Cinnyminis

I tried the Aviator suit at first, but could never get Radar to actually wear it. I then bought a harness and it worked almost right away. I think the key is leaving it where the bird can see it, an practice putting it on and off several times a day. They biggie for me was putting it over his head. That took lots of practice and tangling up. Once that is accomplished, it is so much easier. We have been using the harness for about 6 months and all Radar does now is bend his head down to put it on. Good luck! Beth

Update: I had to leave Echo to go to school. WHen I came home, Echo was eating and drinking. And dancing. So.. I'm guessing he will be okay. I am watching him for a few days to make sure he is okay. The only bad thing about all of this- While trapped, Echo was screaming. So..... now Radar knows how to scream, and he did it ALL evening last night. Beth

Here is a picture of Echo's beak.

Scary moments. Echo somehow managed to get his lower beak caught in a metal loop that hold toys on the cage. I think the piece you twist to tighten was stuck in the space under his beak. He the wildly flapped around while screaming trying to get out if it while I tried to get a towel wrapped around him to stop him so I could help. I got him unstuck, there is a tiny amount of blood under his beak, but it stopped immediately. He is now sitting on my chest whimpering, poor baby! Pray that he is okay as I have to leave for school soon. I just looked and there is a piece of his beak that looks indented and the whole area is red and tender. He gets upset when I touch it. What should I watch for? Beth

Echo weaned himself suddenly, Thank God! He is 4 months old. It's about time. I was getting really tired of his constant screeches for food! Also, when weighed at the traveling vet visit last weekend, he was 20 grams heavier than all his siblings. Guess that means he is healthy. Beth

It happened for the third time in the past few days today. I think Echo, age 4.5 months said his name. He was squawking at me and out came Echo in a rumble. If my ears don't play tricks on me, I am excited! We shall see what happens from here! Beth

He raises his crest and kinda bounces his head up and down while screeching.

I am assuming that it is a normal amazon behavior to raise it's crest and head bob? Why do they do that? I have noticed Echo do that when he feels threatened, but at other times seemingly for no reason. Coincidently, I am loving Echo's laid back personality next to Radar's. The kids were playing with a balloon earlier. Radar is terrified of balloons and will fly if it comes anywhere near him. Echo on the other hand stood with rapt attention and wanted to bite it. (Of course that would never be allowed). Echo is just so interested in everything around him. Maybe it's the age, or his personality, or a mixture of both. Beth

Echo is now 4 months old and still on 1-2 feedings a day. He is growing though, so that's good. He loves any food that is not actually bird food, veggies being his favorite. If he wants a feeding, EVERYONE nows it. And if I delay, he will launch off his cage to find me- the only problem being he is still learning how to steer and usually lands on top of something high. Oh, and he somehow seems to fly right onto adar's cage every single morning- sometimes landing directly on Radar! (And you can bet that Radar does NOT like that!) He has recently started trilling, but only when he thinks no one is listening. When certain music is played, or when the vacuum or broom is out, he will pop up his head feathers and start bouncing up and down while shrieking. It's pretty cool! He screeches when we all get home for the day, and when he is excited, or hungry. At times it drives me crazy that he will not stop! And Echo has the best eye sight ever! To get in my house, you have to go up two small hills and a flight of stairs. The other day, I was all the way out at the street and the front door was open (Screen door closed) and Echo saw me all the way out at the street and started the "I see mommy and I am hungry" call. I am looking forward to seeing how his personality develops!

I usually leave on Disney or Disney Jr. mostly because, with 7 kids, it is LOUD in my house all the time when they are home. On weekends we are home all day and my birds love having us around. I noticed though, after the kids started school this fall, that Radar seemed a little down because we were gone from about 8am til 3pm. So, I started leaving the TV on for them if I knew I would not be in and out. Beth

Nancy- you mean to tell me that I can substitute oatmeal, egg, or yogurt for the formula? He is still taking 20-30 cc's of formula 2x a day. I have managed to get him to stop screeching all the time though. I increased his formula by about 5 cc's a feeding and he is much fuller and satisfied. I actually had his rapt attention today when I was blasting music and singing right to him. He was so excited he couldn't move! Tonight he ate steamed carrots and loved it. Beth

