Cockatiel Tinky
Moving is just no fun. It doesn’t matter whether you are doing it yourself or hiring someone to pack and do all the heavy lifting for you, having your life in total disarray for even a short period of time is just maddening. Welcome to my world.
After searching, I finally found a place that will work for me and the birds. Even though I am the only human that will be in occupancy, I have five birds and four are different species which made finding the right space harder than one would think.
Most of my birds do not get along: the cockatiels (Tinky and DeeDee) are terrified of my umbrella cockatoo, Linus, and they cannot be housed in the same room with him. Linus will eat them. I know this and they know this – and for very good reason they are uncomfortable in his presence.
Quaker Libby
My quaker Libby, is very territorial. She does well sharing a room with other birds, but heaven help anyone who makes the mistake of landing on her cage. Even giant umbrella cockatoo toes aren’t safe from a bite. Libby is fearless and will take on any bird of any size when she is out of her cage. This means that she cannot be around the larger birds ever and must be carefully watched if allowed out with the cockatiels.
Theo, my goffins cockatoo, can share a room with Linus or the smaller birds – she is happy either way. However, she can’t be let out with any of the small birds because she chases them, and, for reasons that are unclear to me, when she sees Linus she immediately wants to breed with him– it is all she can think about. Linus does not hold Theo in the same high esteem and, frankly, gets annoyed with the shameless way she carries on.
Goffins cockatoo, Theo
When Linus is let out, he clings to the side of any other bird cages in the room and glares at the occupants within thinking evil thoughts. Should he climb Theo’s cage, or she climb his when she is out, she is so overcome with desire that she disregards danger and leaves her toes vulnerable to him. Awkward.
As it turns out, it is actually Theo that throws the wrench into this machinery. If I keep her cage in the room with the little birds, it would be unsafe to let them out, even with her inside her cage. I could see bloody toes in the future of any bird that landed in the wrong spot.
If she shared a room with Linus, neither could come out. Linus would aggressively climb her cage and Theo is too blinded by love to have the good sense to NOT climb his when she is out.
Umbrella cockatoo. Linus
So, I have concluded that since there are only two rooms that the birds can inhabit, Theo will have a cage in both rooms. The large main cages belonging to both Linus and Theo will be set up in one room. When it is Linus’ turn for out of cage time, Theo will be moved to the room with the smaller birds where she will occupy a second, somewhat smaller cage. When the smaller birds are to enjoy their play time, she will be returned to the other room with Linus where both will remain caged. Problem solved…I hope.
Moving is tough, but when you relocate with parrots the puzzle becomes much more complex. Furniture placement takes a back seat to cage placement and even with finding a place to accommodate their current large cages, mine still managed to need one more. This is the first of many challenges I expect to be faced with as I settle in.
Author Patty Jourgensen specializes in avian health, behavior and nutrition and has been working with and caring for rescue birds since 1987.
8 comments
Hi Patty.. can you update on how the new situation is seeing as your in Utah? Or Idaho lol I feel stupid for forgetting as I watch all birdtricks videos esp Morgan’s Thanks
We moved house 4 months ago. I have Buba my Blue and Gold Macaw and Shamie my Catalina Macaw. Both rescues in a way. Shamie is a skitzo and will only allow me to play with him when HE is in the mood, after 2 years he still will not step up (although I do get both feet for a couple of seconds now. He will attack anything that goes near him, human or animal. Buba my blue and Gold does not like him and she used to be very tame. In the old house they was in the same room but could not see eachother as there was a partition. Since we moved they are now in the same room but Buba has not settled since we moved she will not even step up, all she does is scream ALL DAY LONG and seem on edge all the time, she falls off her perch alot to. They rarely leave the cage when I let them out and Buba hardly even comes out now even though her door is open. I really don’t know what to do.
I recently moved and it was intense. But we´re all settled in now and it was totally worth it! Good luck! Great post.
