Adopted Moluccan Cockatoo

Hello everybody!

I am new to the forum and making my first post
This is my first Moluccan Cockatoo (first large bird ever); he is a 14 year old male named CooCoo who was rescued from an abusive environment 2 years ago. We just received him as of yesterday after spending several days with him over the past week; he has bonded really well and is doing awesome in his new home. He's quite a character and loves kissing, cuddling, rubbing of the feathers the wrong way, dancing and playing fetch.
My question is this....I would like to start introducing him to the shower, but am concerned since he has permanent loss of the feathers on the entire chest area due to the neglect/abuse he went through. Can I still safely let him shower? Also he has a slight breathing problem, that the rescuer believes he acquired from excessive cigarette smoke and I am concerned about him getting chilled before he fully drys out.

Thanks for any comments,


Vera

Congratulations on your new family member and I hope you know what you are getting into because taking in a M2 as your first large bird is a very courageuos thing to do. They are, in my personal opinion and by far, the most difficult birds to keep healthy and happy.

Now, you need to ask the rescue for the medical records (responsible rescues would vet every bird that has not had a check up within six months prior their acquiring it) and then have the bird seen by your own avian vet because you need to find out why he is not breathing right. This is not something you might or might not do. This is a necessity because, as far as I know (and I have 18 years of experience in rescuing birds and have done A LOT of research into this lately because I happen to have a bird that has an as-of-yet undiagnosed breathing problem) labored breathing cannot come from smoke exposure unless the lungs are scarred from smoke inhalation during a fire. Second-hand smoke exposure will just not do it. I have a bird that lived for over ten years in a room with a smoker to the point that even her metal cage smelled of cigarette smoke and I had to throw away all her toys (washed them twice, dried outdoors in the sunshine and they still smelled!) and she breathes just fine. Breathing problems come from many different things and some of them are very difficult (and expensive) to diagnose but knowing what is causing them is essential and there is no room for guessing... he could have aspergillosis and end up dead from it because you are assuming it's not serious.

As to the shower, hold it until you know what is wrong with the bird. If he has a respiratory infection (be it viral, fungal or parasitical) he should not be bathed. But, when and if he gets a clean bill of health, you can start by misting him with room temperature water, always in the morning and always in a warm room and proceed from there. I don't agree with birds showering with people because people always use warm water which is not good for birds but, if even if you are planning on taking cool showers with him or showering him on his own, you would still need to start small because you need to evaluate his response to it... he might not be used to it and freak out on you.

Thanks for the advice.....I DO know what I'm getting into. He is 14 and has no serious behavioral issues and eats a pelleted Zupreem diet along with plenty of cooked/fresh veggies, fruits and grains. Most of the time is spent out of cage and is happy and boy does he ever show it! LOL!

Apparently it's nothing serious as the breathing thing has gone on for the entire 2 yrs. she had him and the Avian Vet she uses for all the birds is on the WSU campus (Washington State University)...just 30 or so miles from me. I will be using the same AV who has his medical records....he has been seen within the last 6 months....that isn't the problem.
I've been doing alot of research on M2's period too and from all I've read anything in the air that is toxic is double toxic to birds based on how the lungs are designed. BTW it's not Coo Coo's lungs that is the issue it's the sinus....and no there is no discharge.

As for water temp...please define "cool" or "warm" for that matter....does that mean room temperature showers or cooler???