To a new cage or not?? 60yr old amazon male needs advice...

[JaynieG76]

Hello... I'm the new "adoptive" owner of William... A 60year old Amazon male.

Unfortunately, Williams elderly owner has passed away an William has come to me in a somewhat small cage.

Now I'm not a knowledgeable parrot owner, I've never had one before, and I figured that first stop ought to be a bigger new cage.

Now with William been an elderly gent himself, I'm not to sure as to whether I should. William has lived in his cage from day 1... Would he be happy in a bigger one?

Has anybody experienced anything similar? Any replies or advice would be hugely appreciated. Thankyou all in advance... X

 

[Terry57]

I had mentioned a new cage in your other thread, but if he has been in this cage form day one, I would go slow with that. How big is the cage he is in?

 

[Mimsy01]

I think bigger is nicer for them. Being that he's had the same cage for such a long time, I wouldn't just plop him into the new one though.

I'd set up the new cage right next to his old one, get it all set up so that it will be interesting to him. With some favorite foods and toys even. Leave both doors open and he should move in on his own.

He may love the idea right away or he might be apprehensive of something new. There is no real set rule on how they will react to change.

 

[Mimsy01]

I just noticed in your other post he hasn't had toys. Go slow with one at a time, play with them yourself and just let him watch, he should become interested to play with it too.

 

[Kiwibird]

That depends on Willie. Has he lived in the cage his entire life? Is the cage in good condition (i.e. no rust, no sharp edges, no broken joints ext...)? Is the cage big enough for him to move around in? Does he seem happy in the cage? Did he spend a lot of time outside the cage in his prior home (even if he's not ready to come out yet in yours)? All these points would be deciding factors. Provided the cage is big enough he can move around and there are no safety reasons to get a new one, I might consider getting a new cage from a chain petstore with a good return policy in case Willie does not want to move out of his old home. Then you would be able to see if he'd like a new cage or not and if not, it's returnable Just like some people prefer small apartments, some birds prefer a cozy sized cage If there are safety concerns with the old cage or he's literally crammed in there, a new one is not optional. Things that can help an older bird adjust to a new cage would be to get it in the same color as the old one, put favorite toys and perches in it, put it next to the old cage with the door open for him to explore on his own terms and bribing with treats he can only reach if goes inside never hurts either

My mom has a pair of 40+ year old amazons who have lived in the same cages (small by todays standards, but not so cramped they can't move around or anything) their entire lives. She bought her birds long before today's size cages were standard, but they are stainless (i.e. no rust or hazards, still very safe) and fit perfectly side by side. Years ago she bought them bigger, modern cages but after several weeks they still refused to go near them and she returned them. They are perfectly content with their cages and spend all day out anyways. My amazon has been through 3 cages, none close in shape size or color to the others, in the past 7 years since we adopted him. 0 adjustment issues to any of them, he just moved right in (eagerly at that!). It really depends on the bird.

 

[riddick07]

I agree with everyone else. We have one amazon at the shelter who is so old he falls over randomly. Losing balance, eyes issues in his old age. So he has a smaller cage so the fall isn't too high. We are debating right now on switching over to some flat perches since he has gotten a bit worse recently but he perches fine most of the time. It's really just the trying to move around aspect he can have some trouble with and is wobbly about. Not sure if your guy is at that age yet where he is wobbly. Just thought I'd mention it! We have a few amazons in their 60s at the shelter who you wouldn't even be able to tell right away they were older too.