Welcome Mr. Sinbad Silly Pants!

MissK · Post by **MissK** » Tue Jun 10, 2014 10:05 am

It took a long time, and I gave up and resumed several times, but now the search for the second Psittacula is over!

Please welcome my "new" bird, Mr. Sinbad Silly Pants! I'll get his photo up eventually.......

Sinbad is 16 years old, light blue, not tame. He's been living on mainly Sunflower, Safflower, and Peanuts for the last year. I had a good look at his diet and, frankly, it scared me! There was some recent trauma, in his prior home, involving a dog and a tiny cage. Before that he lived, we hear, 15 years with one owner who had him and a female from baby times, but never took them out and only gave them food and water. Somehow, sometime, the female was killed by a large dog in that home. From this history I tend to suspect Sinbad may be an experienced Daddy. All anecdotal evidence suggests he has never had a name.

I've had him for one week and am currently evaluating if he will really fit in here. I think he will make it, unless he turns out to have a great deal of trouble with Rocky. He already has my heart and his very own 5 foot HQ double flight cage.

For those of you who already know the Budgies have been living in that cage, don't worry about them. They have a pair of new cages on order. Again, photos eventually.

Sinbad looks just a mess right now. He's thin and his feathers are dirty, dingy, dull, and tattered. However, the vet thinks he's really not that bad off and a new diet and fresh molt should do wonders.

AJPeter · Post by **AJPeter** » Tue Jun 10, 2014 12:12 pm

Is Sinbad a rescue? What prompted you to give him the name Sinbad Silly Pants?

MissK · Post by **MissK** » Tue Jun 10, 2014 12:28 pm

Sinbad is rehomed from someone who answered my ad looking for an older male Ringneck.

I was considering various names, and had been calling him Silly Pants when he was obviously silly. I sent Skye'sCrew a partial list of names I was considering and she put together Mr. Sinbad Silly Pants. Independently of that, I had been just calling him the exact same thing. Obviously, it was meant to be!

AJPeter · Post by **AJPeter** » Tue Jun 10, 2014 12:34 pm

Well congrats on the good name.

Donovan · Post by **Donovan** » Tue Jun 10, 2014 3:48 pm

I would enjoy trying my hand at a troubled irn, mainly to know if I've been giving good advice

MissK · Post by **MissK** » Tue Jun 10, 2014 10:11 pm

Well, it might be nice if he were tame and ate what I wanted and said "Good morning, Gorgeous" every day, but this is the bird who met the criteria. Tame was not in the criteria; not freaking out panicked scared of humans WAS.

Little Buttercup · Post by **Little Buttercup** » Sat Jun 21, 2014 10:40 pm

Oh Missk, finally you found what you wanted! Wellcome Sinbad and hope you love your new mama.

You make me feel jealous about you having 2 lovely birds!

Ash

MissK · Post by **MissK** » Sat Jun 21, 2014 10:54 pm

Ash, he quite clearly does not love me.

But he does love Rocky, like a long lost pal! So, we'll have a slow go at getting comfortable with each other. Today he showed me the great honour of looking in the cup within five minutes of me dropping a treat inside. He actually picked up this treat, but he was not impressed. He has mostly stopped yelling at me for existing in the same room, so long as I keep my back turned most of the time. It's not *exactly* what I was hoping for, me being so lazy and all, but he did meet criteria, so here he is. He's pretty silly, but I'm already quite fond of him, and feeling protective, too, wanting to fight everybody who might have not treated him so well in the past.

ellieelectrons · Post by **ellieelectrons** » Sat Jun 21, 2014 11:06 pm

I'm so happy for you and Mr Sinbad Silly Pants. He will gradually learn to trust you just like Rocky did. And I'm surd they'll both be glad to have each other. Well done and congratulations MissK!

Ellie.

