Dave007

Since you're saying that you rub him all over his body , I assume you also rub under the wings, the lower back, the lower breast area, near the underside near the tail area---well, that's sexually exciting to the bird and it's no good to excite the bird that way. As time goes on, you'll tire of doing that at any particular time and your bird will take his beak and lightly grab your finger so that you don't stop. If you continue to do that more and more at different times, the grabbing of your finger will be firmer and firmer to the point of being uncomfortale. If you it more and more as time goes on and try to stop that type of petting, that grabbing will become intense and the bird won't let go and eventually he'll bite because he doesn't want you to stop. This can happen to young birds and older birds but with older birds, the point of biting will happen quicker. You're stimulating the bird and then leaving him hanging.--Not a good idea and eventually the bird will make it a point to not let you stop. Also, in the future it will be very hard to pet your bird because the first thing he'll think about is getting stimuklated so that petting time will be shorter. A bird doesn't have to be of the age where they're able to mate in order to get sexually stimulated.<br><br>Post edited by: Dave007, at: 2009/03/21 21:05

If he willingly goes in the shower, misting doesn't need to be done constantly. Showers will thoroughly clean a bird as long as the bird lets the water into the areas that aren't waterproof. Misting is basically done for 2 reasons--cleaning off feathers and trying to spray very dry skin on a bird but even with misting, if a bird doesn't open up it's feathers, the misting water and the shower water will just run off the bird's body. They bathe in the dishes cause nature tells them to. A bird may be given a complete successful bath, put back into the cage and will immediately go to a bowl and try to bathe so that has nothing to do with cleaning itself. It's good that you have humidity. In the wild, they live in humidity. A big problem that periodically occurs with a bird who is in a very dry area is very dry skin which can lead to over preening which can lead to plucking or chewing feathers. Spraying may need to be done when you're appling a spraying product though. Many greys don't like bathing, misting, showers but it has to be done periodically and the bird is simply gonna have to put up with it and a person has to simply put up with the squawking and the bird's attempts to nip. PS--just don't spray the face. They don't like that and it isn't necessary. They clean their own face constantly in drinking water.<br><br>Post edited by: Dave007, at: 2009/03/21 18:17

I can only say that you should treat that area immediately with some aloe gel. She may have a minor irritation there and started pulling feathers. Put enough on so that it's absorbed. After doing that then you can watch her for the next few days and see if she continues doing it. It may have something to do with the molting time of a bird that age. It would be the first *major molt* of her life. Birds act differently during that time--some accept it, others don't. For some it's irritation, for some it's fine, for some it's painful. Yes, it could be other things but the important thing to do is treat that area. If it's irritated and causing her to pull those feathers, an untreated area will cause her to pull some more.

I make myself a PB and J and watch TV ( soap opera) Lots of emotions. Love, hate, jealousy, adultery, anger, worry, tension, back stabbing, abandonment, marriage, divorce, drinking, broken hearts, partner switching, aging etc etc.

When a bird constantly preens their feathers and takes the dander off the feather will get ragged and thin looking if the bird is doing that preening very intensely. Some very dusty feathers will actually look much darker afterward because they're cleaner.. More than likely there's a feather or two that's almost dead and will soon fall out. Continue the spraying even if the bird isn't doing anything. It can't hurt.

Your vet is probably right BUT """""Max was playing with me and I am touching him everywhere over his body,"""""" You shouldn't do that.

About 30 days quarantine but let them both hear each other and watch how they react.

Like Judy said, maybe , maybe not. Getting another bird doesn't stop a chewer from chewing. What will be good is that they'll be 2 VOS in one area and both will have the same vocal communication because they're the same types of birds. You still need to keep them apart in their own cage in order to see how they take to each other, They may be friendly, unfriendly or simply uninterested in each other. Put them together outside the cage together watch them. If one pushes the other side to side and there's no reaction from the one being pushed, the birds have accepted each other. If they lock beaks, separate them for a while. VOS can be aggresive. You getting a red female or green male? PS--try to get a weight measurement and watch the fat content. They can get heavy<br><br>Post edited by: Dave007, at: 2009/03/20 23:35

n the wild, parrots go into the sun for short periods of time and leave then come back and leave. It provides a certain item they need internally. This can also be obtained by the birds even if there's no sun outside. Your friends stayed in the sun and the tanning occurred from the constant sun beating down on them. Birds never hang out in the sun for a long time and birds have feathers, people don't. Their skin is exposed. A bird's skin is never exposed to the sun whenever they're outside.

