Old amazon with a problem

[leetje]

Hello,

Alright this is the situation. A old blue fronted amazon named Lorre lived happely with her owner but sadly outlived her, now two people inherited her. They are mentally challenged and don't know anything about the bird. My mother works at their house and they asked her to help. I gave some basic instructions but I recently heared that it's not going well with Lorre.
They are afraid of Lorre and don't let him out of his cage anymore, Lorre is screaming and plucking now and they aren't that fond of him/her anymore.

I told my mother that if they want to get rid of Lorre they can give him to me. I've got the money and I'm going to do lots of research. It's unknown how old Lorre is but I know she's old probably more than 40 years. Neither is known whether Lorre is a he or a she. All I know is that Lorre is very unhappy.

Lorre:
age unknown
flies like a chicken so I suspect he was/is clipped
diet: unknown
night/day routine: no
gender: unknown
Basiclly I don't know any specifics.

I hope I can take care of Lorre and give hem a lovely life with lots of attention, training and a proper diet. But I need some help, I have lots of experience with animals but not that much with birds (a canary). I had been planning on getting a GCC (unless Lorre comes to live with me) and I always do research before adopting a pet. Lorre has been through a difficuilt period of her life, and I'm ready for some screams and bites.
Are there any tips on how to take care of an older traumatised bird and if I'm going to get Lorre how should I approach her?
(I'll keep an update if I learn anything new)

Thank you soo much in advance!!
~leetje

[Pajarita]

Well, first thing you need to do is take Lorre to an avian vet for a COMPLETE examination with blood work (CBC, avian panel, bile acids and fecal). This will give you a pretty good idea of where you are standing in terms of the diet and supplements it will need (ALL old amazons have liver issues).

Second thing you need to do is make sure that the housing (cage) is adequate (size, bar gauge, material, etc) and get enrichment items (tree branches to use as perches and for chewing, toys, etc) because Lorre will need to stay in it for some time until he/she gets used to his/her new home, routine, schedule and you.

Plan in advance where in the house his/her cage will be placed. It needs to be high enough that the top perches are at your eye level when you are standing up, close enough to a window so it gets natural light (they need to be exposed to dawn and dusk), preferably against a wall (if not, you can always drape a large material of some kind on the back to make it feel 'safe') and with a ceiling light fixture close enough for the light to shine down on him/her (the ceiling fixture should have a good quality full spectrum light of a CRI no less than 94 and a Ktemp between 5000 and 5500).

Then, it's just a matter of doing research and deciding what the best diet will be. Amazons are very prone to obesity, fatty tumors and liver disease because they don't do well with high protein and, at his/her age, Lorre is bound to have medical issues so you will need to make sure the diet is more than adequate. I have four amazons, a YCA hen that is supposed to be almost 50, a BFA hen that is 32, a YNA hen that is 33 or 34 and a YNA male that is unaged but must be around 15. The 50 year old and the 32 year old have liver damage so I feed them gloop with fresh, raw produce in the morning and a good quality seed/nut mix for dinner as well as liver tonics and cleansers every day. All amazons are EXCELLENT eaters so you should have no trouble getting Lorre to eat produce, it might take some time but it will happen (they are VERY food-motivated birds!).

As to establishing a relationship with Lorre... you might have to be very patient and very careful. I know you say that you are 'ready for screams and bites' but I doubt you really are. I am not putting you down, mind you! I've cared for parrots since 1992 and have had several mean amazons and I don't think I will ever be 'ready' for their bites! Amazons are large and strong... powerful birds that are completely fearless - and, when they are unhappy, they can be VERY mean. I am talking about birds that will fly out to your head and bite chunks out of you and I have the scars to prove it. So, the fact that Lorre is not very good at flying is a good think right now. This does not mean that you will not be able to get a good relationship with him/her - it only means that you will have to be very careful and very patient. The main thing is to keep them at a solar schedule (they get VERY aggressive when they are hormonal!), to give them freedom from the cage for a few hours every day (they are not big on flying so it's usually fairly safe to let them out), a good fresh food diet (this is important to all parrots but more so to amazons) and to be consistent, persistent and patient.

