Dave007

Fruit and veggies given now is a great way to start. Some birds won't accept those things when they're older or have been on other types of diets. Adding fruit and veggies gives your grey a more balanced diet which supplies your bird with even more nutrition. If he isn't eating every type of veggie or fruit, just try different ones. Now is the trial and error period. Stick to dark green types of vegetables. Stay away from avocados and onions. Fruits--stay away from fruits that have pits such as cherries, You can try pomagrantes but expect messy walls, cages, messy floors. Can you feed these things every day?--Yes and twice on Sunday.

Someone else here just had had this happen to their grey only a few days ago. The person was equally in the dark about what was going on and what to do about it. I can tell you that periodically this will happen to a mature female grey who has never mated before. Normally, there's nothing to worry about. To much over attention to this situation will make the bird edgy and uncomfortable. More than likely, she will lay some more eggs and that's not unusual. A congo grey's incubation period is 28 to 32 days. Anyeggs that are there should be left alone until that amount of time has passed. Nature will her that the eggs are infertile and she'll spend much less time with them to the point of ignoring them. That'll be the time to take out the eggs and discard them. If the eggs are taken out immediately, it will only cause the grey to create new ones which you don't wanna do. More than likely it won't happen again or it might happen again in the future. The cause of this to happen is an over abundent hormonal period. Sometimes it happens and sometimes it doesn't. Continue with the same foods. Don't start moving things around in the cage and most importantly, don't make a big fuss over what she's doing. Peeks here and there will tell you everything you want to know. Get a calendar and mark off the day you saw the first egg. Let 30 days go by or when your grey shows no interest in the eggs. Your biird might start eating less and then eat a lot. Not to worry, it's normal. The bird won't starve itself. The only time to really worry is when a person has a DNAd guaranteed male and he lays an egg. That type of bird is classified as one who has an identity problem and psychiatrics are then implemented.

I assume you just got your bird. Since he's new in your home, he might not be ready to be moved around all the time. Too much activity and shuffling around can cause tension in a baby bird. Depending upon how long you've had your bird, your situation might lie in the area of getting used to different things and that includes different family members, new surroundings etc. CAGs are very leery birds and don't take to new things quickly. First they must feel comfortable with anything that they will eventually deal with. As far as the that tiny whimpering noise, it's the bird acting out it's natural but previous association with other birds in his original clutch.It's also a sound or sounds that he/she will do when trying to attract the mother hen. Greys will continue doing that for quite a while. Putting him on a playstand and him making a lot of noise and flapping is just another way of reacting to something he's unsure of. Can't really say anything about him biting your son other than to say that your son was probably too close and possibly to overbearing (don't be insulted--all kids do this cause they're kids). Greys are very nervous around kids and it takes a while before they get used to kids. Much more so than adults. Kids who are just too quick around greys makes them a little defenceive and possibly nippy. Kids shouldn't be so near a parrot that they can be bitten on the ear. If your bird is on his shoulders, it's best to stop that immediately. Your bird at 13 weeks has got a of things to get used to and that doesn't happen in a week or 2. If your bird is in or on the cage or stand and he starts to flap his wings alot, that has to do with exercise which is normal and necessary.

Regina, if you're still here, I replied to your Email just now

Glad to hear that things are going smoothly. You and he have broken the ice. Things should go more consistantly now. He's got courage, confidence and a landing area. Just use baby steps. Take your time. Pretty soon, your bird will be telling you that he can accomplish more than you think he can. His confidence and your patience is the magic formula here. So far, the blend is the right consistency. Good luck.

In the past I've gone to Walmart to their Arts and Crafts dept and purchased small wooden blocks about 3/4 inch square, drilled holes through each and slid then on leather string. I put a piece of different colored hard plastic baby toy between every 2 blocks. I make a few strings of these and hang them wherever I want. The blocks are hard wood and my birds enjoy chewing on them. At the store the blocks are sold by the dozen per package. The cost is about $3 per pk,

