Tsai-tsai

Hi all. I came to Mickaboo in 2023; I was adopted as a friendly, socialised bird. A year later, I was returned to Mickaboo in October 2024 as a `biter`.

My foster home has had me now for six months, and so as of May 2025 here`s a little update.

Like many birds, Tsai-Tsai isn`t a fan of sudden change. He did not enjoy his move to my home, and at first he was very defensive, making all the classic `lunge` threatening moves and striking the bars if you got too close. He was wary of new people and took a while to settle down and feel comfortable.

However over time and with lots of treats, he has warmed up and settled in easily. He`s a quiet bird, and is content with wood toys he can chew up, and treats hidden in his foraging cup. He likes to sit on top of his cage and preen. He enjoys attention and says `pretty bird` in a very quiet pionus voice that is almost more like a whisper. If you whisper `pretty bird` to him, he`ll often say it back to you. It`s definitely his catch phrase!

He has been my `office bird` for a couple of months now. If I`m doing computer work, I`ll let him out to chill out. He prefers to be on top of his cage and not the play stand right next to him, and so far he is completely uninterested in the toy hanging from it. When he`s hanging out on top of his cage, after 30 minutes or so all of a sudden I`ll hear a flurry of flaps and then a second later he lands on my shoulder. I give him a small piece of walnut, and then he hangs out while I`m working for quite a while. I let him be while I`m working and periodically will give him a chance to go back on his cage. He`s hung out on my shoulder (with breaks) for up to two hours at a time.

I can scritch and touch his head, but it`s not his favorite thing at all, and he rarely requests head scritches. He will step up onto an arm quite readily once he knows you, but what he really wants is to hang out on your shoulder, and he will head straight there!

If you push him to do something he`s not comfortable with (eg, insist on trying to scritch his head), he is not scared to fly to your neck and nip you in protest. He has also given a new visitor a free nose piercing(!). However if you respect his body language, give him lots of space to get to you know you, and let him come to you rather than the other way around, he does great. He`s a quiet, chill, happy little guy who just wants to sit on your shoulder. He does well with low energy vibes and consistent routines, and needs a little time to embrace new toys, new people, and change in general.

His diet is roudybush pellets, with the odd piece of nut and pinch of seeds in his foraging cup or while he`s enjoying some out time. He gets fresh chop every day and mainly picks out the fruit.. but we keep trying!

Tsai-Tsai`s foster home will not be adopting him so that they can continue to offer landing spaces to birds in need, but he`s a delightful chill little guy. If you are looking for a `pretty bird` whisperer, please ask about adopting Tsai-Tsai!

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