Is this normal

groovieguy

New member
Sep 9, 2014
45
0
Spring Hill, FL
Parrots
Blue and Gold Macaw (RIO) 10mo
My yellow nape is so so quiet, sometimes he will make a slight growl sound and he will stare outside. When I talk to him he will move his beak like he is trying to talk but nothing comes out. The only sound he does is whinny like a horse and that is only when he gets scared/upset. (he hates my son)


A little about him, he was kept in a small cage for years and wasn't handled. He now has a large cage and it is open for him all day, he doesn't come out a lot, when he does he stares out the window. He has many toys and things to keep him busy but doesn't play with them unless I hand something to him then he chews for a few seconds then throws them off the cage. Anytime I present him with any kind of foraging things he gets scared.
I have only had him for a few months and think he is doing well as can be, he does allow me to scratch his head but is not ready to step up. I know I need to be patient and he will come around on his time, just don't want him to be bored and get bad habits.
 

Birdman666

Well-known member
Sep 18, 2013
9,904
258
San Antonio, TX
Parrots
Presently have six Greenwing Macaw (17 yo), Red Fronted Macaw (12 yo), Red Lored Amazon (17 y.o.), Lilac Crowned Amazon (about 43 y.o.) and a Congo African Grey (11 y.o.)
Panama Amazon (1 Y.O.)
Sounds like he was already cage bound when you got him.

Some amazons just aren't all that active.

My red lored wouldn't even come out of the cage on her own with the door wide open when I got her. In fact, opening the cage door sent her into a panic at first. (With the door closed, no one could get her. With it open, she was suddenly vulnerable.)

Her favorite thing in the world is to sit on her playstand in the window and watch the world go by. When I put them in the tree, she goes right to the top branch, and stays in one spot for hours on end. My other birds are much more active than that.

So, I would say it's probably completely normal.

One way you might be able to get this bird more playful is to sit the bird down on your lap with something like a wood toy, and hold it for him. Introducing them to toys on your lap tends to make them less scarey.

An amazons first instinct I think, is to recoil in horror at the sight of it. Then, if left to their own devices, curiousity gets the better of them. That's when they go over to investigate.

Once they figure out it doesn't hurt them (especially if it has food in it!) they calm down and accept it.

Then they go back to just sitting in the window. Okay. Seen that. What's going on outside?
 

TessieB

New member
Nov 3, 2013
1,230
Media
6
2
Upstate, South Carolina
Parrots
1 Blue Front Amazon, 1 Yellow Head Amazon, 4 Cockatiels, 2 Parakeets
Mine love the window! However they are not timid or afraid of things going by the window. For timid birds with little exposure to any type of environment always give them a place to hide behind. You can either hang a large toy inside the cage and create a privacy area. If your bird is scared of toys you can create a sort of barrier in front of one half of the cage-fake trees are perfect for this. Make sure your parrot can get to the barrier.

Of course follow the usual safety precautions as making sure the window is bird proof. Most birds can chew a screen, so you'll have to keep the window closed or add hardware cloth or some type of bars to bird proof the window. If the window is closed but some sort of marking or decal to remind the bird the glass is there.

You have to beware your Amazon may become possessive of the window and take measures to prevent aggressive behavior.
 

Angel3

New member
Aug 15, 2014
11
0
Southen California
Parrots
Yellow Naped. Soon I'll have an African Grey. I also have three parakeets.
:green2:
My yellow nape is so so quiet, sometimes he will make a slight growl sound and he will stare outside. When I talk to him he will move his beak like he is trying to talk but nothing comes out. The only sound he does is whinny like a horse and that is only when he gets scared/upset. (he hates my son)


A little about him, he was kept in a small cage for years and wasn't handled. He now has a large cage and it is open for him all day, he doesn't come out a lot, when he does he stares out the window. He has many toys and things to keep him busy but doesn't play with them unless I hand something to him then he chews for a few seconds then throws them off the cage. Anytime I present him with any kind of foraging things he gets scared.
I have only had him for a few months and think he is doing well as can be, he does allow me to scratch his head but is not ready to step up. I know I need to be patient and he will come around on his time, just don't want him to be bored and get bad habits.

:mad:My nape had the same behaviour when I got him. He was also caged in a small cage by the seller, then I got him much bigger cage when I brought him home. I left the cage wide open all day long so he can come out when he wanted. The only way I got him to come out of the cage and taught him how to step up was when I reduced the amount of food in his bowl. I gave him a very small portion before leaving for work, and when I got home from work, I offered some broken nuts(peanuts, almond, pecan) on my palm and let him eat from my palm while he was inside his cage. I did this for two weeks, then at the end of the second week, he started to come out and sat on the door when he saw me come in the house. I then started offering my fingers for him to step up while teasing him with some nuts on my other hand. Also, I always talked to him everytime I came near him. Now he steps up and uttters a few words like "tep up", "go outside", "night night", "hello" and sometimes he whistles. When I got him three months ago, he only growled or squeeked every morning and around 5:00 PM. I also keep a radio set to turn on at around 9:00 AM until 11:00, then again from 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM. I am not sure if this really helped, but I can see that he gets active when the radio comes on and he starts talking over the music on the radio.:)
 

ImmunoGoblin

New member
Mar 5, 2014
109
0
outside Cincinnati, OH
Parrots
Tater Tot - DYH Amazon
Kiwi - Orange-winged Amazon
Biscuit - Young-ish cockatiel
We leave the tv or radio on pretty much any time we're going to be gone for any length of time. Definitely all day while we're at work. Even though all three birds are in the living room where they can see and talk to each other, they seem to REALLY like the extra stimulation. I don't do it if I'm going to be out late at night so it doesn't mess up their natural sleep rhythms though.
 

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