Exercise Room for 2 Adopted Amazons

[Boki]

I have both of my bonded adopted Amazons in a pretty large aviary. But I don't feel that they are getting enough exercise. They both do a lot of climbing on the cage, hanging upside down, and walking back and forth. But I don't see them exercising their wings even thought there is ample room for them to flap.

So I am considering I move them for some occasional workouts in my house gym. The room is long enough for them to fly around a little bit and get those wing muscles going. Before I commit myself to going down this path, I am looking for some answers to questions.

1) There is a full wall mirror in the gym. Does anyone think this mirror will this be a problem for them and/or distract them from exercise. I guess I will know for sure but I don't want to make investments in changes to the gym if the mirror is expected to be a problem.

2) Should the 2 adopted parrots exercise together or individually? I am guessing they will find comfort in seeing each other in a strange room but the idea is for them to exercise, not sit together and be comfortable.

3) Is there a danger of too much exercise? Do they know when they should stop? I have read of parrots having a heart attack from too much exercise at once. I was thinking it would be about an hour workout.

4) I am hoping they will be tired after a good workout in a neutral room that I can get them relaxed with some petting and bonding after the workout before returning them to their home cage. I know I need to read body language for petting but does this seem like a reasonable path forward?

This exercise room idea is in its germinating stage but I do feel like they need more exercise.

 

[goodfellowsheryl]

You might have to cover the mirror with curtain so they dont fly into it . is the floor soft ? My budgies used to fly thru the house from their room around corners and into the sunroom. Then back to cage fir dinner. They were good pilots. Windows closed , curtains drawn and fans off for safety.

Sent from my LG-V533 using Tapatalk

 

[SailBoat]

In the Amazon Forum is a Sticky Thread "I Love Amazons - ..." As part of the Thirty some segments is one regarding Restarting a Shutdown Amazon and also Refledging an Older Amazon. Those plus many other very helpful segments of Loving and Living with Amazons.

The first place to start is verifying the health of your Amazons prior to increasing their activity level. Amazons (and all other Parrots) that have been stored for years can have serious health issues resulting for poor diet and a lack of activities. That means it starts with visit to your Certified Avian Vet first.

 

[ChristaNL]

what mister BoatyMacBoatface said
(sorry- I *had* to do that, at least once, don't be mad)

You've just rescued them right? - they are adapting to a LOT of changes now.
I do not thing the mirror will be a problem if they are introduced to it, but you can always just tape a cheap showercurtain (or something like it) to it to make it "no this is not more space to fly into" for them, just to be sure.

 

[Boki]

Thanks for the comments. In response to some of the questions, I will let you know that the floor in the gym is a hard rubber floor that you might find in a lot of commercial gyms. So it is not soft but not cement either. One really nice thing is that it is easy to clean.

Covering up the mirror is really not an option. The mirror is one whole wall of the gym and it is over 20 feet long. Since I posted this, I have been reading all over the internet about mirrors and parrots. It appears that the general consensus is that each bird is different but as a general rule, the smarter parrots work out the mirror pretty quickly. I think Amazons are among the smartest of the parrots but I think maybe I am preaching to the choir here with that comment.

I guess I can test their reaction to mirrors by putting on their existing home now. Since it is a bonded couple, I don't worry they will develop any fake relationships with themselves which I guess is narcissism at its finest. But maybe the male Blue Front will challenge himself over someone moving in on his girl? If I test the mirror and see that they get it and/or not interested, I will feel more comfortable with the exercise room.

I have had the birds looked at by a vet and they were considered healthy except that they were slightly overweight. I do think the male BF is healthier because I think he is younger and exercises more. The worry that the female DYH is older and more out of shape. She is the one that needs to up her game on being physically active.

 

[SailBoat]

There is a huge difference between a common mirror and one that extends the full length of a room. That kind of mirror can be disorientating for Humans, even more so for Birds as they see it as additional space and the other Bird as just that, another Bird. It would require extensive training to define it as a solid wall and not open space. Even with that a Bird in a panic just flies for the first several seconds and then adjusts direction. That is more than enough time to hit that wall mirror at full force.

I fully disagree! That mirror is easy to cover with anything from newspaper to Butcher's paper that comes on a roll. With the roll and masking tape, two people could easily cover that wall mirror well within an hour. I'm not sure where you are getting your information, but it is very likely that the concept of a Wall Mirror was confused with a common mirror.

By the way, how many other Bird Forums are you on?

 

[Boki]

By the way, how many other Bird Forums are you on?[/QUOTE]

I read many of them but just joined this one because it was the first one I read. I don't think I want to try to track postings on multiple forums.