First time owner, did I make a big mistake?

[One bird for one heart.]

I have one lovebird my sweetgirl Icetalon. I got her about a year ago from one of my friends. My friend was moving to somewhere where she wasen't allowed to have pets so she gave Icetalon to me. She told me little about the bird just that she was left on the steps of the vets office where she works. She told me that the bird was spray-legged, which ment that instead of her feet being perched downward they are perched out to the side. Because of this she uses her beck as a "third-foot" this makes playing with her not the most pleasent experise. What should I do?:confused:

[One bird for one heart.]

Anyone please? I love my sweetgirl but not the dents she makes on my hands, I want to give her what she deserves which is love all day long, but I have no idea how I can do that.

[personatus]

You might want to give it a little longer than 19 minutes for people to reply lol. Im sure someone will help you soon ... I would love to try help but I dont really know what you mean.

[bookworm0550]

Sorry I don't have any splayed leg experience but I'm
sure someone will have some advice. You can also do a search on the forum too.

[michael]

........ She told me that the bird was spray-legged, which ment that instead of her feet being perched downward they are perched out to the side. Because of this she uses her beck as a "third-foot" this makes playing with her not the most pleasent experise. What should I do?:confused:

Hi One bird for the Heart. .....Welcome to our community! ... Unfortunately, "splayed" legs must be treated early on, otherwise, the condition usually remains permanent. .. Take heart though, as it sounds like your new friend has already learned how to compensate for her minor setback. .... Can I ask a couple questions?... Can she fly? ... Does she eat out of regular food bowls? ... Can you handle her?..Will she lay in your hand? ...Nibble or bite? .. Has she ever had any toys?.....:).....Many birds that are deemed "crippled" can actually manage themselves quite well. ... Splayed legs (to those birds who have them) will often produce little (if any) barrier towards living their every day lives. At least not psychologically. ... Did you make a big mistake? ... Not at all. .. Like any other avian companion, this special lovebird will benefit from plenty of loving care.

Most important. How do you feel about caring for her? ... What is it that makes playing with her feel unpleasant? .... Please don't take offense to either of these questions. .. Honestly, the earlier you find out your position regarding parrot quardianship, the better it will be for both you and your new companion. ... As for experience, thats something we'll all learn along the way.

[bird-brain]

If I understand you correctly, when you try to hold her she needs to use her beak to climb around on you and to aid in perching. Also, if I understand correctly, it seems that maybe you have had this bird quite some time and have just gotten tired of the biting. If she was just left on the steps some where, chances are good that this little bird was just not used to hands at all. My lovie Cabo is not splayed but he leaves plenty of dents in my hands too. :rotfl Understand that even though it is different with a splayed, ALL birds use their beaks as a third hand when climbing. Cabo hates hands. So, I always wear a hoodie or long sleeved shirt and cover my hand to pick him up (not always pleasant, it was 101 degrees F here yesterday :omg: and wearing long sleeves in that weather even with the ac running sucks) Anyway, he never has contact with my skin. He loves to sit on me and cuddle at my neck this way He can climb all over me without drawing blood. He plays with the strings on my hoodie instead of biting my ears and will climb down and swing from them.
If you could put up some pictures so we can see how badly her legs are splayed and how your cage is set up lots of people here can give advice as to how to make things easier for her.

[michael]

Anyone please? I love my sweetgirl but not the dents she makes on my hands, I want to give her what she deserves which is love all day long, but I have no idea how I can do that.

Oh shoot.....:(....Sorry for my first lengthly questionaire. I seem to have missed your second post. ... Please disregard the latter part of my post. ... Probably better questions are;...How DO you handle her? ... Can she fly? .... Does she have any toys.... to chew on? ... Like something to distract from nibbling on you. .... Do ya have any pics!.........:)

[One bird for one heart.]

