Getting a parrot tonight. Double Yellow-headed Amazon

[OutHouse]

he is 33 years old and been with the same family. They are retired now and are never home much anymore so the bird is alone quite a bit which is a bad thing for a flock animal. I have been over to ther house every night this week and the first couple visits he bit the living shit out of me. he still bites but his bubble zone is shrinking i can touch his foot with out puncture wounds. he is going to be a lot of work to but i am very much looking forward to working with him.

ive had budgies in the past and have tamed all of them, i know a big ass amazon isnt quite the same but i have the patience to build a trust relationship.

here is a pic of him. his feather aren't as full because he molted not to long ago.



http://pics.bbzzdd.com/users/citrix/IMG00190.jpg

 

[theflyingpig]

I'd bite too if I were kept in a cage for 33 years.

 

[BoomerD]

At 33 years old, he's gonna be pretty set in his ways...and you aren't "his people," so it will probably take a long time for him to get used to you in that role.

NEVER, EVER get one of the parrot or macaw species unless you're ready for a lifetime commitment to what basically amounts to a loud, screaming, biting 4 year old child...

 

[OutHouse]

At 33 years old, he's gonna be pretty set in his ways...and you aren't "his people," so it will probably take a long time for him to get used to you in that role.

NEVER, EVER get one of the parrot or macaw species unless you're ready for a lifetime commitment to what basically amounts to a loud, screaming, biting 4 year old child...

yea i know its going to take time and im prepared for it. the bird doent scream which is a plus, he will squawk but not a ear piercing squawk and "mumbles"

the best part is the bird is free.

 

[OutHouse]

I'd bite too if I were kept in a cage for 33 years.

its a parrot cage so there is a perch on top of the cage so he can climb out. also he flys around the current owners house. he has not been caged like a canary his whole life.

 

[amdhunter]

My bird only bites me when she is at her cage. Probably because I always poke her or make threatening gestures when she is there.

Off the cage she is 100% the opposite. I can grab her or scratch anywhere. Have you tried playing with the bird away from his cage?

 

[Homerboy]

I dont get birds as pets. Seems the cruelest thing you can do to a "pet".

"Hey, you were blessed with the greatest of all gifts mother nature has bestowed upon all the animals: flight!... now get your ass in this cage!"

 

[resinboy]

yup, been a bird owner all my life: currently have a 17 yo African Grey with an attitude LOL, previous advice is right, he is king of his cage, always try to work with the bird somewhere else.

 

[lxskllr]

I dont get birds as pets. Seems the cruelest thing you can do to a "pet".

"Hey, you were blessed with the greatest of all gifts mother nature has bestowed upon all the animals: flight!... now get your ass in this cage!"

I don't know that flying's all that great. It seems special to us because we can't do it, but I bet a bird looks at us and wishes he could run fast on the ground.

 

[brainhulk]

I've always wanted a parrot, an african grey actually. But then I always remember my cockatiel when I was living with my parents...then I come to my senses. (people say it's the loud screaming and poop X10)

 

[JulesMaximus]

I hear they taste just like chicken.

 

[OutHouse]

yup, been a bird owner all my life: currently have a 17 yo African Grey with an attitude LOL, previous advice is right, he is king of his cage, always try to work with the bird somewhere else.

yea that i know but the thing is i want to be able to get him back in his cage without giving blood.

it will take time, i took walnuts over last night and he went crazy for them. i cracked one in half and he took it from my hand ate it and dropped the shell. he saw i had the other half in my hand and ran across his perch to get it. so i may have a powerful food to train him with.

 

[MrPickins]

My grandparents had an African Gray for years. Sweet bird, but god-awful loud.

My advice: get earplugs.

 

[amdhunter]

yea that i know but the thing is i want to be able to get him back in his cage without giving blood.

it will take time, i took walnuts over last night and he went crazy for them. i cracked one in half and he took it from my hand ate it and dropped the shell. he saw i had the other half in my hand and ran across his perch to get it. so i may have a powerful food to train him with.

My bird loves chicken bones. I love giving her them because she'll hold it right in front of my dog who just salivates waiting for her to drop it.

I never gave her a walnut. I'll have to pick some up and see if she can crack them on her own.

 

[hans030390]

I don't know that flying's all that great. It seems special to us because we can't do it, but I bet a bird looks at us and wishes he could run fast on the ground.

Why would you need to run fast on the ground if you can fly fast in the air?

 

[lxskllr]

Why would you need to run fast on the ground if you can fly fast in the air?

Ground critters > air critters

 

[JulesMaximus]

Ground critters > air critters

You wouldn't believe how many birds my cat has brought home over the past couple years. She has gotten quite good at hunting air critters.

 

[brainhulk]

Ground critters > air critters

thats sic!

 

[Kreon]

Ground critters > air critters

That's how my cat hunts birds.

She will lay in the lawn and jump up at them. Awesome to see a gif of it though.

 

[OutHouse]

my parrot is awesome (besides from taking bits of my hand off) he has a extensive vocab. his favorite is a turkey call he sounds just like one. when i spray him with the water bottle (fine mist) he says "Cool it" lol

 

[BoomerD]

I've never seen a parrot yet that didn't love dried peppers of just about any kind. A good friend bred macaws and parrots for a couple of decades, and he always fed them the dried red peppers (cayenne) that you can buy bulk at the grocery store.

They have a "dry mouth," so the hot doesn't bother them.

 

[mesthead21]

I dont get birds as pets. Seems the cruelest thing you can do to a "pet".

"Hey, you were blessed with the greatest of all gifts mother nature has bestowed upon all the animals: flight!... now get your ass in this cage!"

Yep, i feel the exact same way. Lets take an animal that can FLY and put it in a cage

 

[zerocool84]

Ground critters > air critters

Is that a bat it caught? It looks like it.

 

[Modelworks]

You said he flies around the house ? Be very careful with that. I had a bird I loved like it was part of the family. We had it for about a year and I had neglected to clip its wings, thinking it was cruel because it loved to fly inside the house. One day the back door was left open and something spooked him and he flew out the back door never to be seen again.

 

[OutHouse]

I've never seen a parrot yet that didn't love dried peppers of just about any kind. A good friend bred macaws and parrots for a couple of decades, and he always fed them the dried red peppers (cayenne) that you can buy bulk at the grocery store.

They have a "dry mouth," so the hot doesn't bother them.

yup. i have a garden full of jalapanos and cayenne's. he loves them fresh off the plant.