Post by deebee on Jun 3, 2015 0:11:00 GMT -8
6 months ago I saw a free to good home advert on preloved. Yellow Indian ringneck free to good home cannot fly 21 years old. Oh no, I thought. So many people could take advantage of the situation and sell her on. I found myself messaging the owner immediately. There were no photos nor was I sent any. Next thing I know I'm making the journey to collect this poor creature
I get to the house which was little over an hours drive away and I'm greeted by a very friendly family. The first thing I see when I walk in is a Congo grey looking rather cross that I had entered his home. Okay, they're bird owners already, good. I look across the room and in a large cage is a female lutino Indian ringneck looking rather sorry for herself. She had a bowl full of sunflower seeds (as they claimed she couldn't eat anything else), 1 toy that wasn't worth playing with and 2 dowel perches that she couldn't get around on very well
I was told that the birds name was Squishee, as their young child had named her. I promised I would keep the name for him. The owner went to catch her up in the cage and she fell harshly to floor with a great thud. It made me cringe. She really couldn't fly. I then had to watch her roll around on her back, screaming her lungs out in fear attempting to get back up again. She attempted to climb the bars but kept slipping back off. A towel was thrown over her and she was put into my carry cage. I asked a few questions, like, how long they'd had her, why is she like this etc. and has she been vetted. They had taken her to a vet, meaning well, but they said there's nothing to be done except for keep her comfortable
WARNING: WHAT I AM ABOUT TO TELL YOU NEXT IS GRAPHIC AND MAY BE UPSETTING TO THOSE READING THIS
I had thought that perhaps she had always been a disabled bird? Maybe she had been in an accident like flying in to a window even? Many IRN kept as pets in the country are sadly aviary birds who do not belong in our homes, a window hit would be a common situation for most if not provided with the correct safety measures. I asked if they knew what had happened to her and well, it's not pretty
She is 21 years old. She has been passed around many homes and was originally an aviary bird. The family who owned her before me had seen her get passed around as they knew the people involved. They had had a phone call asking for them to take on the bird as it was no longer wanted by another family (not the people who owned her at the time but somebody they knew). Their teenage son had lost him temper, threw her at a wall and trod on her... because she was screaming...
It's hard to stomach... it baffles me how anybody can do something to such an innocent being. I've cried for her and my family have cried for her. Her phobia and hatred of humans is saddening and knowing that she does not trust us though we're only trying to help is awful. Watching her struggle to get around is painful. We put her in a small cage with a towel in the bottom for the last few months so she can settle and recover but she's moving into a much more suitable cage within the next few days hopefully. It's a double stack but the section is large enough to accommodate platforms and easier ways to get around for her while still allowing her space
She won't touch toys. In fact, she screams blue murder when they're in the cage. It's going to take a long time to get her to play and I don't know how much time we've got left with her. I just want to keep her comfortable. The good news is that she is no longer eating sunflower seeds at all. I have completely removed them from her diet. She is still being fed seeds but they're a considerably less fatty mix. She is also limited to how many nuts she can have. She devours fresh food readily and enjoys soaking it in her water bowl. She was covered in dirt when we got her but after misting her every other day we have managed to get her preening and keeping herself in tip top condition. She is living a much better life than she was, that's for sure
In the carrier on the way home. You can see the damage to her feathers from falling on her back all the time in that first photo
After her first misting. Still poop stuck around her vent from not being able to preen (not being ill don't worry) but looking considerably better already
Second misting, still a bit of poop but a huge difference in the colour of her plumage and she seemed far more content. Her eyes seemed more alive
A month or so after I had her and there's already an enormous difference. Her feathers are brighter, eyes have a sparkle etc.
I do have the odd photo lying around somewhere but those were the ones I had at hand. I try not to bother her too much as I don't like her falling and crashing. She's in the conservatory so she has her own separate space to the house and she can have peace n quiet there but still see the rest of the aviary birds during the day
Once I have the bigger cage I'll start getting photos of her with my DSLR as I will have more room to work with without spooking her
I hope to keep everybody updated of her progress!
I get to the house which was little over an hours drive away and I'm greeted by a very friendly family. The first thing I see when I walk in is a Congo grey looking rather cross that I had entered his home. Okay, they're bird owners already, good. I look across the room and in a large cage is a female lutino Indian ringneck looking rather sorry for herself. She had a bowl full of sunflower seeds (as they claimed she couldn't eat anything else), 1 toy that wasn't worth playing with and 2 dowel perches that she couldn't get around on very well
I was told that the birds name was Squishee, as their young child had named her. I promised I would keep the name for him. The owner went to catch her up in the cage and she fell harshly to floor with a great thud. It made me cringe. She really couldn't fly. I then had to watch her roll around on her back, screaming her lungs out in fear attempting to get back up again. She attempted to climb the bars but kept slipping back off. A towel was thrown over her and she was put into my carry cage. I asked a few questions, like, how long they'd had her, why is she like this etc. and has she been vetted. They had taken her to a vet, meaning well, but they said there's nothing to be done except for keep her comfortable
WARNING: WHAT I AM ABOUT TO TELL YOU NEXT IS GRAPHIC AND MAY BE UPSETTING TO THOSE READING THIS
I had thought that perhaps she had always been a disabled bird? Maybe she had been in an accident like flying in to a window even? Many IRN kept as pets in the country are sadly aviary birds who do not belong in our homes, a window hit would be a common situation for most if not provided with the correct safety measures. I asked if they knew what had happened to her and well, it's not pretty
She is 21 years old. She has been passed around many homes and was originally an aviary bird. The family who owned her before me had seen her get passed around as they knew the people involved. They had had a phone call asking for them to take on the bird as it was no longer wanted by another family (not the people who owned her at the time but somebody they knew). Their teenage son had lost him temper, threw her at a wall and trod on her... because she was screaming...
It's hard to stomach... it baffles me how anybody can do something to such an innocent being. I've cried for her and my family have cried for her. Her phobia and hatred of humans is saddening and knowing that she does not trust us though we're only trying to help is awful. Watching her struggle to get around is painful. We put her in a small cage with a towel in the bottom for the last few months so she can settle and recover but she's moving into a much more suitable cage within the next few days hopefully. It's a double stack but the section is large enough to accommodate platforms and easier ways to get around for her while still allowing her space
She won't touch toys. In fact, she screams blue murder when they're in the cage. It's going to take a long time to get her to play and I don't know how much time we've got left with her. I just want to keep her comfortable. The good news is that she is no longer eating sunflower seeds at all. I have completely removed them from her diet. She is still being fed seeds but they're a considerably less fatty mix. She is also limited to how many nuts she can have. She devours fresh food readily and enjoys soaking it in her water bowl. She was covered in dirt when we got her but after misting her every other day we have managed to get her preening and keeping herself in tip top condition. She is living a much better life than she was, that's for sure
In the carrier on the way home. You can see the damage to her feathers from falling on her back all the time in that first photo
After her first misting. Still poop stuck around her vent from not being able to preen (not being ill don't worry) but looking considerably better already
Second misting, still a bit of poop but a huge difference in the colour of her plumage and she seemed far more content. Her eyes seemed more alive
A month or so after I had her and there's already an enormous difference. Her feathers are brighter, eyes have a sparkle etc.
I do have the odd photo lying around somewhere but those were the ones I had at hand. I try not to bother her too much as I don't like her falling and crashing. She's in the conservatory so she has her own separate space to the house and she can have peace n quiet there but still see the rest of the aviary birds during the day
Once I have the bigger cage I'll start getting photos of her with my DSLR as I will have more room to work with without spooking her
I hope to keep everybody updated of her progress!