MissK · Post by **MissK** » Sun Jun 22, 2014 8:17 am

Thank you all. It's true I am really quite happy and the birds already are thrilled to have each other.

ellieelectrons · Post by **ellieelectrons** » Sun Jun 22, 2014 9:00 am

Will you have them cohabitate?

Ellie.

MissK · Post by **MissK** » Sun Jun 22, 2014 9:54 am

Well, that was not in the original plan, but certainly seems desirable. If they do very well over the next year I might modify the cages to merge. I think if I'm crafty I might be able to arrange them with a little connector housing, like they have between train cars. As constructed there is a gap between the cages of about 4 inches due to the frames and wheels. I can't get the cages closer than that without using a saw, which I know I won't do because I like to retain as many options as possible. If I join the cages by pulling the end pieces and fabricating a connector, I can always put it back if things go South. How wonderful it would be to have a pair of IRNs in a ten foot long cage in the living room!! I only wish I had had the extra multiples of cash to buy the double tall cages!

AJPeter · Post by **AJPeter** » Sun Jun 22, 2014 2:03 pm

Really MissK you should not say "If things go South" That is almost as bad as my saying

MissK · Post by **MissK** » Mon Jun 23, 2014 9:39 am

YAY, we got one in the "win" column. Sinbad likes baby carrots!

Donovan · Post by **Donovan** » Mon Jun 23, 2014 9:57 am

I don't think you should wait a whole year, theyre not getting any younger

I haven't read everything here, but if they're ok with each other out of the cage then they'll be fine sharing. Sure they'll have the occasional scuffle but it'll be little stuff

MissK · Post by **MissK** » Mon Jun 23, 2014 11:18 am

Well, you know, Sinbad and I have certain work to do between us. He's already over the moon with Rocky, so I don't want to work any harder to compete for his affection than I have to. On top of that - MissK moves sooooooo slowly!

MissK · Post by **MissK** » Tue Jun 24, 2014 9:46 am

Today Sinbad initiated a conversation with me. No, he didn't open up his beak and say "Well, Good Morning MissK; what do you think of the price of beans in China?"

No, it was a different kind of conversation, but every bit as clear. I am including it here mostly to brag on him and also to give some example of the kind subtle thing we can look for and take encouragement from when we are trying to make some kind of contact with that wild IRN we've brought into the home.

How it happened:

After tinkering around with my houseplants, I left the room and returned with some cookies, and sat down to watch the Budgies enjoying their new cages. Glossing over why I might be eating cookies at noon, I noticed Sinbad looking at me with interest. Quite deliberately, he moved along his perch to the designated treat cup AND LOOKED INSIDE. Immediately I got up and broke off two tiny bits of cookie, dropped one in Sinbad's treat cup and handed the other to Rocky. I sat down again and Sinbad soon advanced on the treat cup. He inspected the cookie, bit didn't take it. I got up and quickly chopped baby carrots for both birds, dropped some in Sinbad's cup. He yelled at me from the nearby perch but did not retreat. After I sat down again he ate some carrot.

This is how I imagine our conversation went:

Me: Mmm, cookies are delicious, Budgies are so happy, Housework can wait..!
Sinbad: I've noticed you have better food than me.
Me: La, la, la, la, la...
Sinbad: Did you give me any? Aren't you supposed to give me some?
Me: Ohh! Sinbad, you want a cookie? I'll share! Here you go!
Sinbad: Thanks for the treat.......... Actually, not so sure I like cookies.
Me: I'll get you something better! Here you go.
Sinbad: HEY!! WhaddyadoingthereIdon'tthinkyoushouldbesoclosehow..come.....you......are............Hmmmmm.......
Me: Rocky, some for you, too!
Sinbad: Oh hey, you brought me those little carrots I like. They're OK.
Me: *sigh* Budgies are happy, Ringnecks have carrots, La, la, la, la, la.....

