I did hours of research before I brought home my very first parrot, a blue-headed Pionus, January of 2009. Based on my research, I had also been considering a Senegal, but it was Kai who stole my heart. I wanted to make certain that whichever species I brought home would match my own personal temperament and lifestyle, which is calm, quiet, and peaceful for the most part. It was very important to me that the parrots I looked at wanted to be with me, because in my experience, if an animal isn't interested in you, then it may not be a good match when you bring them home. Kai was the only one who marched right over to me for head scratches, cried when I walked away, then stepped up onto me when I put my hand out. The thing that clinched the decision for me was when he tried to regurgitate food for me... Kai chose me, so I chose him, and it has been a wonderful relationship since!
Pionus are well-known for being wonderful beginner's parrots, because they tend to be quieter, quite amicable, level-headed, very good about socializing with other people, are independent, and are very affectionate. Obviously, every pi is different, though, and it varies by individual. It seems that Pionus are rarely rehomed, because they're such wonderful birds and they don't tend to have some of the less favourable traits and behaviours of other parrots.
Noise-wise, Kai is chattier during the morning when he first wakes up, then again before it's bedtime, which is normal for most parrots, I've read. If we're listening to music together, he loves to sing along, or if we're watching a music-oriented television show together (he LOVES watching Metalocalpyse with my husband and I), he also talks up a storm/sings. His chit-chat is generally on the rambling, quiet side, on a conversational level. His natural parrot sounds are very pleasant to listen to, varying between a rolling chitter to chirps to crackles to popping peeps. If you were in a room talking to someone else, you might not even notice your pionus talking, they're so quiet. That being said, when they want to be heard...a pionus WILL be heard!
I remember the first day that Kai came down off his perch by the couch, because I had told him, "BRB", which means that I would be back in a second. Well, I took a little longer than a few minutes, so he came looking for me. My dog came over to say hello, and I heard this totally unfamiliar, LOUD, startling honk from the living room. It sounded like a bicycle horn, except with a honk. My dog took off in the other direction, terrified, and I stood there in the doorway staring at Kai in disbelief. It was so funny when he strutted over, because he gave me an exasperated look and huffed as if to say, "Look what you made me do! I had to walk all the way over here looking for you! What's taking so long?" He understands the difference between "BRB" (minutes) and "I'll be back later" (hours).
Kai has also learned the shrill, single note whistle that I use to call the dog and cats (unfortunately....I didn't realize that I was doing it until he mimicked me!). So...if he wants me to come downstairs, he dog-whistles for me. I've been working with him on this so that he'll say a softer word. I think it also helps that I never yell around him and always speak quietly to him. He knows several words and phrases, knows how to ask for things, and picks up new words after a week or two of working with him.
I really love that he doesn't have to be on my arm constantly, or that he needs my attention all the time. My friends say that some birds will scream if they're not on you all the time. He's perfectly content to sit on his drawbridge door to his house and play with toys or chewies, or perch on the branch sticking out closer to me. Kai really loves foot toys, which I tie to his drawbridge to prevent from falling onto the floor. He likes to pull them back up to play with them again, too. He isn't much of a chewer, but he does love the thin wooden discs and small clothing pins, which he breaks and snaps for fun. He really loves vine balls, which I stuff with treats. After we've eaten dinner, he's very happy to step up onto my arm for head kissies, head scratches, and allopreening. I like that he's also not a tiny bird, but a good, stocky, solid size that can defend himself if need be.
Where size is concerned, because he is also a decent size, this means that he is capable of powerful bites, which can tear skin. Kai has bitten me two times before I learned exactly why he bit me at all. Please respect your pi's personal space and do not force them to step-up, bother them if they appear to be aggravated, physically grab them, or stick your hand into their home. Imagine the world from their perspective, envision yourself from their point of view, and empathize with how small they are, versus how large a human is. A human can be very formidable and threatening. It's always best to use positive reinforcement, but it's even better to give them a choice. They should step up and down, because they want to. It took me at least two months to show Kai that he could trust me, and I never forced him to do anything he didn't want to do. After he bit me the first time, I realized that he didn't want to come out, so I let him come out on his own. Once I proved to him that I wasn't going to grab him out of his cage, push against his chest to make him step up, he began to step up onto me if he felt like it. If he didn't/doesn't feel like stepping up, he will politely turn his beak away from me and give me his back. (The other bite was because he was startled.)
My husband complains that he doesn't like Kai, because Kai always tries to bite him if he comes close to the cage. I explained to him that that is Kai's sanctuary and home, so of course he feels protective of it. I told him that it's like a dog's kennel, and how once a dog goes into his kennel, you should never try to pull him back out again, especially if he's feeling upset or defensive. I'm trying to encourage Kai and my husband to bond in neutral ways that do not involve physical contact, such as showering together and having my husband give him treats on a spoon so he can't be bitten. I also remind my husband that if Kai does bite him, he can't scream and do other entertaining things that Kai might enjoy...
