Hi all!
Just recently i bought Theon, a Yellow Crown Amazon. Its the first bird that i have owned after being a life long animal lover.
I got Theon from a pet shop where i was told that he is 3 years old (has no leg band) and was given to the shop by a family who were moving abroad. I literally fell in love with this bird on the spot and bought it without ever really planning to own a parrot... now i know people are probably frowning at that, but i really feel i bonded with this bird and i can assure you i am doing and will continue to do everything i can to give this amazing creature a great long life!
I have had him for 6 weeks now. In the shop when i bought him he was amazing with me, he got a little spooked on the journey home however and was VERY aggressive (a completely different bird
) for about 3 or 4 days. Since then he has settled down. He is a very vocal bird, always sings and speaks in the morning and evening and will chirp and squak whenever i speak to him or anyone in the room. He seems generally very happy and so am i!
However, there are a few things that are eating at me and i would love to get some advice... Im sorry to kinda 'bullet point' the issues but cant think how else to do it
1. His wings. They have been clipped before i got him (not sure how long, will find that out) and from time to time on one wing three big feathers will dislodge and 'stick out'. Theon doesnt generally seem to bothered and i think he can shake it back into place, but as im new to birds was wondering if this is an issue? Also i do not plan to ever have Theons wings clipped again (would love to fly him indoors and give him as free a life as possible) is there anything i should know or consider in terms of letting this happen? And generally what sort of time span am i talking before he can fly?
2. His cage. Ok so Theon just does not seem to like being in his cage. At the start i was putting him in when i go to work (i work only 5 hour shifts so spend ALOT of time with Theon) but now i just don't, as it was just becoming a negative experience for both of us. He literally spends his whole life on the top, even sleeps there! Ive built alot of branches etc in the whole corner so i guess he feels comfy there. Is this a bad idea? I personally do not want to cage the bird if he doesnt want to be and i have no issue with him being outside the cage (oh the cage is permanently open btw and he goes in and out to get food/water) but was just wondering are there any deeper underlying issues i should be worried about?
3. Handling. I spend ALOT of time with Theon, standing singing to him, talking to him, petting him when he lets me. But unto now he is not fully comfy with stepping up. I am currently using positive reinforcement in small doses and he today for the first time stepped on a perch swing toy of his i was holding at the top. I am really happy with the progress he is making but Theon still doesnt seem COMPLETELY trusting with hands, if i touch his wings for example he will sorta open his beak and hisss (before he would have lunged so is definately making progress). My problem is this, he HATES it when i go to work, he somehow knows it, it will build up the rage to the point where when im picking up my keys or putting on my jacket and Theon is in demon mode! He will hiss and crackle and prance about like a dinosaur vibrating his wings, and boy, if i go near the cage he will lunge and try to attack me to the point where he is sometimes smashing his beak off the cage and just generally acting so crazy lol. This kinda relates to my last two points, i want Theon to fly but strongly feel that if he could in these times that he would fly to get me. I ve tryed everything to stop this pre-work-leaving-anger but if i try to 'bluff' it, he somehow knows im not going to work and doesnt react. I dont show any fear when he does do this and go to the cage and talk to him try to calm him. Maybe this is linked to the fact hes out the cage alot? Just any ideas or info would be great..
4. His age! Now im told hes three but ive got abit of a feeling he might be older. He is very colourfull and vocal for one, yet not so confident with hands which makes me think he may have had more than one previous owner and a difference in experiences. Also his beak. This may be a seperate issue but his beak tends to chip and 'flake', is this a sign of old age? is it just wear and tear of the cage? Again just any info would be great.
Anything anyone can help me with would be much appreciated! sorry for the long post but wanted to give as much info on Theon as i had and give you a general idea of how hes living so i can get advice!
Thank you
Ive included some pictures and can provide more info if needed
Just recently i bought Theon, a Yellow Crown Amazon. Its the first bird that i have owned after being a life long animal lover.
I got Theon from a pet shop where i was told that he is 3 years old (has no leg band) and was given to the shop by a family who were moving abroad. I literally fell in love with this bird on the spot and bought it without ever really planning to own a parrot... now i know people are probably frowning at that, but i really feel i bonded with this bird and i can assure you i am doing and will continue to do everything i can to give this amazing creature a great long life!

I have had him for 6 weeks now. In the shop when i bought him he was amazing with me, he got a little spooked on the journey home however and was VERY aggressive (a completely different bird

However, there are a few things that are eating at me and i would love to get some advice... Im sorry to kinda 'bullet point' the issues but cant think how else to do it

1. His wings. They have been clipped before i got him (not sure how long, will find that out) and from time to time on one wing three big feathers will dislodge and 'stick out'. Theon doesnt generally seem to bothered and i think he can shake it back into place, but as im new to birds was wondering if this is an issue? Also i do not plan to ever have Theons wings clipped again (would love to fly him indoors and give him as free a life as possible) is there anything i should know or consider in terms of letting this happen? And generally what sort of time span am i talking before he can fly?
2. His cage. Ok so Theon just does not seem to like being in his cage. At the start i was putting him in when i go to work (i work only 5 hour shifts so spend ALOT of time with Theon) but now i just don't, as it was just becoming a negative experience for both of us. He literally spends his whole life on the top, even sleeps there! Ive built alot of branches etc in the whole corner so i guess he feels comfy there. Is this a bad idea? I personally do not want to cage the bird if he doesnt want to be and i have no issue with him being outside the cage (oh the cage is permanently open btw and he goes in and out to get food/water) but was just wondering are there any deeper underlying issues i should be worried about?
3. Handling. I spend ALOT of time with Theon, standing singing to him, talking to him, petting him when he lets me. But unto now he is not fully comfy with stepping up. I am currently using positive reinforcement in small doses and he today for the first time stepped on a perch swing toy of his i was holding at the top. I am really happy with the progress he is making but Theon still doesnt seem COMPLETELY trusting with hands, if i touch his wings for example he will sorta open his beak and hisss (before he would have lunged so is definately making progress). My problem is this, he HATES it when i go to work, he somehow knows it, it will build up the rage to the point where when im picking up my keys or putting on my jacket and Theon is in demon mode! He will hiss and crackle and prance about like a dinosaur vibrating his wings, and boy, if i go near the cage he will lunge and try to attack me to the point where he is sometimes smashing his beak off the cage and just generally acting so crazy lol. This kinda relates to my last two points, i want Theon to fly but strongly feel that if he could in these times that he would fly to get me. I ve tryed everything to stop this pre-work-leaving-anger but if i try to 'bluff' it, he somehow knows im not going to work and doesnt react. I dont show any fear when he does do this and go to the cage and talk to him try to calm him. Maybe this is linked to the fact hes out the cage alot? Just any ideas or info would be great..
4. His age! Now im told hes three but ive got abit of a feeling he might be older. He is very colourfull and vocal for one, yet not so confident with hands which makes me think he may have had more than one previous owner and a difference in experiences. Also his beak. This may be a seperate issue but his beak tends to chip and 'flake', is this a sign of old age? is it just wear and tear of the cage? Again just any info would be great.
Anything anyone can help me with would be much appreciated! sorry for the long post but wanted to give as much info on Theon as i had and give you a general idea of how hes living so i can get advice!
Thank you

Ive included some pictures and can provide more info if needed
