My buddy Cheerios, a 5 year-old Amazon, is so precious to me. I hand raised him after my mom bought him as a gift from a breeder. As he grew he became a very feisty player he’d run up to me lay on his back and make a growling sound as I rubbed his belly, he’d hold my pinky finger in his beak and just seem to enjoy rough playing…kind of like a puppy! He would chase small balls that I would roll on the table top or bed for him and when he got it he would run away with it, it seemed as though he wanted me to chase him once he had it because if I didn’t he would just drop the ball like it was no fun.
Well, I recently got sick (for a year now) and I’m in bed most of the time in severe pain. His cage is in the same room with me. He’ll ask to come out “I wanna go!” he’ll say and then crouch into a --what I call a “stress position”—he leans forward with his chest flat on his perch, wings partly out and shaking, and his beak smashed up against his cage. When he asks nicely I always let him out even if it’s for a few minutes.
This past year since the time my illness started he’s been so gentle, he won’t play rough. He’ll sit on my chest and ever so gently preen my hair, touch my lips with his beak, preen my lashes… and watch me sleep for hours without pooping (I never potty trained him but since I’ve been sick he never poops on me…not even mistakes…I think it’s amazing) I set up a perch next to the bed with paper so he can poop from there…and that’s exactly what he’ll do, when he has to “go” he’ll climb down off of me and climb up on to the perch and do his business.
The down side is that is he’s over protective. When my daughter or husband enters the room he gets agitated. If anyone talks to me he’ll climb up to my chest put his tail in my face and mumble garbled up words as if to wash out what the human is saying. If the person comes closer he’ll climb down and pace the bed or chair (whatever we’re on) with this wings partly out, eyes flashing and tail flared. If that person touches me and then turn their back on Cheerios he will attack lunge, jump and bite. Then I would have to put him away until as I put it he “puts those eyes away”…when they stop flashing he has calmed down.

Sometimes I’ll cry because my pain is so bad, and he’ll climb under the covers with me and hum, he’ll pick up my fingers with his beak and try to put my hand on his head!! I just can’t get over it!! He truly is my buddy.

Are amazons suppose to be so intuitive?