Any Bronze Wing or Scaly/Maximilian owners?

[anyalyssa]

Still trying to figure out the right bird for me, and among the contenders are Bronze Wing and a Maxi pionus.

I really don't care if the bird talks, but as the same time, that is what I really want. What I need is a bird that is more calm laid back and quiet. I know and understand that all birds can be and are often very loud and bouncy. I have cockatiels and GCCs currently.

I liked the bronze wing for the look! I've read of this group they talk the least.

I've read that the scaly/maxi are the best talkers in this group.

Please share anything you know about living with these birds! I was fully honest, good and the bad. I want to make absolutely certain that I make the best choices for me and the bird, and want to know if it's not a good fit.

 

[tka]

Pionus aren't parrots on "easy mode". They can be intensely hormonal, can be territorial, can be loud and can be as destructive as any other medium sized parrot. They're also sensitive, and can be prone to feather barbering and plucking. They will communicate their moods very clearly (if you try to interact with a strutting, tail flared, puffed up Pionus you will get exactly what you deserve) and a well-brought up Pionus will gradually escalate things before chomping you. They are quieter than many other species but let's be clear - this is in comparison to other medium parrots. Their calls can still be over 85dB loud. They like to make up their own minds about things and they'll decide whether they want anything to do with you: Leia adores me but could not care less about my partner, despite my partner launching a charm offensive and bribing her with treats.

Leia is out for around three hours a day and she's chilled out for maybe two hours of that. The other hour is usually her flying around looking for trouble to get into, chewing stuff, abseiling down the curtains, furiously strutting around on top of a dresser and puffing up at anyone who attempts to remove her (I respect her communication and back off but if I didn't, I would get bitten) and other fun stuff. She's currently hanging out on her window perch and is shouting at the outside birds. These shouts can make my ears ring. I love her to bits and there's so much that's great about her, but she's still very much a parrot who is closely related to Amazons.

If you really want a bird who can talk, you will be disappointed. I've known of a couple of males to say a few words, but their voices are very indistinct and mumbly. If this is what you're secretly hankering after, then a Pionus is not for you.

Given your list of requirements, I would strongly suggest searching for an older rescue bird (of any species) where you know something about their personality. Older parrots' personalities are more stable and known - if a 10+ year old parrot is calm, laid back, quiet etc, it's more likely to stay that way. Younger parrots (especially babies) are kind of unknown quantities, and parrot adolescence can be especially hard on both the parrot and the humans around them. This is true for Pionus too, and I know of young males who have had to be rehomed because they were so aggressive to their human.

 

[anyalyssa]

I'm definitely going to be looking for a rescue bird.

I want a talking bird, but it's definitely not my top priority. Just because a bird can talk, doesn't mean that it will talk. It depends on the individual bird.

The reason I am looking into this group is because everything I've read says that they are the most calm and gentle.

The bronze wing was dubbed "least likely of all parrots to nip or bite". Which is exactly why I'm here asking for personal experiences!

 

[tka]

A well-raised, non-hormonal, non-territorial bronze wing like Leia will give you lots of warnings before biting. If these warnings are listened to and respected, the parrot learns that they are listened to which makes them more likely to continue using these more subtle warnings. I can tell Leia's mood from just the angle of her head feathers. I've never been bitten seriously because she's never felt the need to bite me. I've had a couple of hard beakings when I've had to remove her from something she wants for her own safety.

If you don't pay attention to these warnings then the parrot realises that there's no point in giving all these carefully crafted escalating warnings. Why bother if they don't achieve anything? That's when you get bites that apparently come out of out of nowhere.

Hormone time...eh. All bets are off. Same if the pionus has claimed an area as territory. I've had to block off a shelf because Leia turned into a little dinosaur defending it.

Here are some posts by @Fuzzy on her BH, Kobe. Fuzzy has had to do a huge amount of work so she and Kobe can live together. Kobe has calmed down a bit (I think he's in his early teens now) but it's taken a huge amount of patience and training to get him there.

"Hormonal Aggression"

Kobe's getting back to his "normal" self after months of hormones making him almost impossible to live with. I have been attacked and dive bombed daily. Even the briefest of eye contact would get him puffed up big and gaping (repeatedly opening his mouth as if yawning). Sheesh! I have to...

forums.avianavenue.com

I can feel it coming....

I let Hardy decide how and when he wants to be handled. Because of his missing foot, he can't really step up and perch like a normal parrot. He has to step into the flat of my palm. So, I say "Hardy wanna come out?" and lay my hand flat on the bottom of his cage, approx. one foot away from...

forums.avianavenue.com

 

[anyalyssa]

A well-raised, non-hormonal, non-territorial bronze wing like Leia will give you lots of warnings before biting. If these warnings are listened to and respected, the parrot learns that they are listened to which makes them more likely to continue using these more subtle warnings. I can tell Leia's mood from just the angle of her head feathers. I've never been bitten seriously because she's never felt the need to bite me. I've had a couple of hard beakings when I've had to remove her from something she wants for her own safety.

If you don't pay attention to these warnings then the parrot realises that there's no point in giving all these carefully crafted escalating warnings. Why bother if they don't achieve anything? That's when you get bites that apparently come out of out of nowhere.

Hormone time...eh. All bets are off. Same if the pionus has claimed an area as territory. I've had to block off a shelf because Leia turned into a little dinosaur defending it.

Here are some posts by @Fuzzy on her BH, Kobe. Fuzzy has had to do a huge amount of work so she and Kobe can live together. Kobe has calmed down a bit (I think he's in his early teens now) but it's taken a huge amount of patience and training to get him there.

"Hormonal Aggression"

Kobe's getting back to his "normal" self after months of hormones making him almost impossible to live with. I have been attacked and dive bombed daily. Even the briefest of eye contact would get him puffed up big and gaping (repeatedly opening his mouth as if yawning). Sheesh! I have to...

forums.avianavenue.com

I can feel it coming....

I let Hardy decide how and when he wants to be handled. Because of his missing foot, he can't really step up and perch like a normal parrot. He has to step into the flat of my palm. So, I say "Hardy wanna come out?" and lay my hand flat on the bottom of his cage, approx. one foot away from...

forums.avianavenue.com

Thank you for clarifying. I think I might understand what you mean:

We have a ringneck at the shop, "Noodle" that used to intimidate me because she's put holes in my BFs hand, despite being "such a sweet bird". He had to emergency grab her once because she ended up right next to a hyper territorial blue front Amazon, that could have easily killed her.

BF is the Dolittle of the family that all the animals love, but now she associates him with a negative experience.

So I had resigned myself to get bit and be in pain when I had to save her the next time. My BF had cupped her, wings pinned down with his thumbs when he had to do it, but I know that Baby the Amazon was more likely to move away than to attack one of us, so I placed my hand between them and Noodle had to back away, or step up. She chose the latter, but I gave her the choice.

Now, when we have to handle Noodle, she will outright bite him, but she only gives me light pressure warning nips. There's an understanding there.