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| | From:  chinchillaC (Original Message) | Sent: 5/1/2007 2:51 AM |
| Hi, I recently got a rescued 25-30 year old lilac-crowned amazon who bites. I don't he was handled a lot and he hatess being toweled. What do I do to get him to stop biting so I can touch him? He also smells and I keep his cage clean and washed. He preens himself all the time, preens not plucks and I think it's a nervous habbit because he seems healthy. He never learnt to chew or play sohow do I get him to chew for his beak, stop biting, and what makes the smell? I also have a jendai conure and she's perfectly happy and healthy, no mites and no odd behavior, just some high-pitched screaming once and a while. Can anyone help me with my amazon? |
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I'm sorry....I had to laugh when you asked about the smell. It's a Amazon thing....they normally have that odor that no other has..you'll always know there's an amazon around by the odor. I love the Zon smell! But then....hubby says I'm nutz. Do you know what his diet was before you got him? Sometimes people feed their birds junk food or lots of seeds. The diet can cause a bird to be cranky....just like if a person were to live off of junk food. Another thing is...you just got him. It'll take him a while to come around to trust you. If he's been abused....it might take longer. Try sitting close to his cage and just leave him inside the cage. You can try reading while you're sitting there....and eating good things like apples and such....give him a piece through the cage. He'll eventually realize your hands are good things that give him good things to eat. Have patience.....lots of it. Considering his age and what ever he's been through...he might have good reason not to trust humans. My brain is tired tonight...so I'll stop here....but you'll get lots of good advice come tomorrow. Congrats on your new addition! |
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Yup that smell is an Amazon thing but Amazons are not the only ones who have it. Pionus also have it. They are the cousin to the Amazon. He will need time to settle down and get him toys that he can preen to get him away from his nervous habit. They make all kinds of felt toys for nervous birds. I recently got a boing for my Grey that has felt all over it for her to preen. It's great. Amazons love foot toys as well. Mine have a Stainless steel bucket that I fill up with foot toys and they love to take them out one at a time. I hang the bucket from their play gym. I also have dollar store Dish Pans(Plastic Ones to wash dishes in) as their toy boxes. They will climb right in them and go to town.
Good luck with him.. Keep him busy and he won't over preen. As for biting. Take him either by stick or towel to another room away from any other birds. Place him on the floor to work with him.
Amy |
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Most of my visitors go into my bird room and talk to the 'Zons so they can sniff them. I've never met anyone who disliked the smell. It's like honey and flowers. |
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Thanks for the advice! I don't have a problem getting Bowtie out of his cage for he comes out and sits on the top by himself, but he bites if I try to take
him out and hard! He is terrified of the towel! I toweled him to clip his wings and his beak and he started panting and biting. My problem is getting him
to play or chew on anything. I've tried different toys and chew blocks in his cage and he can watch my Conure, Molly, play but he just won't. I don't think
he ever learnt how to play or that he should chew on stuff to keep his beak trimmed. How do I get such an old bird to start chewing on things other than
my fingers and his feathers. He has a nervous habbit of constantly preening his feathers almost all day, not pulling just preening, running his beak down
the feather all over his body. I thought he had bird mites because he does that so much, but he doesn't. As for food, I think he was fed a log of junk
like chips and pizza and not a lot of fruit and veges. I have him on Zoopreme pellets for medium hook-bills and KT Fiesta for large parots, the seed mix
stuff with dried fruit and veges. He also gets some vitamins and I try everything that's a fruit or a vege, but he's very fussy, but he eats more of that
stuff than my conure. How do I give this bird some more excercise and what do amazons like to play with? Are they all like this? I was told he was hand-raised
but he doesn't act like he was ever touched by people and he's not banded. Will they chew on those flavored fruit mineral blocks? I put one of those large
unflavored blocks in his cage and he avoided that area for 2 weeks, afraid of new stuff. Someone help!
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