New White Fronted Amazon Owner

[BIRDIGIRL]

Amy and I just came in from being outside..she was walking about in the grass,chewing on 'lions too lol..I like the chain you made for Mr. Biggs..I'll try and make one too for Amy

Jim

Thanks they are actually real easy to make because the dandelion stems are pretty sturdy so they take a little tug at them to break them which is good fun or at least Mr Biggles thinks so ...that said Mr Biggles is a bit gentle in his beaking and chewing and pulling yet because he is only learning to play and beak things. I bet Amy enjoyed her walk on the grass nibbling the dandelions as she went Im unable to do that yet with Mr Biggles.

 

[BIRDIGIRL]

Mr Biggles had a major breakthrough this evening. He does not like strangers or people he has seen only call a couple of times or people in general either including me if Im not wearing my green top. He would get terrified throw himself against the bars which scared me as I was afraid he would hurt himself and Id end up covering his cage to calm him. This evening my niece called and to top it all she was wearing a red top...mr Biggles so far has not been too happy with me if I wore red but as he didnt throw himself against the bars of the cage this evening when he saw her I decided to open the cage door and offer him my hand to step up on and to my surprise he stepped up and was content to come out and step onto his perch on top of his cage while my niece stood right beside me...then he flew over her head and doubbled back to land back on his perch over the cage again and did his little tricks for me with the lollypop stick and the ball and basket as if my niece wasnt there and to crown it all he came when called and flew right past my niece to get to my hand. Mr Biggles is beginning to be socialised and that really has surprised me as I live in a very rural area where I only see a couple of people in the week so Im really pleased with his progress tonight. He was WONDERFUL

 

[Anansi]

That's great! Big step indeed. Perhaps your niece has a calm enough presence that he felt he could relax around her even though she's not his person.

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[BIRDIGIRL]

That's great! Big step indeed. Perhaps your niece has a calm enough presence that he felt he could relax around her even though she's not his person.

Sent from my SM-N900V using Tapatalk

Im not sure but Im hoping he may have stopped hitting the bars of the cage every time he sees someone other than me...he flung himself at the bars the last couple of times he saw her and I had to cover him for his own protection as it was the only thing that calmed him...fingers crossed this is the way it will be from now on when family and friends call or am I expecting too much

 

[Anansi]

It could go either way, actually. But I'm with you, hoping for the best.

 

[BIRDIGIRL]

2nd visitor today and Mr Biggles didnt react he just watched him curiously as he delivered a package...I am so glad he isnt throwing himself at the bars of the cage anymore it makes life so much easier.
As to our basketball game Mr Biggles has got the idea of putting the ball in the basket and even walked over to the basket about 3 steps to get it right into it and collect his treat but then clever boy Mr Biggles decided to play ball with me and started flinging the ball towards my feet so thst he would have the fun of watching me search for it on the floor and make a drama out of picking it up...ha ha he really enjoyed that game and held his head to one side watching me with interest as I struggled to get the ball...then hed stand upright and flip his wings with delight and click with his tongue he did not however give me any treat for finding it LoL all he wanted was the ball so he could repeat this trick he had taught me ...Its great to see him starting to play and sometimes too he does some foot work with the ball that has the popsicle stick sticking out of it....he is also exploring his surroundings and has flown through the door way to the next room to follow me on a couple of occasions ...nice to see him exploring and feeling that he can leave his cage and return without being scared. Iam so glad I got him. I couldnt imagine a day without him now...Peter Pan however is not as convinced as I am and still tells him off in her best Quaker scolding voice when in the same room but with the door between them they chatter away especially morning and evening

 

[Anansi]

Sounds like Mr. Biggles is progressing by leaps and bounds! So he's training you now, eh? Most impressive. Lol

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[BIRDIGIRL]

Sounds like Mr. Biggles is progressing by leaps and bounds! So he's training you now, eh? Most impressive. Lol

Sent from my SM-N900V using Tapatalk

Hee hee Yes he is and I seem to be getting tongue clicks as my reward or maybe hes just asking for his ball back so he can do it again and see if I learned it right

 

[BIRDIGIRL]

Watching mom put something nice in my bowl



*

So Mr Biggles went and got the treat out of his bowl and then climbed up to a perch to savour his snack and here he is enjoying his yummy apple snack...it took a long time to get this far but he is now enjoying bits of apple and carrot, other veggies we are not doing so good with and most get spat out but with time maybe Mr Biggles will begin to eat other veggies and fruit...he wont eat chop at all he spits most of it out and very very little stays in the beak and wont even look at it unless its stuffed in pasta but though a tiny bit is eaten mainly its played with.

[ame="https://youtu.be/sH8L9SzzUTQ"]Mr Biggles Enjoying a Snack - YouTube[/ame]

 

[BIRDIGIRL]

Mr Biggles gave me a bit of a scare today. He ate his carrot after being in good form all morning and as he usually does after eating he did his chill out act and looked real contented while I went out with the dogs to say hi to a neighbour when I came in I looked at Mr Biggles he was panting and breathing real fast...laboured like when he was ill...I phoned the vet and was just lucky to catch him (we are lucky to have an Avian Vet who is very good living nearby)anyway while I was on the phone Mr Biggles came down off his perch as if nothing had happened and over to me and took a treat then went back to his perch and he was fine and has been fine since. He played games with me and I have a video taken an hour after his episode of him playing basketball. Unfortunately I was panicing and hadnt the presence of mind to take a video of the episode itself which my vet has asked me to do if it should occur again. Vet said its possible that he just got a fright from something I didnt notice or see but given his history and the fact that as soon as he was carry crate trained he was due to go for a few tests anyway, Nial the Vet made us an appointment for Tuesday afternoon, when he intends to do a whole load of tests. I hope it doesnt freak out Mr Biggles too much but after all the work we have done together I think he will be okay letting the vet handle him...he wont like it but I think he will be okay. Im hoping that the tests dont uncover any bad results and that all is well with my little man

[ame="https://youtu.be/T6VD0_zKGmA"]Mr Biggles nets the ball once again - YouTube[/ame]

 

[Anansi]

I'm glad you set that appointment. Hopefully all is well and she really just suffered a fright prior to you coming in, but you definitely made the right call in scheduling the appointment anyway.

