Blue fronted amazon

[Iambigsy]

Hi all,

I have recently inherited a blue front amazon I believe he is from pictures on google.

He is around 8 years old and was in a cage next to a 2nd parrot where his owner was old and lived in the same room.

He was the calmer one which we took and cleaned all his cage.

I am just wandering if I am going the right way with him.

He never copies anything we say only makes a bird sort of noise every now and again.

He doesn't like his belly, feet, back touched he stands up with a high pitch screech.

I saw a video on YouTube to tickle his noise which now has lead to him automatically putting his head down soon as I enter the cage and also doesn't bite just pinches and licks my finger.

He likes a spray with cold water and a low blow dry.

I am wander if he may ever start copying words we say because in morning I say hello hundreds of times and he does little runs round the cage making noises back and if so how long it may take,

Also will he ever get used to standing on my hand as I don't want to be undoing all the progress so far

Any advise will be great!

 

[MonicaMc]

When it comes to birds, typically the only place to pet them should be on the head. Touching them on the body could be an indication to them that you are either a predator or you are trying to make sexual advances towards them.

Be careful of hair dryers. They can dry out the skin and some contain a dangerous chemical in them known as PTFE. Some hair dryers may also have ionizers in them which is not safe.


If he is interesting in learning to talk, he will, however if he has never spoken, he may never pick up on speaking. The ideal time for a bird to learn to talk is within their first year of life. It doesn't mean he can't learn, he just might not learn to say much.


He's definitely not too old to learn some new (or relearn old) behaviors! Look into positive reinforcement training, often under the guise of clicker training! Some great trainers include Barbara Heidenreich, Lara Joseph, Melinda Johnson and Susan Friedman! I love Barbara Heidenreich's method of teaching step up by placing your hand on the same level as whatever the bird is sitting on (and against it), then rewarding the bird for stepping closer and closer to you, until the bird eventually puts a foot onto your hand.


Here's something I wrote for someone else on how to teach step up.



Instead of having step up be "one step" (i.e. bird steps up), make it into 10 steps.

1. Reward bird for looking at you.
2. Reward your bird for moving his head towards you.
3. Reward your bird for taking a step towards you.
4. Reward your bird for taking another step towards you.
5. If he doesn't run away, keep rewarding him for remaining where he's at. (if he runs/backs off, you may need to start over again)
6. Reward your bird for taking a couple more steps closer.
7. Encourage him to come closer yet again and reward him.
8. Reward your bird for touching you with his toe(s).
9. Reward your bird for putting a foot on you.
10. *JACKPOT REWARD* Give your bird lots of goodies for putting both feet on you!


BTW, you can train this from inside the cage or even from the top of the cage. Choose one area and work with him from there. Once he understands the name of the game, then work on step ups from other areas of his and your home! Just because he learns to step up from inside the cage doesn't mean he knows how to step up from on top of the cage.... or that he knows how to step up from furniture inside your home. As far as your bird is concerned, all of these cases are separate, regardless of the behavior you are asking. Birds don't always generalize the behavior they learned in one circumstance with other areas. You need to teach them to generalize by teaching a new behavior in various locations, once they understand the behavior in one location.

 

[Iambigsy]

Thank for the really good advise, he takes nuts out of my hand and throws them but if I leave them in his bowl he eats them first, I will try using a clicker and see how we go on.

He isn't a fan of fruit or anything really so trying to find what he would get excited about and see.

Any ideas what he is doing my throwing his nuts away when he takes them?

 

[MonicaMc]

He just might not trust you enough.

If he is on a seed diet, you can try and figure out the first 3 items he eats out of his food dish are. Then, remove these items from his food and use them as training treats.

Likewise, if on a seed diet, switch him to a pelleted diet. Seeds in general then become a high reward.


You can also try training him when he's hungriest - i.e. first thing in the morning. If you feed him two meals a day, then you can train before meal times.


For now though, it may be ok to offer a treat cup and just dropping the treat inside of it. Allow him to continue warming up to you as you figure out the training method you'd like to use.


Seeds (safflower seeds, sunflower seeds, or other seeds), nuts and dried fruits (banana chips, pineapple, mango, etc) can be good training rewards, however the rewards should be small as you don't want your bird filling up on one thing too quickly, or taking too long to eat it.

 

[Dougc1369]

[/QUOTE]and also doesn't bite just pinches and licks my finger.[/QUOTE]

What you are describing sounds like beaking. It is a sign of affection and shows that he is beginning to trust and bond with you.

As far as standing on your hand, it will take time. Especially if you want to move around with him there.

Patience is key to interacting with a zon. Think of him as a 5 year old child as far as intelligence. They are smart, want to learn, but don't always grt what you are trying to teach them. And can have short attention spans.

It sounds like you are doing a great job so far, keep it up!

 

[Iambigsy]

Thanks Doug, feel very confident after to reading the replies, been out and bought a pack of dried fruit and parrot mix to add little amounts to his meals and see if he takes an interest and use them as treats.

I've also bought a new perch for his cage to use to teach him to stand onto

 

[Kiwibird]

Congrats on your new addition! Amazons are funny little birds. Most do not like to be touched on their bodies, and some birds never talk or mimic. Chances are, if he's 8 and not talking, he never will. Then again, do you really want a bird who says the same 10 words or mimics the blender/vacuum/sirens ext... all the time for the next 60 years? Our BFA says hello sporadically, but thats it, and quite frankly, I'd rather a nice quiet bird who makes nice parrot noise than one that jabbered on with the same words/sounds constantly (just my personal preference). Kiwi steps up and will tolerate being restrained by my husband when he's being groomed (clipping and trimming talons), but he does not like petting and we respect that. As for stepping up and especially petting with a new bird, that will take time and trust from the bird. You have to build that bond and foster the trusting relationship with him. It will take time, but it's a rewarding experience, and with a bird who lives as long as you, you have all the time in the world to gain his trust. Best of luck!