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Showing content with the highest reputation on 07/31/2018 in all areas

  1. I agree with Neoow regarding no shoulder time if he's a biter. It's all about learning to read their cues. My new rescue bites whenever he's on or near his cage. He was cage bound for 8 years, so he's extremely cage protective. Once he's away from his cage, he's very anxious, so I must make all movements slowly so as not to frighten him. I will not pet him yet. For now it's all about getting him used to perching on my hand. Once he's completely comfortable with that, I will watch his eyes and feathers for signs that it might be the right moment to introduce stroking and petting. Again, it's all about Grey time. If you can't respect their time, you and your family will get bit. Simple as that.
    3 points
  2. Excellent responses for you to consider. Thought I'd just throw this in... when I first joined the forum someone told me they will always go for the highest point for safety, which is why they head for your shoulder. They feel safer there. They also usually sleep on their highest perch in the cage etc. I don't let Timber on my shoulder either for safety's sake. As Neoow pointed out, they will grab on with their beak if they feel like they are unstable. While this is not technically biting behavior, I don't want that grab to be my ear or my face! My Avian vet calls their beak their "hand."
    2 points
  3. Thanks for reply again I find your reply helped me to understand a little bit more. I think the reason why he is trying to go on my shoulder always is because he was all the time there and only when its time to go to sleep i put him on hand before cage, so he started avoiding to be on my hand for example. I think he feels safe there because he can go behind me and i cant put him off. I honestly dont feel safe so i will try to avoid him being there in total. Again thanks for reply, i will listen to try to find final solution by some books or vids that are about this tipe of behavior.
    1 point
  4. Thank you for the photos, your grey is adorable. I'm hoping someone else will come along soon who can offer more advice. Please do keep checking in as I'm sure others will have something to add. It's been a long time since I've handled a baby grey as my bird Alfie is now 15 years old. As you probably already know, grey's can use their beak almost like a third hand/foot. If the surface/perch they are standing on is unstable then they may reach out and grab with their beak to steady themselves and try not to fall off. This can be a little surprising at times because they can react quite quickly. As your grey is so young he's probably still finding his way around and probably doesn't know his own strength yet! Is your hand/arm/shoulder wobbles then you may find your bird will bite to hang on and steady themselves. The trick here is to try not to pull away, as this may result in them hanging on harder. Some birds are "no shoulder birds". My bird, Alfie is a "no shoulder bird" because I cannot trust him to remain on my shoulder without trying to find something to play with/nibble on ... which is usually my ear. Therefore i discourage him from sitting on my shoulder. He sits on my knee or on my forearm. If he starts creeping up my arm then I put my other arm in the way and usher him back down to my forearm. Some people have had to put something on their shoulder (like a stuffed toy) to discourage their birds from climbing up to their shoulders. If he bites every time he is on your shoulder then I would discourage this until he can be trusted not to bite. It is very difficult once bird does start to bite as it can be discouraging and scary. It may be worth looking up some parrot behaviour books or videos to see if you can get some useful information from those about training your bird and understanding their behaviour a bit more. Does your bird have any favourite treats or toys? You may be able to start training your bird about acceptable behaviours with these.
    1 point
  5. It's possible that the previous owners had his wings clipped to try and prevent him from flying. So long as they didn't totally butcher his wings in the process then hopefully his missing feathers will grow back over time. the ones which are broken may drop out (moult) naturally and regrow. Depending on what happened to him they may not grow back though. Wing clipping is always up for debate and I believe every bird/flock/home is different and should come to their own conclusions. Personally I have a fully flighted bird because that's what works best for Alfie and his home environment. I second the recommendation of putting blankets/pillows around his cage/perches if he is trying to fly. At least that will soften the blow if he does crash land.
    1 point
  6. If you decide to get another bird then I second what others have said above- bear in mind that there is a chance the two birds might not get along. They might tolerate each other enough to spend time out of the cage in the same room - but they may also need to come out separately. I always think introducing two animals is a 'plan for the worst and hope for the best' situation. You never know how they are going to get on and you must have a plan in place if they cannot tolerate each other at all. Otherwise you run the risk of creating a very unhappy environment for all concerned (including yourself). Do you have the time needed to look after two birds if they do not get on? I have often thought about getting another bird in my home but I have two indoor cats as well as Alfie, my African Grey. My cats are quite often my second shadow and do demand quite a lot of attention compared to other cats I have known. I do not think I could offer all of my animals enough quality time if there were any issues with them not getting on. Some days it's already a bit of a juggling act making sure everyone gets the attention they need. So in my personal situation, I do not feel adding another bird would be sensible at this time. It's all about your individual environment and time constraints really. Each home/flock is different. I do not think another bird is a bad idea at all - but I always advise making sure you have that backup plan in the back of your mind if things don't work out as smoothly as you'd hope for.
    1 point
  7. The odds that another grey would get along with Rudy are slim so don't get another grey just to be a companion but because you really want another one. I would suggest you get another species of bird, probably whatever you choose will not get along with Rudy either but just having another bird in the house to interact with will be company enough. My two birds, one is a grey and the other is a sun conure, do not get along but they are out at the same time, the conure stays on me and the grey loves her daddy so they do not get close to one another. What you choose depends on whether you want a smaller bird or a larger bird but just think of what you would like to have as a companion for yourself and not as a buddy for Rudy. Of course if it turns out they do get along then you hit the jackpot.
    1 point
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