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Hello Roy and welcome to our family, so glad you and Smokey could join us. He is a handsome fella and your wife does do him justice, she knows a good looking man when she sees it. As the others have said give it time, he will let you know when he is ready for more intimate interaction but it looks like you are off to a wonderful start.

My wife obviously takes way better pictures than me 😂😂😂

Not the greatest picture but he tends to do this a lot he steps on the edge of the cage and lowers his head and starts flapping his wings... hes not clipped but he doesn't fly either ... he doesn't leap off the cage just chirps real low and flaps his wings lol ..the few times he's leaped off was the first day trying to get him in a travel cage to bring him home but he didnt get far he went straight to the floor flapping his wings ? Could it be he doesn't know how to fly or hes too heavy to fly ? Also could this mean he wants attention or wants to fly ? Thanks for the help and all the nice comments P.S. smokey Is in Miami, Florida

I have a chance to rehome a Blue and Gold Macaw in need of a home. She is about 25 years old and has been with the same family most of her life. I am thinking seriously about it and I am going to try and meet her this weekend I am told that she is a very good talker and that she is people friendly. We will see what happens.

Hello everyone I'm new to the website and was using it a lot as a non member reading up on topics of food, behavior and so forth lol so I figured might as well join. So let me tell you about smokey the CAG hes I believe 17 and was bred in Tennessee according to his ankle ring I've had him for almost a week he came home 5-7-18 previous owner was older and could not handle the chirping and could not give him the attention he deserved before that she let me know he was abused by children poked with sticks and caged so I was a little scared at first how he might act with me him being an older parrot and all but let me tell you I was scared to get bit at first (those beaks look like they hurt) I was hand feeding him sunflowers by the 3rd day.. he won't step up from the cage Inside or outside we still haven't bonded I guess but today I was finally able to pet his head and touch him let me tell you its a great feeling that hes beginning to trust me I guess I cant wait to hold him and teach him all kinds of things. It's only been a week and hes brought so much joy to my family's and my life any tips or things I should do would be greatly appreciated thanks for this amazing website ... Looking forward to learning all I can thanks.....roy and smokey

Hi, Smokey doesn't look overweight, and hanging low and flapping is normal, yes he wants attention, he communicating with you, this is great. Years ago and still to some extent, breeders wood hand feed the parrot and as soon as they ate, bam up for sale, never fledged... To fledge is the final step before the baby is kicked out of he nest. To fledge is to fly, the breeder would clip the wings at a early age, repeating and the bird would never learn to fly. If you can, please post a photo from the back..Have you tired "step-up" when he's posing on his cage?

The more you describe Smokey, the more I think you have our Huey's identical twin, brother from another mother haahaa... Regarding the flying issue: that's exactly what Huey did. Low, flap, then leap and crash land. It took him about two months and he started actually flying. We coaxed him A LOT to come in the kitchen from the living room. He also saw our other Grey, GreycieMae, fly into the kitchen constantly and he couldn't stand being left so he practiced a lot. I spent about two months bolting from my current position to try and catch Huey so he didn't hurt himself. He had way too many crash landings for my liking and we're lucky he never broke a wing or something else. He's well past that point now and can fly and land pretty good. He's not graceful and sometimes will screw up a landing but I don't have to chase around and give him a safe arm to land on anymore.

Thank you for joining this forum and bring Smoky also. I.m in love with him!

Yes I have, he just runs away and when i get too close he starts cleaning his nails lol and looking at my hand. I do the 4 fingers with the thumb tucked in he test the perch so hes not biting me but won't come up on to my hand. Then he goes for my nail... I've only had him for about a week and all I've been able to do is give him treats by hand and scratch his head ... hes very territorial but surprisingly he let's me scratch him up top on his cage but he let's me know when he wants me to touch him he brings his head down pretty much giving me the ok.. also when I put him to bed he hangs from the top of the cage and brings his head in for a head scratch but I'm touching him outside the cage putting my finger in to him .... only time I got him to "step up" has been from the floor he does it with no problem but its not easy to get him down there or getting him off his cage

I say go for it, you know you can handle it and your heart is ready and willing, hope things go your way.

