Sulphur Cockatoo - Eric

[sleepless]

My son & I need a little help here, he is an animal & nature loving boy of 13 who has spent his savings on buying Eric (with the help of his Grandma) 50/50 ownership only to find that this 6 year old bird has an immediate bonding with my mum & treats Alex with somewhat of a distance & perhaps now threat?! He spent weeks researching the right bird, taking into account all the criteria that was important, environment, time spent, gender etc, so much so that my husband and I went ahead & helped him to find & purchase, eventually Eric. We found Eric had recently joined this family (3weeks) & before had been with, since birth, 1 lady owner - Eric is now 6. The family we purchased him from had the same idea, he was brought for the 12 year old son, whom very quickly found that he was frightened of him and would not go near him due to his displays & being nipped hence being sold on very quickly. When I took Alex to see him with a view to buy, he was very cautious, Eric showed signs that he would respond once Alex had gained his trust & fell in love with him so we brought him home. Now we find that he immediately has bonded with my mum to whom Eric immediately would let her handle, pick up, stroke and even kiss (showing signs of a lovely nature) with Alex not even able to enter the room without displays and signs of disturbance (the noise!) has been bitten twice, is frightened, confused & in tears! We have read so much about behavior & I have said that this will be a slow process for him to gain Eric's trust but I'm now not so sure as i think Eric feels he's found his original owner in my mum! I have read that they are a receptive bird and do not mind female or male contact but I'm wondering if in Eric's case life might be a little different - help please would be so much appreciated.

[avinet]

You have found one of the pitfalls of buying an older Sulphur

I will have to think about the issue and am short of time just at the moment so hope to come back in the next day or two.

cheers,

Mike

[avinet]

Ok - sorry for not getting back sooner but my time has been in short supply the last couple of days so my computer time has been very limited.

I have to start out by saying that buying a 6 year old Sulphur is always going to be a lucky dip. By that age they have become pretty set in their ways, and the likes and dislikes that have become established are difficult, but not impossible, to break. That is especially so if this is the first big bird you have owned.

I am afraid you should have been warned off by the account of his previous attitude to a 12 year old boy, and that his first owner for 6 years was a single woman. Experiences which have for 6 years moulded his nature. So it is not at all surprising that he likes you mother and not Alex.

As you note, for Alex to gain his trust will be a slow process, but it is possible for that to happen. The first step is for your mother to NOT give Eric attention - if you want the bird to end up trusting and bonding with Alex, then any time your mother gives Eric attention the developing bond between them is being reinforced. Basically you need to get your mother to ignore the bird. If that isn't possible, then give the bird to your mother and look for a new bird for Alex.

I don't know if you saw Better Homes & Gardens last night but Dr Harry tackled exactly this sort of problem, and how to fix it, with a Galah.

Assuming that the effort is going to be made for Alex to work with Erik, the first thing to sort out is what food is the absolute favourite for Erik. You are looking for something Erik loves but which can be given in small amounts as a reward - food rewards are always the most effective method of training a bird. Once that food treat has been decided on then Alex is the only one to offer it to Erik - initially that might be offered on the end of a wooden spoon maybe, but gradually the spoon can be held closer to Erik, and finally the food can be offered by hand. Basically the treat is making Erik think that Alex isn't so bad after all if he is a source of tasty treats.

SC2's are intelligent birds, and many will quickly learn which side their bread is buttered, but you are working against 6 years of conditioning towards an older woman, so it may take a while, and it will often seem like two steps forward and one step backwards - and don't run out of band-aids - there will be an occasional nip along the way. And I can't stress enough the need for your mother to keep away and basically ignore the bird.

I'll finish by saying that by far the best choice would have been a young hand raised bird if you were set on a Sulphur - that way the bird can be conditioned form the start with no pre-conceived behaviours to work through. Although again it would be very important that the person the bird is aimed at is the one giving the treats and attention.

I owned a pet shop specializing in birds for 20 years, and far too often we saw problems develop with young birds taken home. The problem was that everyone in the house wanted to give the bird attention, and if it appeared to show favouritism to a person that was not the intended owner for the bird, then that person would feel flattered and instead of drawing back and letting the intended owner take over, would instead give increased attention because the bird liked them. The result being that the bird bonded to the wrong person, tears ensured and the bird would end up being given back to us.

I have to say that last paragraph could have been written a bit more lucid However my excuse is it is 11 pm and I have still to put my birds back in their cages and give the last feed for the night to a couple of young Ringnecks being hand fed!!!!

Anyway hope this is of some assistance to you, please don't hesitate to come back if I can help any further. Sulphurs can be amazing pets and I have hand raised some delightful ones in the past - a photo of two from around 14 years ago is included here.

cheers,

Mike

[avinet]

Obviously my advice was not what sleepless wanted to hear - I have to confess I do get a bit annoyed when I spend a lot of time thinking about and replying to a request for help and the questioner doesn't have the courtesy to even acknowledge the answer.

Must be feeling grumpy tonight - might have to go cuddle a cockatiel

cheers,

Mike

[anzac]

I think there are alot of "blow ins" Mike that do a hit and run. We certainly appreciate your responses and reading your expertise with all things bird

[xoxoEbzxoxo]

I enjoy reading what you write too Mike, I've been part of this forum for years now, always popping on to see whats been happening. I learnt alot from people on here, sadly it appears facebook has taken over forums like this now.

I keep 4 sulphurs, a 2yr old, 4yr old, 11yr old and a 37yr old. All very different, and all were pretty set on their ways when I got them as Mike has mentioned. Please keep trying with him though and doing the things Mike has said, too many cockatoos get passed on because they don't suit the family, it may take time, but in the end it will be worth it! Cockatoos are awesome birds, and one of my favourite birds!

[tibbygirl]

Hi - have just discovered this wonderful site. We have over the years collected 3 suphur crested cockatoos ( 1 female and 2 males)from people who have not wanted them any more the oldest would be well over 50 the youngest about 30 0r 40. none can fly and they live happily in a single carport converted into an avairy. we are in our 70s and should be here hopefully another years, it is a very hilly acreage. we will have to make a decision on what to do with them . Any ideas. We have had one for about 20 years and the others for about 10 and 6. WE also have a female wild galah who has a broken wing . She was owned by a lady who had her quite tamed and then we took her as no one else wanted her.we had a hand reared male who we took as he was also dumped. We put the 2 together and they were happy and quite bonded though not a breeding pair. Unfortunalty he was dead in his cage one morning and now she has become very timid and calls out to the wild birds all the time. we cant let her go as she cant fly and it is very distressing for her and us. we would bring her inside and spend time with her but due to our age dont want her to bond with us, could someone please advise us on what to do as the poor little girl is so unhappy. thank you i would appreciate any advice