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I don't recall seeing this thread either and I was here in 2014. I can't believe I've been here this long, still feel like a newbie. Glad to see you've come back. This forum has grown real quiet with Facebook destroying the landscape. Stick around, I love seeing posts and stories about the birdies.

Thank you! It has been quite the experience, as I am sure you must know.

I have just seen this thread for the first time. I'm glad you and your flock are still doing so well!

I have often thought about getting another bird (possibly another grey) in my household and I have looked at these cages as well. My major concern is that they could bite each other through the central divide. If I were to get another bird, I would want them in separate cages to begin with. Then I might consider one of these cages if they did get on. My biggest stopper for not getting another bird is 'what if they don't get on'? My attention is already divided between my two cats and Alfie. If I added another bird to the mix which needed to be kept separate from Alfie because they hated each other then that wouldn't work for my household - I just don't have the space provided (or the time) to be able to juggle the requirements of two birds if they can't be in the same room together. My advice for these types of questions is always 'plan for the worst case scenario'. If you can handle that, then you're probably safe to go for it. If there are any doubts then I would reconsider.

Sorry, for delayed responses, things have been a little quiet round here of late. So I have a few things that I've picked up from your posts so far: The house move probably would have been stressful, especially as grey's can be quite change adverse. He might still be stressing about all the changes around him and getting used to his environment. Grey's operate on something we call "grey time". This is the time that grey's take to adapt to changes or new things in their life. Grey time isn't a set period of time. For example, this could be the length of time it takes for a grey to accept a new toy in his/her cage. It could take hours, days, weeks or even months... depends on the bird. Your grey has been uprooted from an environment they were very familiar with and placed in a new one. So it may take some time for your bird to settle down. The screaming and banging on the cage just shouldn't happen. Frightening a bird like that will have detrimental affects on their trust. I don't really have anything else to say about that other than try and prevent it from happening. This can be easier said than done if family members aren't on board with learning how to treat birds... but it really needs to stop. You also mention the introduction of dogs a few years back so Timmy has less time out of his cage. This will have a detrimental affect on your relationship with him as well. He probably feels frustrated and probably has a lot of pent up energy... so this also could be contributing to the change in behaviour. I went through similar with Alfie. I was working full time and trying to study towards a degree in my spare time and I struggled to give Alfie the attention he needed for a while. Our relationship suffered because Alfie didn't trust me like he used to and would often nip or bite in frustration when he was out, meaning I was scared to handle him. I had to make a fair amount of changes to my lifestyle and his environment before i started getting our relationship back on track. Trying to get him to go back in his cage was a nightmare, because he didn't want to go back in. He wasn't having enough time out of the cage so I understand why he would get frustrated. Now, I don't have any problems. He has a lot more time out of the cage so he sometimes takes himself back into his cage or he will climb back in when I take him back to it. You might need to take a few steps back and maybe try doing some basic step up training with him. Get some of his favourite treats and reward him regularly when he lets you handle him without biting. Are there ways for you to give him more exercise time outside of his cage? Can you section off your house at all so the dogs have part of it and Timmy gets another part to play in? I have to do this as I have two indoor cats. When Alfie comes out the cats get the upstairs part of the house and Alfie gets downstairs.

The other consideration is that if they didn't get along, they'd be able to attack each other through the partition, possibly biting toes off, etc.

Hello! Just coming back to this page for an update on Keto and Gracie. I was finishing my masters when we added all these birds, and so had no time for message boards! But I see that we are coming up on 5 years with them, so I will let you know how things are going. It was so funny to read the above when we had first gotten them, because very little of their respective personalities has changed. It took them about a year before we could count on them not biting us (actually 5 years for Keto and I, since it was only recently that I could carry him from cage to perch without the Gauntlet of Good (a thick dish towel wrapped to protect my hand and arm)). He adores my husband, and Gracie adores me, so I guess we are all good there. Gracie has turned into a shameless snuggler but only in the evening (head-rubbing time). There is always a risk of being nipped in the morning! It has been FOREVER since anyone broke skin. Keto is the talker, and says the most amazing things. He has always had his "with us" vocabulary, and you can hear him muttering other things when we are out of the room, but could never quite make out the words. About a year ago he really stepped up his game. He says things that appropriate to the situation, sometimes things we have never heard him say before. He plays the "come here" game where he makes the request and I pop into the room and go out again, rinse, repeat a few times. One day I was running late and told him I didn't have time today and he said a long drawn-out "Oh no...." with perfectly sad inflection. He went through a short period where he said "F*ck you" several times, and when i called over to him "Not that one, Keto, that isn't very nice" he replied "Oh yeah?" and said it one more time, after which he was ignored for the rest of the day and never said it again. It is clear that he understands everything we say, sometimes knows the right response, and has a large enough (hidden) vocabulary to keep surprising us. He has said "Oh no" with different inflections, always appropriate to the situation. Gracie continues to be the whistler. We have shared with her Westminster and Bach, among others. She had repeated parts of the chimes, but is more often her own composer, sometime stringing together a good number of notes, which she can then repeat. Great fun! The "beaking" happens whenever we let it, always with either cage bars between them, or a thumb securely hanging on to feet. The outcome is always identical to when the first came. They both get involved, Gracie gets too aggressive, Keto hates it, and we pull them apart quick. It is clear that they love each other, and they each get a little nervous when the other one is out of the room. All in all, things have gone well. They are an endless source of entertainment, despite their demands. And parakeet Birdy is still rounding out our flock.

Gosh, I hope I didn't bum everybody out with the concerns about my mom. Timmy's as sweet as can be when we have the cage between us, or when he's on the table eating with me. But he just won't let me handle him! We moved a few months ago, and that can understandably be stressful on the little guy, especially that he had never moved to a new house in his eighteen years. How can I get him to behave when I pick him up? How do I teach my little buddy to not bite me?