Pet Forum / Birds / Birds / March 2005

Hi Heather, Eric and soon to include Yoshi,

Male Ekkie's have a greater tendency/capability to speak than female Ekkie's
(at least according to fellow Ekkie parents and written research that I've
read).  The odds are very high that he will learn to actually speak.
However, he will probably still gronk.  One of the male Ekkie's that I
placed from the rescue commented on his bird gronking, but then also
mentioned that the bird had picked up quite a few phrases in a very short
time.  Cuppie only has 2 or 3 phrases... the rest is gronks.  And she NEVER
speaks when we're in the room.  Once in a while, I hear this delicate little
baby voice say "I'm Cupcake... I love you".  Too cute for words.  Of course,
when we hear this, we go running into the living room to tell her how clever
she is, and she just looks at us like we're nuts.  When I come home from
work, if I listen carefully, I can hear that little baby voice say
"Hiiiiiiiiii".  I have to listen carefully, cause the other 4 birds are
yelling to be let out of their cages and they all want a hello kiss first --
especially my bossy quaker that yells "Gimme a KISS!".  <lol>

Now about th "bird-guru" at the pet store . She is going to tell you
anything that she thinks you need to hear, in order to finalize the sale.
Let's get real... it's a business.  Not slamming her, but she's in business
to sell the bird.  As long as you go into your relationship with Yoshi with
an open mind (and possibly earplugs), you'll be fine.  Remember, there's no
such thing as too much research.  Around 4 months ago, there was a nice
article on Ekkie's in Bird Talk magazine.  I recommend subscribing.

Now about taking him to Easter at your Mom's.  I don't recommend it.
Although Yoshi is used to lots of people coming and going in his life, he's
used to the scenary staying the same.  He's been great in the store, but
when you bring him home, there's going to have a major adjustment period.
Many birds, when brought home, start to have totally different behavior.
The bold people-bird can become shy and withdrawn; the shy can become
aggressive (fear/self-defense).  Patience is necessary during the first few
weeks (and sometimes months) with a new bird.  Once you bring him home, he's
probably going to want to stay in his cage a bit, and will only want minimal
handling.  That's okay, and normal.  Talk to him.  Let him know that
everything's alright.  If he allows it, reach in the cage and gently stroke
a toe.  Having the same cage is nice, but it's in new surroundings.  Believe
it or not, birds do not adapt to change well.  If he gets stressed, he may
start to pluck or overpreen his feathers a bit (Ekkies, quakers and Afr.
Greys are pretty prone to plucking).  If he starts to stress, back off... no
touching... just talking.

Let's start at the beginning.  When you go to bring him home, you'll need to
have an appropriate car carrier. When I travel with my birds, I do not carry
them in their huge cages -- it's not practical, and it's dangerous (unstable
and toys swinging around).  I have a cat carrier for each bird that has a
perch mounted (drilled a hole in the side and screwed in the perch).  In
addition, we line the bottom of the cat carrier with a towel and drape the
top and door opening with a towel.  It's cold out!  Once we're in the car,
the towel gets lifted off the door so the bird can see me and can be
reassured.

Set his cage up in a part of the house that you spend a lot of your time.
Birds are VERY social.  They want to be with you... even if you're just in
the room.  We use the living room.  Place him in the cage and CLOSE THE
DOOR!  It will be very tempting to play with him, but he'll need you to back
off.  Do NOT let the dogs near the cage.  Yoshi probably doesn't know what
they are, and they ARE predators.  In fact, if the door is open on Yoshi's
cage, I recommend removing the dogs from the room -- banishment.
Eventually, Yoshi and the dogs may get along great, but never, ever leave
them together unsupervised.  The damage that can be unintentionally
inflicted is devastating.

I'll have to continue this later... I've got an appointment.
Amy

The "bird guru" is not telling you the complete truth--the bird will
probably learn to talk AND continue to make the gronking noise.  As other
have said, it is normal for Eclectus to make the gronking noise all of their
lives.

Of course you don't PLAN on every giving up you bird--but will both you and
your husband be able to stand the gronking noise day after day, year after
year?