Long story.
I am the owner of a beautiful, tame yellow sided GCC. My mother was watching the bird and accidentally released her. She flew straight up and dissapeared.
Out of guilt, and without asking, my parents, who know nothing about birds, bought me not one, but two GCCs, a male and female. The condition they were in was shocking. Both were a year old, unclipped, and could barely lift off due to atrophied muscles. The previous owner must of have kept them locked up for their entire short lives. They were the color of dust from dried feces. Their tail feathers were see-through frayed. The female has one deformed toe, possibly from being broken a long time ago.
Miraculously my GCC was found a day later and two miles away in good condition. I could not in good conscience return these abused birds to the original owner, or just dump them in their miserable condition on another gullible buyer. I decided to try and rehabilitate them so that they could be placed in a good home.
For the first few days, both birds bit to draw blood and screamed as if for dear life. After three weeks of good food, sunlight, baths, and lots of interaction, I have made good progress, though behavioral issues do remain.
The male, a cinnamon, weighs 67 grams. He does not like to be picked up and will bite, though not as hard as before. However, once you manage to grab him, he will enjoy a head scratching. I trained him to step up for seeds. He can be carefully handled and is making small improvements each day. For instance, yesterday he landed on my head.
The girl, wild-type coloration, weighs 65 grams. She is very gentle, flies straight to the shoulder, and has an anxiety disorder. The previous owner hit her, I have no doubt of this. She is very afraid of hands, but if you approach slowly, she will allow you to grab. She loves to play with toilet paper. It also seems to have a calming effect. One trick I learned is to hold some bunched up toilet paper, wait till she pecks at it, then pick her up from behind.
Both of these GCCs can be flipped over on their backs, and will lay there in almost a trance, which is quite amazing given what they've been through.
Taking these birds to a Bird Sanctuary is not an option. I cannot afford their intake fees.
If you have a good heart and can give one of these birds the love and attention they deserve, please contact me. I would like to charge a rehoming fee to ensure whoever adopts is serious about keeping them for life.
Videos here: https://vimeo.com/user19097519/videos
I am the owner of a beautiful, tame yellow sided GCC. My mother was watching the bird and accidentally released her. She flew straight up and dissapeared.
Out of guilt, and without asking, my parents, who know nothing about birds, bought me not one, but two GCCs, a male and female. The condition they were in was shocking. Both were a year old, unclipped, and could barely lift off due to atrophied muscles. The previous owner must of have kept them locked up for their entire short lives. They were the color of dust from dried feces. Their tail feathers were see-through frayed. The female has one deformed toe, possibly from being broken a long time ago.
Miraculously my GCC was found a day later and two miles away in good condition. I could not in good conscience return these abused birds to the original owner, or just dump them in their miserable condition on another gullible buyer. I decided to try and rehabilitate them so that they could be placed in a good home.
For the first few days, both birds bit to draw blood and screamed as if for dear life. After three weeks of good food, sunlight, baths, and lots of interaction, I have made good progress, though behavioral issues do remain.
The male, a cinnamon, weighs 67 grams. He does not like to be picked up and will bite, though not as hard as before. However, once you manage to grab him, he will enjoy a head scratching. I trained him to step up for seeds. He can be carefully handled and is making small improvements each day. For instance, yesterday he landed on my head.
The girl, wild-type coloration, weighs 65 grams. She is very gentle, flies straight to the shoulder, and has an anxiety disorder. The previous owner hit her, I have no doubt of this. She is very afraid of hands, but if you approach slowly, she will allow you to grab. She loves to play with toilet paper. It also seems to have a calming effect. One trick I learned is to hold some bunched up toilet paper, wait till she pecks at it, then pick her up from behind.
Both of these GCCs can be flipped over on their backs, and will lay there in almost a trance, which is quite amazing given what they've been through.
Taking these birds to a Bird Sanctuary is not an option. I cannot afford their intake fees.
If you have a good heart and can give one of these birds the love and attention they deserve, please contact me. I would like to charge a rehoming fee to ensure whoever adopts is serious about keeping them for life.
Videos here: https://vimeo.com/user19097519/videos
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