GeveZe · Post by **GeveZe** » Tue Jun 24, 2014 10:08 am

this conversation makes me smile all night long =)

Donovan · Post by **Donovan** » Tue Jun 24, 2014 11:23 am

Hah! That was an awesome read.
Reminded me of Diary of an Indian Ringneck I wrote a while back. Pretty much outlined me bell's day from his perspective. From me getting up in the morning, putting him outside then coming home later and playing fetch.

http://www.indianringneck.com/forum/vie ... =8&t=18030

MissK · Post by **MissK** » Tue Jun 24, 2014 11:40 am

I had missed that!

AJPeter · Post by **AJPeter** » Tue Jun 24, 2014 11:47 am

Do you think our birds use telepathy? I often get a hunch as to what Billie wants and it turns out to be a winner!

ellieelectrons · Post by **ellieelectrons** » Tue Jun 24, 2014 5:19 pm

MissK, have you seen Felix on Facebook?
https://www.facebook.com/FelixLaFollett

If you had unlimited hours in your day, you could soooo do something like Felix's site. You'd do a great job.

Ellie.

MissK · Post by **MissK** » Tue Jun 24, 2014 11:35 pm

Ellie, thanks for the vote of confidence!

Felix will never see any competition from my guys, but I did peek in on his site and I thought it was great. Yellow Pellet Ratio Emergency, indeed. That's just hysterical!

MissK · Post by **MissK** » Fri Jun 27, 2014 4:55 am

I don't want to be premature or anything, make a big deal like no Ringneck has ever done this or anything, but...............

SINBAD ATE HIS VEGETABLES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
AGAIN, why is there no happy dancing smilie face??

Sinbad ate his veggie chop, and Rocky ate his, too. Of course Sinbad only ate a little, and Rocky immediately recycled his into feeding the cage grate, but focus on positive-- They ate it! It went in the beak and disappeared! YAAAAAAAYYYYYYY!

Lynnie, however, is still focussed on biting the bowl that holds the veggie chop....... He's so "special". Oh,no, now he's off to chew on his plant some more. *sigh*.

ellieelectrons · Post by **ellieelectrons** » Fri Jun 27, 2014 6:20 am

Way to go Sinbad!

Ellie.

Donovan · Post by **Donovan** » Fri Jun 27, 2014 6:44 am

so the lynnie i supposed to eat pretty much the same stuff as the irns?

MissK · Post by **MissK** » Fri Jun 27, 2014 8:31 pm

That's my hope, but try as I might I cannot figure out what he actually eats, other than the plant, the spray millet and some apple. He only gets the spray from my hand, so I know it's not that.

MissK · Post by **MissK** » Fri Jul 04, 2014 7:01 am

Sinbad is SO silly!

I'm pleased to report that Sinbad is getting accustomed to activities here at my house. He yells at me much less, though he still does yell. Today he yelled at me quite a lot as he got close to me and tried to brave up and take a sunflower seed from me. He was not quite brave enough today, but maybe tomorrow.

This occurred as I grabbed a jar of sunflower seeds (now eliminated from his food bowl) and started handing them to Rocky. Always a trooper, Rocky downed sunflower seeds one by one as Sinbad took note. I was standing in front of Rocky's cage and Sinbad came right to the corner where the two cages meet. And he yelled. I offered him a seed and he retreated. Eventually we got to the place where I held the seed above the treat dish (outside the cage) and Sinbad sneaked towards me on the long perch. OOOOH, he wanted that seed! But he was not quite brave enough.

Eventually all that yelling got to Rocky and he got out of the mood for treats and started regurgitating for the lock on the door closest to Sinbad. Sinbad started dancing for Rocky and I could tell my time was over. I sat down. Now Sinbad's raked through his treat cup a few times and Rocky's settled into eating pellets. There is now quiet in the living room, except for the sound of Lynnie rooting through his dish in a way that can only be called Just Like A Pig....

