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I'll bet he was pretty clumsy! Huey crash-landed into everything for a couple months before he got his muscles and skills built up. He can now turn around in the hallway like GreycieMae. He's not as talented as her but he gets around.

Great pictures. Love seeing the progress, and so fast too. He knows he bought a winning ticket.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE that! What a sweetheart! He is forever yours....such a resilient precious gift.

I have an outdoor aviary, too. We installed a paneled roof onto it to keep wild bird poop from getting inside the aviary. Took @SRSeedburners panel recommendations, purchased from Home Depot.

Thank you! Still lots of trust work left to work towards, but I am utterly amazed by how quickly this happened! He's extremely cage protective, and understandably so. But once he's away from his cage, he was so much better. Sydney was able to take a maiden voyage flight around the room, too. First flight for him in over 8 years!

I have an outdoor aviary & never felt the reason to worry about bird mites. I do not leave them out there full time,but in the last 4 years, the only thing I watch if the wasps that may make it inside which I am right there to make sure they are gone asap.

HEhehe

How wonderful!!! ❤️

After 3 days here, our little guy has emerged from his cage and stepped up for my son!!! He always knows how to communicate with birds and animals. My heart is full!

I have around 40 pigeons, high-flyer and homing, plus around 60 chickens. Have no idea what a bird mite is. Maybe one of those mythical bs fake news critters. with my pigeons, canker is the problem. my chickens, coccidiossis (sp?). no mites whatsoever.

We're convinced our Huey worked in a call center prior to coming to live here. He has the most business sounding polite "Hello?" I've ever heard. And he only does it when the phone rings.

lovely Grey! nice cage and as long as the birds like it then all is welll. Old paperback books stuffed between the bars make good shredding toys. Pookie enjoys deconstructing cardboard boxes more than anything else. You can also cut fresh leafy branches of bird safe trees and shrubs to stuff in the cage I use Crepe Myrtle, Magnolia and Hackberry branches. Those clear plastic balls with moving items inside are fun for them to roll around, I get them in the toy section of resale or thrift shops.

Sydney is big on making telephone call sounds, and Maalik is big on answering them. So now I have phones ringing and birds answering them all day long!

Thank you! I appreciate your kind words. We are learning and experiencing together. I'm as much an open book as he.

May I say, I have watched you grow...your insight and wisdom is really gathering strength. Bless you!

Hello all. So I went ahead and got an Aviary for my patio. Very cool...built it over the weekend and it is on its way to being a cool little haven for my...soon to be two....African Greys. I was doing my laundry this evening when a guy was telling me about a case of bird mites he got as place.....could feel them on him and see them walking on his phone screen. He had them sprayed for and such...but it raised a major concern for me. I currently have nesting doves directly over the top of my new aviary. Should I run those Doves out of there and clean like a mother? Now that I am going to try to have my birds outside to get sun....now I am worried about them getting mites. Anyone have any experience with this and can help understand what precautions I should take. I am about to make some Doves very unhappy.

He's doing so well. Thank you for the photo updates. Maybe he knows he has hit the jackpot so is making the most of it!

He was. Crash landed into a pile of my son's laundry, making it the one time I was appreciative of the messiness in his room!

Yeah, I am not planning full time outdoors either so I think it is a reasonable risk to take to give them outside time. I'll take some precautions though.

Good suggestions...

Yeah, I am hoping this is a bit more rare than it seems. However, soooooo protective of my babies. Any possibilities get me worrying like crazy. I am not taking any chances though....going to lay down some plastic over the top of the cage where the dove nest is. When they fledge and vacate, I'll take measures to see they nest somewhere other than above the aviary just to be sure. From what I read, mites do not really want to leave the host bird, so it takes direct contact and some luck anyway. There are some scary links though.

Thank you!! Appreciate the reply!

To stir up some trouble and thought...lol...this is my opinion and reasons for it. NO ONE has to agree with this.... I had planned to offer a number of post to this thread, but I'll finish with this one... What ever we feed our fids outside the norm we must do so with Moderation in mind...This leads us to Accumulation, THIS is the Killer... OUR fids cannot remove certain mineral and nutrition's from their system, Salt for example, and other overdoses...Yes we overdose our fids. Using a previous post, sugar or supplier of sugar was mentioned nine times in daily foods! The problem lies in the fact we don't take into the amount of sugar for example or salt that is in the both good foods and bad foods we feed our fids.. It isn't the occasional chip or white potato etc we feed them, but the "Accumulation" of every thing we feed them!!! The same thing goe's for Fats (fatty Acids) We must reduce Saturated fats to a minimum... In summary, check out how much sugar is in peas, corn, potatoes, bread etc...How about Saturated fats, Pellets, sunflower seeds, chips, etc. The largest killer of our fids is: Advertising!!! Complete, contains, Vet recommended, Everything your bird need!!!!! What our FIDS really need is for us, their caretaker to learn how to read and research.....Thank you Jayd

Greetings.. Here's 2 sites that should be able to answer your concerns... https://www.birdmites.org/forum.html https://pets.thenest.com/pet-birds-carry-mites-lice-affect-humans-12972.html

Maalik has that business-like 'Hello' thing going on, too. Speaking of Maalik, one of the many things I absolutely love about him is that he'll 'ring the doorbell' as someone is walking up to the front door! His cage is positioned by the front window, so he as a great view of our front yard. We know when packages are arriving, the water is being delivered, and he also helps us screen solicitors!!

