For Joanie...Wish they could all be Amazons

[Lisa B]

For those of you who are rather new to the bird world, Some of the old names in bird behavior might be unfamiliar to you. Through my bird keeping years, I have had the pleasure of meeting some WONDERFUL people through the lecture circuit. While many are to the point, and seem to be redundant, there is one speaker that stands tall...not only for his knowledge, but for his humor as well. He has been on 20/20 and I had the pleasure of having dinner with him and Dr Pepperberg at a fundraiser years back. This was Ironic, since I didn’t know Irene that well, other then what I saw on TV. I was toooooooo shy to talk to her.
But the person I am speaking of is none other than Layne David Dicker.
While doing some research, I came across something he wrote, and immediately thought of our own Joanie.....someone I feel is quite the Amazon expert because of her household and flock...
so without further delay...enjoy!!!!!!

Wish they could all be Amazons
by David Layne Dicker

"Hello..... This is he...... Uh-huh....... I see..... Okay. I think I know what you should do, Ready?..... Get an amazon. Bye."

No sooner does he finish with this then the phone rings again.

"Hello..... Yep, I'm the bird behaviorist...... Sure .... Lots of them do that..... You don't? Then next time get an amazon."

Again and again, throughout the day, the same thing. Finally, sick of repeating himself, he puts the machine on. Now when the phone rings, they hear, "Hello. You've reached Layne Dicker. To leave a personal message, please press 1. To leave a message regarding writing or lecturing, please press 2. If you're interested in the Toyota truck for sale, please press 3. And if you're calling about a parrot behavior problem, next time get an amazon. Good-bye."

Beep.

Okay, so I'm exaggerating a bit. But, as is the case with most humor, there's a little bit of the truth buried in there somewhere. And I think we can find it without digging too far.

Between private consultations and as staff avian behaviorist at a very busy animal hospital, I see about 20 birds a week a representative portion of which are amazons. Further, during a 3 year period I fostered, behaviorally rehabbed and adopted out probably 35 amazons. Wait, make that 34; I kept one for myself. There are amazons all over the place and, from my perspective anyway, I think I've figured out why.

1. Amazons usually talk. Some better than others, both on an individual and a species level. At the other end of the spectrum, SOME WON'T SHUT THE HECK UP! (Sorry. I let a personal issue creep into my writing. Won't happen again.)

Amazons and Greys, more than most other parrots, seem to use talking as their calling card probably because, while they are gorgeous birds, they don't have the flash of many cockatoos or macaws. However, once in the home, bonded, comfortable and appreciated for who they are, most people don't really care if their 'Zon ever speaks. Some of the sweetest Napes and Redheads I've ever known never said a thing. Not anything that I understood, anyway. Which leads nicely to:

2. Amazons communicate clearly. This has absolutely nothing to do with talking but, rather, deals with the birds' way of letting you know what she wants, doesn't want, what she's thinking or feeling. Amazons, slightly more than macaws and MUCH more than cockatoos, are clear and direct in their messages. Amazons are very straight-ahead birds. Which, in turn, leads to:

3. They are a behaviorist's dream. This isn't because they don't have problems. Oh, no. We as owners, breeders and whomever can and do turn our amazons into screamers, biters, pluckers and spouse haters all the time, but there's a difference in working with the greenies.

First, as mentioned, they're easy to read. When you're working with them and you happen upon a stimuli that causes a reaction, that reaction is direct, immediate and consistent. I only wish that were the case with more parrots.

Second, their resilience and adaptability is nothing short amazing. They have a much higher threshold of our "blunders" that they will endure before having a serious reaction which is why, I am certain, we see so fewer cases of purely behavioral plucking in amazons. As for their ability to adjust to new situations, of all the birds that came in for placement, they were always the best. Many cockatoos never really calmed down until they were placed in a new home, most macaws, conures and the like took a short while to get used to the busy surroundings but amazons boiled it down to, "Where am I? Okay. Who are you? Okay. Where's the food?!", and maybe not even in that order.

Finally, as would be expected of a bird as above described, they take to corrections very rapidly.

As a behaviorist, the most common amazon call I get is the springtime-six-year-old-biter call. This is the bird that always loved the owner, was really sweet and then, all of a sudden, BANG, Amazona vampira. Although there are a few variables in what I find when I visit/speak with them (some are unclipped, some on a bad diet, some never "Up" trained, some uncaged, etc.), one pattern is present in 100% of these cases, and this is "the downward spiral of amazon sociability", which is almost always the same.

Basically, the fairly sweet bird got a little hormonal (but this can even start with a bird just in a bad mood, or frightened, etc.) so he bit. But now the owner is hesitant and socializes the bird less and/or becomes nervous around the bird, which makes the bird less secure and, you guessed it, more biting, even less socializing and more hesitation, and so on, and so on up to the point where the whole relationship is trashed. I get the call that the bird has become vicious, show up and, to the amazement of the stunned owner, go over and "Up" the bird. No mystery, no trick, no special ability, no Pushme-Pullyou out in the truck; its just that the bird hasn't gradually learned that I'm not safe as he has with his owner. A little restructuring and amazon and owner will live happily ever after.

In essence, the bird that bites needs to be handled more, and not less.

Back to the list.

