caleb's diary

[steptoe91(tozie)]

okay, if its okay with ya'll, i'm gonna kinda keep a 'diary' of his behaviors. for me to kinda analyze and get input from ya'll on his progress.

He eats well, loves carrots. doesnt seem to know what to do with the pellets. dont think he recognizes it as food.    i think he thinks its a toy, cause he throws it in the floor and looks at it like "fetch!" lol!

he seems happy to play on his own as long as he can see me. he is a one bird wood chipper! he has been chipping wood constantly since i got him. not too sure if he just didnt have access to wood and is happy to have it or just instinct kicking in. i remember when i got skittles he spent bout 6 months chipping anything he could get his beak on cause he hadnt had access to it in his old home. he's just started chipping wood again in the last 3 weeks.

caleb is a heck of a talker. he says ALOT. and curses frequently. especially when he sees a man or hears a male voice.

more as i think of it....
 comments and opinions and suggestions are more than welcome! 

[BPMar]

It will be a good learning experience for us all

[wishforabird]

I am very much looking forward to this!!! because of allergies, Toos are not an option here, so this is going to be me  living vicariously through you  .

[steptoe91(tozie)]

well, when i first tried to mist caleb today, he was very scared of the bottle. so i backed off. put him where he could see ollie, and gave ollie a good bath. well, ollie loves his baths. so after i bathed ollie, i gave caleb another shot. he seemed okay with it. he didnt really get into it much, but he wasnt scared. so its a step in the right direction.

[Ditty]

woohoo a step forward with the misting for sure.  They do learn so much from our other fids don't they?

[Sondra]

Toos are wood chippers, good toothpick makers! LOL!

Try a shower with Caleb, I bet he loves it. Most Toos don't care for the suction cup perches in the shower as they slide or fall, if you have one that sticks well for you use it. He sounds like he really needs a good soaking.

At this point in his life he should pick up new words for you, so when he swears, just change the word to something close such as Ship for Sh!t, Truck or duck for F*ck. Stick with adult words, not baby words, when he says he's a bad boy/bird correct him happily with No, Caleb is a GOOD boy/bird! If you make a big deal out of something as you know he'll be interested and much more likely to pick things up or try them.

Pellets, soak them in apple juice (100% juice) until softened and see if he'll take them that way. Use pine cones coated with almond butter, crush the dry pellets and roll the pine cones in crushed pellets and seed combined - he'll get some of the pellets along with the almond butter and seeds.

The carrots, are they simply sliced or are they like the frozen ones with the wavy texture? If frozen, and wavy, try cutting sweet potatoes up with the wavyness to them
 and steam them, I bet he tries them. Broccoli & Raw Kale are also excellent for him, along with your other birds (you already know this).Put steamed veggies or fresh fruit on stainless steel skewers and hang them in his cage, at first he may just shred them but he'll also be tasting the food, eventually he'll eat them. Nuts, no peanuts, ever, are good for him - watch the higher fatty nuts such as walnuts and Brazil nuts (not too many in a week) but be sure to give almonds. He may not know how to crack them so you may half to  half them for him until he gets the hang of things.  

[BPMar]

  I bet he would LOVE those pine cones you sent me!  Go out for more!!!!!...only no plastic bag for carrying, take a potato sack!  :twirl:

[rubyandmax]

This is great Tozie.  I can learn a bit too.   