MissK · Post by **MissK** » Mon Jul 07, 2014 10:46 am

Coming out? ~

Today I offered Sinbad the first opportunity to leave his cage. All in all, he soundly declined. I did hold Rocky on the outside, feeding him treats, but it did not entice my little Silly Pants out.

For Rocky's part, he both tried to feed Sinbad through the roof and also tried to bite his toes on the wall. Sinbad put his beak towards Rocky's but I couldn't really tell what sort of activity he was after. I placed a perch on the outside of Sinbad's cage to match up to one of his perches inside, hoping to encourage the boys to sit together. Success was marginal at best.

Eventually, if Sinbad doesn't come out the door, I'll remove the face of the cage so there will be a very big opening. Not today. The rest of today belongs to the mammals in the house.

Donovan · Post by **Donovan** » Mon Jul 07, 2014 11:34 am

That might scare him having such a big opening.

Can you leave the room with the cage door open? Take yourself out of the equation and it may have a different result

InTheAir · Post by **InTheAir** » Mon Jul 07, 2014 2:35 pm

Rocky must be the happiest little ringneck now he has someone to feed and bicker with!
Has Sinbad got a perch in his doorway that he can get to without putting himself in a vulnerable position as he climbs to it? He may not have the confidence to fly out the door yet or climb on certain angles in that situation.

MissK · Post by **MissK** » Mon Jul 07, 2014 3:26 pm

He does, in fact, have a long perch that goes diagonally from the hiding zone to the doorway. It's level with the sill of the doorway, though, not the side. There is a similar perch that goes to the topline of the door.

Upon consideration, I can't really say I expected him to come out. He doesn't follow a lure and he doesn't really make much sign of wanting to come out. Too, I was in the room and we know how he isn't so comfy with me yet. It will come in time.

I don't think it would scare him to lose a wall - it is still only half the front of the cage, since the other half still is protected with cardboard. He would still have his safe retreat.

InTheAir · Post by **InTheAir** » Mon Jul 07, 2014 4:12 pm

Patience, little tree! He will come out in his own sweet time and that time will be the right time for him. He could be habituated to the cage and the world outside it may be a scarey place for quite some time.

MissK · Post by **MissK** » Mon Jul 07, 2014 4:28 pm

Sure, I agree.

I want him to come out, uh, for ROCKY'S sake. Yeah, that's it. For Rocky. He wants to feed his new friend.

Does anybody buy that?

Donovan · Post by **Donovan** » Mon Jul 07, 2014 5:14 pm

Remember, irns are sneaky. They like to think they're getting away with something. That's why I think you should leave the room for like 20-30 minutes.

MissK · Post by **MissK** » Mon Jul 07, 2014 5:21 pm

OHmagod, there are way too many little toes in this room for him to come out unsupervised. Best I can do is go back under the sheet. I don't think I am that motivated for him to come out!

InTheAir · Post by **InTheAir** » Mon Jul 07, 2014 6:05 pm

Missk Silly-Pants!

Donovan · Post by **Donovan** » Mon Jul 07, 2014 6:42 pm

missk, arrange something.. set something up.. ... at least if he really never comes out.... otherwise do your thing.. but if he just never comes out.. then do something to protect the toes...

are toes really a problem?.. are there confirmed toe injuries?.. i see my birds biting toes, and i pay attention.. but my observation so far is that it's been harmless.

MissK · Post by **MissK** » Mon Jul 07, 2014 7:15 pm

Hey Donovan,

The thing you have to know about me here is that I am a MITE on the protective side and I take it very seriously that these animals are in my care, under my supervision. If I let a Ringneck out and he removes the toe of a Budgie, that's my fault but it's the Budgie who pays for it. I really can't let a thing like that happen, and since I don't have a crystal ball or a real-time rewind button, certain prevention is all I've got. I can't help it. It's who I am.

