neoow

Happy belated hatchday to you, Corky!

I got Alfie at 11 weeks old. The person I got him from recommended a light clip on one wing. I was 17 at the time and advice on to clip or not to clip was rather lacking so I followed the advice I was given. I got the second wing done a few weeks later to even it out then decided to let them grow out. I didn't see the benefit of clipping wings - I wanted Alfie to be fully flighted so that if he ever did get out of the house he had the best chance of getting himself out of trouble. I also felt like clipping a birds wings were like asking a dog not to wag it's tail. Birds have wings and are meant to fly. I think it has a massive impact on a bird's mental and physical health if they are not allowed to fledge and learn to fly properly. I think it also has a knock on their confidence too. So that was the last time he was clipped. And thankfully it was a light enough clip that it didn't have too much of an impact on Alfie. He enjoys his time out of the cage and enjoys being able to fly from spot to spot. I can't really help answer your question because Alfie is 17 years old, fully flighted and has been since that initial light clip. He has never plucked. I believe a lot of the issues that cause people to clip their birds can be mitigated. Alfie knows where all the windows are and not to try and fly through them. I'm super cautious about doors and windows being opened and have mesh over any that may be opened whilst he's out so he can't get through. He can fly at quite a steep ascent and knows how to descend (useful in case he ever gets into a tree). He has an aviary to play outside in during the summer and lots of places to play when he's inside.

Are there any sanctuaries nearby that you could surrender her to? What about friends/family that might be willing to take her in? I couldn't imagine ever having to make that decision. It can't be easy.

I kind of hope that they teach their new companions how to swear so it spreads even further. 😂

I wish Alfie would do the same with his veggies. I can serve it up any which way I want, he'll still ignore it or fling it across the cage!

So glad to see there has been some progress and success with your husband and Vannah's relationship!

I've had Alfie since he was 11 weeks old but he's never been a big talker. He has learned and 'forgotten' words and phrases over the years. Though I don't think he really forgets them, just chooses not to say them any more. Occasionally he will relearn or remember old words/sayings or he'll come up with something he hasn't said for a long time. My dad taught him to say "Oi! Put the kettle on!" when he was young. He also taught him to say "nag nag nag" to my mum and "naughty naughty!" but he no longer says these phrases. He also learned to say "Widget" (one of my cat's names) but only said that for a short time before stopping. He now says "Pixel!" (the other cat's name) but never Widget.

Hahaha such an awesome video!

Welcome to the forums! I'm afraid I have no knowledge about breeding or rearing parrots so can't offer much advice. Do you know any breeders that are local to you? You might be able to get in touch with them and ask for their advice? Some may be willing to help or even mentor you? It's well worth checking out historical threads here on the forums. Like greytness mentioned, the nursery section is probably the best place to start,

I think just keep encouraging her to exercise and flap her wings etc. Alfie is fully flighted but still enjoys climbing. Sometimes he'll opt to climb when flying would be the easier option. Any form of exercise will be good for her. She might not know how to fly or might not have the confidence to try it.

What a great idea! Glad she's still willing to try new foods...even if you do have to be a little creative in how you present them!

Oh poor Rio :( Grey's are really empathetic, so all the stress and uncertainty of this year would undoubtedly have rubbed off on him. Not saying it's the cause of the feather butchering, but it could be one of many factors. It could be hormones, stress, diet or illness related. I can only echo what others have said- if it was Alfie in this situation then the first thing I would do is contact an avian vet to rule out any illnesses/infection. It's always worth reviewing any changes that have happened in Rio's life/environment recently or around the time his behaviours started changing... no matter how small they may be. Grey's can be quite change adverse.

Alfie chose my housemate as his favourite after years of me being the favourite. Unfortunately there's not a lot you can do. My housemate moved out a few months ago but still comes to visit. He can instantly give Alfie scritches whereas I still can't- despite always being the main caregiver, food bringer etc etc etc. Unfrotunately you just have to roll with it. I would recommend looking up birdtricks on youtiube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1BpMn4ErGPo8XB3Rzltojg they are parrot trainers and have loads of useful videos on their channel which may help you.

Sounds like she is making really good progress! The mental image of you running round the room with her is just too cute!

Oh she makes me melt. Look as those beautiful baby eyes!

Aw happy belated hatchday!

No worries, it did take me a little while to find it, but I was sure I had seen it before!

I think the aviator harness is one of the most well known ones and has been rated highly everywhere I've looked. I have one for Alfie and was starting to get him used to seeing it and putting his head through a loop, but I wasn't able to continue as he took a disliking too me and I had to take a bit of a step back until he calmed down. I would love to be able to get him to wear a harness, but he hates his back and wings being touched and won't even let me give him head scritches at the moment... so it's going to be a long a patient road before I get anywhere close to trying again with him. There are lots of videos on youtube of people harness training their parrots though- it's a good way to start doing some research. It make take time and patience, like anything with a grey. The younger you start the process, the better.

Welcome to the forums! Sorry, I saw this post a while back but for some reason didn't respond at the time... but better late than never I guess! I look forward to hearing more about your grey adventures with Lucy!

you mean this one? https://greyforums.net/forum/9-off-topic-discussions/

Natural sunlight (not from behind glass) is the best- so taking your bird outside in travel cages (or having an outdoor aviary) is the best source for this... or whilst wearing a harness if your bird is harness trained. Either way, they should be secure so they can't spook and fly away. However this obviously depends on weather and temperatures in your area! The next best thing is an avian safe UV light. Make sure it's an avian one and not a reptile one though. You can locate these above the cages or above their favourite perches.

I can't watch the video unfortunately - I just get a grey box with a play button. Will try a different device later to see if I can get it to work. In regards to flying- if she's not used to flying it will probably take it out of her to begin with... imagine trying to for for a run if you've done no exercise whatsoever for months on end -you'll be out of puff to begin with but the more you do it, the better you'll get. If you encourage the short flights she'll start building confidence and will slowly build up her strength too and will start to take longer flights. She may even get the confidence to start flying round obstacles/corners etc over time. If you are worried about her crash landing and potentially hurting herself then you can try and stage the initital flights over soft furnishings such as beds/sofas or put some blankets and cushions on the floor.

If by sunroof you mean it's in two halves that opens up (and can be propped open with a perch) then yes, it has one of those. However, I have some fairly heavy toys hanging from both sides so that Alfie can't push it open. He has tried messing with the top of the cage but there is too much weight for it to go anywhere. Thankfully, he's not much of an escape artist!

That's disappointing. I'm guessing they won't even entertain the idea of a refund either...

Glad you found something that helped! Alfie over-preens on his sides under his feathers so they look a little tatty, but he doesn't seem to pluck. They just look messy as opposed to ripped out. So I don't have much experience in this area.