[steptoe91(tozie)]

wow.    okay. where to start?  Caleb responds strongly to men and male voices. he becomes very animated, bobbing, yelling, crest up and down. So he was on top of a travel cage in the kitchen just hanging out, chewing wood, ya know, being a bird. Drew comes in the door. wow! different bird. his crest comes up, he starts bobbing and yelling. i really cant be sure of most of what he said, tho i think i made out several curse words and "...gonna get arested...' i swear! that is what i heard!  he was quite animated but content to stay on the cage. after talking to drew and caleb for a few mins, i went and picked caleb up. put him on my lap, trying to show him that this man is nice. well, he calmed down and let me pet him. drew grabbed a hershey bar that was sitting on the table and said "hey! ya got me some candy!" at this point caleb goes nuts! crest up, yelling and bobbing. i put him on the kitchen cage, he climbs down and hops across the floor toward drew!    we are like WTH???? this animal is freaking out! he hops to drew, who picked his feet up off the floor, i finally get him to step up for me. put him on his cage in the spare room. he leaps off the cage and flutters (falls with style) to the doorway, and again begins hopping after drew, crest at full attention. i finally get him to step up for me, cringing just KNOWING he's gonna bite the sheeewalagans outta me. drew decides its time for his shower anyway, and goes to shower. caleb calms down. but when drew comes out, up comes the crest and hopping too across the floor. wow! ya know how i've been waiting for the other shoe to drop?? well, i'd say that was it. he's quite... hostile toward...uh... candy? lol! men eating candy? idk. but wow! that was such a violent reaction. everyone in the house was looking at caleb like he was a bottle of nitroglycerine!  :couch:  including the other fids. Caleb has no fear of the dogs. only hisses at the other fids if they get too close to him. but wow! gonna hafta remember NO hershey bars in the house for a while! lol! the lady told me he recognizes candy wrappers and seems to love chocolate. but i had no idea that was what she meant. wow! more to come in the caleb saga...

[Sondra]

It could be that the last main care giver was a man. I've noticed that when a bird is cared for by one sex, then re-homed, they usually choose the opposite sex as their favoured person in that new home. Or it could be that he was not treated nicely by a man.

Have Drew give him treats when Caleb is in his cage, talking softly to him. Caleb doesn't have to take the treats, they can be dropped in his bowl. If Drew has time he could just sit and talk quietly to Caleb, even if Caleb screams all Drew has to do is whisper and Caleb should quiet down to hear what Drew is saying. This will encourage an accepting of men in Calebs life. He NEEDS to know men won't hurt him. I'm sure you already know this, but for those who don't, no chocolate or coffee as it destroys the kidneys.

[steptoe91(tozie)]

background info on caleb from the previous owner:

I raise/breed birds as well, and I bought him off a lady that had him a year or two, she was going on a cruise and wanted him gone. She got him from an older lady that bought him as a hand-fed baby, and beat him with a broom.
Despite that he's a nice bird. He likes women, talks a lot, and is very showy with people. Super cuddly and affectionate. However, I have a pet Cockatoo and she demands all my attention. I raised her from a baby 25 years ago, so she comes first. I don't have the time for Caleb, and he deserves a home with more attention and activity. He came to me with a small picked spot, smaller than a dime on his chest, but lately he's been picking on it more, so I know he's stressed out and needs a home where his needs can be met. Honestly, this is an amazing bird. He's ten years old.

He eats everything, but mostly a Vita Parrot Mix, with A LOT OF Fruits and Veggies. All my birds are on the same diet. But he knows how to drink soda out of a can and knows chocolate candy wrappers and has eaten chocolate before I caught him. I also saw him eat a peppermint that he found, so where ever he was he ate junk food. But he loves an orange just sliced in half, or a whole lemon to peel . I've given him whole carrots, whole corn, things to keep him busy and he basically eats everything.
 
Yes I handle him every day. He's a love.
My husband and I took over a very nice pet shop from a friend that had it for 23 years. It's at the XXXXXXXXXXXX; it's fully enclosed and a very NICE, clean shop, not some skanky dump. I specifically wanted a Mollucan to have a main attraction and eventually sell. That same day I found Caleb. The owner was going on a cruise and wanted him gone, though she really loved Caleb and vice versa.
 
