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Pictures Should I get a Cockatoo?

Mockinbirdiva

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Our sun conure lived on the other side of the house in her room with birds her size. She was an excellent flier and one day made all the turns through different doorways and flew straight into the cage of our B&G macaw and landed right next to him on his perch - shoulder to well chest they sat there. Both of their body language suggested happiness.

My daughter and I both bolted for the room at the same time. I distracted our macaw and she grabbed her sun conure.
Their size differences was enough to panic us even tho they appeared happy.

Sorry to digress -
I saw once in a pet store a blue and gold that was kept in the same cage as a smaller bird ( I don't remember the smaller species now.. but it was not bigger than a sun). They were boarding there. I was horrified to see that. One can only hope it stays amicable. But I think it's foolish to assume that it would always work. Especially in a situation where the smaller bird has no escape.
 

lexalayne

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I saw once in a pet store a blue and gold that was kept in the same cage as a smaller bird ( I don't remember the smaller species now.. but it was not bigger than a sun). They were boarding there. I was horrified to see that. One can only hope it stays amicable. But I think it's foolish to assume that it would always work. Especially in a situation where the smaller bird has no escape.

My exact thoughts ! There must be some pairs of sun conures and macaws that get along well enough to produce the babies they are capable of making - how idk !!
 

Rain Bow

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Very, Sad story alert... But for purpose


Our sun conure lived on the other side of the house in her room with birds her size. She was an excellent flier and one day made all the turns through different doorways and flew straight into the cage of our B&G macaw and landed right next to him on his perch - shoulder to well chest they sat there. Both of their body language suggested happiness.

My daughter and I both bolted for the room at the same time. I distracted our macaw and she grabbed her sun conure.
Their size differences was enough to panic us even tho they appeared happy.

Sorry to digress -
No good point, someone just loss a bird in the last 6 months, if memory serves...

2 birds same size, different species...

Lesson learned everything can seem fine one minute or for years & all the sudden it's not ok. They can turn on each other just as it can happen w/ humans. It was a sad story but a lesson shared, to save a bird going forward. I was heartbroken but it struck a note in my mind as a if you do always be aware it can change just as you can snap your fingers.
 

lexalayne

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I have a U2, and to be perfectly honest, if I had to do it all over again I probably wouldn't have gotten him. I was torn between him and a macaw and I wish I had gotten the macaw instead.

Don't get me wrong, I love my bird, but he is a challenge to say the least. He is constantly wanting attention, tearing things up, attacking anyone who comes close to me, breaking out of his cage, and did I mention the ATTENTION that he is constantly demanding?

I have heard since getting him that male U2's are difficult, the breeder I got him from said she wouldn't have a male U2 on a dare. So maybe a female U2 would work better for you, or another bird altogether.


When my kids were teenagers they had friends (3 brothers) that had a male U2. My kids loved to hang out on the porch with ours (she doesn’t fly..long story) the kids introduced the two from opposite ends of the porch. Babette wasn’t interested in him at all. But their male U2 was very bonded to the kids mother. And it got to the point where he would attack anyone near her. I heard there were many ER trips and stitches and when he almost got someone’s eye they rehomed him. He was quite a bit younger than Babette and definitely had raging hormones. He also kept learning the combination locks very quickly. They blamed each other thinking someone was letting him “see” when it was opened. Finally, he opened a new one the very next day and he only heard the lock being opened once.
 

Hawk12237

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I have a multiple too household. Toos are extremely Demanding and they hold terrible grudges.
Umbrellas though are known as “Velcro” birds, they are not always that way. Some U2s can be very very moody. Love you one moment and want blood the next. Toos in my opinion are also more territorial over what they and WHO they deem as “theirs”. My husband has a pierced ear where Zach flew across the room to attack him because my husband playfully pulled a string of my hair.
Toos are also very very destructive and they are remarkable escape artists. Don’t get upset when you come home and the molding on your floors is destroyed or if you have a hole in your wall.

And that's no joke!!! I remember the molding, and hole in my wall from the two Too's had. Both now looking down on me laughing from the cloud above.
But fact is oh yea, lol, they can chew the devil out of your house!! Like they have their own mind set, own agenda for the day.. ( think I'll chew a hole in the wall today...or....about time he changed the molding, I'll help, ... Oh a bag of potatoes in potatoes bin, I'll peel them. What 's in here..oh, ground coffee
Whoops, was, all on floor now....was you planning anything with that load of bread in bin?? ...you can make stuffing now.
Did you read this new magazine yet? Oh well....how about this book? Oh its from the library?? You go tell them it wasn't me...what's in mommas purse?? You mean I can't chew up all the money? ......But I like chewing on the chair!)
And that's just the tip of the fun fun fun with a couple too's.
 

Dona

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@lexalayne OK this is one of favorite pictures ever. I love the expression on both the faces.
 

BirdEE

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Unless you already own birds and want a demanding family member then I’d say no. And you really have to watch the other birds. I have a plumb headed parakeet too and they don’t like each other. But it’s the opposite of my Too being aggressive. My plumb headed keet flys. So he flys over my Too to mess with him and my Too yells at him when he does it. I’ve tried introducing them before and my Too was interested, but my Keet was ready for a fight. Pretty gutsy considering he’s 10 times as small....

My U2 works perfect for our family. He’s out all the time and is basically another child. He eats when we eat (what we are eating if it’s bird safe) and will scream at you if you forget about him. He’s attached to me so whenever I am not here he yells quite literally word for word at my wife “Where’s Dad?” Then when I walk in the house and kick my shoes off by the door I usually say “Casper!!!!” He can’t see me at the front door. He says “Hi Dad!”