So it's very important that you socialize your Pi with everyone in the family, because you don't want a situation where your Pi doesn't like certain people. I find that Kai is more than happy to step up onto complete strangers, also, though he becomes almost silent until he's comfortable with them. He can be passed around to a whole room full of people and not show the slightest bit of aggression, which is wonderful. Kai is also tolerant of my other cats and dog, as well. He loves my fluffy white cat, Murmur, going so far as to lower his head and fluff up for head scratches if Murmur approaches him. (Mur doesn't know what to do, so he just sniffs him.)
When Kai is excited, he emits his unusual Pi scent, which my husband says smells like burned honey. It's quite sweet, and I find it rather pleasant. He's really cute and lets me know that it's bedtime by whining at me and telling me, "Let's go!". When I put him onto his drawbridge, he goes inside onto his favourite sleeping perch, and I draw the blanket over. I've never had to close his drawbridge, because once he's on his house, he stays there unless I take him with me.
As another note, Kai doesn't want to poop on me. I'm not sure if that's common with all parrots, but he lets me know that he needs to go back to his perch to potty by either telling me "Potty!" or "Poop" or by whining at me if he's on my arm. If I don't put him down, he makes a burbling sound and mouthes/beaks me. If, for some reason, I'm totally not paying attention, he'll nip me a little harder. If he's on my knee or leg, he'll just back up as far as he can and poop on whatever's below. It was really cute this one time, because he shook his tail before he pooped while he was standing over his food dish, and I squeaked and pushed him back a little with my finger so he wasn't over the dish. He got defensive, opened his mouth to nip me - then paused to poop, closed his beak, looked a little embarrassed, and uttered, "Thank you."
Another thing that Kai does, which absolutely tickles me, is that he exclaims, "OOoo!!" if I give him something that he really likes - like a piece of papaya, a sunflower seed, or bellpepper.
I have my own organic garden that I grow during the summer, so Kai always gets fresh veggies and fruits from the garden, but during cold months, I buy organic produce from the store. In the mornings and at dinner time, he gets his SSG mush. I call it SSG, because when I cook it, my husband always comes home and remarks, "What is that? It smells so good." It's a mixture of organic ingredients, including azuki beans, mung beans, split peas, spinach and bellpepper rotini, white quinoa, barley, steel cut oats, forbidden rice, wild rice, green, red, and yellow lentils, dried fruit (nothing with sulfites or sugar), chopped almonds, edamame, chopped carrots, flax, sesame, pumpkin, and millet seeds, ground cinnamon, and a sprinkle of dulse. I simmer it for about 25 minutes, then store it in the fridge. When it's time to feed him, I mix in a little hot Bolthouse Farms fruit juice (carrot, mango, berry, and the new holiday flavour are his favourites), stir it, and serve it warm. I've also begun supplementing his diet with a tiny little condiment spoon sized dab of coconut oil and red palm oil. When there is ample sunlight, I also sprout a variety of seeds for Kai (and wheat/rye grass for the cats) and he gets to graze on the plantlife that grows from them.
I like to make carrot "pasta" by steaming ribbons of carrot that I've peeled off with a peeler. This also works with zucchini, squash, pumpkin, and any other firm veggie/fruit. Kai also gets a fair amount of parrot safe table food, but he absolutely adores: bellpeppers, grapes, snap peas, edamame, apples, pears, baguettes. At lunch time, he gets Roudybush's Orchard Harvest and Totally Organic pellets soaked in warm water along with a sprinkle of Zupreem pellets. There is a cuttle bone in his house that he enjoys. He wouldn't so much as touch the mineral block, so I took that out. I like to tie little baskets to the sides of his house in various places and add pinches of food and treats so he can forage. He also has a couple other foraging devices in his house that he checks regularly for goodies, a kebab feeder, and I'll tie bits of veggies and fruit to the bars.
I'm looking into getting an air filter soon, but I'm doing a bit of research, first. For these darker winter months, I have a full-spectrum light for both of us, because it helps me, too! Kai absolutely adores showers, whether by the spray mister in the shower with me, or with the hand spray nozzle in the kitchen sink. He absolutely burbles and babbles and sings when he's in a place with running water, the computer fan, or oddly enough, the vacuum cleaner running.
It seems like a lot of people like to teach their parrots tricks, but I'm happy to just have Kai act like his normal parrot self. He knows basic things like step up please, step down please, switch fingers/arms, and stay there. I'm wanting him to learn to fly, but I'm not having much luck there in that department so I'm going to do more reading. He has grown in all of his flight feathers and looks absolutely stunning! I've been working with him on learning to flap his wings, but I'm not sure if it's enough to exercise him, and he doesn't seem to enjoy it very much. If anyone has tips on teaching their parrot to fly, I would love to hear their advice.
