Wild Caught CAG

[Kodoo]

Hi, I need some help. I brought today a 4 or 5 month old CAG that is wildly caught. I am not sure how to handle the bird, he is very frighten and is making a sound like fearing cat when i get close to him. However is is eating, and he does not bite me, but tries to scare me with his peak. Any help?

[Dave007]

4 or 5 mt old bird. Wild caught? I doubt it. The bird is a baby and simply needs lots of talking to and needs to get used to everything that's all around him. That may take weeks. Patience is needed. People here will tell you how they handled things when they first brought their 3,4,5,6,7 mt old bird home.

[Kodoo]

I believe that he is between 4 and 6 months old based on his eye colors, they are dark grey. I live in a country where nobody breed CAG, and young birds are smuggled from other countries (at least thats what i was told) i was informed that this is a wild caught bird. This is what i know. I really hope that he is not, cause i believe it will be cruel to get a wild caught bird. But i was told that after i got him. Today i was so sad when i saw how they catch them in the wild on youtube.

[MarcusCAG]

When I read your post, I wondered if you weren't in the USA for your CAG to be wild-caught... The Amazon parrot my parents adopted when I was little was wild-caught, I don't know how young he was when his first owners acquired him (my parents got him when he was two years old--that's what they said the people said, but I know that doesn't sound reasonable if he was wild-caught). He looks happy in the old pictures my parents have of him from when I was a toddler, when my father still worked with him a lot, but as he got older and my dad worked with him less and less and he bonded to my mother who cleaned his cage (but who was scared of his bite and didn't interact with him beyond feedings and cleanings), he got more and more ornery, sadder, and rather pudgy and depressed. I'm sure it was traumatic for him, being caught by a poacher and then being transported away from his natural home. So horrible. I would say your wild-caught CAG is going through a lot of negative emotions and feelings right now, and he/she is very scared. Be extra patient and gentle with them, you probably will have a lot of traumas that need healing with your bird that will take some time.

[Talon]

I would say, let him go....... Thismis heartbreaking.......

[Dave007]

What you're seeing on Youtube is the trapping of birds in bunches most of which are adults. They were being sold for breeding purposes. Here in the US, it's against the law since 1992 to import or export parrots from other countries. What you're seeing in those videos is also outlawed in the countries you're looking at. People taking those videos work for the government who are also trying to stop the capture of parrots.

What I am saying that even if your bird was wild caught it's still too young to have a deep connection with the wild. A parrot needs lots more time in the wild with the flock in order to be classified as a wild bird with wild bird mentalities and wild bird personalities. At 6 mts that doesn't hasn't developed completely. All of what your bird is doing also happens to the birds that are bought from breeders, petshops. Many come home, yell, scream, squawk, growl, bite and won't let people near them for quite a while.

**but tries to scare me with his peak**. That's simply a warning to stay away. Actually, you're making much too many judgments all based on owning your bird for 1 or 2 days. Anyone making those same judgments after buying a grey from a breeder/petshop would also be told that in one day, no judgments can made. It's gonna take your bird quite a while to relax and be open to attention from people outside his cage.

Edited March 16, 2011 by Dave007

[danmcq]

Dave is spot on, please listen to his advise.

[MarcusCAG]

What I am saying that even if your bird was wild caught it's still too young to have a deep connection with the wild. A parrot needs lots more time in the wild with the flock in order to be classified as a wild bird with wild bird mentalities and wild bird personalities. At 6 mts that doesn't hasn't developed completely.

 

If I may ask something, are not the babies that are taken from the nests in the wild just that--babies? I mean, I can't see some low-life poacher taking the time to 'harvest' the eggs and then incubate them properly and whatever until they're hatched. (I could be wrong, though.) So if a baby parrot is taken from its natural home in the wild, even if it's young, wouldn't it have some memory of violence that would make it more difficult to integrate itself into a human environment? I guess that's what I was thinking of when I read the original post, that maybe their Grey is a little more aggressive and frightened because its interactions with humans have been less than stellar so far.

[judygram]

So if a baby parrot is taken from its natural home in the wild, even if it's young, wouldn't it have some memory of violence that would make it more difficult to integrate itself into a human environment? I guess that's what I was thinking of when I read the original post, that maybe their Grey is a little more aggressive and frightened because its interactions with humans have been less than stellar so far.

 

All greys are wild animals, there is no domestication like with dogs and cats and more than likely the baby grey in the opening post is just reacting to being in a totally new environment which happens with every one of them when they go to a new home, they all react differently and this particular one is stressed out by it and reacting in a more aggressive way. It takes time for a new to you grey to become comfortable in a new home so plenty of time and patience is necessary to make the youngster feel more relaxed and when that happens the growling will cease.

[Dave007]

If I may ask something, are not the babies that are taken from the nests in the wild just that--babies? I mean, I can't see some low-life poacher taking the time to 'harvest' the eggs and then incubate them properly and whatever until they're hatched. (I could be wrong, though.) So if a baby parrot is taken from its natural home in the wild, even if it's young, wouldn't it have some memory of violence that would make it more difficult to integrate itself into a human environment? I guess that's what I was thinking of when I read the original post, that maybe their Grey is a little more aggressive and frightened because its interactions with humans have been less than stellar so far.

