This was a post I made on another bird board tonight.....My first hand account on M2's

My mother purchased a pet store in 1980...there was an M2 that had resided there for some time and was unsaleable so she brought it home, to our home~ I was ten at the time. We lived in peace, and there were really not any problems until we moved to a large ranch in 82' and we started to allow "utopia" to have free roam of the house and outer enclosed courtyard. Thats when all heck broke loose.

This bird had NEVER shown any aggression, had never so much as even noticed me....but I started my period at 13, and let me tell ya...it all changed from there. He made it his mission in life to not only harm me, but to cause as much fear as he possibly could.

It started out one summer day, and I was home alone, he chased me to the bathroom and locked me in...Ill never forget him flying down the hallway and as I locked myself in the bathroom, he ran his beak under the door back and forth for over and hour...he was waiting for me to come out so that he could attack me, and I say that in all seriousness...He was out for blood...he and I both knew it.

My mother was at work so I snuck out the bathroom window and waited outside till my mum got home and she got him back in his cage ( I realise now as an adult, that my mother was a less than perfect parrot owner, and had no idea what it took to care for one of these birds and shame on her for having it in the first place) Topi was ruling our house in the blink of an eye...and it continued for some time.....

The next major incident besides eating molding and a few broken handles to the kitchen cabinets, was one afternoon when I reached for the phone while topi was on his outside perch, as I grabbed for the phone in my early teens, hoping it was for me he latched on to my nose...and easy reach for him, and wouldnt let go....I remember screaming and having this bird attached to my face and I didnt want to hit him off...I remember being terrified, and the louder I screamed the harder he latched on, I remeber shaking my face from side to side a blood streamed down and there wasnt anything or anyone that could remove Utopia.

I dont know how I got him off me to this day, I do know that I have a large scar that reminds me every morning of what a parrot unsupervised can do to a child. It only takes 10 seconds to have your face mutilated by one of these birds, and thank god it wasnt my eyes.

If you think for one minute that a domestic 'too wouldnt do this, and by domestic I mean raised outside of a jungle... your kidding yourself....They can and will. They belong free, uncaged and no matter how well you THINK you know the bird you share a home with...you really dont.

Its imprinted on them to be wild, and they are.

Mona or java, if its not needed here please feel free to remove it, I get a bit fustrated ...and want to share with my bird friends my own feelings about large birds and how fast they can turn.....Long day here...sorry for any spelling errors
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Liveray all I can say is I wish we were on a sofa sharing a bottle of wine/whatever, and yu were talking to me. Can you stand cuddles???? You would be overwhelmed, and Id be demanding a tissue for my snotty, tearful swnout!
IMHO, for you to go through that, yet still find it in your heart to love/SEE/understand the needy birds that pass into your world....
OMG Liverayi, I now have a target to aim at.....To be as GOOD a bird parent.carer/lover as what you are.
Please dont EVER knock yourself Liveray You are an inspiration.
Will you send some of your magic via prayers to me?Please?
Grace to you,
Anne xxxx

HB...I really think you should, Ive added more since the last post...Ill add it here if I can paste it.....Kisses to you, such a great gal you are.....


Kinda out on context...but you can all get my larger point.....

Ill be honest with you janny, the reason I stay here and admire the people here so much is becouse of the hundreds of people that read storys like my own and choose to not purchase or adopt a large bird when they have children in the home....

Its really a gamble, and if you think its one you can handle...I dont agree...they really can turn on a moment, and I truely think it has to do with something "smellable" if thats a word~ by birds when a young women starts her period....its like something snaps in them when they "feel" that time of the month., there are many old timers here that will say when they are having a monthly visit the attacks are more likely to happen...and I really think its something our members need to know about and hasnt been in the top as of late.

Im sure there are exceptions to everything, and I know there could be ten people that will and can negate this with solid proof, or percieved proof...but I honestly feel that when a gal is having her time of the month birds can pick up on it and the way they respond is uncertian....hopefully its not with an attack.


Again, Mona or java, if you think Im dragging something here that doesnt belong, feel free to remove it.