4. Nothing is funnier than an amazon taking a bath. No hyperbole here; I'm dead serious. I've made a study of humor. I love it, I use it and I try to understand it to the greatest extent possible. There was a time in my life when I could dictate from memory, verbatim, the entire script of "Blazing Saddles". Okay, so it was a very lonely time in my life.

Nonetheless, not even Jack Benny, Steve Martin and the you-know-what episode of Seinfeld can hold a candle to a Blue fronted amazon in the shower. I also happen to believe that they're pretty cute, too, so I ask fans of Meg Ryan, Sandra Bullock and Benji to please lend their expertise to this discussion.

5. Amazons are unpretentious. I once wrote, "When an amazon is hungry, he goes and gets some food. When he is playful, he plays. When he is happy, he expresses his joy. No games, no tricks, no lies. They are utterly and completely honest, more so than any of my former clients. An amazon would never wear Gucci loafers." I still stand by those words.

A part of this simplicity has to be their directness. I've never seen an amazon "go around" anything; they either go over it, through it or they don't go at all. My favorite example of this is how many of them climb around their cages. They climb up one side, across the top and down the other side. None of that cockatoo stopping to pose or that macaw hanging by one toe stuff and never would they bother to stop at the corner and back down the last side. No way. For amazons it's head first and straight ahead, all the way.

6. Amazons are not afraid of commitment. No Peter Pan complexes. When an amazon moves in, you can get the stainless steel cage, buy supplies in bulk and have the towels monogrammed. They're perfectly happy to stay put, thank you very much.

7. Amazons are intelligent.

Duh!

8. Amazons are pigs. I am constantly discussing diet conversion methods, tricks and techniques. Every "expert" has their secret and, basically, I try to gather as many as possible so that I can present my friends, clients and acquaintances with a wide range of options. When a call comes in about an amazon, however, I divulge my own little secret developed through years of careful, methodical, scientific research. Ready? Here we go:


1. Take an empty bowl.
2. Fill it with chopped veggies and fruit.
3. Put it in front of the amazon.
Tough, huh? Nine times out of ten you now have a bird that eats fresh foods. Okay, he eats and wears fresh foods; amazons are not delicate eaters and I have the pictures to prove it.

In all seriousness, I find that the more I learn about amazons the more I see the entire range of psittacine behavior within the microcosm of the genus Amazona. From the sweet little White fronted to the majestic Blue crowned mealy, your desires as an avicultural hobbyist can easily be fulfilled by an intelligent, loyal, interactive, stable, beautiful and, more or less, green package. But do I really wish every parrot was an amazon? No way! I'd be out of business faster than you can say, "Good bird!"

[CALVINS MOM]

Lisa - great article! So where's the phone number?

[Lisa B]

Originally Posted by CALVINS MOM

Lisa - great article! So where's the phone number?

Still seaching my archives.......

[Hootie'sMom]

I love this! The part about changing the diet was great, I am always amazed at people that have Amazons on an all seed diet. The Amazons I have adopted were all amazingly easy to switch to pellets, fruits, and veggies. Only one gave me trouble and she eventually came around. They love thier food!

[Irish]

Great article! Makes me want one---kinda :-). Maybe I should go and nick a friend of mine's "Dolly". Wonder if she'd miss her? *grins*

Z is gonna love that article. He's an Amazon fan, 100%. I just sent it to him to make him smile in between one of his incessant, interminable meetings.

[svolk]

I loved this article too.

I'm starting to get smitten with what I read about the Amazons. I unfortunately have not had the opportunity to interact with any in person, but sometimes I wonder if one is in store for me in the future

[The Outlaw]

I have long stated that there is no parrot on earth more honest than a zon. If you get bit, its because you just aren't paying attention. I have only one and frankly, if she'd been my first bird, I'd probably have stopped there. She is easy to live with. Unfortunately, I'm a sucker for a pretty face and have a house full of ornery, noisy and destructive eye candy (ie, macaws) but my Taco is a doll. No wonder they are handed down through the years to family members as beloved "children". They are truly family jewels. There is an Amazon out there to meet just about anyone's needs. You just have to understand they are very hormonal and just can't help it.

[Machelle]

LOL! that was a great article! That is my Caesar to a T!!!!! He definitely goes full steam ahead and settled right into our house when I got him.

[Casa Amazona]

That's my darlings. Layne David Dicker is one of my very favorite authors. Nancy, the hormonal comment was true, but seems to apply 97% to males and not so much to females.

We all have our favorite birds, but my heart just goes pitter-patter when I catch sight of one of these lovelies. Last year I'd gone to Joel's Everglades Compound to pick up Sweet Sarah. While I was there we visited a friend of his who breeds Sun Conures and Quakers. We were out back admiring all the gorgeous Suns and visiting when, all of a sudden, I heard that wonderful sound of a 'zon. Turns out this lady also has a pair of DYHs, who were in an aviary across her large back yard. In a heartbeat all the Suns and Quakers were a distant memory as I made a beeline over to my beloved 'zons and started visiting with them. Even as we were up front ready to leave, I could hear them calling "Hello!" It sure was hard to leave them there!

Did I mention how good they smell?

[Irish]

Z just asked me if I was ready to "upgrade" to Amazons.... :-). Silly man--I have become more smitten as I've known a few (I LOVE that ornery ol' girl, Rikki, at the Bird Hut!), and I truly think they're beautiful, but nothing in this world compares to the love, beauty and flamboyant personality of a macaw, imho :-).

Still, if I ever get a chance at Dolly........... *grins*