I wasn't sure where to post this, so I just went to the most general forum. Warning this will probably be a long post.
When I was diagnosed with a form of brain cancer at the age of 14, I didn't know where my life was going to go. Even after surgery when the symptoms and the risk of dying went down, I didn't know what I wanted with my life. I was already two years behind in school, had severe memory issues, constant headaches, and terrible fatigue that kept me from doing much of anything. Somehow I was able to make it to those weekly doctor visits and therapies several times a week.
What added even more to my stress of thinking about what I was going to do in the future, was when my neurologist suggested that I sign up for a wish from the Make-A-Wish foundation. Now I have another thing to think about. I was told I could wish for anything I wanted, wow.
I started out with an Alaskan cruise, I had to put something down. There was something about an Alaskan cruise that I didn't want. I knew my memory already sucked so it wouldn't be nice to go on this amazing experience and then not be able to remember much of it. I put my wish off for two years and tried not to let it bother me.
For the past year I had been taking an interest in birds. I loved feeding them in the backyard and putting different food options out and watching different species come. From there I went on to parrots, watching people's videos on YouTube, I love how they interacted with their owners. Some parrots talked and could learn tricks, but also learn colors, the names of different objects and foods. There on I went to a specific species of parrot, the Indian Ringneck.
I instantly fell in love with their adorable voice, their playful nature, and they way that they loved to be interacted with. However, never in a million years did I think that my parents would allow me to have a pet bird. We already had a pet dog, and even I knew that dogs and birds don't mix.
I waited a few months before bringing it up, I knew what I wanted for my wish now, more than any cruise or trip to Disney Land, I wanted my very own Indian Ringneck.
I knew from the very start to not expect every bird to be like the ones I saw online. I did lots of research about behavior issues ringnecks can have such as bluffing. I knew that they can be loud, bitey, and that they are a species that must be as "tamed" as possible before you can teach them anything. They're still semi-wild animals. Besides all of the flaws I had read about, I was ready for the challenge. On June 24th, 2018, my Indian Ringneck arrived on a plane that flew from Austin, TX to Detroit, MI.
He had been bought from a breeder that I had seen and heard about online as being a wonder breeder, JC Aviary. When I saw him being carried onto my front porch in the crate, his little face was peeping out of the mesh "window", I instantly fell in love. Everything seemed fine, until I opened his crate.
The breeder said to simply open his crate by prying it with a screwdriver, then ask your bird to "step up" and place your bird in their cage. After that you let them get used to their environment by leaving them alone for 2-3 days besides the times you need to change their food and water. I opened his crate, I was alone in a quiet room, the lights dimmed. He flailed out of the crate and was flying as much as he could (his wings were butched) all over the room. I eventually caught him when he slipped on his bag of parrot food and rushed him to his cage. This would be the only time I've gotten to hold him.
The breeder's instructions were terrible. They told me to feed him the fatty parrot food with vegetables and fruits once in a while. I didn't do this. My original thread about Hoshi (my bird) and more of his experiences I've had with his fear is here: Very Scared Indian Ringneck!! | Avian Avenue Parrot Forum
After a week of this behavior I called the breeder, they told me it was bluffing. I knew it wasn't. It's obviously fear. I called them three different times and every time they said it was bluffing. My mom said that this breeder sounds more like a puppy mill, they're just telling me it's bluffing because they just sold a very expensive bird.
My point is, it's been a month and a half and I haven't been able to hold my bird. He hides in the corner of his cage. He won't take food from me, he tries to get as far away from me as he can. I thought that if I boarded him for a few days at my amazing vet in Toledo that having him be back with some birds would make him feel more comfortable, it did nothing. Everyone at the vet is baffled by his behavior. Both vets there said there are clear signs of abuse. His wings feather's look like they were butchered off by a 3 year old, his beak his crooked from improper hand feeding while being weened, and his responses to people in general are enough to show that he went through something traumatic.
Currently the vet there is trying to find me a bird trainer to see if they can help Hoshi. She also said that Ann Brooks (the president of the Phoenix Landing foundation, a organization dedicated to rescuing and rehoming birds) is willing to take Hoshi and send me a different bird.
That's where the decision part comes in. I love Hoshi very much, but I don't want to make his condition worse by not being the right home for him. At the same time, parrots aren't objects that you just return to the store and get a new one because it was defective. There has been lots of tears, I'm not sure what to do. If there's anyone out there with suggestions, please let me know.
