🦜Amazon parrot: gear and buying guides

Amazons are expressive South American parrots, good talkers and sometimes singers, with an assertive temperament that varies with species and hormonal seasons. Their powerful voice and morning and evening vocalising carry through walls. Big eaters that move little in a cage, they are prone to obesity, which shapes both diet and toy choices.

Profile : 31 to 38 cm depending on the species, 40 to 60 year lifespan, high noise level.

Species profile

Lifespan

40 to 60 years

Adult weight

400 to 550 g

Size

35 cm

Minimum cage

100 × 80 × 120 cm

Temperament

A robust, extroverted and theatrical parrot, talkative and demonstrative, whose mood can turn sharply in the breeding season.

Health watch

obesity and atherosclerosis · seasonal hormonal aggression

Legal status

Most amazons are listed in CITES Appendix II (EU Annex B) and a few species in Appendix I: buy from a registered breeder, with a ringed or microchipped bird and paperwork matching the species.

🩺 This health information is general in nature and does not replace a consultation: at the slightest doubt about your animal’s condition, talk to your vet.

Amazon parrot gear, family by family

• 🍖 Food

  Low-fat pellets as the base, plenty of vegetables, a little fruit, and sunflower seeds banned from the daily menu. Obesity and fatty liver disease are the main health risks for companion amazons.

• 🧴 Care & grooming

  Regular showers or misting, often welcomed with open wings. A weekly weigh-in helps adjust rations before excess weight sets in.

• 🎾 Toys & enrichment

  Foraging toys that make it work for food, chew wood and climbing setups that encourage exercise. Daily out-of-cage climbing time is its best fitness plan.

• 🏠 Bedding & habitat

  A cage at least one metre wide in solid steel, around 400 to 800 euros, with a separate play area. Like most large parrots, amazons are subject to protection rules: buy a ringed bird with origin paperwork.

• 🧳 Travel & safety

  A rigid large-parrot carrier, introduced with treats well before the first trip. During hormonal periods, respect its body language to avoid bites, including tell-tale eye pinning.

• 🧰 Accessories

  Hardwood perches, lockable stainless steel bowls, a scale and an avian UV lamp if natural light is scarce. A shower perch turns bath time into a welcome ritual.

Guides to read

• Scaly leg mite in budgies: recognizing and treating knemidokoptic mangeCare & grooming

  Knemidokoptic mange in budgies: the tell-tale crusty patches on legs and beak, the vet treatment, and how to prevent it.

• Nonstick pans and Teflon fumes: a deadly danger for pet birdsTravel & safety

  Why fumes from overheated nonstick cookware are lethal to cage birds, and how to keep your kitchen safe without giving up nonstick pans entirely.

• Clicker training for birds: the basics of positive reinforcementToys & enrichment

  How to start clicker training with your bird: the gear you need, the principles of positive reinforcement, and simple first exercises.

• Colored LED lighting in the cage: real enrichment or just a gadget?Accessories

  Colored LED lighting in a budgie's cage: what the research shows about its effect on behavior, and how to use it without disrupting sleep.

• Lovebird or budgie for beginners: which bird needs the most company?Accessories

  Lovebird or budgerigar: which one copes better with being alone, and which one absolutely needs a same-species partner? The practical comparison for choosing your first bird.

• Nest box for budgies: should you really add one to the cage?Bedding & habitat

  A wooden nest box looks harmless, but it can trigger a full breeding cycle in budgies that have no chicks to raise. What to know before adding one.

• Outdoor garden aviary: real budget and health-safety measuresBedding & habitat

  How much does an outdoor aviary cost, and how do you secure it against predators, weather and health risks linked to wild birds? The budget guide before you commit.

• Too many sunflower seeds: the mix mistake that threatens your bird's healthFood

  A seed mix too heavy in sunflower seeds drives obesity, fatty liver and atherosclerosis in cage birds. How to fix the ratio without frustrating your bird.