Sticks_n_stones

Rachel, within the past few days I've seen a lot of advertisements for greys with prices listed around $800 USD. Of course, the downside is that you can't see the bird (if you're from out of the country) or the environment where he's been raised. I have no idea about the rate of exchange between your country and mine, but judging from the prices quoted here, you could fly over here, stay a few days, select a bird and return home a heck of a lot cheaper than buying one in Australia!

If you don't put the tray under the playtop your bird will get a lot more light. We leave the tray out and don't have any problem with droppings in the food dishes. Watson doesn't spend a lot of time up there. He seems to prefer sitting on the top of the door, and when he is on top he doesn't sit on either end of the playtop perch -- more toward the center, so the droppings fall straight through to the bottom of the cage. Does that description make any sense?? :unsure:

The camera flash has never bothered Watson. Don't know how other birds might react. See how your TAG reacts to the first one and then decide whether you'll take more photos. Lots of luck with your new bird. I know how excited you are!

GreyMiester, your dogs will drive you crazy long before they'll bother your bird. Our CAG orders our dogs around as if they belong to him! (Of course, he's only imitating what he hears from us.) And he barks exactly like the dogs -- different barks for each dog. Then he tells them to shut up or go away. Listening to him issue commands to the dogs is about the funniest thing you've ever heard!!

I've bought cages, toys and food from birdcages4less.com and been VERY satisfied with their products. Their customer service is excellent and shipping on cages is free. Their on-line service has become my primary source for Watson's supplies.

Our grey began talking at about 6 or 7 months, although TheGreyMiester is correct -- a year or two is not that unusual. Just keeping talking to your bird and one day, he'll respond -- and that will thrill you! After that, the trick is to quiet him down :lol:

Watson says "Paul"; shut uP, Max (the dog); go, Pack, go (Green Bay Packers); and some other "p" words I can't think of now. He used to have trouble saying "Lee." It came out "Ree." (Wonder if he has a Chinese relative anywhere :laugh: ) I've never heard of alphabet sounds a grey can't make. I laughed about the phone in Monique's post. Watson learned very early that someone in the house would come running when a phone rang. He decided that if he wanted attention, and we were outside, all he had to do was "ring the phone!" Drove us nuts until we caught on to what he was doing!! Now, he imitates the microwave and the timer on the stove. When he does that, we really have to figure out if either the microwave or oven is on, or if it's just Watson.

Rachel, be very careful about buying your grey from a country where they live wild. Some unscrupulous people catch the birds to sell. The conditions under which wild parrots are held are deplorable -- truly cruel. Wild greys no longer can be imported into the U.S. because of this. I don't know the regulations in Australia, but it might be a good idea to check. Mcgyver might be your best bet for finding a grey, but WOW -- is that ever expensive!

Beth, you've done a wonderful thing by taking a rescue bird. Congratulations. As for the wing clipping, I'd wait a little longer. If he's barely trusting you now, you could destroy all that by taking him to the vet for something that could be very scary for him. Unless the clipping is important for his immediate safety, I'd say wait as long as you can. Good luck with your new family member. What name did you select, or are you using the one (s)he has always had? And what age is (s)he?

I remember reading about safe trees somewhere on this forum. From what I can recall, it seems to me that any fruit tree (maybe not avocado since the fruit is dangerous to parrots) is safe: apple, orange, pear, etc. I don't think nut trees were mentioned, and I know oak trees were not. Dogwoods are supposed to be OK. I think orange or lemon should be OK, but I'm not sure. Your vet should be a good source. That's not a lot of information, but I hope it helps. Congratulations on your new bird! What did you name your baby?

Watson's cage is in front of the window in the breakfast room. (In fact, he's taken over the ENTIRE breakfast room, but that's OK. ) We installed a piece of Plexiglas over the lower half of the window because he liked to "beak" it. We were afraid he's break the pane and cut himself. He can't break the Plexiglas. We also placed a couple of bird feeders outside his window and he loves to watch the activity. He mimics most of the birds now. Beware of placing your bird near blinds. We found out the hard way that a beak is no match for vinyl blinds! The beak works better than a hole punch. :ohmy:

The original post is 2 1/2 years old. Wonder what happened to the bird.

Monique, how long ago did your bird die? I remember when our first dog died, and I swore I would never get another dog. After about six months, I was ready for another one. Losing a pet can be an emotionally shattering experience. You need to give yourself time to heal. No matter what type of bird you eventually decide to get, you'll have to decide whether you want to use the same cage. If your former bird had a disease, you could disinfect the old cage really, really well, or just throw it out and get a new one. I would be afraid to keep it, no matter how hard I tried to disinfect. But that's just me. You may be comfortable with the precautions you decide to take. If you give yourself a while, you might change your mind about not getting a grey. On the other hand, your decision might be a good one for you. Good luck with whatever you decide to do. I bet someone on this forum has been through the same experience and will share it with you.