First off, most greys don't like baths or getting wet until they're ready to. Rarely does that coincide with when we wanna bathe them. The next thing you need to keep in mind is that doing something to a bird who doesn't like that something, even though that something is beneficial should be done in the shortest amount of time to lessen the initial shock and prolonged anger on the part of the bird. It's not the aloe that he doesn't like. It's not the water that he doesn't like. He simply doesn't like the act of bathing or misting which isn't uncommon. So, stop trying to bathe the bird and stick to the misting. Since he also doesn't like misting, that should only be done when he's in his cage. It shouldn't be done to him while he's on outside things that he associates with playing or relaxing. Being outside of the cage allows him to easily avoid you and if you chase him, it'll be that much harder. While he's in his cage, open the door and use the mister and squeeze the trigger with 1/2 squirts. Only aim for the upper and lower breast area and also between the wings and the body. This can be done even if the wings aren't open. Just squirt between the wings and the body. The aloe or water will saturate those areas because they aren't waterproof. Your bird will continue the job of spreading the fluid around to other parts of his body even if he doesn't want to. That happens when he preens afterward, Doing this to him in the cage will cause him to squawk or yell or growl and he might try to bite at the nozzle. That too isn't uncommon. After doing this quite a few times, hell calm down and be more accepting of what you're doing but you should still expect the growling,yelling and nipping at the nozzle except that these things will lessen in intensity. More than likely, he'll never like it but the faster you get it over with the better. Some people offer a nut or some other item they know their bird likes but because the bird is pissed off, he might not accept it so just put it in his/her food bowl. It's not uncommon for a bird to not accept something if they're pissed off. As far as getting a bird used to showers, well you can try different things but that doesn't mean it'll work. The vast majority of greys don't like showers but some do. Think about the possible injuries that could occur when a bird who doesn't like bathing is on a shower perch and falls off or is suddenly frightened. An accidental fall to the bottom of the tub or a flight into the wall of the shower isn't good.<br><br>Post edited by: Dave007, at: 2007/12/27 19:13

Like dblhelix said, it should grow back. If you saw no blood, it was probably a bit weak. When the tip has broken off, they normally start working on their beaks to make it pointy again. Many people who need to shorten the tips of their bird's beaks because of overgrowth will file down the tips and leave the tip area squared off because they know that the bird will make it pointy again and that's good because it allows a longer amount of time before the beak needs to filed down. A bird can eat whether the tip is pointy, broken or squared off. Nothing to worry about. Happens often.

Hey Zig Happy holidays to you and yours. Really nice looking kids there. Obviously, it all comes from your wife's side. Some are blessed. Lucky for them though. Enjoy that big dinner you got planned. Our best to all. Ho,Ho, Ho Dave and Gene

between 10 to approx 18 mts. Some are slow starters. The loads of mumbling sounds that you don't understand is the first clue that talking is not far behind. Stay tuned for your bird's latest announcement or news flash.

Unfortunately, roaches are the hardest bug to get rid of. They multiply every 6 to 8 days. They can build up a resistance to store bought pesticides. Because you're correctly aware of their capabilities as far as both human and bird food scraps and the contents of trash bins, your only alternative is to get a professional exterminator to do the whole area. They can get into cracks and crevices and live for weeks without anything to eat. Professinal exterminators have the proper tools to get into those areas. Roach infestation is totally different than ants. Ants can be given certain substances which they like but are deadly. The ants bring these things back to the main colony and the rest of them also eat it and die. I speak from first hand experience from when I was a kid living in the lower part of NY. All the tenements had roaches and the owners of the building were required to exterminate every 4 mts. It's gonna be temporarily hard on you and your bird because he's gonna have to stay with a relative or a friend for a couple of days. The fumes are extremely toxic. Think about doing this quickly before the roaches take over. Sorry for the bluntness but roaches can become a very serious permanent problem if not taken care of quickly.<br><br>Post edited by: Dave007, at: 2007/12/22 00:54

There's no problem with vinegar. Some people make up a solution of vinegar and water to wash down cages and playstands so the smell won't bother them.

You're forgiven as long as you've still got those recipies tucked under your arm then there's no problem.

Wewlcome to the board. Lots of people here have young birds so you'll be able to share tales and stories an get info on your new family member.

You should first find out what the water dispersal system is in your new area. If it's well water then it's a good idea to use filtered water for your birds. That can be either bottled water from the supermarket or the purchase of a container that has filters built in. The water gets poured into the container and then slowly goes thru the filters and fills the container. Containers come in different sizes. I use a 3 gal container because I have lots of birds. Food and water bowls can be washed with regular sink water. Wanna play it safe and give your birds the best water? Get one of those filtered containers. Filters need to be replaced periodically and most filter containers tell you when it's time to replace them. If you're moving now, bring plenty of the same water they're used to until you make your decision about what water you eventually wanna use.

