Manu
Manu means “bird” in Polynesian, and his colorful yellow, red and green feathers are reminiscent of a tropical day. Manu is a great example of what people believe is a general trend for Amazons to be a “one-person bird”. Not many people can handle him and he will bite at any opportunity.During his stay at the Refuge, Manu was fond of our Director, Rich and a couple of the male volunteers. He would often allow full body petting and would “feed” Rich.
Update from Manu's permanent home - November 2008: Hi! I’m Manu & befitting to my Polynesian name, I am one good looking bird.
Mike & Jan came to check me out at the refuge on Labor Day in 2008. Although I prefer males to females, I thought I would do the “bite” thing & I bit Mike 3 times. Jan didn’t even chance it with me. I showed them!
I went back to my foster home with Ann & her African Grey, Kiwi. I pretty much figured it was business as usual. But Mike & Jan showed up again with a carrier on 10-12-08 & since then, I am working hard to settle into my new home.
So far, Mike has made me a stand & a ladder in his shop in the basement. He told me that my beak reminds him of his drill press.
So far, I like weekends the best. I get to hang out pretty much all day long on my stand & help around the kitchen during meal times. So far we have made huge batches of chili & spaghetti. Jan got a nice pic of me devouring a yummy onion. It was soooo good, I didn’t even care that my eyes were burning a little. During Bears games, I get to have a couple of pieces of popcorn. As you can tell by my pictures, I have not met a food that I didn’t like!!!
My cage is positioned perfectly to scope out the fridge, microwave & stove toward the kitchen. I know where the fruits & veggies are kept, the cereal, the pasta, the nuts. You name it.
I don’t bite Mike at all any more; well, maybe only a few times. Old habits are hard to break. I could spend my whole day just sitting on his lap & cuddling with him, if he would sit still enough. He really knows how to give a good head & ear massage; it is really mesmerizing.
I’m still a little shy about talking & calling out. Sometimes I slip up & accidently let out a “good night” at bed time, much to Mike & Jan’s delight. That just proves that some people are very easily amused.
I kind of standoff-ish with Jan. But she is pretty persistent. She won’t let Mike give me a shower, feed me or clean my cage. She insists on doing all that for me. Mike told me the cage cleaning part was OK with him. She is pretty good at it, it’s just that it is hard to get used to a chick taking care of me. I don’t mind sitting on her lap at all & will try hard to stay awake. Sometimes I catch myself falling asleep there. I let her pet my head once when Mike was gone.
During mealtimes, Jan makes me step up for my share. She seems to be a pretty OK cook, so really I don’t mind that part too much.
Jan is home all day, so she checks on my & will answer my calls if I am looking for my flock mates. Jan lets me come up to her office sometimes at the end of the day. She does an awful lot of talking on the phone & that still makes me a little nervous sometimes, so right now I only sit with her for a little bit. Maybe when I feel more comfortable, I can spend more time up there with her.
I am pretty tidy. I don’t grind up a lot of food & waste it, mostly cuz it tastes so good. Waste not, want not! Probably my most amazing feat to date is that I am 99.99 % potty trained. Pretty impressive for a 20 year old!
So far, it has been about a month, which in parrot time, is not really a long time. I miss Rich & my foster home a lot, but I know that Mike is going to be my new best friend. And Jan? Well, she has her work cut out for her, but she keeps telling me that I’m worth it. And you know what? I am!
Manu
Update from Manu's permanent home - November 2008: Hi! I’m Manu & befitting to my Polynesian name, I am one good looking bird.
Mike & Jan came to check me out at the refuge on Labor Day in 2008. Although I prefer males to females, I thought I would do the “bite” thing & I bit Mike 3 times. Jan didn’t even chance it with me. I showed them!
I went back to my foster home with Ann & her African Grey, Kiwi. I pretty much figured it was business as usual. But Mike & Jan showed up again with a carrier on 10-12-08 & since then, I am working hard to settle into my new home.
So far, Mike has made me a stand & a ladder in his shop in the basement. He told me that my beak reminds him of his drill press.
So far, I like weekends the best. I get to hang out pretty much all day long on my stand & help around the kitchen during meal times. So far we have made huge batches of chili & spaghetti. Jan got a nice pic of me devouring a yummy onion. It was soooo good, I didn’t even care that my eyes were burning a little. During Bears games, I get to have a couple of pieces of popcorn. As you can tell by my pictures, I have not met a food that I didn’t like!!!
My cage is positioned perfectly to scope out the fridge, microwave & stove toward the kitchen. I know where the fruits & veggies are kept, the cereal, the pasta, the nuts. You name it.
I don’t bite Mike at all any more; well, maybe only a few times. Old habits are hard to break. I could spend my whole day just sitting on his lap & cuddling with him, if he would sit still enough. He really knows how to give a good head & ear massage; it is really mesmerizing.
I’m still a little shy about talking & calling out. Sometimes I slip up & accidently let out a “good night” at bed time, much to Mike & Jan’s delight. That just proves that some people are very easily amused.
I kind of standoff-ish with Jan. But she is pretty persistent. She won’t let Mike give me a shower, feed me or clean my cage. She insists on doing all that for me. Mike told me the cage cleaning part was OK with him. She is pretty good at it, it’s just that it is hard to get used to a chick taking care of me. I don’t mind sitting on her lap at all & will try hard to stay awake. Sometimes I catch myself falling asleep there. I let her pet my head once when Mike was gone.
During mealtimes, Jan makes me step up for my share. She seems to be a pretty OK cook, so really I don’t mind that part too much.
Jan is home all day, so she checks on my & will answer my calls if I am looking for my flock mates. Jan lets me come up to her office sometimes at the end of the day. She does an awful lot of talking on the phone & that still makes me a little nervous sometimes, so right now I only sit with her for a little bit. Maybe when I feel more comfortable, I can spend more time up there with her.
I am pretty tidy. I don’t grind up a lot of food & waste it, mostly cuz it tastes so good. Waste not, want not! Probably my most amazing feat to date is that I am 99.99 % potty trained. Pretty impressive for a 20 year old!
So far, it has been about a month, which in parrot time, is not really a long time. I miss Rich & my foster home a lot, but I know that Mike is going to be my new best friend. And Jan? Well, she has her work cut out for her, but she keeps telling me that I’m worth it. And you know what? I am!
Manu
Listing Details
Breed
Double Yellow-Headed Amazon
Adopted
October 10, 2008
