We have had Carla for a little over a year. She is a rescue bird that came to us and decided to stay. We previously had a cockatiel who passed away after being with us for less than a year.
Last year my wife, who volunteers for a wild bird rehab organization, received a call to pick up a bird in our town in Hawaii. It turned out to be a Bronze Wing Pionus. When I got home from work the bird was perched on the edge of a plastic bowl in a corner in between our kitchen and dining room. I showed her my index finger and she got on, I took her to the living room and put her on the arm of the sofa. We "talked" for about 45 minutes then I put her back on the edge of the plastic bowl. During the day my wife would move her so she could move a screen from the bowl to get meal worms to feed the wild birds. The next 2 nights Carla and I repeated getting to know each other and Carla "chose" me. The next morning she bit my wife's hand when she went to move her to get into the bowl.
Carla was in very rough shape when she came. She had an e-coli infection, was under weight - 195 grams, and couldn't fly. It seemed she was kept in a small cage and seldom allowed outside. She just didn't have any wing strength.
Today Carla is in great condition. We treated the infection and she has gained weight. She weighs about 240 grams now. She is getting better at flying. Last week I had her outside on my shoulder and she took off, flying about fifty feet. She still can't gain altitude, but it is so much better than when she came to us. We don’t go outside anymore. She about 17 years old.
She has a large day time cage, but she's normally on a perch outside or on top. When I'm home, she's normally on my shoulder. I put a picture of us in the photo gallery.
Al
Last year my wife, who volunteers for a wild bird rehab organization, received a call to pick up a bird in our town in Hawaii. It turned out to be a Bronze Wing Pionus. When I got home from work the bird was perched on the edge of a plastic bowl in a corner in between our kitchen and dining room. I showed her my index finger and she got on, I took her to the living room and put her on the arm of the sofa. We "talked" for about 45 minutes then I put her back on the edge of the plastic bowl. During the day my wife would move her so she could move a screen from the bowl to get meal worms to feed the wild birds. The next 2 nights Carla and I repeated getting to know each other and Carla "chose" me. The next morning she bit my wife's hand when she went to move her to get into the bowl.
Carla was in very rough shape when she came. She had an e-coli infection, was under weight - 195 grams, and couldn't fly. It seemed she was kept in a small cage and seldom allowed outside. She just didn't have any wing strength.
Today Carla is in great condition. We treated the infection and she has gained weight. She weighs about 240 grams now. She is getting better at flying. Last week I had her outside on my shoulder and she took off, flying about fifty feet. She still can't gain altitude, but it is so much better than when she came to us. We don’t go outside anymore. She about 17 years old.
She has a large day time cage, but she's normally on a perch outside or on top. When I'm home, she's normally on my shoulder. I put a picture of us in the photo gallery.
Al