He’s my sidekick, but a sidekick that has no problem drawing blood when I’ve done something he doesn’t like.

He also needs to keep busy. As I type this he’s tearing apart an old TV remote. They’re his favorite. I buy them at resale stores, pop them apart to remove the circuit board, wash them, snap them back together and he rips them apart. Loves ripping them apart button by button then splitting the case open and throwing it when he’s done. Which adds to his path of destruction and mess he leaves in any spot he frequents.

They’re demanding in a different way than a demanding dog. But if their level of demanding fits your lifestyle they can make good companions. Sadly they end up getting sold as these little cuddle bugs full of fluffy feathers. In reality they are not. They can be cuddle bugs, but if they like cuddling you have to limit the time you do it because that can lead to more troubles. They are very complex creatures.

If reading all of these stories still doesn’t scare you. Then maybe you’re ready to be an Umbrella Too parent.
 

PufF

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Am I too late?This passed 11/16 unlike the other 3 threads so I'll give it a shot.All About Cockatoos - MyToos.com this,would be a good read.
I've had U2s,M2(Moluccan/Salmon-crested)s and G2(Goffin)s.G2 Star was an expert at lock breaking,M2 Johnson was a rescue and I've had U2 Umbrella for years(close to a decade).They passsed from a tragic fire...
And the dust question-New and Old Worlds don't mix.The Old Worlds (specifically the Greys and Too's) will kill the New Worlds in the long run because of their dust.And no non-stick/telfon stuff either,toxic when heated to birds.
Back to main topic,the link provided will introduce you to a M2's scream,don't get me wrong,U2s could easily surpass that limit.Will your neighbours care even if you don't?They will bite/pluck/mutilate when not given the right care ( and chances are you won't know what the issue is) .Would you want that to happen?They will bite you and others too,hard ones WILL get you to the ER,I've heard stories of people losing an eye or their looks due to a single Too'.
Using @cassiesdad 's quote
...it's like I always tell people..."Cockatoos have the intelligence of a five year old...the temperament of a two year old....with a can opener on their face...for fifty years."
you can see how Too's work.
If you get a rescue,chances are they might be plucking/mutilating or starting to show that behaviour due to new surroundings.If you choose a young Too' (I am unsure but I'll assume you'll get one older than 1 but no younger than 2 because any older would be unideal for breeders/shops and any younger would be bird mills and you probably never hand fed birds before,not to mention such a big one),behaviour issues/Terrible 2 will come into your life.
Not saying that they are "bad" creatures (They are magnificent and gorgeous) and to prove that I'll show some pics.(and the U2 plucks ps)
Also,quick tip,for gender you could (works 80%) look at eye colour.Amoy is female (laid eggs) (brownish/redish eyes) and Molly is male(probably no dna) (dark brown to almost black) and I just call him Molly because I'm used to that name.
Also,for females chronic egg-laying (and co) is a big issue too (basically laying lots of eggs etc but I'm no expert at this area).I've never had one with egg issues but I swear that it is bad.
I could go on with more Too' details if you ask,but I think that digesting this bit would be good for now.(and 1 last point,they do floor attacks!Ain't much blood since I gave bite victim a bandage in time but you get the hang of it. 1574940658233.png
 

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fashionfobie

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@Teagan Hall did you decide against the IRN? If you are still considering adding IRN to your flock, I would wait a long while before adding a cockatoo. You may find the attention and care of two IRN will gobble up all your free time. IRN are independent, but will require work, time for relationship building and will also want to spend time with you, their flock.

One step at a time. It may not be time to get a cockatoo.

Lots of great advice in this thread.
 

Rain Bow

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I :heart::heart::heart: my Zon, but I think that all fids have the potential to be big giant pains. I swear up & down there are times when Buddy is like a 3 yr old on speed.
 

Teagan Hall

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@fashionfobie for the next year I'm sticking with the four I have now. It's easy to keep them separate (Pacific's are in my room and the Conure's in their own).
Out of every bird I've research Amazon's and IRN's are definitely my top two by far. However, more so to size and I just adore them, IRN's will probably be the one I pick if I ever get another bird.
I definitely want just the one. I have found someone reliable I can find them off but will keep looking around nearer to the time of getting one.
For know I want to focus with the bonds of my other birds, so if another bird does get introduced, they trust me.
The Conure's are getting used to their new home at the moment and I have found they are very territorial, concerning their cage or what they think is theirs when it concerns another bird.
I think my best bet is to know another room can be utilised (especially for the first month) if they reject one another.
 

Rain Bow

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@fashionfobie for the next year I'm sticking with the four I have now. It's easy to keep them separate (Pacific's are in my room and the Conure's in their own).
Out of every bird I've research Amazon's and IRN's are definitely my top two by far. However, more so to size and I just adore them, IRN's will probably be the one I pick if I ever get another bird.
I definitely want just the one. I have found someone reliable I can find them off but will keep looking around nearer to the time of getting one.
For know I want to focus with the bonds of my other birds, so if another bird does get introduced, they trust me.
The Conure's are getting used to their new home at the moment and I have found they are very territorial, concerning their cage or what they think is theirs when it concerns another bird.
I think my best bet is to know another room can be utilised (especially for the first month) if they reject one another.
Please make sure to quarantine what ever you decide on. New birds can introduce new disease, even a baby.
 
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