I live only a few hours away from you in Tennessee. Beth

I have 7 kids ages 16, 15, 13, 11, 9, 7, and 4. My 7 year old is autistic and very high energy. I also have an 11 mo CAG who is a biter and a 12 week old orange wing Amazon. Both cages are in the family room. When we first brought Radar home, the kids were naturally curious and wanted to handle him all the time. I caught some of the middle ones teasing him and stuff too. After he was about 6 months old, he started biting when they put their fingers out. They learned quickly and only a few of them got tagged, although it was more of a nip than an actual bite. I had to be very proactive also in telling them to stay away from him. Now, they pretty much ignore the birds except to talk to them, or sing to them, or play peekaboo. If you asked any of the kids they would tell you Radar is the best pet ever, but they would also be a little sad that he "doesn't like me". Since there was way too many people constantly sticking fingers out to Radar, I am not surprised that he is a bit nippy now. He is actually getting better with it too. Our new baby (Echo) doesn't really know how to bite yet and the kids have been great with him, mostly because they want a better relationship with him. It's always a work in progress. I would say with a little one (under2) once the bird has been there a few weeks, they will ignore it because it will be part of the room if that makes sense. I would make sure to follow through EVERY time the child goes near the cage. Putting a gate around it would also work as a visual barrier and make a kid think twice about messing with the bird. Beth

Nancy- 8 months?! Good gosh! I am feeling like this will be a much longer process that I originally thought. He is still on two feedings a day and shows no sign of stopping. It's expensive too! He is definitely a high maintenance personality, and I really hope that slows a bit as he figures out who he is and grows more mature. Beth

Thank you Ray. I was having a frustrating moment yesterday because there was so much more going on in addition to the baby zon who will not be quiet. It gets frustrating!! He is at it again this afternoon. I am looking forward to him being a bit older. I guess I am used to my 11 mo CAG who is pretty self sufficient and I forgot what it means to have a baby in the house! Beth

OMgoodness. Echo, (12 week orange wing) will not stop! He is making baby cheepy noises that get louder and louder if you ignore him, and he NEVER stops. He is still on two feedings a day with formula and all of his health issues have been resolved. As of this week, his formula amount was reduced in order to encourage him to eat more pellets. He is being weighed daily to watch for weight loss but is doing well and has He has been eating and drinking water (Finally!) on his own. I am not entirely convinced his yelling has much to do with being hungry, because he even does it after he is fed. Is this typical of the species or have I just acquired a high need baby? Beth

So, I am wondering if I should enter into conversation with the breeder about the bornavirus? Is this something I should pursue with her? Beth

The vet ran a panel for 4 different viruses on Echo. All were negative, except for one. He tested positive for bornavirus. The vet said that 80% of birds test positive for that and are asymptomatic carriers. She said she is not that concerned at the moment, but since it can cause immunosuppression, that likely led to a bacterial infection in Echo. She said that as long as his stools are normal and not undigested, he should be fine, and that if something changes and we catch it early, it's treatable. I am waiting to hear back from her over the lack of eating though. He is really demanding formula ALL DAY LONG, and has pretty much stopped eating his pellets as much as he was before. (Roudybush mixed with supreme, mixed with Harrison's and sunshine factor). My son is buying a scale right now so I can get daily weights on Echo. The tech said she thinks it sounds like Echo is being a stubborn three year old who prefers the formula to the other food, and if he gets hungry enough, he will eat. So, the question here is.... what shall I tell the breeder? He likely got bornavirus from her aviary. Do I just chalk all of this up to inexperience in hand feeding on my part? I have definitely learned my lesson on unweaned babies. Should I stop worrying so much about it all? I feel like a nervous mommy and I am grateful that I at least have a place I can ask these questions. I appreciate this community! Beth

UPDATE on Echo: first round of bloodwork is back showing he had an elevated white cell count consistent with an ongoing bacterial or viral infection. He had a shot of antibiotics and has daily antibiotics in hi water, of which he still will not drink. He is not eating as much solid food as he was before and is still on 2-3 feedings a day. His poop was normal yesterday for the first time ever, but back to inconsistent today. We are waiting on the viral panel to get back next week. The vet is oping it will all be negative, but mentioned bornavirus specifically as a possibility. I am irritated that I allowed myself to take home Echo before he was weaned. I am also irritated that the breeder let me do it, and that he was possibly sick already when we did bring him home. I' also out $500 in vet bills and counting. I am ready for him to be weaned and normal so we can resume life. This has been a nightmare. Radar's beak has healed nicely since breaking the tip off two days ago. He was super quiet for awhile and I was afraid he was sick too, but today he was back to his normal obnoxious self. The cages have both been washed down and separated for the time being until we find out what's going on. Beth

I did not take him in. It was just the very tip and the bleeding stopped last night. Today you could barely tell what happened. I did call the vet but had to leave a message with her answering service as she was not in today. I do plan on talking to her tomorrow. Today Radar was pretty quiet and snugly all day until right before bed when he played peekabo with one of my daughters. He was using his beak to climb today, although he was doing that gingerly. Also, he was not chewing on any of his wooden block toys like he usually does. I'm guessing it is just a bit sore. There is a scab if you look but it is barely noticeable. He was also eating just fine. I am hoping that all will continue to go well with him, and I also added extra soft shreddable stuff (newspapers) to his play area just in case he still feels like shredding.