Thank you all for your help! When I handle her I usually just put my hand in her cage and she will grab on to me with her beck and drag herself up onto my arm with the tight grip on me. I know she is not intending to hurt me, but try telling that to my bleading arm, lol. She does have many toys, I swap them in and out of her cage often so she won't get bored, but her favorite toys have to be her bells. She even has a wide round home-made perch that allows her to rest herself on it while she holds on to the wall of the cage. I have had her wings clipped a couple of times but she hated having it done so bad that she would often bite the vet. So I just decied to let her be able to fly, mabye once a week I will allow her to fly around my room... Is that ok? She also injoys me turning on my radio for an hour or two while she sings along. I apprecite all your ideas for how to make snuggleing my sweetie less painful and the idea to wear a hoodie while holding her I think will make a world of a difference! I will be adding pictures with in the next couple of days as soon as I sort through the millions of pictures I have of her and deside which are the best for me to brag about, lol. Again thank you all for the support, and my Icetalon says "cheap cheap!"

[bookworm0550]

Can't wait for pictures! She sounds like a lovely bird too.

[Dave_K.]

could you make something that only covers one arm so she can get to the snuggly spot with out you haveing to over heat?

[One bird for one heart.]

Thank you for the idea! That sounds great! Mabye I could cut up some old t-shirts and make something out of that. My profile picture is only temperaly till I can get a better picture of her on here.

[Enko_chan]

I cut a jersey pillowcase in half to handle to cover my hand with it when I have to root around in my male parrotlet's house... he's become very territorial. When I clean, change water, food- anything- I am beak meat- and the pillow case softens the bites but doesn't make it so that I can't feel him enough to handle him delicately if I have to.

The situation is different, but something like that may work for you. The material is very thin. It easily be wrapped around the hand/arm that is holding Icetalon, while leaving the rest of you and your other hand uncovered. Another thing I like about it, as I said, is that it isn't so thick that I can't feel what's going on with the delicate little bird in my hand- but just thick enough to dull the bite a bit.

Its my quaker parrot, Koko who goes for my ears, Birdbrain. In the winter I wear a beret over my ears or a hoodie sometimes, but a headband works well too! Now if I could only keep him from destroying all my hairties!

[One bird for one heart.]

Thank you for the idea! Last night I took some old long sleeve t-shirts and cut off the sleeves and layed them, then I took an old glove for my hand, this works great for me! I tried it out on Icetalon this morning and she seems to have enjoyed using it to! Thank you all for the help on how to make holding my sweetie a less painful experice.
Ps: My profile picture is up!

[linda040899]

Glad to hear that the suggestions are working for you and Icetalon! It's not her fault but it doesn't need to be painful for you, either. Sometimes it's just finding the right combination of things that will make a relationship work! :)

BTW, I love her name! :)

[LauraO]

Hello and welcome to the board! This is a great place to be for all things lovie and more. I'm also glad you've gotten good results from some of the suggestions.

I actually have a foster, now permanent, lovie named Jack who has splayed legs. I will say I've come to realize over the last year or two of having her that she MUST be flighted (No clipped wings). I know having flighted lovies can be hectic and even dangerous, but for Jack her wings help her perch, land, and move around. Splayed leg lovies are considered special needs and need appropriate accomodations such as being flighted, having special perches, platforms, and places to rest and hold their legs up. I also have a wire platform in Jack's cage where she can perch on it and hold on to the sides of the cage to help her perch comfortably.

You know, I would maybe let your lovie out to fly a lot more than once a week. I always suggest birdies have DAILY out of cage and flying around time, because they are social and active and are healthiest when involved with family. It's also great for birdies to have some play areas in a room or house where they can get out, fly around, and have a place to play. If your lovie had this, you could just open the door to her cage and if she is flighted she will fly out and around on her own so you don't have to get bit getting her out. She will also likely fly to you and hang out as well. Of course, she will also get into things she's not supposed to but that's part of the fun with lovies. You just have to make sure she is safe.

Good Luck :)

[bookworm0550]

I agree with Laura too. I think she could use more out of cage time. I'd love to see more photos of her. She looks super cute in your profile picture. I like her coloring plus she looks like one my babies.

[One bird for one heart.]

Im going to be starting to take her out of her cage at least once a day now that I have a way to do it easer. Oh and thank you for all the compliments about my sweet Icetalon.