It's not that I think Sinbad (or Rocky) definitely will bite toes, just that there is a fair chance of it and the potential consequences are more than I can accept. Lots of birds nip or bite toes (and fingers, remember) on the other side of the wire. It's the same reason Rocky never gets to come out with Budgies. He loves Riff Raff but he has shown some definite unlove for her Budgie boyfriend. He could certainly rip the beak right off that little Budgie. He will never get the chance to show what he actually would do because the potential consequences are not acceptable.

I'm also way too lazy to be covering the cages. Every one of my cages is taller than I am. If Sinbad's not comfortable yet, then it's up to him. If it went to extremes I don't think I would allow him to *never* come out of the cage, but I also think he will come out when the situation is right for him. It was just the first try today.

crazybirdowner · Post by **crazybirdowner** » Sun Jul 13, 2014 1:18 am

Wow looks like Mr. Sinbad silly pants being through a lot poor little bugger but at lease his got a good home now he can enjoy and relax.
Looks like you are improving with him especially what he been through.. just doing what you are doing as he needs to gain trust from you which you do not want to push him even more so he would get there; just need time.

MissK · Post by **MissK** » Tue Jul 22, 2014 7:09 am

Wheeee, guess who went for a ride today on his hanging coconut shell?

He stuffed his whole body in there!

Donovan · Post by **Donovan** » Tue Jul 22, 2014 9:19 am

I like putting bird seed in mine

ellieelectrons · Post by **ellieelectrons** » Tue Jul 22, 2014 2:43 pm

<<presses like button>>

InTheAir · Post by **InTheAir** » Tue Jul 22, 2014 2:57 pm

MissK · Post by **MissK** » Mon Aug 04, 2014 3:38 pm

Um, sorry no pictures, but this just in: I'm pleased to report No Big Issues between Rocky and Sinbad.

Today when Sinbad declined to leave his cage I let Rocky go in. I think they did quite well together, though there were times that Rocky followed Sinbad a little more than I thought Sinbad probably liked. I shot video for about half an hour, but there's no telling if I can get it onto the computer.

It won't be edited, that's for sure. I removed Sinbad's cardboard wall just in case, so I would be able to access the right half of the cage if things got ugly. Turns out I didn't have to worry.

Rocky did enter and exit Sinbad's cage a number of times, and I think Sinbad needed to see this. By the end of their time together Sinbad did approach the cage door and stick his head out. There was a little bit of slow motion chase, a little bit of boy dance posturing, some snacking, and some self preening and some ignoring each other as well. Rocky checked out Sinbad's toys. Once or twice I feel I saw Sinbad exhibiting some discomfort on his perch alone, getting into "fly away" posture and moving his wings. There was a good bit of noise from Sinbad at times, and I did hear Rocky soliciting "Pretty Bird!" once or twice.

If I were to rate today's bird play date, I would give it a 9 out of 10.

InTheAir · Post by **InTheAir** » Mon Aug 04, 2014 3:47 pm

That's great!

ellieelectrons · Post by **ellieelectrons** » Mon Aug 04, 2014 5:29 pm

Excellent!

GeveZe · Post by **GeveZe** » Tue Aug 05, 2014 2:41 am

Owww =)

MissK · Post by **MissK** » Wed Aug 06, 2014 10:26 pm

Since I've taken the cardboard off Sinbad's cage, today I had opportunity to install some more natural perches. (..... Couldn't resist buying him stuff

) He did take a few turns around the living room, and I did have to "shoo" him back into his cage when I was done. He flew right in the door like a champ, though I'm sure it must have been a total coincidence.

The development, though, is that he has not dropped a single feather since he got here. Rocky just tossed out a tail feather and it gave me pause. I guess Sinbad's not going to moult this year. I know it's pretty drastic if they don't moult. I'm thinking it's from the stress of moving here, but if anybody has any other theories, please bring 'em on.

In other news, he totally did not sit on the tree branch.

He preferred the top of the Budgie cage.

Donovan · Post by **Donovan** » Tue Aug 12, 2014 8:21 pm

maybe he molts different