Giddy

Current mood: giddy


I am so happy that words cannot express right now. It has been almost a month since we adopted Ralphie, and I hadn't held her for about 3 weeks until last night.

My dad made me a T - Shaped step up perch to try and get Ralphie to step up on without me being in danger of getting bit. Well, last night, tried to get her on it, she locked onto it with her beak, was squawking and wouldn't let go. So, I dragged her out, all the while she is not letting go of the stick, once her feet leave her perch she pulls herself up onto the T stand that I am holding. Once she is on it and out of her cage, she started lifting her claw and reaching out for my arm, so I put the perch near my arm and she hopped right on.

I was able to hold her awhile and bond more with her, all the while she and I are both nervous, lol. Then shortly after, i walked back over to her cage and put her back on it.

This morning I decided I was going to get her out using the T stand as well, well, she wasn't gonna have it, she decided she would fly smack into me. So, she was perched on my boobs for awhile and I talked to her, rubbed her head (she protested a bit), and rubbed under her wings. Then I could tell she wanted to go back to her cage, and I put her back on the door.

Once she was back on her cage, she let me pet her under her wings again. I am so thrilled to report we have made huge leaps and bounds in the past 24 hours. :-)

Nippy

Ok, I adopted/bought a blue and gold about 3 weeks ago. I went to the mans house, even held Ralph (now ralphie). Then the next day I held her at the vets office, and the next day at home. But since then I have not been able to pick her up at all. She lundges at me and tries to bit. My finger ended up in her beak a couple times but she didnt' bite down, I believe she is just warning me to leave her alone.

Do I persist? I want to hold her and love on her so bad. But I have only been able to hold her three times since getting her. I know very little about her, other than she is 5 yrs old, I am her third owner. Her first one died, second one didnt' have time for her. I am going to be her final owner. I want her to love me. I was almost in tears this morning cause she wouldn't let me hold her. :-( How do I get her to trust me?

She already eats from my hand, and drinks from my cup when I hold it up to her when she is on top of her cage. She will sometimes even dance on the cage for us. Often I will say step up, and she will lift her foot as if she wants to step on my arm, then she lundges and squawks at me. I tried putting a towel over my arm this morning to try and get her off her cage. She again kept lundging and biting at the towel. She even put a hole in it.

I have been able to feed her from the palm of my hand and my fingers. Just unable to pick her up again. Occasionally I can pet her on the head and beak, but she only allows this through the cage bars, even then she protests a bit.

I have tried to get her to step up on what her previous owner called a 'discipline stick'. She is scared to death of it, shrieks and runs. So, I have gotten rid of it...when he told me about it, I thought it didn't sound right...I don't even like his name for it.

Advice please :-(

Ralphie's vet Visit

I took Ralphie into the vet at 10:30 this morning, his appointment was for 10...but I couldn't get him out of his cage and into the travel cage, and boy was he a bugger to get in his travel cage. 

It was so funny, if you can picture this:   I am trying to reason with this massively big bird to that could easily take out my eyes, ears, fingers...if he wanted to, to get into his cage.   He keeps lunging at me, he is determined not to get into that small carrier.   So, after 30 minutes, and at this point I am late for my appointment for him, I finally called the vet.   She told me to grab him by his feet and put my hand over his head.  I was like...."uh....I just got this bird, he is gonna eat me up!"  LOL  So at that point she tells me to throw a towel over him, grab him quickly and wrap him like a burrito (her words exactly...like a burrito, lol) and toss him, towel and all into the carrier.  So, I try to throw a towel on him while he is on top of his cage, he flies over my head, and smack dab into the wall.   If this were Cordy, I would just swoop her up with my hands and not worry about it.  Heck, Cordy doesn't get caged for trips in the car...she is quite different than this bird that is more than twice her size.

