Right now Salty is.....

[Skarila]

DO parrots dream, ya think? I'm trying to figure out why, after years of training with some small animal figures ( 3 parrots, a bear, a lamb, a bell and a small ball) all of a sudden Salty treats them like they are radioactive. Or other changes in their personality. Could a bad dream about these props make him super cautious in approaching them? We've worked with these props for years now, and this is new behavior.

We've all read on here how one amazon suddenly did a hard 180 on his fav person, and its taken years for this fella to get the 'zon to come even close to re-accepting him. Why do they do this? I'd love to know.

Parrots will be parrots, I guess! Well, I don't think they dream, per-say, but Lord knows what goes around their little heads while they rest... (scientifically speaking, they don't sleep like mammals, but rather just rest, even if they do seem asleep). They really tend to make the weirdest connection - patterns, colours, texture, shape.... Even completely unrelated bad experience, and they connect to every day's items or routine.
I'm not familiar with Amazons, but for Senegals I did read that in their life they just turn 180 degrees with their mates, even if they were bonded mates for years, they just suddenly leave them for no reason and go for another mate. I guess this is one of the reasons why they are hard to breed in captivity!

I wish they could really talk and tell us what makes them change so drastically!

 

[SailBoat]

I truly believe that Amazons dream, for certain they daydream as it is common to come up to your Amazon eyes open and they are totally not aware that you are there. I have used the term "Am-a-zone" to define it. They are likely contemplating the math that defines Physics of "Sting Theory" or like. Regarding dream, the amount of eye movement when they are well into a sleep is telling. Just My Two Cents.

 

[wrench13]

Stayed in NYC this week at my son's place in Astoria, and I saw the now famous Astoria flock of Quaker Parrots. Yes there is a feral population of them in NYC, Astoria, quite a number of them, I saw say a dozen or so, and my son says that the communal nests are populated by many dozens of them. SO cool, even tho they are an invasive species - LOL, I dont care if they push the pigeons out! Its amazing that a tropical parrot can survive the cold New York winters, but they have been established here in NY for many years! LOL they are just as loud and noisy as their domesticated brethren.

 

[wrench13]

Salty learned a new trick for the October 2021 Photo of the Month Contest. He learned it in 3 tries in one session. Here is the result:

 

[SailBoat]

Love Salty's can-do approach!!
Keep-up the great work!!

 

[AmyMyBlueFront]

That Salty Boy is smarter than some people I know


Jim

 

[HannahandSunny]

What a clever Salty! I remember teaching Sunny tricks, he was a quick learner too!

 

[wrench13]

Hanna, I think that once a parrot understands that we are tryin to teach something to them, it becomes easier and easier for them to learn. Salty gets most new tricks and actions in a few trys and often in 1 or 2. He comes to our training sessions ready to learn stuff. Lately we have been working on retention memory like showing him a treat hidden by a colored cup, mixing the cups with others and getting him to remember where the treat was in the begining.

 

[wrench13]

So 3 days ago, I rearranged Salty's cage and its contents and he has been a real PIA since. I cant decide if he is cranky because he refuses to sleep on the new sleeping perch and not getting enough sleep, or if he is just mad at me for changing the cage around. The new perch is the same color, just bigger and a different shape. The old one, a yellow cement one, was getting fouled and I couldn't clean it despite soaking and scrubbing. New perch is yellow cement type but bigger and one of the varied dimeter ones. Think he will get over it or what??

 

[kme3388]

Off subject, but Salty is very good at tricks. Amazing actually. The putting the bones in the pumpkin is so adorable You must work with him a lot

 

[Skarila]

So 3 days ago, I rearranged Salty's cage and its contents and he has been a real PIA since. I cant decide if he is cranky because he refuses to sleep on the new sleeping perch and not getting enough sleep, or if he is just mad at me for changing the cage around. The new perch is the same color, just bigger and a different shape. The old one, a yellow cement one, was getting fouled and I couldn't clean it despite soaking and scrubbing. New perch is yellow cement type but bigger and one of the varied dimeter ones. Think he will get over it or what??

But but but... it's not HIS and THE sleeping perch!!! It just won't do. No wonder Salty is, well.... salty about it. *ba-dum-tss*

 

[wrench13]

Off subject, but Salty is very good at tricks. Amazing actually. The putting the bones in the pumpkin is so adorable You must work with him a lot

Thank you! He is a very smart little Amazon for sure. He learned that pumpkin trick in 2 tries. And we train together almost every night, so he is 6 yrs old now, and we started doing training when he was like 7-8 months old, so we have had about 1600 or so training sessions together. He can read me like a book, and I him.

 

[wrench13]

Yeah !! Salty has accepted the new perches and is sleeping on one new one in his favorite position. That has to be the reason he has been so cranky - he wasn't getting a good nite's sleep hunkered down on the floor. Back to his usual playfull, cooperative self, singing and talking his head off. It sounds like he is going to come up some new things to say, he's been practicing in that soft grumbley amazon voice they use to try stuff out.

That bones and pumpkin trick? Now he puts them in, but he decided to Train me and get me to accept them back (for an additional treat of course). Who's training who here??

 

[kme3388]

Yeah !! Salty has accepted the new perches and is sleeping on one new one in his favorite position. That has to be the reason he has been so cranky - he wasn't getting a good nite's sleep hunkered down on the floor. Back to his usual playfull, cooperative self, singing and talking his head off. It sounds like he is going to come up some new things to say, he's been practicing in that soft grumbley amazon voice they use to try stuff out.