Try to picture this----a bird is vigorously cleaning feathers which have dander on them ( you call it dust)--the dander is put into the air just like dust is. The dander lands on different parts of the body. The bird eventually cleans the nose area off. The area then has no residue on it. The next time the bird cleans the feathers, the same thing happens. The dander doesn't fly around until the bird starts the cleaning all over again.

That just may be residue dander that floats in the air and lands on the body. We can't answer a question like that cause we can't see it and your description may not be what you think it is. I know that the so called powder isn't in the eye because a bird can't put up with that. So, if you think that it's serious, check with your vet. Our answers will be only guesses and guesses may lead to answers that don't apply.

Many people gave good advice Understand something---your baby grey is permanently gone. Many people go through the same thing as you as far as biting and many people get disturbed. Many people should have been told about a grey's personality after it would get older but many times that doesn't happen and people are surprised and blame themselves but it's not their fault. Greys eventually become independent and somewhat aloof and the act of cuddling isn't that important to them. I completely agree with Judy..that thumping may work now but soon, he'll learn how to bite more quicklty than you can thump. You say you see that his eyes are pinned--well, that's a warning and that's the time to walk away and not interfere with him. He's telling you he's gonna bite. Many species don't give a warning. 16 mts and hormones? Forget that. It's not happening. Sitting on your chest and he bites? that's the time to realize that you shouldn't have him on your chest. Other people go through the same thing when a bird is on the shoulder. There are no games that you can play on your chest. He's biting and games won't stop him from biting.

I'm very surprised that it took so long for your TOO to start the screeching. 95% of all TOOs have that habit. It's one of the reasons why many other TOO owners wind up selling their bird or putting the bird in a shelter. That's not to say that you intend to do it but it does happen. Squirting with a stream ( which she means)for one reason and misting for another sends out mixed signals. The ideal relationship with a TOO is one that consists of the bird constantly being near or on you. They're well known for being *clingy birds*, just the opposite of greys. That's when they're the quietest and least destructive. TOOs will chew things much more so than greys do. They're very destructive. If they're not allowed to destroy things, there's a bigger chance of the bird plucking itself--even moresso when compared to a grey. Most of the time, the screeching can't be stopped. Even when they're talking, it's loud and sometimes annoying to some people. If the grey is imitating her it's because there's certain sounds that are very appealing to the grey. The higher the sound, the more chances of the grey picking up on it. sadly when that happens, a screecher and an imitator need to be separated before it gets to be a permanent situation. More than likely, the baby sitter is doing exactly the right thing that keeps a TOO quiet and as I said, it's because they're clingy birds. You're righ tabout the panting. She's stimulated by that but it will lessen if the holding routine becomes longer and more frequent. I believe separation will help the situation..not entirely but it'll be better than it is but don't think that the TOO is gonna stop screeching. That's the way they're built. The only louder sound is one that comes from macaws.

"""""Then when I go to work I could cover it again and it would then remain covered until I get home around 18.00. Would this period of being covered through the day be ok for it to sleep?""""" That's a extremely bad thing to do. Parrots aren't meant to be covered up during the daylight hours. If they feel like sleeping during the day, they will and a cover won't cause them to sleep. If they're covered for a large part of daylight hours, they become phobic, nervous and start picking at themselves. One important thing you mentioned and needs to be carefully watched is those wires all over the place. Parrots will constantly go after wires and if there's electricity in those wires, well bye bye birdie. They'll also go after the wires and hoses connected to the tanks. They'll bite the monitor and the table it's standing on if given the opportunity. Keyboards are a favorite.