Okay, so, Radar has some health issues going on. For months, the ends of his mini clip have been looking ragged and splintered. Last week we saw a vet who trimmed up the wings and discovered the shafts are actually breaking and splitting as they exit the skin. Today, he was chewing on the end of a wooden perch and I think he either cut or broke the tip of his beak. I found some random blood on his foot and the perch and searched everywhere for the blood, only to discover it about a half hour later at the tip of his beak. He was acting very quiet tonight too, so I know he hurt himself. I will be calling the vet in the morning, but in the meantime, what should I be concerned with? Watch for? Beth

So, our Amazon Echo, (10 weeks) had a second visit with the vet today for blood work and a viral panel. While under anesthesia, the vet discovered his upper respiratory system was full of fluid. He has been put on antibiotics, starting with a shot today, and continuing for 10 days in his water/ formula. Unfortunately, Echo has not been well since we brought him home really. Everything seemed fine , but the breeder let me take him home on 2 feedings a day. He had a bald spot on his belly that she said was incomplete feathering and was really plucking, and he also had very loose stools she claimed was formula poop but was really diarrhea. The vet thought initially his vitamin A was off and gave us probiotics and sunshine factor, but after a week there has been no change other than a small weight loss. He is also not drinking any water at all. I cannot get him to even look at his water dish. Anywho, results will be in by Wednesday and maybe we will have a clearer picture. And coincidentally, I happened to get very sick about 5 days after we brought him home with a fever that lasted 4 days and then bronchitis that required antibiotics and steroids. The vet says it is probably a coincidence that I got sick (as did 4 other kids) but.... I am just so disappointed by this whole experience. I researched everything but then ignored the one big rule- quarantine. Radar checked out okay today though and perfectly healthy. I am disappointed in the breeder too. I knew she was not as good of a quality as Radar's breeder, but still. It's frustrating. Oh, and the extra $800 this has cost has been stinky too. Beth

Being the mom of 7 kids, I pretty much have down what to do when a new baby gets home. . I have made sure I speak to Radar first, open his cage first, scratch him first, and to spend extra time in the evening cuddling with him. I have no idea what happened on this particular day (yesterday) that preempted all of Radar's aggression. It continued today. His entire demeanor changed today. He was also aggressive towards me. Coincidently, we were at the vet today for issues with Echo and I discussed it with her. She said Radar has decided he is the head of the flock and is behaving accordingly. She suggested I remove all perches that are high from Radar, but allow Echo to keep his. ALso, to make sure that Radar knows that *I* am the dominant one. Maybe he was just having an off day? We shall see. Beth

I have been doing a pretty good job of keeping Radar and Echo separated. Radar has learned he is not allowed on Echo's cage when Echo is out. Echo is afraid of Radar and yells when he gets near. Radar has taken to stepping out with one foot and pausing to call for me to make sure I am watching before he steps out onto the cage. Also, if he is on Echo's cage and I catch him, he quickly scoots back onto the play gym looking chagrined. Well, last night, I was in the kitchen and Radar made it all the way onto Echo's perch Echo decided to protest. By the time I got there (only a few seconds) both birds were squawking and biting at each other. I took Radar down and scolded him and put him to bed early, then reassured Echo (who is only 10 weeks old). I thought we were past it until this morning when I let the birds out. Radar instantly went to Echo's perch several times. Moving him back to his own cage didn't help. We finally reached a point where Radar actually laid down on the ladders leading up to the perch and flattened his body down as much as he could to slowly creep up there. He was trying to be stealthy. The second Radar got within striking range, he tried to bite Echo. Needless to say, Radar was sent back INTO his cage after where he proceeded to bang and knock around things as obnoxiously as he could. I am a little surprised by this behavior by Radar. Everything has been good up until now, what changed? And what can I do about it? The picture is of him sneaking up the ladder. Beth

11 months old!