That bones and pumpkin trick? Now he puts them in, but he decided to Train me and get me to accept them back (for an additional treat of course). Who's training who here??

I am looking into a heated perch for my older parrot. He loves 2 of his current perches. The last time I removed them he cried the entire night (which meant I got no sleep). I will be finding out myself how long it takes for a parrot to accept a new perch.

 

[wrench13]

It took like 5 days or so for Salty to accept his new perches. I didn't want to replace his, but some were too chewed up and his sleeping perch was a cement one, designed to keep his nails trimmed, but it was so worn out that it was doing nothing, and those claws are SHARP! I at least got one the same color. I keep a flat sheet type heater in the bottom of his cage ( one of those reptile ones), once it starts to get chilly here, and once its snow season, I use a heating pad on the top of the cage at night, and use a parrot safe heater during the day time.

 

[wrench13]

Tonight was a few firsts. First time Salty successfully did his version of Jenga, the reverse Jenga, where he stacks all the mini Jenga sticks back onto the pile without dropping any of them !! So gentle, so calculatingly precise, it's really something you have to see, eyes completely focused, done over and over. I hope I can catch it one night when we are videoing. The other first was flying for 2 circumnavigation rounds of the open floor plan of our house; unfortunately his flight was interrupted by a glancing brush with a wall that he misjudged and ended with a less than dignified landing on a curtain. We have been considering letting Salty remain flighted but he has developed into such a strong and QUICK flyer, we are scared that one flight may end in him hurting himself or worse going right out the front door. Despite everyone in the house being very aware of parrots zipping out a door or window (we had a episode years ago with a different parrot), Salty is so frigging fast that I seriously doubt anyone could react fast enough to stop him, should he put his mind to aiming for the open door.

You know, writing this all down has solidified my thoughts on this, and I am making an app with his vet to have his sleeves shortened (to paraphrase my friend Jim). I don't have enough water in my entire body to provide the tears I would shed if Salty flew away. Just thinking about it gives me a knot in the gut. I am sorry, my boy, I love you too much to chance it.

 

[AmyMyBlueFront]

Tonight was a few firsts. First time Salty successfully did his version of Jenga, the reverse Jenga, where he stacks all the mini Jenga sticks back onto the pile without dropping any of them !! So gentle, so calculatingly precise, it's really something you have to see, eyes completely focused, done over and over. I hope I can catch it one night when we are videoing. The other first was flying for 2 circumnavigation rounds of the open floor plan of our house; unfortunately his flight was interrupted by a glancing brush with a wall that he misjudged and ended with a less than dignified landing on a curtain. We have been considering letting Salty remain flighted but he has developed into such a strong and QUICK flyer, we are scared that one flight may end in him hurting himself or worse going right out the front door. Despite everyone in the house being very aware of parrots zipping out a door or window (we had a episode years ago with a different parrot), Salty is so frigging fast that I seriously doubt anyone could react fast enough to stop him, should he put his mind to aiming for the open door.

You know, writing this all down has solidified my thoughts on this, and I am making an app with his vet to have his sleeves shortened (to paraphrase my friend Jim). I don't have enough water in my entire body to provide the tears I would shed if Salty flew away. Just thinking about it gives me a knot in the gut. I am sorry, my boy, I love you too much to chance it.

Al my buddy...I'm with you! I was DAMN lucky to get Beeb's back. Thank the Lord he is so bonded with me and has to be near or on me constantly. I'd die if I lost him or Amy. BB is an excellent flier and zoom's thru the house full throttle and now going to places he know's is off limits and I keep threatening with a clip clip. Also been thinking of harnessing him more and being clipped might help. Next time we go to see Doc Kristin I'm gonna ask her if she has ever put a harness on and if she'd consider doing it to the Beeb's the first time just so I can watch/learn how.
Since it's getting colder now I'm not going to shorten Amy's sleeves since adventure time is limited ( we did go out yesterday..it was 71 degree's!) Hr still refuses to even try to fly and now flips/hangs upside down from his carry-me-around perch when I try to do flap flap lessons with him.

Good on Salty for learning his tricks! And good on you for teaching him! He is such a smart fid and eager to please his Dad


Jim

 

[wrench13]

Salty is so used to training every night that the occasional skipped session really upsets him. Wednesday I had a stomach virus or something, and felt like salted s**t and we skipped the session ( but he got a few pine nuts, whole, anyway). He was so eager to train Thursday night, he kept doing his famous laugh, and strutting around the table, the happiness was very evident. Wish he would train with either my wife or son, but no, its got to be me. I spent a good amount of time playing with him Friday. He play attacks my fingers while hanging upside down on his play chain. You would think that doing this would quickly spiral him out of control, steadily amping him up, but that doesn't happen. Salty has pretty good self control in that regard. His body language clearly lets me know when playing like that would result in a nip.

 

[bill_e]

I envy your training dedication. Me, not so much...

 

[wrench13]

Bill, its so ingrained in our household its not funny. 8:45pm, the deck gets cleared for the nights session. Mrs Wrench gets upset sometimes because she is in the middle of a show or movie, but thats what the pause button is for! Salty starts pacing and gets vocal when I'm late, I don't know how he knows, but he does.