That first day he bit me hard, but never ever again. He's super sweet and a real love. He goes to the store with us on weekends and is a celebrity there. SOOOO, I got attached to him and after week one he wasn't for sale to people I didn't think were a right match. hehehe.
However I am so busy during the week, he's getting unhappy. He is in a large outdoor cage during the day and is very quiet and content, he loves that. But at night I have no time for him. This is the kind of bird that watches every move you make, you can even play ball with him, and that's what he craves.
 
He came with a small picked spot (dime size) on his chest, but now he's picked a few feathers. He's gotten to love the pet shop so much that he basically screams a lot, because everybody rushes over and fusses over him. He talks super loud and is a total ham, so all of this is negative reinforcement; he's a total brat at the store. So overall, as a Zoologist, I have to say that his needs are not being met and he needs more stability. He totally loves women and children, men not so much.
 
I've had him 2 months. No, never tested for anything with me. Previous owner had him for 2 years and he was an only bird.

[Sondra]

Sounds as though he's pretty laid back which is really nice! Our Powder is pretty laid back also, accepting, yet still demanding in his own way. LOL! It's wonderful he was able to be outdoors so much! The sunlight is good for all birds and that's one reason Caleb is in such good colour, along with the fresh fruits and veggies he was fed, you're SO lucky in that aspect. The stick/broom thing you may have problems with, especially if you sweep alot, so sad. You can try to help him overcome that fear by wrapping a stick in sisal rope and seeing if he'll accept that.

It's delightful to hear that he only bit once in 2 years, many people that have Toos say as their birds get into their teens the bites lessen a whole bunch - Powder hasn't given a bad bite in a year or so either, tells me there is hope.

I'm sure you know, but for those that don't, birds can't burp so carbonated beverages can cause their organs to rupture.

You are SO lucky Caleb sounds as though he is pretty well adjusted without too much baggage. I know he's in the best possible home and that yours will be his home for as long as you live.  Enjoy your baby!!

[plantsandbirds]

Make sure you put photos in Caleb's diary!  Tee hee. 

 

[steptoe91(tozie)]

   dont forget the pics...okay i'll do that. <grin> but this weather is KILLING my internet. i have NO bandwith. i actually had to try to load the homepage of google search 4 times before it would load.    but that's neither here nor there...

i've selected caleb's cage. i wanted to get a twin to ollie's but they cut it back to 3 feed doors in the newest models.   

so this is close to ollie's and it comes in Blue!   

http://birdcages4less.com/page/B/PROD/Large_Bird_Cages/PA5736

these folks are great! they test their cages for toxic metals so i know it'll be safe for him.    so by the end of the month i'll have this ordered for caleb.

he's doing great. very quiet this morn. he didnt even do the 'hello world, its morning' squawk today.    but he ate breakfast very well, he does NOT like blackberries.    as i watched he would pick them out and sling 'em across the cage. He adores his carrots. they are chunks and slivers like in mixed veggies ya get in the frozen food dept. i have the stuff for sweet potato puffs for the fids, so hopefully i'll have time to make 'em tomorrow after i get off work.
i think he's been picking at that spot on his chest.    but he wont let me get a good look at it. i dont want to damage our fragile relationship yet by pushing the issue. i was so caught up yesterday in what i was doing i forgot to call the vetschool for an appt for him.    i want to wait til i have a bit more money anyway so i can do whatever they suggest and i'm not restricted waiting for income tax. so i'll prob set the first appt for the end of the month. in the mean time, i'm misting him. gonna try to get him in the shower monday, its a bit cool here, so i dont want to soak him this weekend.  i think the better diet, lots of toys and a bigger cage will go a long way toward helping his picking if its not illness related.

he loves almonds, i give to him as i give skittles, in the shell. he seems to enjoy both the almond itself and the breaking the shell.

he's very content to hang out on top of his cage as long as he can see me. he even did okay when i was making breakfast this morn, even tho i was out of his sight. he let out one contact call and i responded. he was satisfied after that.

[BPMar]

 :party: Nice cage!  So how do you make sweet potato puffs?  I bet our flock would like those!