[leetje]

Thank you Pajarita!
I've been told that they smoke inside the livingroom (where Lorre is). I fear for Lorre's health I really hope that Lorre going to be okay. Should I take Lorre to the vet immediatly (when getting her) Or wait a while for Lorre to get used to his surroundings in her new home. Lorre already has a cage and a big one I heard, I'll check for the light.
I'll be patient with lorre, Lorre's owners don't allow Lorre outside the cage because Lorre flapped on top of her head and bit her ear. I must say it does scare me a little, I've been bitten by mammals before (big and small) but never by a bird and I suspect that is going to be quite different (harder).
What are some good treats? I know sunflowers are a no-no.

I read that on the bird's first time home to leave her alone, when do I start interacting and letting Lorre out of her cage?

[liz]

leetje, You already have a head start. You have compassion for a little being that you don't even have.
They have been doing everything wrong and are probably close to killing the poor thing. Tell them that you will willingly take the bird and would appreciate it being free since you know it is going to run up a vet bill.

I have to go but I will come back on at the end of the day.

[leetje]

Thanks liz!
I really hope that they are willing to give up the bird, it's quite a sad situation, they love animals but have no money and are mentally challenged. People use them to dump animals because they know they will always take them. The've had squirrrels lots of cats guinnea pigs you name it. When Lorres first owner died they knew that Lorres current owners would just take them without thinking about it. I hope to get Lorre for free, but because they are short on money I doubt it.

If Lorre comes I will have the DNA tested as well. I have seen a picture and she looks quite small (she was puffed up though) I guess Lorre's a she but no way to know for sure yet.

[Wolf]

Based on what you have said I would take the bird to see the vet on the way to taking her home. I don't know how long she was puffed up but if it was for a long period of time it could be a sigh of illness.

When Mimi came to live with me she was very traumatized and also cage bound which we are slowly overcoming but it has taken three years so far. I opened her cage door on the second day and it is open almost all day, every day just in case she decides to come out. It is hard to give sound advice without some background information, but I think it might be less traumatic in the long haul to take her to the vet when you take her home rather than attempting to wait, but I don't have much to go on in this matter.

[leetje]

Thanks Wolf I wish I knew more information about Lorre. I shall take lorre to the vet on the way home

[liz]

To be taking in any critter that is dumped on them, they are very soft hearted. They may seem dim witted but are really just over whelmed by the situation.

I am one of those people. My brother even did it to me. He asked me to take in his cat while he was on vacation but then never took it home.

It is hard for a soft hearted person to separate from a needy critter but, like me, will do it for the sake of the critter. I took in two budgies that needed rescued. I had them a while and other than being happy and getting the right food and light I just wasn't making any progress with them. Wolf is another softy. The two budgies on his list of birds are Harley and Marley. I thought the female was the one who needed help because she was a plucker but Wolf found out and is treating the male for liver problems.

Pass on the info that could be wrong with the bird. Tell them you have the money for the vet bill, if you can have her, but not enough to pay for her and take her to the vet too.

I am so bonded to each of the critters that my daughter has brought home that even though I did not want them I have been caring for them the best way I can. I can't rehome one of hers but at this point if someone came along with more info and time I would rehome some cockatiels to give them a better chance on life. I doubt that ever happens because they are the "throw aways" that no one wanted. But I would if the situation came up and if you read Rambo & Myrtle you would know how very attached I am to each little being.

Ask. You may be surprised that these soft hearted people would want to give it away to give it a better life.



I don't remember if you told your age but you seem like a remarkable person willing to help anything that needs you.

[leetje]

Thanks again , that's a good idea.
I'm nearly 18 and my whole family is a softy too XD as a child I'd always bring back hurt animals, one day my dad brought back a white canary that he had found outside, the poor thing.
We took her in and she escaped her cage. First thing she did was sit with us <3 She was really really tame and I loved it soo much. Our current canary isn't as tame but does sit on your hand when you have a treat and loves being near you it's adorable.

[Pajarita]

I agree with Wolf, both the trip to the new home and going to the vet are stressful so you might as well get all the upsetting things out of the way at the same time so you can then concentrate on keeping a strict schedule and routine once he/she is home.

I would give Lorre 5 to 7 days in the cage before I start letting him/her out but you need to play these things by ear... Personally, I would open the door to the cage the second day and see how Lorre reacts (they are usually on their best behavior during the 'honeymoon period') but I have lots of experience with large aggressive birds and I have learned to read their body language (amazons are easy to read once you catch on the signals) and avoid attacks.