Lenaiya
Checking out the neighborhood
- Joined
- 3/29/20
- Messages
- 3
- Real Name
- Lenaiya Jaye
Hello,
i acquired a 21 yr old cockatiel from a friend who has been ill & seemingly unable/uninterested in caring for him any longer. Everytime I’d come to visit I would see this bird in a very small cage that had been placed in a very small pantry off of the kitchen where human interaction was minimal and I always felt sorry for him being cooped up all day and basically ignored so I would go up to it’s cage & say hello to him & try to spend a little time interacting with him but he seemed scared and I felt so bad for him. What a life to have to endure, I couldn’t stand seeing him like this so I asked if I could take him and they didn’t hesitate to give him to me and I felt blessed to have him. I asked all the questions I could think of as far as how to care for him but they were not the original owner. The bird initially belonged to my friend’s sister who passed away about 10 yrs ago. I’m really not sure what his life was like with the previous owner, but I got the impression that once the previous owner passed away, the bird was mean, bit and was never let out of his cage. I dont know if the cage he is in is the same cage he has always been in but it is definitely the same cage he has been in since my friend has had him and this cage is about 20 inches tall, 12 inches wide and 8 inches deep. It is so small that to think he has not been let out of it in 10 yrs makes me shudder.
i put him in my rental car and drove him to another state and he enjoyed the ride. Once home, I found a nice spot for his cage up on top of the hutch in my living room overlooking the entire room & where I spend most of my time. I dont work so I am home with him all day, everyday. Every morning I hang his cage outside on the front porch where he enjoys the fresh morning air & sunshine & listens to the wild birds chirp. After about an hour I bring him inside and set his cage on the coffee table where he is directly in front of me & my 2 dogs so he can be in on the action and be part of the family. My dogs love him and he seems to be somewhat interested in them. I have been whistling the theme from the Andy Griffith Show to him in hopes he would pick up on it and he surprised me by doing his best to whistle it back to me! You can definitely tell it was the Andy Griffith theme song, but it was way off pitch, but i was so thrilled by his efforts! Come late afternoon I hang him outside on the porch again and then bring him back inside when the sun starts to go down.
i couldn’t stand to see him in such a small cage so I bought a much bigger one (2 ft x 2 ft x 2 ft) but it needed to be painted and I painted it with non-toxic safe for pets paint but it suggests waiting a full week for it to cure completely before putting the bird in it and it has been 2 days so i still have 5 to go. Obviously I will need to take him out of his current cage to transfer him into the new cage and I am fully aware and cognizant about putting my dogs in another room with the door shut and putting the bird in a small room with the windows and doors closed and to wear thick sturdy gloves in case he nips me but I have reached my hand into his current cage several times in order to hang new toys and treat rolls and a mirror (which he has sat in front of looking at his reflection ever since i put it in there. He will not go anywhere else in that cage (not there’s much room to) but i put a rainbow colored perch in front of the mirror and that is his new spot.
He doesnt seem bothered by me reaching into his cage but when i put my finger up near his face OUTside his cage in an attempt to get him to follow my finger like a sideroad sobriety test, he hissed at me repeatedly so I stopped.
i was told to put his cage in an enclosed room and to just open the door to his cage and let him come out on his own and once he does, then remove that cage and open the door to the new cage and just leave him alone until he goes in it on his own and if he doesn’t, then get a towel and casually drop it on top of him and then pick up the towel and the bird simultaneously and place him in the new cage. Is this the correct method for transferring him to a new cage or do you recommend doing it some other way?
And if it’s true that he hasnt been out of his current cage in 10 yrs, will he even come out on his own when i leave the door open? What if he doesnt? Then what? I don’t want to scare or traumatize him because of his age, I dont want him to have a heart attack or stress him out and him end up dying so if thats even a possibility am i better off leaving him in his current small cage? That just seems so cruel to me. I want whatever time he has left to be enjoyable and know he is loved and cared for and dont want to do anything that might disrupt or jeopardize his health and safety. I dont know how to proceed, but I dont think its ok to leave him cooped up in such a small cage and never let him out but I also don’t want to get bit or have him scared of me and not trust me. He has been with me for about a week and he seems to have adapted quite well but I dont want to rush him. Should I wait a little longer before I attempt this? He seems pretty happy and content but I just don’t see how he can be content in that cage 24/7
Your advice is greatly appreciated! Thank you for your responses!
