An old bird

[liz]

Yay for George ! As he gets better with his flight you will see his personality blossom more than you will ever expect.

Keep flying George.

[Wolf]

While clipped wings are usually the primary reason that a bird does not fly it is not the only one. Sometimes they had their wings clipped before they fledged and never learned to fly as a result so by the time the primaries regrow the muscles are atrophied due to disuse and/ or the neural pathways for flight do not develop. So even later in life even though the bird is not clipped it never flies. Another possibility is that there was no need for the bird to fly since it was usually carried by its human to wherever it wanted or needed to go. Flying takes a lot of energy and why put forth the energy if you do not need to. Still another reason could be that even though the bird is capable of flight that there was simply not enough room for the bird to fly. The larger the bird is the more room it takes for them to maneuver in the air.

With any of these possibilities, being a factor in George's not flying, he would also probably surprised himself when he actually flew and there is no way of knowing if he will do it ever again. Many time people seem to prefer that their bird does not fly. Some of them think that their bird is safer by not being able to fly, which is not actually the case and it becomes most apparent that this is not true when one looks into the difference between flighted and non flighted birds in the recovery rates of birds that have been lost outside.

Personally even if it were safer to keep a bird from being able to fly, I would still prefer that my birds be capable of flying and I do encourage them to do so. This is their primary means of exercise, Their lung and air sacs which are part of their respiratory system are designed to use flight in order to fully function as they should as they do not have a diaphragm like we do to assist in the inflation and deflation of these organs. I also find that the bird that can fly is more confident in itself and that it is also better able to solve problems on its own.

[Georges mom]

George is obsessed with biting my coffee table. Idont know what started this. I yell no and he stops but walks around and starts someplace else. It's endless his attempting and my yelling. I distract him with toys and attention but he always goes back. It's driving me crazy. I've taken to putting pillows all around it for now but he's a smart birdie, he'll eventually pull them apart and start again.
He has special boxes and gnawing wood that are on the floor for him and he just loves them. Is that the problem?? Is he thinking all things are for him to chew?? I constantly change up his toys in his cage and my attention is as plentiful as ever so what's going on with him.? I need some help here please.

[Wolf]

The chewing is normal, it is one of the things that parrots do and I understand that you don't want George to do this, but yelling at him will not help and is in fact counterproductive and will most likely cause him to chew on it even more. Tell him no in a calm but firm voice and place him on a perch or on top of his cage or even in his cage for a while. Many parrots have a perverse sense of humor and when you yell at them you give them exactly what they want, a strong reaction, and then it becomes a game for them.

[Pajarita]

Wolf is correct, parrots chew. It's a fact of life and there is nothing you can do to change it because it's a hard-wired behavior needed for survival so trying to teach them not to do it is nothing but a study in frustration.

Now, personally, I have found that telling them 'No', whether it's a yell or softly, and taking them away doesn't really work -at least not for me and my birds, not when it comes to chewing wood. What I have found is the best thing is to prevent them from reaching the object with which they are obsessed (as you have done with the pillows but I would use something sturdier - I use corner beads to cover all 'chewable' corners, they are not pretty but they work and are cheap and easy to install), to cover the spot with something they can chew (like attaching a 2x2 or a 2x4 all around the edges with strong clamps) or to replace it with something made out of metal (I recently bought new metal stools for my kitchen island to replace the ones made out of wood).

[Georges mom]

Oh it's a game to him alright as soon as I come into the room he darts right over there and gives me side eyes like saying hey you see me?? For now I'll use the pillows but I will get over to the home depot and see some other materials that would be suitable. Hes no problem no where else in the house just with this darn table. He's even taken to sitting only where I sit during the day on the rocker couch or kitchen chair. What's mine is his I guess lol. His personality is really coming out and so are his emotions. I'm able to read him pretty easily now if he's upset angry playful or just tired. His vocabulary is huge too. Every few days he amazes me with his speech. As far as teaching him...... You can teach an old bird new tricks! He's learned a pretty wild dance that we do together and will also shout out a word from the song. I just love him. Im trying to figure out how to post a photo of him so you guys can see him. He's beautiful!! Thanks fir the help again.

[christoph]

My suggestion is to allow more out time. Not only can he exersize better but you give him the respect of trusting him and he will recipracate. I know I did not spell it right.

[liz]

When and I do mean when because there is no if to it, Myrtle gets into something she should not and I don't see her she will make a noise to get my attention. That is when the fun begins and she torments me and challenges me. She chews everything. My son is in the process of covering every place she chews with metal. I don't know if my old house will be able to hold the weight.
If that isn't bad enough a switch was flipped last week and Rambo is back to normal. He does not fly and chews on whatever is at his level. He has chewed a hole in the wall behind a toilet before. Here is a new toilet that he thinks needs a hole behind it.

[Pajarita]

Oh it's a game to him alright as soon as I come into the room he darts right over there and gives me side eyes like saying hey you see me?? For now I'll use the pillows but I will get over to the home depot and see some other materials that would be suitable. Hes no problem no where else in the house just with this darn table. He's even taken to sitting only where I sit during the day on the rocker couch or kitchen chair. What's mine is his I guess lol. His personality is really coming out and so are his emotions. I'm able to read him pretty easily now if he's upset angry playful or just tired. His vocabulary is huge too. Every few days he amazes me with his speech. As far as teaching him...... You can teach an old bird new tricks! He's learned a pretty wild dance that we do together and will also shout out a word from the song. I just love him. Im trying to figure out how to post a photo of him so you guys can see him. He's beautiful!! Thanks fir the help again.

Amazons can be a lot of fun. My old YCA (50?) is a character herself. She whistles, talks and dances but her most distinguishing feature is her singing - she absolutely LOVES to sing!

[Georges mom]

Question for my expert bird friends...... With the warmer weather here and the windows opened George hears all kinds of birds now. I live near a wetland in addition to my feeders in the yard there is so much much squalling and singing from dawn to dusk. George has started to whistle like I've never heard before. It's beautiful whistling almost to a point to where I've wondered if someone taught him these tunes. Or, is this what amazons do when they hear other birds. He does his morning and evening call out squalks and the whistling is during the day. I'm in constant awe of all the new behaviors from George. Also, he really likes to hang out by the screens on the warm days. Is that ok for him?