Anyone know anything about parrots??!!!

[lou]

This may be a bit long winded but here goes....

My mother and father-in-law have 2 african grey parrots, and they go away alot so we "bird sit" them, but last year they went to Australia for 6wks the longest we have had them - we fed them the same seed, fruit,veg etc let them out every day, but when my in laws picked them up with in a few hours Millie the female one started plucking and they took her to their vet and if i recall came back saying oh its stress of being left.

Well we have had them a good few times since then and they are perfect for us the longest since their oz trip has been 2wks, and most recently 4 days in feb, and as soon as they get them home she starts plucking it got so bad after xmas that she looks like a little ex-batt! and she is has even made herself bleed, she then stopped but after we had them last month my father in law phoned saying she started as soon as he got her home.

Now they are very well looked after at home and my in laws in no way think its our fault but there is a obvious connection...

My husband thinks its cos his dad spoils her rotten, i do agree he spoils her and she hates women, she better with me than most (not bragging but i do get on well with dodgy animals!!) and so Dan (hubby) thinks because when she is with us we treat her like a bird and not constantly talking to her like a baby and fussing over her all the time. And she feels suffocated by his dad - do parrots feel like that?

My father in law thinks its because she misses us because our house is a bit manic, 3 kids, a cat who they love to taunt and our dog, who is a springer and they wind her up by whistling then when she trots over they throw seed at her....she never learns! Sorry off topic there! And our kids always give them a treat here and there.
Im dont work (cos of 3kids) so im home alot and tend to talk to them as im cooking etc, they are in our kitchen/dinning area so lots of noise children etc, and so when they go home its quiet and in-laws work and so the birds miss all the noise etc.

Should mention George the other parrot, he does not pluck at all and is a little sweetie and a mummies boy!!! But not to my husband he has the scars to prove it!

Sorry i have gone on and on, but they have been back and forth to vets with no real answer, been given herbal stress relief stuff but doesnt seem to work, and my father in law is really upset seeing her do this to herself, and as said he dotes on her like a child!!

So any thoughts would be greatly welcomed!
Lou xx

[WendyM]

Oh it sounds like she is missing the noise. My dad had a parrot for years and when they went out to work for a few hours each day, they used to leave the TV on for it. I understand that parrots have the mind of a 3 year old. can you imagine leaving a 3 year old in a cage all day with no stimulation? Hope she perks up, they are lovely birds.

[Richard]

I believe that plucking is associated to stress?

Interesting Post.

Richard

[Citrine]

Moderator Wendy might know a bit about Parrots, I beleve she keeps cockatiels - are they similar??

[lou]

Hi thankyou for taking the time to read my essay!!

i expect they are similar?

We now its got to be some form of stress, i assume its the stress of being moved here then back again, regardless of the fact she is well looked after at both homes, also she prob just misses home, but my father in law doesnt think so??

Also anyone with experience of this know how you stop it? Its very sad as she had made herself bleed, so ot must hurt yet she continues to do it.

Also they leave radio on for her and we do awell when she is here

Thans again, and sorry for such a long post!

[wendy]

Hiya
I have two african greys also.
Plucking can be caused by stress, so perhaps the moving backwards and forwards may be the problem.
I think the noisy household is what she likes and misses it when not there with you all. Mine just love it when the houshold is noisy and love the cleaner and try to be noisier than it LOL
Lots of cage enrichment may help her lots of things to chew up etc.
Does you Dad buy from Northern Parrots? they have a website. they are a company that sell parrots stuff. I buy loads of pinata's for mine and raffia toys they just desemate them. But while preening them they are leaving them selves alone.
Also feeding from special toys with the food tucked inside, rather than a bowl. Makes the bird keep busy. Obviously plenty of time out of the cage on an enriched tree or stand As I come in they come out and I still got a plucking problem the first time I went away. But it has gone now.
I did hear that all pluckers talk, but not all talkers pluck. So that maybe why one does and one doesn't. My rescue was 13 when I got her and wasn't fed a good diet, only seed, quiche and chicken [I know I know] and she has never plucked, but i have had Indiana from a baby and she always has had a proper diet and enrichment and yet she plucked for awhile. But she talks for England. Funny that.
It is very hard to stop them once they start and african greys are one of the worse species for it.
Keeping parrots is not easy, I wouldn't reccomend them as a pet. They do take a lot of committment, as you know.
Wendy

[lou]

Thanks Wendy,
They do have those pinatas and raffia toys, dont think they have tried the feeding in a toy thingy...i guess its like the ones you get for dogs?

