My sister-in-law works at a pet store. She was working with one of the parrots, and turned her back for an instant. It jumped on her shoulder and got her pretty good:
I love looking at parrots and engaging with them, but now way could I ever have one for myself.
How does one trim a beak on a parrot, anyways?
Usually a Dremel.
We had fostered a blue and gold macaw some years ago and this bird had been neglected for some time. Her lower mandible was broken off and it was difficult for her to eat. The avian vet took care of that problem, along with did the usual checkup. She turned out fine.
As the bird's beak is really another form of keratin, it's living tissue and grinding down a bird's beak is rather delicate. But it has to be done quickly. The bird stresses easily and if the bird stresses too much, death results.
I've been bitten mucho times, but I never let it freak me out (unlike Mrs E). As a result, the birds learn quickly that they can't bully me or intimidate me and they'll do what I need them to do.
With other foster parrots we'd had, we had a double yellowhead Amazon. That sonofabitch flat-out hated men. He was perfectly fine with Mrs E, but he scarred me up pretty good. Some birds are like that -- they gravitate toward one sex or another, and can bond to one person and not another.
They pick you -- not the other way around.
