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Thank you so much! Yes we have a follow up on Friday will keep you updated.

Made my first vet trip with Fynn yesterday. Was concerned because he was spending most of his time at the bottom of his cage 'resting', and he hadn't really touched his fresh food all day long. He even turned his beak away from banana, which seems to be his favorite food. Vet couldn't find anything wrong with him, but he did prescribe Baytril and sent out a stool sample for a gram stain. He's acting better today, and is spending his time up high again. He still isn't eating as much as he usually does. At least his poop has more signs of his having eaten something.

Good evening everyone, Thank you for your responses to my post above. I took Cookie to the vet yesterday and was told that it does look like she is over-preening in the area where she has the bald spot. The vet seemed much more concerned about doing a wellness check than what I had gone in for. She then tried to sell me on the idea (fear) that since she had fallen {I explained that she on occasion has night trashes; she said she has not heard that they are common in greys} perhaps we should do the avian bornn virus test. I declined since Cookie does not fall often and had all the tests done on her first visit there 11 years ago. The doctor then tells me that the test is much more accurate today (I don't like it when they try too hard to sell me on something I don't need. Anyhoo, I digress and will keep monitoring the area for any new signs of over preening and call the vet if it worsens. Thanks again!

Yes totally understand that. She spent 1hr this morning in the sun before it got really hot and she came back inside a new girl :) full of energy and even swinging upside down on her stand...she has never done that before!

Yes we are. Our vet is very capable. We got her some flat perches today :), tthank you!

Hi all, I have an outside aviary for Alfie now which he went out in a few times over the summer. We had the longest and hottest summer I have ever known this year and so Alfie didn't go out as much as I would have liked, because I was worried about him overheating. I took him out one day and he wanted to fly and climb around but started panting and holding his wings away from his body. I misted him with some cool water and encouraged him to calm down a little and he was absolutely fine after that- but it did worry me. I didn't take him outside if I couldn't stand the heat out there. What sort of temperatures are safe for a bird who lives indoors? If we have a sunny autumn day is it safe to take him out or will it be too cold for him now? I think I'm being a bit paranoid about it. I have a wonderful aviary for him to use and I think I'm being a bit too overprotective and worrying about him getting too hot or too cold. 😂 I'm just worried because he's not used to staying outside for several hours at a time so I don't want to make him uncomfortable or ill!

Winter temps all depend on the sun and wind for us. If it's a clear day and no wind, they can be out there at 45F no problems. Clouds or wind and I pack them inside at anything 55F and below. I just don't like seeing them miserably cold and they do tend to act miserable the couple of times I put them out for a short outing at around 45 in cloudy. I only did that because they were going to be locked up all day and they were only out there for 15-20 minutes. Our Huey is a special case. He doesn't like cold at all and he panicked when I left him in the aviary when it was cold. So I have a heat lamp I use for him and he's snug as a bug in a rug next to that thing.

Thanks for this. I did put a tray of iced water out for him when he was hot but he just ignored it. He only ever baths in his water bowl, which is why I ended up misting him. He was standing next to it but wouldn't go in it or touch it. And what about lower temperatures now we're heading towards winter?

It's all about acclimation. My birds can withstand temps in the 100-115F range as long as they're in the shade. Starting around 95-98F I will turn on a fan for them. However I can't just throw them out there in that kind of heat after being inside for months. They go out daily and as the season heats up they acclimate. Keep in mind at those temps they will lower their wings and open their mouths for cooling. If mine start to pant, that's when I take action for more cooling or just remove them from the situation. One thing that really helps is to have a casserole dish fulll of ice during the hottest part of the afternoon. I have caught my birds cooling off just by standing near the dish.

When we brought Huey in, our little Caique, Toby, instantly declared that Huey must die. Therefore Toby's best buddy in the world, Rio, declared that Huey must die. Huey's saving grace was that I can put him with Greycie and they somewhat get along. They're not best buddies but he can handle Greycie's ornery-ness and won't kill her. So I keep my birds in little groups and currently have three little groups that I can move around and place together. Being a strapping male, he weighs less than Greycie by about 50 grams but he can lay the whooping on her when she needs it. She tried bullying him at first but quickly learned Huey has big muscles and can't be bossed around.

What do you think introducing a male to 3 females would do if anything? Should that be a concern? Ideally I would foster him & hopefully find him a forever home, but I don't know whether to offer or just let it go.

I think it's sensible to get it checked out. It looks like she's either been over-preening or picking at that area, which means it might be bothering her. Better to be safe and get an avian vet to give her a look I think. Do let us know how you get on.