Liviray, you are a love. Your posting your honest experience is so much knowledge and lends so much to people, you wouldn't even realize it. Thank you so much, my very very dear friend. I love ya.

you dont love me nearly as much as I love you honey~

Your one of my closest friends, one that I hold so dear to my heart I cant even express it....your one of the many blessings Ive recieved from 'kinda' helping others, even if they dont want always to hear the facts....

Kinda on my soap box tonight, but I feel its good for all of us to be reminded of the education we all signed up for and what the real meaning of us all being here is, to educate and to bring forward what it really takes to "raise" a parrot.

An impossible task...but one that we take so seriously, that we are willing to do anything, for them. Cause thats what its really all about, them and the inrichment they bring to us no matter how they hurt, or love us, it all incompassing.

We always want what we cant have, and in parrots...reguardless of if its an m2 or a tiel...we dont own them, they own us and we do our best for them becouse of our love.

All true, just count the scars on my wrist, arms and hands. Thanks for sharing Liv.

edit: I just came from that topic. That woman actually said that she didn't believe a too would bite a small child. Pinch or bruise but not bite. I hope she doesn't have children. Peaches would bite my grandson clear to the bone if she could get a hold of him.

Thank you for sharing this with those who may not recall your story, it's a brutal and frightening reminder that everyone even considering taking a large bird into their home needs to read.

Your story, along with Hellobabys story of her bite and the photo's she shared once, have always stuck in my mind vividly.

I can certainly relate to that! I just can't thank Liv enough for bringing her story back to life. I have often thought about it, and have been meaning to add it to the information on our bite page for some time now. I'm up for gathering any/all information on the subject, because as much as we can give warnings, personal stories and pictures seem to really drive the point home with people. They just don't understand otherwise.

I can't believe how many people actually search on search engines for parrot bites, and there just aren't many pages to be found on the subject! I notice that a lot of the traffic we get on our site comes in through the bite page, and I'm really glad they find their way in that way. Originally I set it up just to show off pretty pictures, but after the years spent with Baby and discussing things with all of you, it's turned into something more. What we all try to do is get the message out to as many people as possible that these birds are indeed WILD animals!

If/when any of you have stories & pics to share about bites, please don't put it off. Bring up a discussion about it. (Like this one, I'll be more than happy to add a link to the discussion!) If you're in need of a place to post pics, just ask and someone will be glad to step up and host them for you for everyone to see. Pictures really are the exclamation point for bite stories. Getting your stories out there is one more way to bring attention to the reality of sharing our lives with these (wild) birds.

I know I've been out of action, but let me update you on our "Angel". Remember now, he's just a small Goffin, but he has attacked my hubby repeatedly since his stroke and the cancer. I had neck surgery Feb 1 and Angel took me as the weaker one and became aggressive to my feet (same way things began with hubby). Had to take him in today for another shot of Lupron, beak and wing trim to boot. The doc caution his new tech telling to pay attention to how and where you hold him because a cockatoo can and will bite and cause serious damage, even thru a towel, which is why he is here. All went well, but she went to put him in the travel cage, she let go of the towel too soon and he nipped her. Doc told her to wash it and band-aid and remember next time it could be to the bone.

Hearing these stories of other people and the issues they have had has helped me realize how sensitive they are to everything. On the brighter side of things, Japser, my wild caught hand phobic male Goffin is now allowing hubby to pet his head. It only took about 8 years of baby steps.

Lei

As beautiful as these large birds are, I gave it a second thought to owning one for a few reasons. I'm glad I went with a Cockatiel. I know they can bite too and do damage, they still can't hold a candle to a Cockatoo's bite or any other large bird for that matter.

Thank-you for being responsible bird owners and informing the public on the dangers of owning these (WILD) birds. Far too many people don't research any of the birds in order to make responsible choices before taking in a bird. How many are then resold or abandoned or abused.

I take my hat off to all thoughs who dare to step forward to tell their stories so the rest of us can think twice before giving a bird a home.

This is a reminder of what is yet to come for me, I'm afraid. Screechy turns 6 years old in May. I try to take all of these horror stories about parrots and prevent similar situations. We have a bird room (which is a bird room/library/sewing room) because of that story where the 'too bit off a toddler's finger (that and many other reasons, but that factored heavily into the decision).