Scary!

[MarcusCAG]

Today, when I went to help Marcus down off his Boing, he decided that he didn't want to step up for me and instead took off. As he has a few times before, he sailed out of the birdroom, across the hall, and into the bathroom--and landed unexpectedly on our dog, Dahlia, who had shoved herself between the bathtub and the toilet this afternoon because of the heat. I ran in there as quick as I could, and Dahlia was just standing and backing up from between the tub and the throne, but Marcus hadn't moved! In my mind's eye there was suddenly this horrible split-second vision of Dahlia accidentally stepping on him (she's 60 pounds or so)... There was simultaneously the cool, detached thought that zipped through my mind that perhaps she already had, and Marcus was hurt, or even dead somehow... For he was a totally limp little Grey puppet just dangling there from her back haunches, and with these wretched thoughts just flitting coolly in and out of some part of my brain, the other part of me took control and instantly grabbed Dahlia around the waist, yanking her rear end up in the air so that her paws were off the ground.

 

It was so strange, the very moment her feet were off the floor, Marcus came to life again and righted himself, grabbing at her fur with his beak. Apparently his one foot, at least, was tangled in her fur back there, and he shook himself loose after a moment and essentially scaled her hindquarters until he was about on top of her back. By then my other arm was there for him to step up onto, and Dahlia finally seemed interested in this little creature who was climbing her like a mountain. But by the time it all had congealed into reality in my mind, Marcus was on my forearm and Dahlia had been bellowed out of the bathroom (despite being quite innocently involved with this unfortunate scenario, and actually very well-behaved during the whole thing; I gave her a few treats afterward to apologize). Marcus was promptly rushed into the shower, being told that Dahlia was "dirty" and so now Marcus was dirty--I didn't like how he had been rubbing all over her fur--and he needed to be cleaned. He was such a good boy, though, once I offered him my arm to stand on again he almost seemed to like the spray, and not just tolerate it like before...

 

Then, back in his cage, it was as if nothing unusual had ever happened. Marcus ate two almonds and was his normal, lovely self and I could almost forget that he terrified me for a moment, dangling so limp from Dahlia's back end like that. My husband later suggested that perhaps his actions reflected a natural instinct that kicked in so that he would be less likely to be hurt while the bigger animal essentially had control of him; either way, I am just so glad that nothing bad happened because of my shortsightedness, but I honestly would not ever have imagined Marcus landing on Dahlia like that! So I guess I just kind of want to remind everybody, just be aware that your parrots can and will surprise you with what they do and sometimes the innocent little things that happen in normal situations may end up being dangerous. So please be careful! I guess that's all I can say, and it might seem kind of obvious, but I just want to say it anyway.

[Cupid]

Thank goodness Marcus was only playin possum.

[MarcusCAG]

Thank goodness Marcus was only playin possum.

 

"Playing possum" is right--he was a complete rag doll for a few moments, completely unmoving. It scared me to death!!

[danmcq]

Very scary indeed! It is possible that there was just enough pressure on Marcus's chest that he could not breath. It does not take much pressure at all due to a bird not having a diaphragm like us humans. I can totally relate to the mind racing, heart pounding and adrenaline pumping moments you went through. I have been through a few of those myself with Dayo.

 

Your quick response and perfect series of actions very possibly could have saved his life.

 

From all that I have personally seen, heard and read, a limp reaction while being cornered or physically trapped by a creature or toy results in frantic actions trying to free itself via flapping, bitting at whatever has it trapped etc. An example would be if trapped by a toy, they will literally chewed their foot off if they cannot free it. They will also sit and growl feathers fluffed and ready to bite if cornered by a dog for example.

 

I am so happy this ended so well and especially in how your dog reacted so calmly to it.

 

As you stated, we always must be prepared for the unexpected because it can and will happen.

[judygram]

That was very scary and like Dan I would have been imagining the worst but so glad it turned out well, yes I agree we all have to expect the unexpected for it can and will happen when we least expect it, so glad Marcus lives to conquer another day, wonder what that day will bring, only good things I hope.

[Luvparrots]

So very glad to hear that Marcus is alright and that both he and your poochie were calm. Hooray for your quick actions!

[MarcusCAG]

Thank you so much for your comments, everyone... Marcus is just his sweet little self today, playful and using his new favorite phrase a lot ("Oh, wow!"), and apparently I'm the only one who remembers the incident in the bathroom and am still worrying over it a little, what could have happened! But, yes, Dahlia was such a good girl--she has a sweet temperament, and is generally very gentle with the other animals. I'm very grateful that she was so unperturbed with Marcus climbing all over her like that!!!

 

From all that I have personally seen, heard and read, a limp reaction while being cornered or physically trapped by a creature or toy results in frantic actions trying to free itself via flapping, bitting at whatever has it trapped etc. An example would be if trapped by a toy, they will literally chewed their foot off if they cannot free it. They will also sit and growl feathers fluffed and ready to bite if cornered by a dog for example.

 

My goodness, thank you for sharing your insights and knowledge, Dan, I had no idea--and I hadn't even thought about the possibility of Marcus not being able to breathe, although thinking back now on that half-second where I ran in and took in the situation, I don't believe he was squished against anything that would make him under that kind of pressure. What do I know, though? It happened so fast... he was just a limp little puppet, who thankfully came to life again.

 

Thanks, again, everyone for your concern.