Kai has taught me so much about parrots in our first year together, and my life is richer for it! While I enrich my parrot's life, he also enriches mine. It's really kind of funny, because the girls at Birds Unlimited said that he was one of the nastiest little birds at the store! Hee hee.....he's come such a long way. I love Kai so much.
Pionus are well-known for being wonderful beginner's parrots, because they tend to be quieter, quite amicable, level-headed, very good about socializing with other people, are independent, and are very affectionate. Obviously, every pi is different, though, and it varies by individual. It seems that Pionus are rarely rehomed, because they're such wonderful birds and they don't tend to have some of the less favourable traits and behaviours of other parrots.
Noise-wise, Kai is chattier during the morning when he first wakes up, then again before it's bedtime, which is normal for most parrots, I've read. If we're listening to music together, he loves to sing along, or if we're watching a music-oriented television show together (he LOVES watching Metalocalpyse with my husband and I), he also talks up a storm/sings. His chit-chat is generally on the rambling, quiet side, on a conversational level. His natural parrot sounds are very pleasant to listen to, varying between a rolling chitter to chirps to crackles to popping peeps. If you were in a room talking to someone else, you might not even notice your pionus talking, they're so quiet. That being said, when they want to be heard...a pionus WILL be heard!
I remember the first day that Kai came down off his perch by the couch, because I had told him, "BRB", which means that I would be back in a second. Well, I took a little longer than a few minutes, so he came looking for me. My dog came over to say hello, and I heard this totally unfamiliar, LOUD, startling honk from the living room. It sounded like a bicycle horn, except with a honk. My dog took off in the other direction, terrified, and I stood there in the doorway staring at Kai in disbelief. It was so funny when he strutted over, because he gave me an exasperated look and huffed as if to say, "Look what you made me do! I had to walk all the way over here looking for you! What's taking so long?" He understands the difference between "BRB" (minutes) and "I'll be back later" (hours).
Kai has also learned the shrill, single note whistle that I use to call the dog and cats (unfortunately....I didn't realize that I was doing it until he mimicked me!). So...if he wants me to come downstairs, he dog-whistles for me. I've been working with him on this so that he'll say a softer word. I think it also helps that I never yell around him and always speak quietly to him. He knows several words and phrases, knows how to ask for things, and picks up new words after a week or two of working with him.
I really love that he doesn't have to be on my arm constantly, or that he needs my attention all the time. My friends say that some birds will scream if they're not on you all the time. He's perfectly content to sit on his drawbridge door to his house and play with toys or chewies, or perch on the branch sticking out closer to me. Kai really loves foot toys, which I tie to his drawbridge to prevent from falling onto the floor. He likes to pull them back up to play with them again, too. He isn't much of a chewer, but he does love the thin wooden discs and small clothing pins, which he breaks and snaps for fun. He really loves vine balls, which I stuff with treats. After we've eaten dinner, he's very happy to step up onto my arm for head kissies, head scratches, and allopreening. I like that he's also not a tiny bird, but a good, stocky, solid size that can defend himself if need be.
Where size is concerned, because he is also a decent size, this means that he is capable of powerful bites, which can tear skin. Kai has bitten me two times before I learned exactly why he bit me at all. Please respect your pi's personal space and do not force them to step-up, bother them if they appear to be aggravated, physically grab them, or stick your hand into their home. Imagine the world from their perspective, envision yourself from their point of view, and empathize with how small they are, versus how large a human is. A human can be very formidable and threatening. It's always best to use positive reinforcement, but it's even better to give them a choice. They should step up and down, because they want to. It took me at least two months to show Kai that he could trust me, and I never forced him to do anything he didn't want to do. After he bit me the first time, I realized that he didn't want to come out, so I let him come out on his own. Once I proved to him that I wasn't going to grab him out of his cage, push against his chest to make him step up, he began to step up onto me if he felt like it. If he didn't/doesn't feel like stepping up, he will politely turn his beak away from me and give me his back. (The other bite was because he was startled.)
My husband complains that he doesn't like Kai, because Kai always tries to bite him if he comes close to the cage. I explained to him that that is Kai's sanctuary and home, so of course he feels protective of it. I told him that it's like a dog's kennel, and how once a dog goes into his kennel, you should never try to pull him back out again, especially if he's feeling upset or defensive. I'm trying to encourage Kai and my husband to bond in neutral ways that do not involve physical contact, such as showering together and having my husband give him treats on a spoon so he can't be bitten. I also remind my husband that if Kai does bite him, he can't scream and do other entertaining things that Kai might enjoy...
