Q: My 35 year old amazon is starting to go blind from old age. What can I do to make him feel comfortable?
-G. Pizaro, Chicago. IL
A: One thing that I have noticed about parrots with disabilities is that they are seldom really troubled by them. It is in a parrot’s nature to work with “problems” rather than against them – something that is more the habit of a human being.
Where a human is likely to spend at least a short time lamenting over questions like “why me” and fretting about what the future may hold, a bird will simply get on with things. If a bird were to lose a foot to injury, it would just make the necessary adaptations to the ways it does things to one that best suits one-footedness.
That doesn’t mean that they wouldn’t appreciate a little extra consideration here and there. I suspect that your bird has been aware of the approaching blindness for some time. When WE start noticing the behavioral changes that indicate blindness, the process is usually well under way.
Familiarity will be the key to your bird’s success in getting around the cage and play area as his vision worsens. He will come to rely more and more on things being in the same places. This doesn’t mean that you have to put everything in one spot for your bird. If you have always put food and water on opposite sides of the cage, continue to do so. Also keep perches and toys placed in familiar spots.
You don’t have to make the climb to known places an easy one – your bird will navigate the cage as he always has, only now from memory instead of by sight. Exercise is still necessary even for a blind bird so be sure to continue to give him reasons to move about the cage.
One thing to keep in mind is that your bird’s sense of security is going to be continually challenged. As a prey animal, blindness represents a particularly high level of vulnerability. Ideally, your bird’s other senses will become enhanced and compensate. Your bird can become more reliant on its hearing and will anticipate being alerted to the approach of anything audibly.
However, with an older bird, you should consider the possibility that his hearing might not be what it used to be either. This can be a double whammy in that the bird that doesn’t see you coming now might not hear you coming either. When you suddenly appear, it can be frightening.
I have an aged cockatiel whose vision has been in decline for the past couple of years, especially in one eye. I made it a habit to announce myself before entering what was left of his field of vision so I didn’t send him into a thrashing panic. I have noticed during the last year, however, that this is not as effective as it used to be and I suspect there has been some degree of hearing loss as well. I now make it a habit to use heavier foot fall before I near his room with the expectation that he will feel me coming. So far that has been successful.
You, too, might find it necessary to continually update the ways you do things as your bird’s vision declines. But as long as you make provisions that will keep him feeling safe and secure, you will be amazed at how efficiently your bird will adapt to tackle any hurdle in its path. Some owners have been surprised to find out during a vet visit that their birds are, and have been, completely blind without their knowledge!
Patty Jourgensen specializes in avian health, behavior and nutrition and has been working with and caring for rescue birds since 1987.
7 comments
What I’ve done is change my amazon’s toys to focus on more tactile ones that make noise rather than brightly colored ones. Baby toys and cat toys are nice for this as they’re designed to take a beating but also provide plenty of different surfaces to chew, groom, and explore that will sometimes give soft feedback sounds when interacted with. I love watching her arrange all the toys in a circle on the floor around her just so before choosing which one she wants to play with first. And she has no trouble remembering where each one is when she wants a different one. If they haven’t been moved she will even remember where she left a particular one the day before!
The other day my senegal bit my mother very hard. I noticed that lately he has been sensitive to surprises when you move quick to pet him. This is out of his normal character. It made me realize that the growing cataract in his left is has grown fast and left him blind in that eye. It took about a year to double in size. I had to explain to her that he was not upset with her but that she spooked him when she went to pet him on his blind side. The vet said he has one growing in his other eye but I cannot see it. I assume he will be fully blind within the next three years. I am starting to realize that I need to start preparing for this. It makes me so sad to see him getting old. He really is your typical grumpy old man. 32 year old Senegal- Rudy
Great information. Thank you. Ike, my 20+ year old Lilac Crowned Amazon, seems to be losing his eyesight to some degree. He seems to be coping with it, and it’s happening pretty gradually. My worst fear for him is that he’ll outlive me, and his new caregiver won’t quite understand his routine. Now I know I need to talk to Ike’s next human sooner rather than later!
Wonderful information…thank you
I have a 20-year-old Quaker Parakeet with cataracts. Her vision has been getting worse and worse over the past five years. I first noticed something was wrong when she started missing her landings after being a very adept flyer for 7 or 8 years (she has always been fully flighted), and that is when the avian vet found that she was developing cataracts. She has adapted beautifully. She knows every inch of her cage, so that is her “safe” zone. She does not come out of her cage as often as she used to, but when the door is open, she flutters carefully to the ground (it is amazing how she has learned to do this), and runs around the apartment, following my voice or the sounds that I am making, to find me, so I can pick her up. She can also fly from her cage to the coffee table or the couch for love or a snack. She can’t see either of them, but she “knows” where they are, and once she is there, can navigate both with ease.
Great info, and a good observation that birds just adapt and move on. I have two handicapped Indian Ringnecks and they have no clue that they are handicapped. Besides their feet not working very well, they can’t really flap their wings, so when they fall, rather than flutter to the ground (or fly), they somehow manage to flip themselves mid-fall to always land on their back. I assume the feathers on their back have more cushion. Once “landed” they flip back over and proceed on their way.
My Gouldian finch, Lady G, went totally blind. I am careful to leave her water, food dish and perches in the same places. When I feed her, I tap her dish and she comes right over and eats. The only thing she has a problem with is finding her perch after she is on her floor. She flies up over and over, usually missing the perch or hitting her head on the bottom of the perch. I do feel sorry for her, but she has been coping for 2 years now.
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