What are the items on your list?
First, sorry for the typo in header. It should be a Galah.Of course! It would be easier for you to start though. That way we don't tell you what you already know from research and can make suggestions that are relevant that you might have overlooked or not known yet.
This is so amazing. This community rocks. I feel so much more prepared now for this amazing being to come into my life.As far as food is concerned, find out they are using to wean and start with that even if it is a pellet or seed mix that you might not prefer. So much will change in the life of your baby bird that it will be a comfort to have familar food. This can be changed gradually starting in a few months, once your s/he is all settled in with you. You can immediately start offering clean, fresh or cooked vegetables (no salt and if possible pesticide-free) every day. Experiment with different shapes. The humble carrot can be given as sticks, coins, tiny cubes, bigger cubes, or Rhubarb's favorite, the long curls made by a peeler. Even if the vegetables aren't touched for at first, keep giving some every day. The sooner a bird starts "experimenting" with healthy foods the better. A month ago our vet said that Rhubarb is one of the only Galah's in his practice who is not overweight. This is very intentional on our part because Galahs are prone to obesity and fatty tumors. Actually, weight beings me to my next thought.
Ask that your baby not have wings clipped if you have a safe space to practice flying at your home, like a bedroom where you can close the door and keep out other pets and very young children (if any live at your house). Besides the health benefits of learning to fly properly, it is a huge confidence booster for a bird. Confidence and regular exercise will head off so many behavioral problems before they begin. In this one small way birds are a little bit like tiny dogs: Many of their behavior issues are from fear and uncertainty or lack of exercise. That's about where the similarities end though. Dogs are predators and birds are prey animals. Everything a bird does is from the perspective of an animal that has been hunted for thousands of generations and depends on it's flock for survival.
If you aren't sure of which soft-cover book to get, one that is a bit older and easy enough to find used is called Sally Blanchard's Companion Parrot Handbook. It is a classic. Some of the information on diet is a bit dated but the behavior insights are absolutely pure gold. I've had companion parrots most of my life and I learned stuff reading her book.
On the topic of behavior, do consider using your travel cage as a sleep cage in some quiet corner of your place. We had a lot of difficulties with Rhubarb at first because she so badly wanted to be part of everything that when we covered her cage for sleep she'd cheep and cry to be allowed into "flock" activities. We ended up buying her a second, smaller cage and tucking it into the doorless closet in our bedroom. It took a few years but now she happily flies to her sleep cage when we say "Night, night!?" Like little children, birds can get cranky when they don't have enough sleep and a regular bedtime. They need about 12 hours of dark time every night. And putting them to bed around the same time helps them make their own "winding down" routine in the evening before they change cages. It also provides a quiet retreat for sleep that doesn't feel like isolated punishment. Bedtime should be whatever works for your schedule. We have it at 7 pm so we can have evening time to ourselves but for someone I know, bedtime for birds is always at just before midnight because that works with their schedule. A sleep cage is something I wish I'd known from the first day so that routine could be started early. To set up a sleep cage I would a recommend a bowl of dry food (same kind as in the day cage), a comfortable perch like the platform @Shezbug mentioned and every evening, some fresh water.
If I think of anything else, I'll be sure to come back and share!
Excellent suggestions. My goal is to convert my home office into a walk in aviary. I'm ready to go all in on this endeavor. I am a single guy in my thirtys who lives in a small renovated home from the 1950s just outside of Chicago. I live two blocks from an urban forest preserve so there are a ton of animals in my fenced in yard. Eventually I would like to get a large flight cage outside too for the fella. Just curious do galahs do well in captivity with other species of parrots or are they best kept with other galahs or alone? lf things are going well, I might get this baby a friend but no rush.
Thank you! I am OK with not being able to purchase an Amazon or African Grey etc. Macaws as well. For some reason I have always been obsessed with cockatoos. I will worry about another baby later. I don't want to get overwhelmed but I am open to having more than one too.
Exactly! I think I am getting ahead of myself due to how excited I am. I need to make sure this baby is healthy and happy before thinking about any other beings in my life. I appreciate the honest feedback. I just don't want the baby to be lonely when I am out of the house. I do plan on getting the bird a caretaker if I ever have to travel for work. I was told maybe having another bird would help when I'm out of the house for work which is the reason I'm asking now. But during the day when I am eventually back at work after this virus stuff, I work about five minutes away from my home and I'm allowed to go back to my home whenever I want so I'm thinking I will eventually establish a routine based on that but for the next four months or so I will be working from home. I will have plenty of time to spend setting up the proper schedule.I have seen the wild Galahs here happily hanging out causing havoc, foraging and also playing with the Corellas and SC2's sometimes even with the Rosellas but come roosting time they certainly stick to the flock of just Galahs. Galahs on one tree and Corellas and SC2's on another- if the tree is big enough then they may each pick a side and stick to it, so you will have pink and grey spotted all through one half of the tree and the white 2's on the other side....... all hell breaks loose if anyone tries to sit on the wrong coloured side
I have seen pet Galahs kept on their own that seem quite happy and well adjusted (with lots and lots of human attention) and I have also seen them happily coexist in a big outdoor aviary with Corellas or SC2's but the aviaries I am talking about are massive so they can all get away to their own little place away from each other when needed. I can not say I have seen any Galahs be best friends with the other 2's they coexist with though. I have never seen them preen each other or anything like that but I am sure there will be some that do given that there are quite a few Galah hybrids.
I personally would be concerned about the beak size differences if keeping a Galah with another 2 in a indoor size cage/ enclosure. But to keep them separately I can not see it as a problem- keep in mind that one 2 is usually quite a hand full so, two 2's that do not get along would be a darn nightmare. They are very demanding of their person and can be very difficult birds when happy so unhappy they are near on impossible.
Just remember if you’re home all the time when you get the bird it will get used to that much company. Try to not spend every second of the day with your baby if you’re not always going to be home for him- it can be a rude horrible shock for it when you do finally go back to work and all of a sudden leave a bird who can’t entertain himself all alone.
LOL. I like your candid feedback.Here’s chapter one. There isn't a thread on the Internet big enough to hold the whole list.
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Thank you. Excellent point. Goal is to keep a routine that won't change too much when I do go back to work.
Terrible cage. Too small. Too tall. Too lightweight.
