportunities, lots of out of cage time.

What are your thoughts? He's such a sweetie, and we are a bird-knowledgeable household, but I don't want to bring home a cockatoo I can't really provide a good life for.

 

[Jcas]

Every bird is an individual. While there are general rules for each species, within the same species you can have individuals who are sweethearts and individuals who are terrors. Do you know why this Gofffins was surrendered to the rescue? That is always good to know. If the rescue is willing, one of the best things you can do is have a “ trial period” of 2-4 weeks where you take the bird home and see how he fits in with your household before committing to adoption. Some rescues let you do this. Thank you for considering adopting and best of luck with your decision

 

[nostromosigningoff]

Every bird is an individual. While there are general rules for each species, within the same species you can have individuals who are sweethearts and individuals who are terrors. Do you know why this Gofffins was surrendered to the rescue? That is always good to know. If the rescue is willing, one of the best things you can do is have a “ trial period” of 2-4 weeks where you take the bird home and see how he fits in with your household before committing to adoption. Some rescues let you do this. Thank you for considering adopting and best of luck with your decision

Thank you! Yes, he was surrendered because his owner got very sick not because of any problem behaviors. He lived with three larger parrots, including another cockatoo. She surrendered all four at once. He had lived with that owner for 10 years. Before that, he was surrendered to the same rescue as a 10 year old, but the owner of the rescue didn't remember why he'd been surrendered the first time.

And yes, we will definitely have a trial period! She said the first week or two can be difficult or not very telling of the bird's long term behavior, so she said she offers a 3 month "probationary" period before the adoption is finalized. I thought that sounded ideal to see how the bird settles in with everybody in the family.

 

[wrench13]

Well I always tell folks you get an additional parrot because YOU want one, not because you think your original one needs a friend, because you have like a 1 in 3 chance of things being ideal - everyone gets along with everyone. They could hate each other but still be friends with you, they could love each other , to the exclusion of you, they could be mehh to each other and now hate you and every other variation on that theme. And there is no way to tell in advance which it will be. Good idea for that 3 month trial period! Should be enough time for the new group dynamics to rear its ugly head! Good luck and good on ya for adopting!

 

[nostromosigningoff]

Well I always tell folks you get an additional parrot because YOU want one, not because you think your original one needs a friend, because you have like a 1 in 3 chance of things being ideal - everyone gets along with everyone. They could hate each other but still be friends with you, they could love each other , to the exclusion of you, they could be mehh to each other and now hate you and every other variation on that theme. And there is no way to tell in advance which it will be. Good idea for that 3 month trial period! Should be enough time for the new group dynamics to rear its ugly head! Good luck and good on ya for adopting!

Right. I would be pretty amazed if the birds bonded because they are both people-oriented parrots but I suppose you never know! I would not get in their way if they did, I'd think of that in a way as being a best case scenario for them to have another bird to love rather than looking to humans for companionship, but my hope with adopting this second parrot is that he will be a companion for me since I'm home alone a lot since our current bird is bonded to my husband and hardly looks my way!

 

[GambotheGreyt]

Right. I would be pretty amazed if the birds bonded because they are both people-oriented parrots but I suppose you never know! I would not get in their way if they did, I'd think of that in a way as being a best case scenario for them to have another bird to love rather than looking to humans for companionship, but my hope with adopting this second parrot is that he will be a companion for me since I'm home alone a lot since our current bird is bonded to my husband and hardly looks my way!

We had a Goffins that we adored. She was a little crazy and fun. Definitely cockatoo, but not a screamer at all. They can take earrings off in a big hurry or disassemble other mechanical type items.

She has not much of a biter but when she did , it was not nice because the lower mandible has a "fang" on each side.

Good luck with your decision.

 

[Starling]

Hello,
I'm new here I currently have a 14 year old BH pionus female, a very sweet bird we've owned for 6 years after her previous family could no longer care for her. A year and a half ago I began working fully remote and I've been kind of lonely and thinking of getting a second bird to keep me company, primarily because our Pi, while very gentle and mild, is bonded to my husband. So when my husband is out at work I'm just the housekeeper We've been very spoiled with our bird, since she is so chill and easy. She is a bit standoffish but very calm and quiet 90% of the time, except for morning ear splitting flock calls during her hormonal season. She has been around other parrots and tolerates them but isn't really interested. She's also fully flighted but not a big flyer. Important to note, I also have my darling two year old son, who knows not to touch or approach birds.

I've been working with a wonderful rescue who recently recieved a 20 year old male Goffin that they're looking to rehome. He has plucked his tummy and back. I met him yesterday and he is just a doll! He was so sweet, friendly, and calm. Where all the other birds were screaming and posturing, he sat quietly in his cage until we approached and then lowered his head for scritches. He does not step up but is gentle enough that he can be made to step up without biting. The rescue owner said she hadn't noticed any plucking since he'd come to the rescue and wondered if it was permanent feather damage from previous plucking. She said he is pretty chill and quiet for a cockatoo, only calling in the morning and otherwise hanging out in his cage. She said he did not seem to be much of a chewer, which was surprising for what I've read about Goffins. One concern is that he seems to prefer women, and flew at a male volunteer at the rescue, although he landed on the volunteer without biting and it's not clear exactly what the intention of the behavior was.

My hestitation with adopting him is that I've heard endless horror stories of cockatoos and what they're like to have in the family. We have a really low maintenance Pi right now so it might be jarring to end up with a bird that dominates the household. I need a bird that can spend time alone without severe behaviors (I work from home, but of course we go out to the zoo or out to do things on weekends etc), is not flying to attack people, and can tolerate his chosen person also being a mother with a toddler hanging off her a lot of the time. I would provide a good diet, lots of quiet sleep time, the company of another similarly sized parrot, plenty of toys and foraging opportunities, lots of out of cage time.