 

 

First off, there are no eggs taken from nests. Poaching is done by luring a flock of greys down to the ground where unseen traps are placed. Poachers don't bother to climb trees in order to get eggs. All of the adult birds can easily fly so poachers don't harvest or incubate any eggs. The captured birds are ready for immediate sale to illegal traders. The contents of eggs which are in nests which are located high in the trees simply never hatch.

As far as wildness, memory of violence, intergation---Any violence that occurs is done on the ground.The grey you have in your home right now is a wild animal. It will always remain a wild animal. If your bird escapes from your house, it will fly away because nature dictates that it should be in the wild. This also applies to other species of parrots. This is why 98% of all parrots that escape can't be retrieved. This is how the idea of wing clipping was invented. Cut the wings off and the bird can't fly which is totally unnatural. But, cutting the wings off a bird will make it an easier target for predatory birds. Parrots are prey animals and they're always on the lookout for predatory birds

A so called young wild parrot that's captured and sold has the same amount of fear as any other parrot that came from a breeder/petshop.

The reason for poaching is to sell the birds for breeding purposes. There's videos of how this is done and this is what the thread starter was referring to.

The way to have different personalites of greys to manifest itself is done in a person's home. Anyone who has pairs of breeder greys at home aren't usually bonded to the owners. They've only bonded to each other and they put up with their owners minimally. Those birds can't be kept as pets even though they live in a person's home. Anyone of these pairs of breeder greys will seriously maim or kill a pet grey if that pet bird is put in with breeder greys. The pet pet bird has a human imprint. The breeders don't. These breeder birds are most successful because of non connection to the owners. I have 3 pairs of breeders at home and those birds will only tolerate myself and my wife because they know where their food comes from. I've had them for many years and I make sure there's no involvement with people. People going near those birds will get serious bites. AND, none of those birds were wild caught. My pet greys won't go near them and I make sure that there's no interaction between the pet greys and the breeder greys.

Someone sufggested taking the bird outside and releasing it. That would be signing the bird's death warrant. The flock is gone and the predatory birds are just waiting to pick them off because they're alone and this case, very young and that young bird wouldn't know what to do. Prey parrots are a favorite food for predatory birds such as hawks, eagle, owls and peregrines and other predatory birds that can't survive in a person's home. The predatory birds are meat eaters. Greys aren't.

Edited March 17, 2011 by Dave007

[Kodoo]

hi, Today i placed the parrot (no name yet) on top of his cage, as he/she didn't eat well today and i wanted to check on him, anyway he kinda spooked and fell on the floor. he couldn't fly. So now i am really not sure how old is he/she. I am attaching a picture that i just tool, maybe someone can give me an approximate age? He might be a baby that isn't wild caught. and i am afraid that he is not weaned well. The only food that is available are sunflower seeds, and i know that these are not that good for him. i try to put fruits for him, but he does not eat them on his own so i cut them in small pieces and try to feed him one by one, he keeps on chewing on them but it just falls off his peak after few seconds. I was thinking of bringing him Nestle Cerelac for babies (the best option i have) (not sure what kind yet, wheat, rice, fruits,....) and then feeding him by a syringe. What do you think? What should i do. Attached is the picture.

Edited March 19, 2011 by Kodoo

[Dave007]

Sorry, but there's no picture. Try again and tell us if you have a problem. We'll then tell you how to post a picture.

[Luvparrots]

Oh dear, that is a baby grey. Please let Dave007 help you with information on how to properly care for him. In my opinion, you couldn't get better help or information from anyone else.

[Dave007]

Oh boy, I'm glad that you posted that picture. That bird is no more than 3 1/2 mts old. That's the reason that your bird is falling on the floor. It doesn't know how to fly yet. When the actual age of a baby bird isn't positively known, the only other way to see the approx age is by the color of the eyes. Your bird's eyes are completely black. At that age, a bird is very frighted of everything which will cause a bird to nip.

**** He might be a baby that isn't wild caught. And I am afraid that he is not weaned well. ***

You're absolutely right.

Yes, it's probably necessary to hand feed that bird but the bird should be also having other types of solid food in the cage. The problem is that the item you wanna use is for women who are breast feeding. It's not for birds. If you can get to a pet shop, they should have different brands of instant bird formula. Another home made mixture is

3 tsp smooth peanut butter

3 tsp Gerber oatmeal cereal

1 Banana

3 tsp apple sause

3 tsp Gerber Baby creamed corn

3 tsp Gerber Mixed Vegetables

3 tsp plain Yogart

Mix it all together thoroughly

 

 

You can get any kind that's available. They're mixed with water. There's many brands. If you can't get those items, you'll need to get the thickest baby formula available. Even try to get one that's lumpy. If you're gonna give feeding, you'll need a bent tea spoon to do it. Don't try a syringe if you've never used one before. The formula should be slightly warm. Stop feeding fruit, because they're acidic. Just vegetables and you should expect your bird to not like all of them. They should be the hardest you can find such as carrots. The vegetables you get should be as dark green as you can find them. Again, I don't know what's available in your country but if you can find some parrot mix, get it. He'll need some solid food. Maybe parrot mix isn't availablle near you and you may have to travel a large distance to find a pet store. Pet stores have parrot mix and other things for birds.

