01.14.07

I just have to share with the list all the behavior changes I'm seeing in my umbrella cockatoo.  This is a bird who I cannot be in the same space with.  He has attacked me numerous times in the past and while his aggression has diminished to a great degree in the recent years with lots of positive reinforcement training, the aggression would pop back up from time to time.  He also has a history of screaming that was reinforced at his previous home.  This also improved with positive reinforcement, but was still at a level that was almost more than we could stand.  He has been with us about 5 years now and my husband especially has a hard time with the screaming.

About July of this year, Lainey Alexander suggested that I start trying some therapeutic grade essential oils on him.  She knows all about his screaming issues, because we rarely have a phone conversation without her getting to hear him.  I started out applying them to his feet topically (very carefully so as not to get bitten, luckily he will give me access to his foot).  I tried lavender, peace and calming blend, then german chamomile.  The german chamomile worked best to calm him and it did not sedate him.  After a few weeks though, he tired of me putting blue oil on his foot.  Around this same time I learned that german chamomile could be beneficial for the liver, so I started diffusing it in the room for 15 - 45 minutes each day, because my quaker with fatty liver syndrome is in the same room.  My cockatoo's behavior continued to improve and he was no longer a bird that was difficult to live with.  The aggression became almost nonexistent and the screaming would only occur at times we could mostly predict.  I've also been giving him Ningxia Red juice on a slightly irregular basis and I think this also has a calming effect on him.

Then the day after Christmas he moved into his new cage that is 4 feet x 6 feet.  I can't believe it, but with the previous improvements mentioned above and now this new cage, he is now almost a new bird compared to the U2 I knew 8 months ago!  He now preens in front of me which he would never do before, he only screams if I am late putting him to bed, the aggression continues to be almost nonexistent and his "happiness" behaviors have increased 10 fold.  He will play with his toys in front of me instead of begging for and demanding my attention, he really keeps himself occupied with his toys, he talks a lot more and he is even singing a lot more!  For the very first time, I'm starting to see the positive side of sharing your life with an umbrella cockatoo.

I really think that essential oils could improve many of the behavioral issues that cause so many birds to lose their homes.  I would be so thrilled if every needy, unhappy bird could be as pleasant and content as my U2 now is.

Update 02.03.07:

Not long after writing in to the list about the changes I've seen in my U2, I started noting more progress. Up high in his cage he has a very large toybox that is several inches deep and he loves to get inside this toy box to chew on things. When he is in the toy box playing, he can't see what's going on in the birdroom. His play behaviors have increased to the extent that he might look up if I enter the room, stare at me for a second or two, but then he will go on playing. Even if I am in the room talking & singing to the birds, he will continue playing. If I start moving around or make an unusual noise, he will look up again, then return to his playing. I started feeling like I was interrupting him, a bit like an intruder in my own birdroom :) But the best part was that I was no longer seeing any of those frantic behaviors of begging for attention. I would have never thought it possible for him to be this content.

But we did experience a temporary bump in the road along the way. I have been following a schedule of diffusing for 30 minutes, 3 days on and 1 day off. Then a couple of weeks ago I ended up taking a 5 day break by accident. By day 4 there was an increase in screaming behaviors and on day 5 he was back to his pre-German chamomile level of screaming. At this point I started taking notes. I started back with the diffusing on day 6, but I did not see immediate improvement. In fact, several times on days 6 and 7 he attacked the side of his cage as I walked by which is also a return of those old behvaiors. By day 8 these unpleasant behaviors started to diminish. Day 9 was a break day again, which didn't seem to change anything. Day 10 I start diffusing again and by day 12 he was back to being that contented, pleasant U2 with a return to the behaviors I've noted above.

I have learned a couple of things from this experience! First of all, I won't be taking any more extended breaks from the diffusing as this is obviously something that benefits him tremendously. Secondly, I am now convinced that it's the German chamomile that is responsible for all of his progress in the last several months; while the larger cage may give him more room to have fun in, it is not the cage that contributes so much to his contentment. And the third thing I learned is that if you do take an extended break, it may take a few days to start seeing the behavioral benefits once again.