Little Goofy update

[michael]

We've been keeping very busy lately since warmer weathers arrived. From home repairs to keeping the grass mowed having time for everyone has been very strict. Difficulty in grabbing a much needed photo or two has been compounded by a certain lovebird who'd rather manipulate the camera before letting anyone take his picture, so usually the camera gets tossed and scritchies take over instead. Oh well...we like scritches better anyways. Had a little luck with those birdy salads everyone talked about. I do mean a little :roll:. Goofy is still for the most part partial to blanched veggies but he did go for some dripping wet bean sprouts and a small piece of apple. I think the extra drops of water my have did the trick. Apple he has never really been fond of but the bean sprouts are ok. Recently though his behavior towards certain things has been somewhat ambiguous. Cheerios for instance have become evil. While he never got them too often he always dug in, ate one or two, then felt content to watch you eat the rest. Now he attacks them like they are eye-ring species without bodies that are out to get him. Carrot and banana on the other hand were always off limits. Carrots were left for dead before he even laid eye's on them and banana's simply didn't exist. Now he'll eat a little banana, but ONLY off the peal. The carrots I swear he nibbles just enough to fill his beak then goes off somewhere to deposit it :confused:.

A few weeks ago we found a new birdy gym still in the box at a garage sale for $1......:)...... I was positive though that after giving it a good cleaning and safety inspection he'd pay absolutely NO attention to it at all. (even though he's not chewed them yet the bell chains will be removed as they can be ingested)...........:roll:..........You guessed it,....he loves the thing and took to it before it was even assembled.... http://www.flickr.com/photos/ourgoofy/ .........I think he likes the colour yellow, or maybe he's just Goofy.

[cp.lovebird]

Thanks for the update! Goofy looks cute on his play gym! He's an adorable birdie. His colours are so vibrant - how old is he?

[wilkiecoco]

Goofy looks great - I didn't see his collar on - is he still wearing it? It looks like some of his feathers have grown back - how is he doing with his plucking issues??

He looks like he looves his gym - what a bargain -$1. :clap :clap Thanks for sharing the pics! :)

[bbslovie]

What cute pics! Thanks for sharing with us Michael! :D

[Pips mom]

Wow, what a great find for a dollar! Gotta love those garage sales! I gotta start going to some now! Pip would love any gym....anything that begins with the word "play" for sure! He sure gets alot of use out of his! Great pics! Goofy sure is a cutie!

[michael]

Thanks for the update! Goofy looks cute on his play gym! He's an adorable birdie. His colours are so vibrant - how old is he?

Interesting question! I've since found out Goof may in fact be much older than we thought. In January I spoke with the breeder where him and his brother Jones (deceased) originated from. The wife of the gentleman that bred them mentioned both Goof and Jones were not only aviary birds, but were hatched late Febuary of 2001. This she insists was the last clutch before they slowly dissipated their whole flock over the next few years in anticipation of a move down south. Apparently things hadn't worked out down there so they moved back here as recently my daughter alerted me to their return. Although their breeding practices and care were questionable (besides also selling their birds at many flea markets for $25) I've found nothing to indicate what she told me is lacking any truth. Thankfully, they are no longer selling lovebirds..................:)


Goofy looks great - I didn't see his collar on - is he still wearing it? It looks like some of his feathers have grown back - how is he doing with his plucking issues??

He looks like he looves his gym - what a bargain -$1. :clap :clap Thanks for sharing the pics! :)

Well! :wink: He still must wear the collar. :( Unfortunately, the last few photo's of him without one are just older pics before he started plucking. Yes :roll: I need to start taking more pics! He really does though come after the camera the moment it comes into view so often I just toss it aside so as not to waste the time we have together. Really, I've been continuously working with his health and behavior in many different area's. From diet to environmental changes, many of the smallest details you'd least expect made the biggest difference. Home forced air heating was one of them. A humidifier for 5-6 hours a day along with good clean air filters helped right from the start. Also, because he does have some allergic reactions (puffiness that very briefly comes and goes) we're now looking into an air purifier made by Ecoquest that may be in the budget later on this year. Their best model # US70733 runs about $750-850. http://www.EcoQuest.com One note here is we have several sycamore trees that surround our yard and give off loads of dust/crap! While its unusual for birds to react to trees we think this may be a possibility. Frequent baths along with aloe vera gel has decreased both the itching and flaking often associated with picking and plucking. And believe me he was doing plenty of both.