Anyhow, back to Ralphie, on the floor now, because he flew into the wall.  I chased him down two connecting hallways in my house, I yelled to dad..."meet me with the cage in the front room".  Ralphie is on the floor, running from me, I am in chase with a towel in  hand...Ralphie gets to the front room, where his travel cage is on the floor and runs right into the cage.  Apparently at that point...me and the towel were scarier than the travel cage.  It was quite the fiasco.  Definitely an America's funniest home videos moment.

Finally at the vet office, I check in, give them his info, tell him his old owners name, the lady had committed suicide.  And the guy I purchased her from told me that this was his vet's office...which was good because it is also Cordy's same vet.  So, I tell them the info...and Ralphie has never been seen there...they even have all the deceased woman's info there and her birds info.  Apparently the only two macaws she took in had problems...one was a feather plucker, and would never get its feathers back, they other was old/ancient as the vet said.  And Ralphie is a young bird.  They even called the Exotic Bird Clinic for me, because they knew that the deceased person also took her birds there as well...no records there either.

So, we are in the waiting room, the Vet tech comes in, and trys to get Ralphie out, he flies onto the tv.  She grabs a towel, puts it on her arm and gets him down...I tell ya, this gal showed no fear, lol.   She put him on the weighing perch and weighed him.  He sat there a good while before the vet came in, all the while I am talking sweet to him, only he and I in the room at this point.  So, I put my arm near him and say "step up".   He gets onto my arm...only the second time since we brought him home last night.  I am thinking...wow, this is way cool!  Then he proceeds to head up to my shoulder...oh no I am saying to myself, I try to keep my forearm down, he reaches up, and pulls himself onto my shoulder via my shirt.  Now on the inside, I am totally freaking out... but, I am telling myself, be calm...they smell fear.  LOL

I don't look him directly in the face, because I don't want him to break my glasses, and I could see out of the corner of my eye that he was eye  balling them.  I nervously open the exam room door, and call dad over to see what I have gotten myself into.  So, I sat with him on my shoulder for about 10 minutes, maybe a little longer til the vet came in.  She removed him for me, whew, my ears are intact! 

From that point, it was a routine well bird exam.  Blood tests, fecal tests, and vaccinations.  Since I have no proof of prior medical care, I had it all taken care of...and since I have no DNA test to prove that he is a boy, I had that done as well.  The vet told me she has a feeling ralphie is a girl because he/she is so big.  I guess males are smaller.  We will see :-)

He got back into the carrier with no problems, at that point, he wants to just leave the vet's office.  I can understand,he was poked and prodded!  But it was all necessary.  Once back at home, I was able to put my arm in his cage and get him out without any aggressiveness from him at all.  He was glad to come to me.  I held him and talked to him a bit, then put him in his cage. 

I can tell this big boy...or girl...will bring us years of joy!

 

 

Ralphie

I am so ecstatic! I have been blessed with a new baby boy! I have a huge playtop cage for him as well. I have to work with him, but he has so much personality. Ralphie is 5 yrs old, and when he was 2, his owner committed suicide...then he went on to a nice young man, that had him for three years. Unfortunatly, his owner couldn't keep him. Thus, I am blessed with a new feather baby! He is beautiful...I fell in love at first sight. As soon as he stepped on my arm, I was taken in by his big beautiful eyes!

Tomorrow I am going to try and get him a well bird appointment and have his wings, nails and beak done. I can tell his razor sharp nails haven't been clipped in ages, my arm has the prick marks and scabs to prove it! LOL Actually, I need to clip Cordy's nails as well, but I can do her myself. Ralphie on the other hand is huge, and we aren't that aquainted yet...so I don't want to lose a finger so to speak, lol.

He has so much personality...he dances and plays around. He was on his cage, and was standing there with is claw up as to say 'hi'. So, dad started opening and closing his own hand up in the air, and Ralphie copied him over and over. He is a smart bird. I can't wait to work with him more.

Here is Ralphie in his travel cage (took picture with my cell phone). When my camera comes back from the Casio repair people, I will post better pics. I luff my new feather baby!