I think after all this bird has been through he must be pretty resilient and have a strong immune system. I don't think it will hurt to wait on the nail trim he needs to get his body weight back up but he may noit even be phased by the trim it is truly up to you as you should know him best. Love the phone story Greytness sounds so very Grey.

That sounds similar to what Alfie does with some of his toys- grabs them and lets go so they swing and then sticks his head under them for a scratch. 😂

That's one way to get a pet. I'll have to try it myself 🤣

88888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888 8888888888888888888 [AGPC] Re:Understanding the mind of your grey Greys are intelligent and I really cannot see their biting in terms of mindless viciousness from them at all. Only humans are capable and demonstrate unprovoked viciousness and cruelty. Are we right in extending that uniquely human trait to the animals in general and greys in particular? Greys resort to biting when they are frightened and afraid or if they felt they cannot communicate anymore of their wishes and preferences. I remembered the days when I was a tiny boy and a lot more cute than what you have seen of me in my photos. My sisters, and their friends, love to pet my cheek when I did not like it. At that time, if I had known of greys and parrots, I would have turned around and chomp them on the fingers. To me, it was so easy to see if birdie is receptive to me or not. And very often, if birdie is not receptive then (to head rubs or to train together), just a few minutes later, the birdie will be ready and receptive. Perhaps its because I do my best to see their moods AT ALL TIMES. And because I want to see, I do see it. Smart and intelligent as greys may be, shouldn't the onus be on us the humans who are supposed to be even smarter? Are we to blame the parrot because they 'cannot read us' (I think they read us a lot better!) or should we blame ourselves for not reading them, and in many cases, deliberately not reading them in the first place. I think 'Alphas' pay a heavier price for assuming the role of alphas than those who decide greys are equal and should be treated with the courtesy and dignity due to fellow sentients. And if 'Alphas' insist on what they think is God given role as 'Alphas', they continue to pay the price until they learn. To each the role they want to play, and the rewards and price they get for playing those roles. aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa Far too often, because people do not see or do not wish to see the reason for the biting, they rather conveniently say the parrot bite them without reasons at all. Or they say its the Terrible 2 or 3. That hormonal changes came. That might be the case. But even at that, the nuances of the emotions can be so easily seen in them. Blaming hormonal changes is another cop-out. Even without hormonal changes, a parrot might get out of the wrong side of the bed on that day. I do not do to them what I done the day before because I can do that the day before or even on the hour just before. That the birdie liked it then do not mean the birdie like the same thing now. The birdie showed so much of what they liked that it is so much easier to make yourself more receptive to their moods there and then and act to them according to their moods there and then. That is just simple courtesy and respect to fellow intelligent sentient. aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aa Quote from: danmcq 'I agree 100 percent with you, that they do not bite out of just meaness or viciousness. They did it because we did not respect thier space or body language at the time.' In this thread at another forum somewhere, there is this lady who love to say she graduated from a bird psychology course in almost everyone of her mail. Whatever that meant. Maybe that she became an expert because she got a printed certificate. Her grey bite her about once a month, and that it was the fault of the grey. That greys are so individual. But of course! Greys are individuals. I do not treat Riam the way I treat Tinkerbell. But at the very bottom, they all are the same, including getting out of wrong side of bed. It was so obvious she relished her role as the Alpha and with her psychology course, that she could psycho the birdie to her will. (guess who I wrote indirectly to in letter of 9 Aug). That she carried the birdie everywhere (guess that she clipped the wings so birdie be less uppity) Also obviously, I am a nobody to her. With none of those fancy certs to hang in my house and none of those fancy affiliations. So again And if 'Alphas' insist on what they think is God given role as 'Alphas', they continue to pay the price until they learn. To each the role they want to play, and the rewards and price they get for playing those roles. I also cannot understand whats all those emphasis on birdie pinning their eyes to be watched out for as the magical precursor to biting. Tinkerbell, and now Riamfada, they kept pinning their eyes (narrowing and then dilating their pupils) almost all the time when I play with them. I like to think they pin their eyes even when I am not playing and watching them at all. I never will know. After all, if I am not watching them, can one know if they pin their eyes then? One might as well say parrot open their jaws before they chomp on you and watch out that opening of the jaws. One other very special point I like to make. I always asked them (by voice or by the very actions) and I watched them, as to everything I like them to do, or allow me to do. My wishes were almost never rejected by them. I do believe, the very act of asking them, was perceived by them. And because I did the courtesy of asking them, they allowed me , and played along with me, because I asked them. Simple opening of the heart, and courtesy and respect to them, gained me a lot more than a dozen beautiful certificates and affiliations. Your graduation from my course is your better enjoyment with your birdie and having more magic in your relationship. And a lot less chomping from them. Isn't that better than a beautiful cert and diploma hanging on your wall? 888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888 