i acquired a 21 yr old cockatiel from a friend who has been ill & seemingly unable/uninterested in caring for him any longer. Everytime I’d come to visit I would see this bird in a very small cage that had been placed in a very small pantry off of the kitchen where human interaction was minimal and I always felt sorry for him being cooped up all day and basically ignored so I would go up to it’s cage & say hello to him & try to spend a little time interacting with him but he seemed scared and I felt so bad for him. What a life to have to endure, I couldn’t stand seeing him like this so I asked if I could take him and they didn’t hesitate to give him to me and I felt blessed to have him. I asked all the questions I could think of as far as how to care for him but they were not the original owner. The bird initially belonged to my friend’s sister who passed away about 10 yrs ago. I’m really not sure what his life was like with the previous owner, but I got the impression that once the previous owner passed away, the bird was mean, bit and was never let out of his cage. I dont know if the cage he is in is the same cage he has always been in but it is definitely the same cage he has been in since my friend has had him and this cage is about 20 inches tall, 12 inches wide and 8 inches deep. It is so small that to think he has not been let out of it in 10 yrs makes me shudder.
i put him in my rental car and drove him to another state and he enjoyed the ride. Once home, I found a nice spot for his cage up on top of the hutch in my living room overlooking the entire room & where I spend most of my time. I dont work so I am home with him all day, everyday. Every morning I hang his cage outside on the front porch where he enjoys the fresh morning air & sunshine & listens to the wild birds chirp. After about an hour I bring him inside and set his cage on the coffee table where he is directly in front of me & my 2 dogs so he can be in on the action and be part of the family. My dogs love him and he seems to be somewhat interested in them. I have been whistling the theme from the Andy Griffith Show to him in hopes he would pick up on it and he surprised me by doing his best to whistle it back to me! You can definitely tell it was the Andy Griffith theme song, but it was way off pitch, but i was so thrilled by his efforts! Come late afternoon I hang him outside on the porch again and then bring him back inside when the sun starts to go down.
i couldn’t stand to see him in such a small cage so I bought a much bigger one (2 ft x 2 ft x 2 ft) but it needed to be painted and I painted it with non-toxic safe for pets paint but it suggests waiting a full week for it to cure completely before putting the bird in it and it has been 2 days so i still have 5 to go. Obviously I will need to take him out of his current cage to transfer him into the new cage and I am fully aware and cognizant about putting my dogs in another room with the door shut and putting the bird in a small room with the windows and doors closed and to wear thick sturdy gloves in case he nips me but I have reached my hand into his current cage several times in order to hang new toys and treat rolls and a mirror (which he has sat in front of looking at his reflection ever since i put it in there. He will not go anywhere else in that cage (not there’s much room to) but i put a rainbow colored perch in front of the mirror and that is his new spot.
He doesnt seem bothered by me reaching into his cage but when i put my finger up near his face OUTside his cage in an attempt to get him to follow my finger like a sideroad sobriety test, he hissed at me repeatedly so I stopped.
i was told to put his cage in an enclosed room and to just open the door to his cage and let him come out on his own and once he does, then remove that cage and open the door to the new cage and just leave him alone until he goes in it on his own and if he doesn’t, then get a towel and casually drop it on top of him and then pick up the towel and the bird simultaneously and place him in the new cage. Is this the correct method for transferring him to a new cage or do you recommend doing it some other way?
And if it’s true that he hasnt been out of his current cage in 10 yrs, will he even come out on his own when i leave the door open? What if he doesnt? Then what? I don’t want to scare or traumatize him because of his age, I dont want him to have a heart attack or stress him out and him end up dying so if thats even a possibility am i better off leaving him in his current small cage? That just seems so cruel to me. I want whatever time he has left to be enjoyable and know he is loved and cared for and dont want to do anything that might disrupt or jeopardize his health and safety. I dont know how to proceed, but I dont think its ok to leave him cooped up in such a small cage and never let him out but I also don’t want to get bit or have him scared of me and not trust me. He has been with me for about a week and he seems to have adapted quite well but I dont want to rush him. Should I wait a little longer before I attempt this? He seems pretty happy and content but I just don’t see how he can be content in that cage 24/7
Your advice is greatly appreciated! Thank you for your responses!
