Afraid of my Mealy Amazon

I have had Jade for 22 years. Got her when she was 9 months old. I have always had one or two Pionus as well. (I never had her sexed, but she came with the name, so I decided it did not matter) Anyway, when "she" was about 7 she turned from a bird that would sing with me, put her head on my shoulder for her lullaby, had a vocabulary that was very entertaining, would follow me around -- to an angry bird. She would get on my husband's arm one minute, and the next she was biting his lip in the middle of a "conversation"...The change was so dramatic and sudden, I thought maybe this bad bird syndrome was a coming of age thing. Nothing changed, cage was in same location, people were the same...it was weird.

To this day, she is smart and sly... she puts her head down for "some nice" (scritches), I decide she must be in a good mood so I take the chance, then turns her head really fast and bites me. Sometimes while I am changing food or water bowls, she will launch out of the cage and wherever she lands, shoulder, arm, hand, she'll try to take a chunk out of me and keep gnawing until I get her feet on the floor - which usually means I am rolling on the floor. I never pick her up anymore, I hold out a towel to transport her to her outdoor perch and back to her cage.

About 6 years ago, she became very jealous of one of my Pionus, Indigo - a sweet, quiet, loving little bird. I could not pay any attention to Indigo without a hissy fit from Jade. Then it happened, one day she got on top of Indigo's cage, Indigo was inside hanging from the top of the cage because the dislike went two ways of course and Indigo did not want Jade on her cage - and Jade bit her through the bars - tore Indigo's stomach open. Needless to say by the time I ran in there Indigo was dead.

Now, Jade crawls up my white cap's (Dillyn's) cage - and they usually just sit on top together - they always have been pals, grooming each other, (like Jade is mothering Dilly). Last week I found Jade inside the smaller cage with the Dillyn sitting nearby. Jade had a fit when I came in and she started yelling at me - threatening me with her puffed up feathers and snapping eyes. She did not want me to get near her pal. Now as I think about it, this behavior gets worse in the spring. (She killed Indigo in May 2009 ). And now she is more aggressive than usual again. In fact, I'm wondering if she is to blame for Dillyn losing a foot between Sunday and Monday this week. (Although I just can't fathom how I could have missed such a thing) I changed the papers and put them to bed Sunday evening -- then found Dillyn with a bloody stump the next morning, no blood or foot in the cage anywhere (I posted it here on a different thread)...I just wonder if there was some way Jade could have done the deed because I know how strong she is and how tempermental. Maybe she bit Dillyn's foot to the point that Dillyn chewed it off. I know - it's just bazaar huh? I'm seriously thinking about finding Jade a new home, but I have loved her for 22 years. I'm afraid of her and I'm sure she knows it. Oh, and she hates kids, hates people who wear dark clothing, well, I guess she hates everyone. Thoughts?

Only one thought: Jade and Dillyn must be in separate cages, in separate rooms, at all times. Never allow Jade to get anywhere close to Dillyn or Dillyn's cage or any other pet's cage. Ever.

For anyone who hasn't seen the thread about the Pi, it's here: http://www.parrotforums.com/questions-answers/54136-help-pionus-bit-off-her-foot.html

How is Dillyn doing? Did you get him to the vet?

IMHO Jade is a male (just the way you describe his behavior). I would never allow them to interact together, especially because you've lost a bird due to his behavior already.

I also think it's a good idea to rehome him. Both of you sound unhappy with the current situation.

Thank you all for your comments. I did wonder about Jade being male MANY times - it's the beak locking/pretend feeding thing that "he" did with Dilly for so many years that kept me thinking "female" but I guess males can feed chicks too.

It was a miserable weekend. Jade could not be trusted so stayed locked up in her cage. I can't put Dilly and the other Pionus Micah on the same table where Jade can't crawl up, because of course they hate each other and that would be a potential bloodbath too. I have been wheeling Dilly's cage out of the room, and allowing Micah to be on his cage, and Jade 4' away on his. (Both are clipped.) It was actually frightening to see how fast Jade climbed off his cage and made a beeline out the door to find Dilly. If the two Pionus are going to live in peace across the room from each other, Jade has got to go.

As for Dilly, she is still pretty thin, she manages at the bottom of her cage, she eats, drinks, and has had the last of the 5-day meds from the vet. Follow up appt. on this coming Saturday. Stump has a scab and she has left it alone so it is healing. I just feel so awful, constantly playing Sunday back in my head and trying to separate the daily routine for when this could have happened that I did not hear it - because after looking closely at the Pionus' leg, it certainly would take something tougher than Dilly's beak to sever the foot. I am 99% positive Jade did the deed. I just cannot believe there was no blood in the cage - I even went through the food in her bowl - besides on Dilly's beak. 'Why' confounds me as they have been "friends" for so long. But I suppose like Jade's attitude with me, he can lose his temper and react. So, how to find a good home for Jade? We have an Exotic Bird rescue locally (Mesa, AZ)...I don't want to just give her to "anybody" - because obviously there are "rules attached", i.e. no other birds. And darn, 22 years is a long time. But she had her second chance.