So it's very important that you socialize your Pi with everyone in the family, because you don't want a situation where your Pi doesn't like certain people. I find that Kai is more than happy to step up onto complete strangers, also, though he becomes almost silent until he's comfortable with them. He can be passed around to a whole room full of people and not show the slightest bit of aggression, which is wonderful. Kai is also tolerant of my other cats and dog, as well. He loves my fluffy white cat, Murmur, going so far as to lower his head and fluff up for head scratches if Murmur approaches him. (Mur doesn't know what to do, so he just sniffs him.)
When Kai is excited, he emits his unusual Pi scent, which my husband says smells like burned honey. It's quite sweet, and I find it rather pleasant. He's really cute and lets me know that it's bedtime by whining at me and telling me, "Let's go!". When I put him onto his drawbridge, he goes inside onto his favourite sleeping perch, and I draw the blanket over. I've never had to close his drawbridge, because once he's on his house, he stays there unless I take him with me.
As another note, Kai doesn't want to poop on me. I'm not sure if that's common with all parrots, but he lets me know that he needs to go back to his perch to potty by either telling me "Potty!" or "Poop" or by whining at me if he's on my arm. If I don't put him down, he makes a burbling sound and mouthes/beaks me. If, for some reason, I'm totally not paying attention, he'll nip me a little harder. If he's on my knee or leg, he'll just back up as far as he can and poop on whatever's below. It was really cute this one time, because he shook his tail before he pooped while he was standing over his food dish, and I squeaked and pushed him back a little with my finger so he wasn't over the dish. He got defensive, opened his mouth to nip me - then paused to poop, closed his beak, looked a little embarrassed, and uttered, "Thank you."
Another thing that Kai does, which absolutely tickles me, is that he exclaims, "OOoo!!" if I give him something that he really likes - like a piece of papaya, a sunflower seed, or bellpepper.
I have my own organic garden that I grow during the summer, so Kai always gets fresh veggies and fruits from the garden, but during cold months, I buy organic produce from the store. In the mornings and at dinner time, he gets his SSG mush. I call it SSG, because when I cook it, my husband always comes home and remarks, "What is that? It smells so good." It's a mixture of organic ingredients, including azuki beans, mung beans, split peas, spinach and bellpepper rotini, white quinoa, barley, steel cut oats, forbidden rice, wild rice, green, red, and yellow lentils, dried fruit (nothing with sulfites or sugar), chopped almonds, edamame, chopped carrots, flax, sesame, pumpkin, and millet seeds, ground cinnamon, and a sprinkle of dulse. I simmer it for about 25 minutes, then store it in the fridge. When it's time to feed him, I mix in a little hot Bolthouse Farms fruit juice (carrot, mango, berry, and the new holiday flavour are his favourites), stir it, and serve it warm. I've also begun supplementing his diet with a tiny little condiment spoon sized dab of coconut oil and red palm oil. When there is ample sunlight, I also sprout a variety of seeds for Kai (and wheat/rye grass for the cats) and he gets to graze on the plantlife that grows from them.
I like to make carrot "pasta" by steaming ribbons of carrot that I've peeled off with a peeler. This also works with zucchini, squash, pumpkin, and any other firm veggie/fruit. Kai also gets a fair amount of parrot safe table food, but he absolutely adores: bellpeppers, grapes, snap peas, edamame, apples, pears, baguettes. At lunch time, he gets Roudybush's Orchard Harvest and Totally Organic pellets soaked in warm water along with a sprinkle of Zupreem pellets. There is a cuttle bone in his house that he enjoys. He wouldn't so much as touch the mineral block, so I took that out. I like to tie little baskets to the sides of his house in various places and add pinches of food and treats so he can forage. He also has a couple other foraging devices in his house that he checks regularly for goodies, a kebab feeder, and I'll tie bits of veggies and fruit to the bars.
I'm looking into getting an air filter soon, but I'm doing a bit of research, first. For these darker winter months, I have a full-spectrum light for both of us, because it helps me, too! Kai absolutely adores showers, whether by the spray mister in the shower with me, or with the hand spray nozzle in the kitchen sink. He absolutely burbles and babbles and sings when he's in a place with running water, the computer fan, or oddly enough, the vacuum cleaner running.
It seems like a lot of people like to teach their parrots tricks, but I'm happy to just have Kai act like his normal parrot self. He knows basic things like step up please, step down please, switch fingers/arms, and stay there. I'm wanting him to learn to fly, but I'm not having much luck there in that department so I'm going to do more reading. He has grown in all of his flight feathers and looks absolutely stunning! I've been working with him on learning to flap his wings, but I'm not sure if it's enough to exercise him, and he doesn't seem to enjoy it very much. If anyone has tips on teaching their parrot to fly, I would love to hear their advice.
Kai has taught me so much about parrots in our first year together, and my life is richer for it! While I enrich my parrot's life, he also enriches mine. It's really kind of funny, because the girls at Birds Unlimited said that he was one of the nastiest little birds at the store! Hee hee.....he's come such a long way. I love Kai so much.
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