What are your thoughts? He's such a sweetie, and we are a bird-knowledgeable household, but I don't want to bring home a cockatoo I can't really provide a good life for.

Hello, I was intrigued enough by your inquiry that I joined the forum to respond and find if you went through with the adoption. I hope this Goffins has a home.

I didn’t want a bird at all when my own journey began. My background in animal behavior studies as a behavioral psychologist started in the mid ‘70’s but I mostly worked with marine mammals, dogs and wolves. I did field observational research on raptors and had occasional interactions with parrots. Of all the animals I encountered, birds seemed to truly dislike me. Especially one female genius crow. I tried winning her over for years and the more I tried, the harder she hated me. No amount of tasty gifts or kindnesses could budge her even an inch in my direction.

Parrots genuinely looked like nothing more than a good way to lose most of my fingers. As I worked my way through university, I managed to befriend a little cockatiel. She took to me right away and I never forgot that adorable girl. Unfortunately she perished in a fire inside a building where she was housed. BTW, she was not my pet but belonged to an odd man that I worked for while paying my way through college. It affected me greatly when that sweet tiny bird was taken in that blaze.

I changed jobs over the years and left my working with animals behind. I did not want a screaming loud parrot. Things have a way of surprising us and the universe had other plans. I have a son, now a grown man, who was diagnosed with type1 diabetes at age 9. This is only important to this story in that he is who had to have a pet bird. Not just a bird, a cockatoo. I was however not present when my husband told my sick and sad son “of course you can have a cockatoo” - I cursed under my breath, I cussed out loud, I screamed into a pillow. But I wasn’t going to deny this sweet child. I hate being the heavy. I informed these poor delusional family members of the down side(s) of keeping parrots as pets. I took them to the bird rescue where we lived. The bird people brought us cockatoos galore to fall in love with. I cussed under my breath and cursed out loud. I had, by this time stopped screaming into a pillow. Naturally, I loved them all. All of these poor creatures needed homes. But I secretly hoped a Goffins would come our way. The process of adding a parrot to a family is a serious matter. I have another son. He has autism and lots of quirks. He is not an animal kind of person. The other kid really wanted a cockatoo.

One day I was looking on Craigslist. Some Neanderthal was selling a Goffins. They lived a mile from us. I was very curious so I called the contact at the rescue and they tagged along on our adventure to meet a very special, very loud, very adorable genius bird. This bird was being sold for way too much money. The woman would not include “her” cage- it’s a he btw. I detested this woman who had not let this cockatoo out of his cage for six years. He was plucking himself to bits. He was a wreck. I fell in love with him. He was the kid nobody wanted. I am always the one who picks the most unadoptable thing at the SPCA so why change? That was 15 years ago. Elliott is my shadow. He was supposed to be my son’s pet. He tried really hard. They both did. Birds pick the person who they bond with and even though this bird, who his former owner described as a “vicious biter”, wasn’t mean to my diabetic son, he obviously chose me as his best friend.

He came home that day. He has been with me more than any other animal or human ever. Here’s the thing, they need to be in a flock of their own kind flying over the islands they are native to. These adaptable things only adapt to a certain point. Then they become very dependent upon human attention. I don’t fault the cockatoo. If they weren’t such impressively intelligent little pets, nobody would want them. Unfortunately for them they became a valuable commodity. I would not dream of buying from a breeder when so many go without a loving home. I brought this dude home because I saw a creature condemned to suffer because crazy lady wanted a lot more money than the going rate for a bird she herself thought was vicious. He is not. He was not reliably able to handle at first. He was untrusting due to isolation. In 5 weeks he was going to school with me to visit my children’s classes. He was sweet and calm and interacted with noisy children without even threatening to bite. He charmed everyone and he is my hero.

He is, as I type this, under my down comforter. I can feel his gentle breathing and if I talk to him, he might answer or he may pop his cute little feathery face out and cock his head to the side. He rarely will poop on me. In fact, he goes into a very obvious bunch of communication devices to get himself over newspaper to relieve himself. If only he would learn semaphore flags. I’d enjoy that. He has a limited vocabulary. Not a talker. He loves to dance and his punctuated head bobbing with his syncopated rhythm is SPECTACULAR.

His story could have been tragic. He still plucks but I’ve found he gets a lot of relief from being shampooed with a genuinely good mix of herbs in shampoo form. He stops plucking for several days and when he starts going at his feathers again I shampoo him in a warm shower and dry him right after. He loves his special spa days. He could have been kept in that dungeon of a cage forever or sold to someone who, after buying him, gave up. He tested me greatly. I went to the ER after one of his assaults. I’ve stood in blood filled crime scenes after being bitten. He has not hurt me in four or five years so he’s done well and I still have my fingers.

I want to encourage people to not give up on these precious beings. They don’t ask to be caged. We all know they don’t really ever wholly belong to us. They are exotic and wild. If it could be, I would want my best friend to be free and safe. I’d want nothing else for him. He loves me in the way that only a bonded parrot loves a person. It’s 100%. He is a bit over 30 now. He is super healthy and his beak is in tip top shape if he ever wants to open some cans in the kitchen.
I’m guessing he will live for another 20 plus years. I am 67 and I’ve promised him that I won’t die first. I have to keep my promises.

That son, the sick kid? He lives in Australia now. He sends me photos of the flocks of wild cockatoos who live right outside his house in Tasmania. He loves nature and animals and learned a lot from living with Elliott the Goffins.

If you decided to keep your friend, I’m happy for you. He may drive you and everyone crazy on occasion and don’t expect a calm discussion if that bird’s in the room. They want everyone's attention at all times.