Kazi taught ME a trick today!

[lizardsmells]

I'm copying and pasting this story from my blog. I got to handle Kazi today and he's so smart and awesome!

Please tell me if it looks like I am doing anything wrong in relating to him. I really do adore him already and I want him to be happy above all.

That’s right, he stepped up! I had to get some help from another of the volunteers with loads more parrot experience than I have to get him off the top of his cage in ‘his’ corner of the aviary. But she did and we went into the kitchen (neutral space) and had him step up on me. I spoke to him in a happy sing song voice, but quietly and without making much eye contact. I put my other hand in front of him and he growled. I ignored it and told him ‘up’ and pressed against his breast with my finger lightly. He stopped growling and stepped up, but you could tell he wasn’t comfortable. For the first several minutes he was posturing to fly, but he knows he can’t do it very well (clipped – all the birds there are) and he couldn’t seem to find a place close enough to flutter too that wasn’t already lower than my hand. So eventually he stopped trying and he got half an almond, which he loves. He sat on my hand and ate it.

I made Kazi ‘ladder’ (that is, to step off one hand on to another that’s slightly higher over and over) slowly and calmly for the next 5 or so minutes, then it was time for another almond, more sweet talk and nonsense. We spent about another 10 or so minutes like that.

I noticed Kazi making this burbly little mumble over and over. And it struck me that I’d read somewhere or heard from someone recently that imitating the parrot can establish a little trust and communication at first, so I tried. I wasn’t very good, but Kazi seemed to know what I meant, and he said it again, so I said it again.

Now I don’t know exactly who started it, whether I was delighted that Kazi and I were communicating and I asked him for a kiss or whether he was delighted we were communicating and he offered one, but either way we quickly had a new game where he would make the sound, then I would make the sound, then he’d lean in and touch his beak to my lips and I’d say “Yay! Kazi kiss!”. I don’t care. It was *awesome*. We spent a really fun several minutes together just playing our newly learned game. By the end of our time together he was readily giving me a kiss when I’d ask for a Kazi kiss and he was stepping from hand to hand without growling at me and even, the few times it happened, stepping up off my shoulder without too much complaint. He clearly didn’t want to, but no large birds on shoulders. Kazi’s not much of a biter (although I did get a good one from him, which you’ll hear about in a minute), but a bird on a shoulder is a no-no. Nothing bigger than a Senegal, anyway. So Kazi had to step up whether he wanted to or not. He knew it, but he wanted to make sure I knew he didn’t like it much. He was always very gentle. I got a couple of hard pinches, but nothing too bad. Eventually it was time to return him to his cage, but not before I took a risk and asked for a Kazi kiss twice in a row while standing inches from his cage. He could have probably leapt over to it with a healthy hop and a flutter. But he gave them with no hesitation, both times and then I moved him close enough so he could step down on to his cage.

Once I got done with taking photos of some birds a volunteer brought in to get their pictures taken (I’m updating photos of all the birds for the foundation website) I went back out to Kazi. I knew he could ‘up’ an I was going to make him do it again, only this time from the top of his cage, a good foot above my head on a Boing, basically as high as he could get, he’s an insecure little guy. He didn’t want to. He REALLY didn’t want to so he gave me a good bite on my finger to make me go away. Too bad for him it had no effect whatsoever except that I made him step up on a stick and then my hand. Once he was on my hand he was my buddy again and we played our kissing game some more in the kitchen.

 

[merlinsmom13]

I'm so glad that you guys hit it off. Dont want to rain on your parade, but a strange amazon is not a good place to place your lips. lol A sound could startle him & the 1st thing he could do is take your lips off. Be safe, their beak strength is amazing.

 

[lizardsmells]

I'm so glad that you guys hit it off. Dont want to rain on your parade, but a strange amazon is not a good place to place your lips. lol A sound could startle him & the 1st thing he could do is take your lips off. Be safe, their beak strength is amazing.

He pushed the top of his beak against my lips. If he'd been in any other position I wouldn't have trusted it. Maybe he knew...:52:

 

[roxynoodle]

I'm so glad to hear this. Yes, be careful with your lips, but I like to kiss my birds, too. Pete doesn't know how yet.

I'm not good at imitating many of his sounds either, but he knows I'm trying, and he likes it.

 

[lizardsmells]

I'm so glad to hear this. Yes, be careful with your lips, but I like to kiss my birds, too. Pete doesn't know how yet.

I'm not good at imitating many of his sounds either, but he knows I'm trying, and he likes it.

Those beaks are something! We recently got a new DYH in the shelter named Geronimo. Geronimo is a territorial little guy. He bit me once, really good, on my thumb right after he arrived (it's just a scar now) and he's leapt on to 3 other women volunteers and attacked them viciously. One woman was on a course of antibiotics for two weeks because he slashed up her arm and it got infected.

Of course my husband, Mr. No Bird Experience over here walks right up to Geronimo his first time at the shelter and the daffy bird is riding around on his arm, calm as can be. My husband didn't realize he was supposed to keep a wide berth! He's let me handle him once, but we kept it short. No way was I tempting a second bite. We'd say that Geronimo just prefers men, but he even slashed up the director pretty well and that man is like the freaking bird whisperer or something.

 

[roxynoodle]

It is hard to say why a bird might really like one person it's never met before, but not like someone else it lives with everyday. My BCC hated my ex bf. He never hurt the bird or yelled at her. We even had him give her her treats all day, but nothing changed. Every time he walked past her she would lunge at him. That was the only person I ever saw her actually hate, too.

I was a little concerned at first about Pete because he definitely didn't overtly like me when I met him. But, then he came around me for amazingly after just 2 days. The former owner thought he only liked men, but apparently that isn't true. I've now had some male visitors and Pete wanted to be with me, not them.

Birds do seem to make snap decisions though on who they like or don't like.

Oh, ha ha, right after typing my last comment, I got a kiss from Pete!

 

[George gourlay]

Birds do seem to make snap decisions though on who they like or don't like.

A friend of mine years ago had a Blue and gold Macaw that would only allow him near if Anthony had to go out the house the macaw was put into its play room due to if Anthonys wife was left in the same room alone the macaw would attack her it was very wierd as she had never shown any aggression to the bird..George..

 

[roxynoodle]

This is why I have Pete. His former owner got married and the bird hated his new wife. Maybe though it isn't that Pete hates women. He might just hate that particular one. Or he hates anyone that is taking away the attention of his favorite person.

I'm a woman, Pete likes me, so he doesn't hate all of them.