robopetz Posted January 10, 2015 Share Posted January 10, 2015 Hi all, Last night we unexpectedly rescued a Goffin's Cockatoo. I am familiar with basic bird care, behavior, and things like that but know nothing about cockatoos them selves. I have a ton of homework and research to do now. lol Any tips you all suggest or any good sites where I can get some info on these fellows? I have a 27 year old male (so they say). He does not look no where near 27. Looks VERY healthy! (BTW vet check is coming up). Very tame! Like all too's love cuddling and the human bond. Within in the first hours of being home he was already talking and dancing for us. He definitely settled in fast. I am just waiting for his personality to come through after he settles completely. He was placed in an outdoor cage with NOTHING in it. Just 2 sticks that stuck through this man made cage that wasnt made well. With a small board on the top for some shade. Had a dish of nothing but sunflower seeds and a dish with dirty water. The caretaker was yelling at him and told us he doesnt like the bird. My, did I have to control myself then. I am just glad he is with us now and in good hands. Is there any way to get an approximate of age? Unfortunately, there is no leg band to tell what age may be. It is just unbelievable to me that hes 27. He is housed with a CAG, Sun Conure, 2 tiels, lovebird, and a bulbul bird. In all separate cages of course. Any and all tips/suggestion and comments are welcome. Take care and have a great weekend all! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greywings Posted January 10, 2015 Share Posted January 10, 2015 Not really able to age a bird if they are very old the legs may be a lighter Grey rather than a darker color and may peel a bit. They are great little engineers can take apart most anything including their cages. They can be very focused on what ever catches their interest and can have some nocturnal tendencies (active & noisy). Great little clowns, very smart, clever and quite the entertainers. Keep him busy with lots of toys, puzzles to solve, foraging ideas and make sure he develops an interest in some fresh veggies. Enjoy you new little Big personality! Look forward to some stories of how he goes about training you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murfchck Posted January 11, 2015 Share Posted January 11, 2015 Congrats and thank you! These guys are goofballs. Pat described them to a person yesterday like this: They bite hard, they play hard but most of all, they love hard! They do love having to solve things and dismantling things are just what they do. Koko picked out this metal toy, it is a body shaped thing with a big wooden head, she wedges this in the cage bars where I can not get it off yet she can go right to it and remove it in less than a second. She loves getting it stuck so she has to work to get it unstuck. Another big hit is just a water bottle, we drop in a nut and twist it then put the cap on it, for some reason that will last a few days as they work to get that nut out! We have another one for Koko that is a long piece of acrylic plastic with holes in it for all different kinds of nuts and bolts for her to remove. Gus likes fitting things into other things, he will work hours on that. We are still working to figure out what Lily likes, she is afraid of everything but the bottle/nut thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robopetz Posted January 11, 2015 Author Share Posted January 11, 2015 Thanks you both. Surprisingly, every bit of veggie or fruit I give him he loves and gobbles it right up. I think this bird belonged to a very good owner. He is doing everything right so far. There is no wonder why he looks very healthy for being 27. I have had many people say wow, his feathers look GREAT for a goffin especially being 27. Thats why I still cant and dont believe he really is 27. I need to be creative and figure out what good toys or foraging/puzzle toys I can give him. I definitely dont want him getting bored. I am assuming he was a "velcro" bird because he immediately go up to your shoulder and will be so content there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greywings Posted January 12, 2015 Share Posted January 12, 2015 He could very well be 27 active and attentive to all his surroundings, they often live to be 40 or more years old. Birds unlike people and dogs need to maintain all their normal levels of activity, alertness and dexterity as they are a prey animal in their natural environment and would be eaten if they showed weakness. Only an extremely old bird would be slower or less active and you only see that in a captive situation. This is one of the reasons we often recommend you weigh your bird weekly to help track any health concerns as a sick bird will hide their symptoms untill they are ready to drop-it is a survival skill. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murfchck Posted January 13, 2015 Share Posted January 13, 2015 Haha, my two oldest are my most active. Koko, u2, is 25 and i need to get her a young buck to keep up with her. Gus, u2, is 6 or 7 and she wears him out. I find him hiding in his cage while she is still out causing mischief! Gabby is 27, cag, and Lord help me she is into everything! I just found out the red front moving in is 60 and he hasn't slowed down as much as you would expect. Age is nothing to a bird! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Acappella Posted January 25, 2015 Share Posted January 25, 2015 Thank you for re-homing this baby. Sound like he figured out pretty quickly that his lot in life has just improved greatly. How did the vet check go? Do you have any pictures? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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