I'll keep my fingers crossed and hope it all works out for you (and of course the parrot too)

I am waiting for a call back. We talked for about an hour by phone and he did say that he had a sister that was interested, but he did not think she could handle a Macaw. The man wants to make sure she will go to a good home as she has been part of the family for about 20 years. Fifteen years with him and five years with his father. They took her in as a rehome when she was between 5 and 10 years old She had a minor injury to one of her wings and a broken toe. I hope things work out as I would love to giver her a home.

Hi and welcome to the two of you. With socializing and bonding comes trust, With trust comes a relationship that will be a foundation to build your life together that will last beyond anything you could ever expect. To the future and your relationship.

I agree. Not even a dog can do what a Grey can do. I think it really has something to do with the ability to cross the communication boundary with us. For example just today Huey saw me sitting in the bedroom from his position in the aviary just outside our window. Next thing I know he's pacing the window sill saying "C'mere, C'mere, shower? Shower? Marietta..." Marietta is my wife, she's his favorite. I'm not sure he knew who was in there, he could just tell someone was. Yesterday he was calling me into the kitchen to get him some cheerios. They're like having a kid around.

Hello and welcome! He's beautiful You are making great progress. I still don't understand how they can so quickly grab your heartstrings, there is just nothing to compare it to.

Thanks you guys I never knew these birds were so amazing and the joy they bring I'm so happy i was able to rescue him and adopt him and give him the love he deserves

I'm sure everyone can relate to these images: Oh the Shame Bird Edition https://imgur.com/gallery/0c8X4Mh I especially liked the parrot rules one!

Fine looking bird, Thank you..

Wow, he looks a lot like our Huey. Our Huey has had some abuse in his past too. Not his previous owner but before that. It took Huey about 3-4 months for the real Huey to come out which I guess is really short for a Grey. These guys bring so much love and joy with them when they blossom in the right care.

I'm still learning how to use this lol and where to upload the pics on

Pics!

Welcome Smokey and Roy!!! From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for being a rescuer...You are wise and are using the best tools available, searching the posts and archives on the Grey Forum. neoow's post is right on! Smokey brought a lot of baggage with him, some of it heavier than others. Our Joe was a mentally abused Grey and even after 10 years have surprises working with him. Rome was not built in a day...but the rewards in building in will be wonderful as you will find out. We feel the love....Now, we are all right here for you on your and Smokey's new journey. Let the games begin....😉 Jayd

Hello Roy and Smokey- welcome to the forums! Congratulations for bringing Smokey home! They are amazing birds. It sounds like everything is going well so far. One of the things you've probably seen mentioned on the forums is something called 'grey time'. This is the time it takes for a grey to accept new things or to cope with a change in their environment. 'Grey time' is different for every grey and it's important to understand that early on. An example would be if you were to introduce a new toy to the cage. Some greys can be very change adverse and will see the new toy as a threat/predator. Therefore you may need to leave the toy at a safe distance outside the cage so the grey can observe it before moving it closer and eventually putting it in the cage. The time it takes to get this toy from outside the cage to inside the cage is "grey time". So for example my grey, Alfie, would typically take a day or two before I could put a brand new toy in his cage without him getting scared or anxious. Other greys may take a couple of hours. Some may take a few extra days or a week.... etc. Either way, it's important to move at the pace that's comfortable for the bird. If a change or an action is clearly upsetting them... take a few steps back and try again a bit slower, to give the bird time to adjust, observe and learn. At this point, Smokey has been removed from everything he knows, is in a totally new environment surrounded by totally different people. He'll need a bit of 'grey time' to adjust to all of that. It sounds like he's doing well so far. Just keep talking to him, getting him used to your routines and socialising with him as much as possible. He'll eventually learn how good he's got it and start bonding with you and your family.

Welcome Roy and Smokey. Can't wait to learn more about the two of you.

Prayers for Jay, and for you Maggie.

Wow. You're braver than me. Nothing bigger than a Grey here.

😀😄YES YES YES GOOD PAPA....🆗