Loved the videos. It's great watching the relationship between the two of you unfold. Keep them coming!

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[BIRDIGIRL]

Well we finally got Mr Biggles picking up the dreaded red ball today...hee hee he tries to tell me that red just isnt his colour but as you can see he soon gets the hang of it...I dont have a video of this next wonderful piece of news as I didnt want to disturb him or distract him but Mr Biggles started to amuse himself today with the toys in his cage...first time he actually played with them on his own without me being there to prompt him... I was so happy to see him do this

[ame="https://youtu.be/K0zmuHluJPo"]Introducing the Dreded Colour Red to Mr Biggles Basketball Game - YouTube[/ame]

 

[BIRDIGIRL]

Mr Biggles went into his crate very well like we had been practicing for the past while but this time he didnt get to go for his usual walk round the garden and is on his way to the vet for his check up and see if we can find out what caused Mr Biggles to have a strange turn last week. Mr Biggles is not a happy camper and pulls my hair to get my attention and is all but saying let me out of here I dont want to see any vet today Thank you lots of treats will be needed I think for me to make up to him for this when we get home

 

[Anansi]

Poor Mr. Biggles! But great call. After an incident of panting like that, far better to be safe than sorry.

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[BIRDIGIRL]

Well Mr Biggles got fully checked out and Vet was amazed at his recovery since last he saw him...he has now got normal muscle mass and breathing is or was normalwhen examined at the start of the check up ...he did a couple of tests and poo seems normal too so nothing to worry about as far as initial tests go.He told me Mr Biggles was in tip top condition and that no one would ever know he had been so ill just a few short months ago. Im real pleased with the way the visit went. We will go back in 4 weeks for an xray of his lungs if I want that done or if indeed there are any more episodes but for the moment he is very pleased with his progress and told me not to worry about the episode too much as Mr Biggles would not be gaining weight and have regained such good muscle mass and be in such good feather condition if there was anything serious to worry about...he mentioned something about it possibly being residual after the severity of the illness Mr Biggles had but that he would wait another month or 6 weeks before doing an xray. Mr Biggles being scared of all that was going on did oblige with a little bit of panting so the vet saw it first hand and just like here at home it was over in a few minutes. Basically its a short lived raspiness that seems to come when hes scared and then vanish once he gets over the fear. He thinks this is residual and has given a course of Baytril to be mixed in his water and after a month he will xray if Im still worried, so I told him I think the xray would be a good thing for peace of minds sake. So we go back in 4 to 6 weeks.
Mr Biggles was way better about this than I thought he'd be...he certainly has got a little confidence and courage since his last lot of meds from the vet...funny thing is as soon as we got in the car to go home he was happy again and ready to play..
It was as if he knew he was going home and the ordeal was over...and maybe he did just know that...he headed for his favourite perch as soon as we got home and is happy as can be now pushing a toy about

 

[BIRDIGIRL]

Mr Biggles had another Breathing episode today and this time I was able to video it so you could all see what Im talking about. It lasted for about a half hour or so and then he was fine again. If you listen carefully at the start of the video you will hear him faintly but the mic on my camera phone is not strong enough to pick up the congested nasal type sound that goes with the click you barely hear on the video.

[ame="https://youtu.be/dUepgvBXEv8"]Mr Biggles having one of his breathing episodes - YouTube[/ame]

 

[Christinenc2000]

Not sure how I have been missing this thread. Mr. Biggles is such a pretty bird. No sound here at work. I know you are worried

 

[BIRDIGIRL]

Not sure how I have been missing this thread. Mr. Biggles is such a pretty bird. No sound here at work. I know you are worried

Thanks Christine it is worrying when I see it happen and Thankfully it doesnt happen often ...the rest of the time he seems perfectly normal...Im not as worried after yesterdays visit to our AV but Im hoping the Baytril the vet prescribed will sort the problem out ...time will tell and we go back to the AV in a month or so and if we are still having episodes or Im worried about it the AV will do an xray. Mr Biggles was perfectly fine once the breathing difficulty passed and he learned a new trick after having his episode today and will wave when I say bye bye but I havent made a video of that yet...perhaps tomorrow

 

[Christinenc2000]

Not sure how I have been missing this thread. Mr. Biggles is such a pretty bird. No sound here at work. I know you are worried

Thanks Christine it is worrying when I see it happen and Thankfully it doesnt happen often ...the rest of the time he seems perfectly normal...Im not as worried after yesterdays visit to our AV but Im hoping the Baytril the vet prescribed will sort the problem out ...time will tell and we go back to the AV in a month or so and if we are still having episodes or Im worried about it the AV will do an xray. Mr Biggles was perfectly fine once the breathing difficulty passed and he learned a new trick after having his episode today and will wave when I say bye bye but I havent made a video of that yet...perhaps tomorrow

That is so sweet. I hope everything will be ok. Prayers being sent your way

 

[BIRDIGIRL]

Thanks Christine much appreciated