Such as this guy in a South East Asian forum who took me to task for asking people to think of allowing their birds to even fly at home or even to fly at all. He wrote of parrot taken out to fly in a room with a ceiling fan on and got decapitated. He then wrote of a bird taken out of cage in room with opened windows and flew out of the house. He said that would never have happened if the wings were clipped. I cringed at the stupidity of not shutting down the ceiling fan or not closing the windows prior to letting your bird fly. That same guy advised on how to stop biting from hookbills saying he is an expert as he was bitten many times by his own parrots. I got bitten badly once and once only as reported 'Riamfada gave me her first painful bite ' http://shanlung.livejournal.com/96157.html That despite my handling of other birds like M2s and BP2s that I was warned would bite. With ‘experts’ like that claiming that being bitten many times making them expert, I am happy to remain an idiot or a student. But do not get me wrong. I got bitten very painfully and deliberately by Riamfada with intention to deliver real hurting. I forgave her. She was so apologetic. Here the sordid details of that bite. From Riam want the neighbourhood walk // Maya's CAG bullies her //Riamfada gave me her first painful bite We had been taking Riamfada and the kitties out on neighbourhood walks for a long time now as can be see in this journal. There are times when I felt lazy. The other day was one of those days. When I got back from work, I took Riam from her room into living room. I thought I skip that walk and did some exercises and recalls with her. Riam was used to early night sleep. When it got dark, and even with lights on in living room, she would fly back to her room and hang on the beaded curtains and waited for me to step her up on stick and brought into her room for her to sleep. But that day was early, at about 515pm and still bright outside. After a few recalls, she turned away from me and flew back to her room to hang on the beaded curtains. I thought that to be strange and I walked over to her to take her back to the living room to let her be and went back to watch the TV. A couple minutes later, she flew back to her room and hang on the curtains. Taken her back to living room and for the 3rd time, she flew back to her room. My wife at her computer corner next to her room remarked that perhaps Riamfada was unhappy she was not taken for neighbourhood walk. Riam was used to be harnessed in her room and taken directly for walks before coming back to have her harness removed in living room and then exercises there. So I got that harness in my hand, picked up Riam on stick and walked back to living room. Riam would normally fly from stick to perch the moment I enter living room. But on this time, Riam flew directly to the bar. Her harness would normally be put on when she was on the bar in her room. I opened the head loop and she bowed her head into that head loop for me to complete that harness on her. And we went out for the neighbourhood walk. The kitties were already waiting at the garden gate for this ritual walk. They would rush from the gate and clawed their way up the nearby palm tree. Then they would kind of follow us. I had a call from Maya yesterday. I gave her 3 packs of Tinkerbell Mash when she came over to our place last weekend. I wondered since then if her CAG liked that mash. Maya had this complain. Her CAG liked the mash so much that he refused all his earlier food. He would overturn the sunflower seeds and stuff. And she was down to her last pack of the three packs I gave her. I assured her it was not a problem. So that evening walk was to her villa and she came back with me to my place. To see the various dry beans and stuff so she knew what to buy. She had no Internet and my wife gave her a printout of Tink mash. I explained how I use the blender to mash the big beans prior to final cooking with sweet potatoes and carrots and red/green beans and the rice & cereals. I gave her another 3 packs as well to last her till her own cooking of the mash. After the walk, Riam would do exercises with me. Then she would hang from my shirt for headrubs while I watched TV. I was playing chess on Internet and she would fly to me, hang on me, perch on basket nearby, or on chair next to me. I was vaguely conscious that my wife was next to me feeding seeds to Riam. Riam then went on seat of chair and moved under the table away from my wife. I reached under the table to give Riam a headrub. To my shock, Riam grab my finger between her beak and gave a crunching bite that reached to my soul. "OOWWW", I shouted in pain. Riam released me immediately and softly cooed to me in baby talk and came out under the table on that chair seat. I never imagined Riam could ever hurt me. My wife was laughing nearby and said that bite was meant for her. She was giving seeds to Riam and tried to give Riam beak rub that Riam refused. Thats why Riam went under the table on that chair. When my finger reached in, Riam must have thought it was my wife. I think Riam was shocked and dismayed she bite me instead of my wife and gave me all the apologetic noises as well as very very gentle nibbles after that. I thought Riam was nice to my wife in that the bite , painful as it was, did not break the skin. That must have been a 'warning' nip, but accidently to the wrong party. Of course, I forgave Riamfada. It was quite understandable. I live with my wife. I know.

He REALLY is a keeper! ☺️ I'm in love!!! ❤️ ❤️ ❤️

Thank you for your recommendations! I discovered him doing something adorable this evening. He was holding onto the side of his cage and would lean back to grab his toy and make it swing. The swinging motion made the toy glide back and forth across his back, and Sydney was completely still while the toy was massaging his back. Once the toy had stopped swing, he'd do it again. He needs to be touched; to feel touch, and this is how he's accomplishing it at this point in time. Tomorrow I shall add another toy for him to explore.

I really wanted to say please wait --several weeks, maybe months. Thank you.

Helping... inspecting... official taste tester...!! Lovely photo!