A healthy diet along with as much activity as possible is encouraged almost every single day. This means some of those close bonded moments we love to share must be interrupted by exploration and jobs to do. His job is to destroy as much as possible, find fun things for both of us to eat, and leave dad alone for a few minutes every day. Really, it seems a little too much dependency for some birds does more harm than good. Fortunately, the payoff is that when we do have our moments together they are much more closely involved and meaningful. In another way too, you could say they no longer get in the way of lifes "other" purposes.

At this point in time I really think there's a good chance he may someday shed the ecollar. My problem is with arthritis I can't place the ecollar back on easily without injury to him once I pop it off. Even the vet had much difficulty doing this himself and even injured Goofs shoulder one time. Often I feel if I could occasionally remove it for preening then replace it starting in small increments it may help in facilitating a permanent removal. Surely, this would continue to be in addition to changes in his and my own behavior both physically and mentally.

Thanks all!...................:)

[thebubbleking]

Thanks for the update on everyones favorite goofy bird.

[Chickobee]

Hi Michael;
Goofy bird is such a sweetie, and I can see he loves his new toy! I like the picture where he's checking himself out in the little mirror and catching a few rays! He looks like a happy fella!
Linda

[carrier]

AWWW....:D

Goofy pictures always make me smile.

He looks quite happy on his new playgym. What a great find!

[michael]

Yes, he certainly loves his new playgym that I so "nonchalantly" stumbled across for 1 dollar. Too bad I can't get the same reaction on all the toys and other stuff I spent loads of cash on!.........:mad:..........:)

[lemonypickett]

Thanks for the update. Eddie has that playgym and he won't go near it!

Anyone want it? Pay the shipping and its yours!

[Eliza]

Beetle's first playgym was one of the plastic ones from Insight! It was a pretty decent gym for the price, plus it washed easily :)

I LOVED the photos, Michael :D Goofy has such a great personality and it really shows. And the photos of the vintage cage & accessories is great!

Hope that all is well,

-e-

[Christian]

Yes, he certainly loves his new playgym that I so "nonchalantly" stumbled across for 1 dollar. Too bad I can't get the same reaction on all the toys and other stuff I spent loads of cash on!.........:mad:..........:)

:rofl: Doesn't it always work out that way! I buy tons of toys and a play gym and Boogie would much rather play with the cap to a bottle of water!

Goofy is absolutely adorable! You can definetly see what a personality he has!

[michael]

Goofy is absolutely adorable! You can definetly see what a personality he has!

Yes, he definitely has an interesting personality :roll::rotfl........You know Christian, come to think of it, looking at your avatar of Estrella (I mean the well behaved Boog's)...is that a little twinkle I see in his eye?......I could swear I've seen that look before!....................:rolleyes:

[Christian]

Yes, he definitely has an interesting personality :roll::rotfl........You know Christian, come to think of it, looking at your avatar of Estrella (I mean the well behaved Boog's)...is that a little twinkle I see in his eye?......I could swear I've seen that look before!....................:rolleyes:

You're right there's definetly a twinkle ;) He is spoiled rotten and he knows that he can get whatever he wants. I swear he thinks he is 6ft tall rather than 4 3/4" :rofl:

[bbslovie]

Re: Little Goofy update

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Thanks for the update. Eddie has that playgym and he won't go near it!

Anyone want it? Pay the shipping and its yours!
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Laura, I'd be interested in the play gym if it's still available! :)


Barb