Im thinking it just got to be the stress of the going away so much, because they do most of the things you have mentioned their diet is right and as soon as they are home the birds come out, they had an extention built years ago for them so they free to do as they please in there if not in there with them , and yes she is a talker!!! They dont work long hours (own their own buisness so do work from home alot) but its a quiet house no other animals etc.
You are right though about them not being a ideal pet, i love em to bits and they are so much fun but im always glad when they go home!!
They have had her about 8yrs now, but started travelling alot the last few.

So looks like now she has started she prob wont stop!
Thankyou so much, i will pass all this on

xxxx

[wendy]

maybe worth them joining the World Parrot Trust.
They have a forum with brilliant behaviourists and you can ask them questions.
They have a website, get them to have a look. As she hasn't been doing it too long, don't take it that it cannot be cured just yet.
Yes, they are like living with permenant 5 year old.
Having bought up the four children and then had a puppy every two years. When we stopped showing....no more puppies. The house was sooooo quiet so we got a parrot. It ain't anymore LOL
Wendy

[seahorse]

My cousin just sold her yellow headed green parrot. She only got him in september as a youngster and taught him quite a large vocabulary. He lived in the kitchen and they always have visitors, tv on constantly and a curious cat. It got to a stage where they couldnt hear themselves think with all the noise he made, as well as all the kitchen cupboards being blocked because he would fly up and chew the edges. He had just started to bite and she was worried that he would peck one of the kids. The parrot forum was very good but she felt it wasnt fair on the bird and sought out new owners for him. These birds are not cheap but she sold him for what she paid and the new owners are lovely. Hopefully he will flourish and enjoy what should be a very long life.
I only had him for 2 weeks whilst they went on hols, and he was such a gentleman here, not much going on and very little noise. He never plucked and never seemed stressed. He would sit on my head as I read a book and never pecked me. I think he could have been overstimulated in their house and enjoyed a bit of one on one and quiet. They seem to be very individual in behaviour but still need to be treated like 3 year olds. Good luck with these two parrots

[wendy]

How sad for this bird.
This is the trouble with parrots, they can live up to 70 years old particulary the Greys and Macaws.
People aren't given all the truth when they buy them, and then realise they are a HUGH committment, much more than a dog. How many homes is this poor little bird going to have in his life? if he is lucky he will remain where he is now for the owners life but then what?
I read everything possible for nearly three years before I a got Indiana and still it was a very steep learning curve. I already have made provisions for mine with a friend who loves them and has never passed on an animal in her life, like me, so hopefully they will be with her for some time. But even then she may need to find a home as she may die before them. This is the HUGH commitment you have to make.
They are very intelligent and have minds of their own. Indiana is 7 yeasr old and I have had her since she was 16 weeks and is the perfect bird, no trouble whatsoever, no chewing flies around the lounge onto her cage or back to her tree an absolute delight.
Coco is 17 years old and we have had her 3 years. She is a menace, chews anything and everything. Was clipped from a baby so never learned to fledge. Now she has wings and eventually learned to fly last years. But she was allowed to play on the floor with her previous owners, and now she continuously flies to the floor. I pick her up and put her on her tree, this is how we go until the third time she goes back in the cage for time out. Then she is out again. Yesterday she decided she didn't want to go back in the cage and gave me a horrendous bite on my hand. Even today it is very swollen.
I can understand that she wants the floor, but I cannot have it because of the dogs. But She is out of the cage now and we are off again. It isn't her fault she lives in my lounge in a cage, someone decided to breed their parrot and this is the situation she has found herself in. Her previous owners never taught her how to behave, so I now have taken on their problems. What if she had gone to someone who hasn't my patience or understanding of behaviour, she would be passed from pillar to post until someone just shuts her in the garage, never lets her out or gives this flock animal any company.
No parrots shouldn't be in cages, they should be in the wild. The reason I have mine is I think they would get a better life with me than with a number of other owners.
As you can see it isn't only chickens [especially cockerells LOL] that I am passionate about. Hopefully if someone is thinking of getting a parrot this post may make them think again before just buying one. Parrots are not just for Christmas, they are for your life and your childrens.
Wendy

[lou]

It is sad but sounds like hopefully she has a long term home at last, i know we will inherit the parrots at some point its sad as they do out live their owners, but by then my children will be grown up (i hope) and i will have time for them.

Thanks Seahorse for wishing us luck!!

Lou x