Luckily, your bird won't need many formula feedings during the day. Maybe 2. Than as time goes on, maybe 1.

Basically, the ideas I'm giving you are because I don't know what's available in your country

[judygram]

That is definitely a baby grey, its a good thing you posted the picture and Dave has given you some excellent advice, poor little dear is hungry, I hope you can find some of the things Dave mentioned to feed him and be sure to keep us informed as we want to know how this grey gets along.

[Kodoo]

Thank you Dave very much. I weaned a quaker few years ago when i lived in the states, and i used to feed him using a syringe. The baby food i am talking about isn't for women , its for babies (attached is a photo). I don't think that i will find formula for parrot baby, but i will go and search, maybe we could be lucky. You made my heart fall when you said 3.5 months. He is so young. Even when i carry him now (he is not scared off me at all), i only feel bones, there is no meat on him, is this normal? Also it takes him long time to cut a carrot, he have to try very hard. One last thing, hestayes the whole day on a perch, should i remove it and put a towel in the bottom of his cage. Thank you for all the help.

Edited March 19, 2011 by Kodoo

[Talon]

Do you have access to baby food? It will be easier for him to eat vs. A hard carrot. Perhaps cooked softer veggies you could give him.

I would put a towel in his cage in case he does lose his balance.

[Dave007]

The item you're thinking about is absolutely wrong for any african grey be it very young, adolescent, adult or mature and old. The main reason is that the product is a dairy item. No african grey can eat dairy products, especially white dairy products. That product contains milk. It will make any grey very sick and if given enough, it will kill the bird.

 

This is a basic formula to use. It doesn't have all the things in it that it should but for the short amount of time you'll be handfeeding, it should do the trick

1---cook some peas until they're very soft or buy some at the store. They should be the kind that says sweet peas which are bigger than early peas

2---get a package of small carrots in the store. Overcook them until they're extremely soft.

3---get some white rice and cook it until it'very soft. That usually means that it will be softer than a person likes it.

Put all the items together and mash them thoroughly until it's very lumpy and gooey.

Make some oatmeal--any kind.

use 3 tablespoons of oatmeal and add 3 tablespoons of the above mixture all together and stir. Make sure that the mixture is warm.

At this age, syringe feeding isn't necessary because any type of soft formula type food that you give has to be lumpy, not creamy and lumpy soft food doesn't go thru a syringe very well.

Fill a teaspoon with the mixture and let him scoop it out with his own mouth. Do that 2x a day, maybe 3x if he'll accept it. When the evening comes, dump whats left over. Each day make the same amount of fresh mixture and repeat.

 

***i only feel bones, there is no meat on him, is this normal?****

 

I can't answer that. He may be undernourished and actually I'm not surprised.

Right now, it's important to focus on getting him to eat a variety of different things.

Fill a teaspoon with the mixture and let him scoop it out with his own mouth. Do that 2x a day, maybe 3x if he'll accept it. When the evening comes, dump whats left over. Each day make the same amount of fresh mixture and repeat. Make sure he has solid food there all day.

 

*****One last thing, he stayes the whole day on a perch, should i remove it and put a towel in the bottom of his cage. Thank you for all the help. *****

 

If your bird is perching and going to the perch by himself, it shouldn't be removed. If he's constantly falling off the perch, you just need to lower the perch and yes, you can also put a towel across the bottom. Always have the perch in the cage if your bird is always on it

 

PS---one other thing, after feeding that type of mixture, expect his droppings to be extremely soft.

 

PS---Keep that bird out of cold drafts.

[MarcusCAG]

Lots of great info Dave, thanks...

 

And to the OP, I hope your little one eats heartily for you.

[Kodoo]

I found parrot formula, i started spoon feeding him 2 days ago as he stoped eating on his own at all, and had wattry stool. I lost him today 2 hours ago. He just fell off the pearch dead. (((

[Spinner]

How terribly sad.

[judygram]

I am so sorry to hear this but that baby's fate was sealed when whoever sold it to you allowed you to take it home unweaned, now you see how fragile they can be, I would be going after the person responsible, so very sad that baby never had a chance.

[lmayes69]

man that is soooo sad ...

[Luvparrots]

i am so very sorry that you lost your baby grey.

[Kodoo]

I tried my best, I fed him three times a day, but he was weak, i dont know what els should i have done. I feel so guilty, sad angry. (actually not sure what i'm feeling). I told my kids that he is sick and that i took him to the doctor. I went back to the guy i got it from, told him what happened, he was sad. He had another baby that looked very healthy and he told me that those are brought from nests in the wild and that he is 6 months old. He offered that i could take this baby (which made an aggressive sound like a cat if you get close to) or he had a 3 year old one, that is somehow tammed. Anyway, i'm not sure if i want to bring a bird with me home, i'm affraid that i will lose him as well.

Sorry, i just want to share whats going on with me.

Thank you all for your help and support, speacial thanks to Dave.