No, Monique -- it's not just for teeny little birds. Our grey LOVES peanut butter-coated pine cones. I get the chunky peanut butter and sometimes roll them in sunflower seeds, sometimes in crushed peanuts. Watson gobbles it up. We hang it inside from the top of his cage and after he eats all the goodies, he chews up the pinecone. Cheap toy, fun to make for him.

FairY, the story about your neighbor's bird is so sad. I often worry about Israelis and think how bravely you're all handling the terrible situation you're in. God bless you all, and you're in my prayers. (Sorry -- no intention to hijack this thread, but we Americans are so fortunate, and don't appreciate it.)

Very good advice from Mr. Spock. Just be patient. I know that's difficult sometimes, but it will pay off big time down the road. I'd add that you should leave the cage door open, if you're not already doing that, so he can go in and out at will. I heartily agree that you shouldn't stick your hand into his "house" at this point. Just give it time.

Watson had a dish of Cheerios with milk for breakfast, a grape jelly/peanut butter sandwich for lunch, a salad (romain lettuce, carrots, red cabbage, raddishes, green pepper and celery sticks) sprinkled with grated cheese, chicken and wheat pasta for dinner. He always has Zu-preem in a dish for whenever he wants it. Oh -- he had cranberry-grape juice, too. (LOVES IT!) He mostly eats whatever we eat, plus the Zu-preem and a cookie sometime during the day. Occasionally, he'll have a potato chip or a taco chip, some sunflower seeds, peanuts or a millet spray.<br><br>Post edited by: Sticks_n_stones, at: 2007/03/22 06:24

When we got our grey about 10 years ago (wow! how time flies!) a friend gave us a great book. Can't find it now or I'd give you the name. I remember reading in there that greys should not have cages with rounded tops. The author said always provide a cage with a flat top (playtops are OK). We've never had a domed cage. I listened to his advice. I don't know if the advice is valid or not, but I'm sure someone on here can add more information.

Rachel, I haven't the foggiest idea what a grey would cost in Australia, but I can tell you our experience here in the USA. We lived in Wisconsin when we bought Watson. We paid $1,500 for him. We moved to North Carolina several years ago and learned that the going rate was about $900. As you can see, the prices are all over the board here, and I expect you might find the same thing there. Have you done an internet search for grey breeders? Often they have websites and will provide contact information. Some even post pictures and prices. Good luck in your hunt. If you find a good one -- and I really believe most of them are good -- you'll have a friend for the rest of your life.

Carissa, I wasn't familiar with the breed you bought so I looked it up. Gorgeous bird!! Since you said you would take HER home in a few weeks, I'm assuming you selected a female. The females look like a huge jewel box. Truly beautiful. Good luck with yours -- I'm sure you must already be in love!

Littlewings, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE your Chihuahuas! I had them for years -- about 25, total. They were incredibly sweet and smart. I lived in Michigan part of that time - Detroit area. I miss many things about the city, and I'm grateful for being away from it because of other things. I'm sure you can understand. It's a love-hate relationship ! No love-hate for my grey, though. It's all love, love , love!

It's been almost a week and a half since Watson got his new house and I thought I'd update you. He seems to enjoy it now, although you might remember that it was touch and go for the first couple of days. At first he just refused to have anything to do with this strange new thing. He came to accept it very, very slowly. I'm convinced that if we'd just put it next to his old cage he would have totally rejected it, just like he did with his T-stand. He's still reluctant to go inside at night, but he does. My advice to other grey owners: get a cage that will last a lifetime, because changing it is not an easy thing! :lol:

Watson does the same thing, even now (turn his head and bite even though he likes his head rubbed). I don't know why he does it, but we ignore him although we do stop the rubbing. I'll be watching to see if anyone else has a suggestion about that. Good luck to you, Surfarr. I know it can be frustrating but the good times far outweigh the bad times, right?

FairY, it was our avian vet's suggestion.

I'm probably asking such a basic question that I'll be embarrassed by it, but are you placing your fingers (or the perch) at the correct spot to encourage him? When we bought Watson 9 years ago, we placed our fingers just below his breastbone, and said "Up." It only took a couple of times for him to get the idea. If your hand is too low, it won't work. Too high and he can't reach it easily. If you place it very close to your bird and at the right level, he almost has no choice except to step "up!" And, like others have said, patience is the key.