WOW, Jade is certainly a gorgeous boy (...just my guess, of course as to his gender).

Please have a look at this thread:
http://www.parrotforums.com/adoptio...-bird-please-read-before-making-decision.html

Hi. Just chiming in, but I have clipped a NAIL too short on my bird and it was a bloodbath everywhere before I could get it with styptic. When my moms DYH got in a fight and bit off the tip of the cockatoo's toe many yard ago, she got blood all over her beak and it was all over his cage. I just cannot imagine the scenario where another bird bit the entire foot off another in the others cage and had no blood on the 'offending bird' or in the cage (nor that you didn't hear Dilly screaming bloody murder. Bird fights are LOUD and parrots are notorious sissies about any kind of pain). My personal opinion is it might have been a rat or other native critter that got into the cage, which would also explain the missing foot as parrots don't eat the feet or flesh of their attack victims. Still doesn't explain the lack of blood, but I wouldn't be so quick to blame Jade, especially given her behavior yesterday. You may have misinterpreted her intent. Amazons, when bonded, become very concerned/distressed when their perceived mate is sick or injured. These birds mate for life, and once they choose a human or other bird (even if it isn't an amazon) they become very very concerned about the welfare of their 'mate'. Her going to "find Dilly" was possibly because she is distressed not knowing how he is more than her going to try and hurt him. When my moms other amazon had a stroke, you would have had to have padlocked the female in a cage to keep her from checking in on him. She hardly left his side and while normally quite accepting of humans, was VERY protective of her 'boyfriend' while he was so weak and he exhibited the same behavior when she broke her foot- very protective and very attentive to her. Have you, both locked in their cages, gauged the reaction of Jade to Dilly when they see each other and visa versa? Is Dilly frightened or excited to see his buddy? Does Jade seem aggressive or concerned? Are they happy to see each other or look like they want to kill each other?

I used to live in Arizona and I would highly recommend if you truly feel Jade is a lost cause that you look into giving her to the Oasis just outside of Tucson-http://www.the-oasis.org. She will never be adopted out, never have the potential to be passed from home to home where she could be abused or neglected and will live out the rest of her life there. Heck, if I still lived there, I would be tempted to take her because I love amazons and think mealies are beautiful big zons. Best of luck in your decision, but after 22 years, I would make that decision with the upmost care and consideration and be 100% sure Jade was the perpetrator, not caretaker and is not being rehomed without just cause.

I would not suggest AZ Exotic bird rescue, they have too many birds to properly care for them. I volunteered for a day there and had to board Espresso for a couple of days while I worked up in Scottsdale and they did not take good care of her or any of the birds...poop was caked on all the cages and Espresso didn't get any of the food I left for her. It just was not okay. Oasis is wonderful and primarily deals with birds who can't be rehomed.

If are still looking in October, I actually might be able to take Jade in depending on my housing situation. I'll be moving but we are deciding between a one bedroom cheapo and saving for a house or just renting something bigger.

Thank you for the input on the AZ Exotic Bird rescue - I called there the day of the "accident" but fortunately, per your non-recommendation, I did not find anyone able to handle a severed foot. In fact they did not even answer the phone.

I will try to find someone who will adopt and love Jade, boy or girl, as much as I have all these years, and in the meantime I will be careful with the others. My birds are IN my home. There are no rats anywhere around. I have never even seen a real rat. (A scorpion, yes, once in 32 years ) and I have two big cats in my back yard. No way are rats going to come by my house. But I did once have a blue stork land in my pool...it visited for about an hour then took off - somewhere! Hey - if it's strange, it will happen here!

The befooting happened inside my house in an 8x10 room with a refrigerator, a table with one cage, Jade's corner cage and Dilly's cage on a stand 3' away. There are just no other culprits. My other two cats are sissy cats and they are afraid of the birds and never go near them . The cage has been the same, no toys with sharp edges or places to get stuck. Believe me - I have torn it apart looking for evidence. I had paper on the bottom of the drawer, and paper on top of the grill. There should have been blood! I have even watched Jade's feces for signs but have found nothing that would indicate she ate the foot. I'm considering mounting a camera in there! I have some videos of Jade - I'll try to upload.

Well, not like big sewer rats or anything like that, but when I lived in Arizona those "kangaroo rats" would occasionally get inside (you never saw them until you got them in the live trap). They were attracted to the birds food.

I do hope you find Jade a wonderful home. She is really beautiful.

Yeah it is unfortunate that there aren't more parrot rescues in arizona! Oasis takes on enough parrots for numerous rescues, though. Two people surrendered birds to AZEBR the day i was there and they seriously just plopped them in with the other birds....no quarantine and not even an examination! Absurd.

I really wish i was equipped to take her in right now! I just don't have the room or time . Like I said though, if october rolls around and you're still looking, pm me or get my email from any of the mods (that's how it works, right? Lol).

Pack rats have a strict diet of car wires and generally anything expensive that will ruin your day hahahaha. The only thing i think could have happened is maybe it got flung out of the cage and the cats got it? Are there any toys it could have gotten caught in?