I have a Sun Conure and a Jenday Conure that live in the same cage and are a “pair” they’ve been together since they were babies. I also have a Green Cheek and a Pionus. The Green Cheek and Pionus are buds and the Pionus allows the Green Cheek to groom him but sometimes gets cranky an bites at him but has never attacked him. The Sun Conure attacks the Pionus at any chance and has bitten his toe when the Pionus landed on his cage, it was all bad but he recovered. they all have their night time cages in the utility room and day cages in the living room. Everyone is fine except the Sun Conure who has a fit if anyone else gets attention, he’s the one that learns tricks in one or two training sessions and the Jenday teaches everyone else to talk when I put them to bed. They are all rescue birds. My house get real loud in the morning and evenings. I advise anyone looking for a bird to think twice about a Conure if they can’t deal with the screaming. The Pionus is quiet and mellow and also smart and learns tricks fast. The Green Cheek is just happy to be happy, has no interest in learning tricks and insists on sitting on my shoulder whenever he is out of his cage. I love my birds but patience is a virtue!!!
Last August I moved my “flock” of a love bird, cockatiel, Sun Conure, Dusty Conure, Brown Crown conure, Senagal, Severe Macaw, Unbrella cockatoo, 2 citron crested Cockatoos and a wild caught white fronted Amazon. Whew!!!! All went well and I’m truly locky that I have minimum worries when I have them out on their cage or playstation. I do have a "funny " quadrangale going on. My lovebird Loves my Severe Macaw and they get along fine outside together. I got another cockatiel for a friend for my Elliot(1st cockatiel).They can be out together but Elliot tries to get to Skittles ( lovebird) and Budddy (Severe Macaw) doesn’t like it. Doobie the Umbrella was a rescue as where 7 of these birds. Very sweet but attacks my polartec sleeper. But how can someone say no to just one. I’m lucky to be able to stay home and play with them….and have room for them…otherwise this wouldn’t work. Thanks to all who give their love to rescue unwanted birds that are just thrown away. p.s we gave dance time when everyone gets involved and the dance and scream for about 30mins and then I leave and they take a nap. Try it……it’s fun to see all the funny head bobbing!
Wow, I feel so bad as I leave my tiels out for only 2 hours a day! They need supervising as they love to nibble on all of my vertical blinds. They all have freyed edges at the top, on the side and at the bottom. I have tried knotting them up etc. Now I just let them. They have alternatives of wood, cuttle fish and toys to chew on, but they prefer my blinds! In the kitchen they love to play with my pots like children. They run around them and if the lid is not fitted properly will throw it on the ground or sit on top of the pots. So I have to watch them and make sure to put away as much as I can out of the lounge, kitchen and dining area. Study is a headache, my books…well they are all marked. I do not dare to loan any as I know I have to hide them and then I forget to read them. So I have well read, playful, inventive tiels, as they play games in corners around furniture as well. They are 2years old. I so love them. To have different birds, would drive me insane and I admire those who have and have the patience to abide and sort out their personalities. I can just image what it is like when hormonal time comes around at your place!!!!
I was just saying how it kind of sucks for us bird parronts to have to completely re arrange just for the birds. Just welcomed a new grey into the flock a month and a half ago and so far my macaw and her don’t like each other, so we re arranged the entire home, just for them! We love our fids, we love our fids, we love our fids
New digs are OK transporting was “fun” for me. I had to buy a SUV to haul 4 birds dog and kids across the mountains. (Houston to LA). I couldn’t stop on the road due to birds, dog…We would stop at a gas station grab drinks etc and grab some food to go. The motels all had pet deposits per pet. I had to admit to the dog. We would drive until dark…smuggle the birds in, feed them, cover the cages and make runs to the restaurant next door leaving someone to keep the birds quite (Macaw and Grey cockatiels were not as vocal We got back on the road as soon as the sun came up. My Grey…typical Grey one time when I was moving started plucking until I pulled his cage and put it in the new house. (this was a local move). while in CA they had a quarantine on birds due to Newcastle disease. My husbands grey was in one county and he was in hospice at another, You guessed it, I smuggled her in to see her dad. When he dies, she woke up from a deep sleep had a fit and went back to sleep. When I got the phone call he had passed I already knew. I was coming back to Texas fortunately the ban was lifted a week before I was scheduled to come back or the birds would have had to been swabbed by the USDA. Even thought o all intents and purposes they were in a closed aviary (my apt). Thank goodness none of them vocalized much. We repeated the drill with the motels on the way back.
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