Many conures yell and some screech and some squawk alot. That's the way conures are. You're gonna have to put up with it. You're only punishing the bird from doing what nature is dictating by using a towel. Conures will reach their loudest as young adults. Will the grey pick up on the screaming? Probably not. Only a few particular sounds will register with a grey and that usually doesn't remain permanent. They have their own sounds and are more interested in their own species. If a person has 2 greys, more than likely, one will immitate ther other. Like everyone has said, a deposit is the way things are done. Once a deposit is made, the bird will eventually be yours. What you're doing right now is called pot luck. A person usually puts away a certain amount of money to both buy the bird and all the accessories needed. Will the birds have more clutches? That's totally up to the breeder and only he can answer that question. The breeder is the one that decides whether the birds will breed again. Breeding parrots is a controlled thing. Birds aren't just put together so they can constantly breed. Talking won't be affected. It's you that has to practice the talking with the bird and the only way it won't talk is if the bird wasn't meant to talk whether there's another bird around or not. Some greys don't talk. Nothing can be done about that and talking should definitely not be an important thing to think about when buying any parrot. It means little. Parrots talk in their own language all day long and it's up to the owner to learn what the bird is saying. Too mant people buy birds just because they have a reputation for talking and many are sadly disappointed.<br><br>Post edited by: Dave007, at: 2009/03/19 19:16

I guarantee you that your bird won't eat his way through that perch. What he's doing to that perch is beneficial to his feet. As a matter of fact that's why he's doing it. In the wild, parrots don't go looking for smooth perches. They find perches that they can grab onto and the perch usually looks like yours does. That's why when putting perches in a cage, it should be as natural and gnarled up as much as possible. Manufacturers have finally gotten the message and are starting to put similar perches in their new cages even though they can still do better. Whenever I get a cage, I immediately remove the perches, go into the backyard and cut some gnarled, bent, uneven sized branches to use. If I come across an area that has plenty of them, I cut them down and put them in the garage for later use. I also give natural branches to my quakers. One reason that some parrots fall off their perches is because they're too smooth. If I make playstands, I use the same thing. So, you shopuldn't worry. I have boxes of old branches to use whenever I feel like adding or changing..

Well, if your bird is having the average first significant normal molt,you may have a problem photographing because skin won't be seen because feathers will remain all over the body ( both old and new feathers.)while the bird is molting. Birds don't become temporarily bald. The mood always changes because of temporary irritations with the new feathers growing in so they become a little short tempered if they're petted against the feather growth and they'll bite if annoyed. Extra misting is par for the course when a bird is molting because the skin naturally gets more dry when molting but that not unusual. The only color change will be that the new feathers will be slightly darker until they get a dose of dander. Then the feathers will look lighter. What you WILL see is a load of messy dead feathers in the bottom of the cage and some of them will be floating around.<br><br>Post edited by: Dave007, at: 2009/03/18 00:42

ok, good luck! here's winking at you;)

how old is the bird you're getting?

After a hard day's work as a construction worker, I usually put my perfume and my sheer nighties on after midnight. It feels, hmmm, Oh gosh, I just can't find the words about how I feel. It makes it so easy to rub that soft sweet smelling hand lotion on. My roll model was J Edgar Hoover. He wore pink you know. He was such a devil.

I know--I was referring to the white area which changes color. You said it was yellow but it shouldn't be yellow yet. That happens in an aduld bird only. The pupil will always remain black for it's life. If this is happening in both eyes ( turning yellow) it should be checked out esopecially since the bird is only 8 mts old. If it's only happening in one eye, there's a chance of slight infection, irritation or a slight bruising.<br><br>Post edited by: Dave007, at: 2009/03/17 19:03

The pupil is the eye ball ( black) and always stays black. The white area around the eye ball is called the iris It's the iris that changes color as time goes on from almost black to the final color which is a white/yellow tinge. The final color happens in an adult bird, starting at the age of approx 5 yrs and older.Much older than an 8 mt old bird. Guesses here concerning your situation would not really help you so it's important that you have the bird's eyes examined now to check the situation out and make sure it's an avian vet who would be familar with that.

You're not doing anything wrong. You definiely need a new cage. The one you mention is much too small and will be even smaller as you put more toys in. The cage should be approx 36 in wide x 55 in high x 28 in deep. Normally that type of cage also comes with moveable legs that allow movement that will add aout 10 more in. to the cage

Some people can just put some on toast or untoasted bread. Some mix it in the food. Some just put it on a spoon. Some birds like the taste, others don't so trickery has to be done. I fill up an old seasoning bottom with the stuff. When the time comes to use it, I take the bottle and micro it for 30 seconds and let the bottle become room temperature. The oil is very thin and very dark red by then. I then take the thin oil and put it on pellets which absorbs the oil and they eat the pellets. When I put the bottle away, the oil turns back to orange and is very thick until using it next time. I have before and after pictures of what the oil looks like after microwaving.<br><br>Post edited by: Dave007, at: 2009/03/16 18:52