When I was diagnosed with a form of brain cancer at the age of 14, I didn't know where my life was going to go. Even after surgery when the symptoms and the risk of dying went down, I didn't know what I wanted with my life. I was already two years behind in school, had severe memory issues, constant headaches, and terrible fatigue that kept me from doing much of anything. Somehow I was able to make it to those weekly doctor visits and therapies several times a week.
What added even more to my stress of thinking about what I was going to do in the future, was when my neurologist suggested that I sign up for a wish from the Make-A-Wish foundation. Now I have another thing to think about. I was told I could wish for anything I wanted, wow.
I started out with an Alaskan cruise, I had to put something down. There was something about an Alaskan cruise that I didn't want. I knew my memory already sucked so it wouldn't be nice to go on this amazing experience and then not be able to remember much of it. I put my wish off for two years and tried not to let it bother me.
For the past year I had been taking an interest in birds. I loved feeding them in the backyard and putting different food options out and watching different species come. From there I went on to parrots, watching people's videos on YouTube, I love how they interacted with their owners. Some parrots talked and could learn tricks, but also learn colors, the names of different objects and foods. There on I went to a specific species of parrot, the Indian Ringneck.
I instantly fell in love with their adorable voice, their playful nature, and they way that they loved to be interacted with. However, never in a million years did I think that my parents would allow me to have a pet bird. We already had a pet dog, and even I knew that dogs and birds don't mix.
I waited a few months before bringing it up, I knew what I wanted for my wish now, more than any cruise or trip to Disney Land, I wanted my very own Indian Ringneck.
I knew from the very start to not expect every bird to be like the ones I saw online. I did lots of research about behavior issues ringnecks can have such as bluffing. I knew that they can be loud, bitey, and that they are a species that must be as "tamed" as possible before you can teach them anything. They're still semi-wild animals. Besides all of the flaws I had read about, I was ready for the challenge. On June 24th, 2018, my Indian Ringneck arrived on a plane that flew from Austin, TX to Detroit, MI.
He had been bought from a breeder that I had seen and heard about online as being a wonder breeder, JC Aviary. When I saw him being carried onto my front porch in the crate, his little face was peeping out of the mesh "window", I instantly fell in love. Everything seemed fine, until I opened his crate.
The breeder said to simply open his crate by prying it with a screwdriver, then ask your bird to "step up" and place your bird in their cage. After that you let them get used to their environment by leaving them alone for 2-3 days besides the times you need to change their food and water. I opened his crate, I was alone in a quiet room, the lights dimmed. He flailed out of the crate and was flying as much as he could (his wings were butched) all over the room. I eventually caught him when he slipped on his bag of parrot food and rushed him to his cage. This would be the only time I've gotten to hold him.
The breeder's instructions were terrible. They told me to feed him the fatty parrot food with vegetables and fruits once in a while. I didn't do this. My original thread about Hoshi (my bird) and more of his experiences I've had with his fear is here: Very Scared Indian Ringneck!! | Avian Avenue Parrot Forum
After a week of this behavior I called the breeder, they told me it was bluffing. I knew it wasn't. It's obviously fear. I called them three different times and every time they said it was bluffing. My mom said that this breeder sounds more like a puppy mill, they're just telling me it's bluffing because they just sold a very expensive bird.
My point is, it's been a month and a half and I haven't been able to hold my bird. He hides in the corner of his cage. He won't take food from me, he tries to get as far away from me as he can. I thought that if I boarded him for a few days at my amazing vet in Toledo that having him be back with some birds would make him feel more comfortable, it did nothing. Everyone at the vet is baffled by his behavior. Both vets there said there are clear signs of abuse. His wings feather's look like they were butchered off by a 3 year old, his beak his crooked from improper hand feeding while being weened, and his responses to people in general are enough to show that he went through something traumatic.
Currently the vet there is trying to find me a bird trainer to see if they can help Hoshi. She also said that Ann Brooks (the president of the Phoenix Landing foundation, a organization dedicated to rescuing and rehoming birds) is willing to take Hoshi and send me a different bird.
That's where the decision part comes in. I love Hoshi very much, but I don't want to make his condition worse by not being the right home for him. At the same time, parrots aren't objects that you just return to the store and get a new one because it was defective. There has been lots of tears, I'm not sure what to do. If there's anyone out there with suggestions, please let me know.
Yum! That might make you wish he was a little more standoffish again. 
He would rip socks to get to your toes...
