Newbie!

[melibelly]

Hello all I'm a newbie to the forum!
I adopted my first "large" (what i consider at least lol) parrot an DYH Amazon.
He's 10 i don't think his owners gave him a lot of attention
I've been working with him alot he seems to be becoming more affectionate although hes not a very outgoing birdie to begin with. Didn't know Zons where shy lol
Anyways thought id say hello all thanks! ^.~

 

[JerseyWendy]

Hi there and welcome to the forum.

What's your new family member's name? How long have you had him?

He may just need some more time to get used to everyone and everything. Amazons can be a bit lazy, but they LOVE to be involved in as many regular activities as possible.

Have you tried playing music and "partying" with him, to see if that will coax him out of his shell?

 

[melibelly]

His name is Milo and he likes it when i sing to him. He's being nippy suddenly not sure why. I tried ignoring the bites that got painful. I tried the "drop" method to get his attention when he bites that dosn't work either just gets him worked up. Ive read how hormonal they can get funny how they can give you kisses one moment then draw blood unprovoked the next x.x

 

[henpecked]

Welcome to the forum, yeah , sound like he's a boy alright.Loads of good info in the older threads. Ask questions if you have them. I know being a member here will help your relationship to improve. We love pics,vids and stories about your companion. Hope to see you around on the forum.

 

[melibelly]

Sadly Milo bit the bejesus out of me just now and shamefully I lost my cool. Yelling at a bird definitely just made him get fired up too big time. I'm sure he doesn't know what he did wrong but wow he tries my patience ...not sure if I should leave him alone for a few days or try to start rebuilding tommorow. Anyone else almost felt like they lost hope? How did you rebuild trust?

 

[Merlee]

I suggest you keep your bird off your shoulder and away from your face. As you found out, they can be unpredictable. I have been bitten by a macaw on the face twice and learned the hard way.

 

[fishstick600]

Yes shoulder is an off limit zone for lrg parrots. You never know what will set them off. My U2 is completely sweet one sec and the next someone walks up to fast and he'll lash out.

 

[melibelly]

He bit my hand his favorite thing. Past week he's been bitey this wasn't so bad for the past 2 months until recently. He is a rehomed bird he's 10. The times I do put him on my shoulder I haven't had a problem yet its just the hands he attacks. I really startled him good I feel terrible I lost my cool I hope I have what it takes to care for a moody bird

 

[SandyBee]

It could be hormones or it could be that he is settling in and the honeymoon is over. I'm not sure what set him off for him to start biting, but I suggest you learn his body language. Amazon's almost always give warning sign that they will bite, flared tails, pinned eyes and ruffled feathers. IMO you are best to heed the warnings and not get bitten. A bird that bites and you don't know very well shouldn't be on your shoulder, it only a matter of time before something happens. You need to build up trust with him right now and form a strong bond. Amazon's love their food, treats and training go a long way. They are also total hams and thrive on attention. Good luck and please ask on any issue, many zon owners here.

 

[melibelly]

Thank you for the response everyone very good to know everyone here is active and caring

 

[JerseyWendy]

Losing your cool won't help build trust, unfortunately.

Can you tell us a bit more about him? Was he a pet in his previous home? Are you sure about his age?

The only reason I'm asking is because some people will sell a breeder to an unsuspecting person under false pretenses. Retired breeders or breeders without a partner can be QUITE the challenge, and not all of them can always be "rehabilitated" into becoming sweet love bugs.

Normally Amazons are easy to read though through their body language, so once you know the signs to watch out for, you can hopefully avoid the bites.

Eyes pinning, tails flaring, holding the wings out...those are all signs that he may launch an "attack".

 

[melibelly]

The people that owned him said they have 2 greys and wanted them to breed. But the female was attached to Milo and not the grey. They said the male grey would pick on Milo badly And they feared the grey might hurt Milo. I saw pics of the two cages side by side with the setup they said they have. They said Milo was known to chew on couch arm rest and to pull his feathers out so to watch out for that. There's no garentee he's 10 but thats what they tell me. He's not an energetic bird but likes me. The AV said he looks full grown but isn't old either. But with parrots you can only judge so much. I have s pic of him on my phone but its too high resolution to post. This morning he ate seed out of my hand and made kissy noises so I think he will eventually be OK with me again.

 

[MissTaz]

Good luck with your rescue bird, I'm sure he will come along just fine. Don't beat yourself up about loosing your cool. A parrot bite really hurts and as humans we are not perfect. I'm sure in time he will learn. I make my Conure be a burrito when he get nippy I will wrap him up in a towel with his head sticking out till he calms down that usually works great, but I'm not sure how that would work on a larger bird. Good luck!!!!

 

[JerseyWendy]

Here's a link on how to post pictures
http://www.parrotforums.com/technical-support/6287-how-post-pictures.html

I'd love to see some pics of him.

You can also use photobucket or other photo hosting sites.

Does Milo have a band on his foot? If so, you might be able to find out when he was hatched.

 

[melibelly]

Nope no band. I'll post dome pics once I have time to upload this week.

 

[prsgirl77]

Welcome to the forums that's very nice of you to provide milo with a loving home. I have two amazons kiwi ( whom I ve had since she was about 5 weeks ) and pickles who I adopted from her previous owner she is 5 months. Kiwi is very well socialized and loves being handles. Pickles when I first got her had no human interaction, no socialization, was afraid of everyone and everything and would not let me touch her or take her out the cage for playtime, after the first 3 days and many bites she settled in, now she eats out of my hand and accepts head scratches, she is very playful but is quite nippy when she gets excited which is often, I d recommend a good pair of gardening gloves, protects against the nipping. Don't worry it gets much better, milo will blossom

 

[fishstick600]

I would not recommend wearing gloves. If you start wearing gloves you will probably let your parrot bite the glove and then you will always have to wear them. If your bird goes for your hand drop your hand and make him lose his balance. No noise or "no!" just give Em an earth quake and it will distract him. Keep a foot toy on hand and if he starts getting nippy give him the foot toy to distract him. Your hands should represent treats and preening. When I offer my hand to my parrot he will lower his head to be preened or lift his foot to step up.. You can get your parrot like that too just takes time and trust

 

[fishstick600]

Good luck with your rescue bird, I'm sure he will come along just fine. Don't beat yourself up about loosing your cool. A parrot bite really hurts and as humans we are not perfect. I'm sure in time he will learn. I make my Conure be a burrito when he get nippy I will wrap him up in a towel with his head sticking out till he calms down that usually works great, but I'm not sure how that would work on a larger bird. Good luck!!!!

This does not work well lol. I tried it when trimming Sydney nails and he started having a panic attack.. Was hyperventilating and struggling to get out.. He was mad at me all day over it.

 

[melibelly]

Just wanted to update me and Milo are much better than ever. It finally sunk in that the biting issues (territorial) where occurring inside and on the cage(duh right?). Now i remove him from the cage with a stick and biting has decreased ridiculously! (now to figure out how to ween him off biting inside/on the cage). I wanna upload a video of me petting this bird he practically puurs like a kitten lol

 

[kq_fan]

Welcome to the forum! Good luck with your DYA!