My feelings about this board and the members who are the back bone of this board are these...... It's a very satisfying feeling to be involved with open minded people. This place is loaded with those types of people. Unlike the others in this thread, I'm extremely nervous about naming names because later on, I'll realize that there were people I left out. It's not something that I would be comfortable with. It would cause me sadness. But for me, that too is exciting because there are so many people that I have feelings for. . I also won't name names because I'm sure that in the future they'll be even more coming here that aren't even members yet. Those people will come here and immediately get trapped in the overpowering claws of sincere love and kindness and genuine caring. It's a trap that will be hard to escape from. It's a wonderful feeling knowing that this will happen and it's equally wonderful knowing that the members here are going to step up and make these future members equally comfortable and wanted. I feel that there's another very important reason for the success of this board and it's because this board has the unique ability of drawing in both men and women with the men finding out that it's a great place to visit and stay for a while and THEY do stay. That's very rare on many boards. Sadly, the huge majority of boards don't have this type of success. Having men and women on a board assures that there's a much more well rounded view of bird ownership and it's a satisfying feeling that people of both sexes are so receptive to each other. I feel that this place has proven to me that open mindedness truly exists here and I know that's one of the things that makes that backbone even stronger. It's difficult to get people from all different states who all have different ways of expressing themselves to come to a place and feel comfortable and wanted but this board is extremely successful in that department. The people here are very good in the art of showing their happiness but they're also very comfortable showing their sadness in everyday life. It's hard to do that.The people here are more than willing soften the pain of being sad. Sadness only serves one purpose and watching others successfully destroying that sadness and replacing it with care and kindness is a beautiful thing to watch especially when it's successful. So many here have felt extremes in their lives and yet they look forward to having those extremes being put into a neutral area on this board. The administrators and moderators here allow the freedom of expression to be posted. Many boards don't do that. This board does and that's a true sign of maturity because it allows adults to feel like they're with other adults who are equally complex. Also, the site owner and administrators are very willing to try out new avenues to make this place even more alluring such as a dating service. True, not everything that's tried out is a success but the best thing is that it was tried out. Private communications between the people here has shown to be successful. Many times a one on one communication solves a great amount of problems and this board encourages that. On many boards, doing that will make others feel that they're not as important. On this board that doesn't exist. I'm truly at a standstill right now as far as what else I'd like to put into this post. The thoughts are here but the means to communicate those thoughts is difficult right now. The last thing I would want to do post this and wind up constantly hitting the edit button to put in things as I remember them so I hope I'm able to communicate the basic feelings I have towards this place and equally towards the great people here. To me, having different kinds of personalized feelings towards members here makes it hard for to do that. I truly hope that this thread wasn't started because the holidays are just around the corner. I 've felt this way long before Santa and his reindeer were on their way. I also feel somewhat bewildered......I just don't have any idea why some of the people here would label a mild mannered person such as ME as being sarcastic. Me of all people. I'm totally dumbfounded. I can say one major thing here though----CONGRATULATIONS. Love to all here .

KatB Ah yes, what memories. I never missed that show. I so miss Geraldine saying that famous line while she walked down those steps with that cute, coy smile, eyes fluttering and then "You devil you" , with that devilish little grin afterwards. Oh yes, memories, great memories. 2 yrs ago, there was a marathon of his shows--3 days worth. About 120 episodes. I didn't sleep for those 3 days

HEY JOE!!!!!! Undressed? Attraction?? As Flip Wilson used to say--- YOU DEVIL YOU:laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

You're in the right area. Toni's right. Checking feathers is very unreliable. Lots of stories about how to check them but at best, the results will be 75% wrong and the other 25% will be guess work. Some say that if you check the shape of the eyes (extremely almond shaped) it's a male. i have a female that has the most extreme set of almond shaped eyes. Cockatiels are really one of the few birds that can be accurately sexed by feather color or stripe.

This whole thread was started off in the wrong way. Many people decided to speak out because they were concerned about the welfare of not only their birds but all birds in general. Was it a joke? Probably, but it wasn't presented in the proper joke context. If the huge majority opf people didn't think it was a joke then more than likely, it didn't look like a joke and if people say things but don't have the talent to make sure that people are easily able to read between the lines, then it shouldn't be said. Many people joke here about a multitude of subjects but the bottom line is that when everything is all said and done, everyone has a grin or smile on their faces. In other words, the entire thread was successful. As far as disagreeing with other's methods of doing things. There's loads of ways to come up with a successful solution that apply to a person's individual problem or individual accomplishments with their birds. The bottom line is that it worked no matter how it was done. People here disagree with some of my methods and ideas about doing things but for me, it works. That applies to others too. I disagree with others here but again, it successfully worked for them. There's many oldsters her that also didn't have access to the internet way back when, but that didn't stop them from trying out things. So, as with others, your methods are equally desired by people in order to see if it works for them. The basic method here is this--- Person #1 supplies info Person #2 supplies info Person #3 supplies info Person #4 supplies info The person looking for that info takes a little piece of each person's info, scrambles it up in a pot, and voila, that person comes up with a solution that only applies to their bird or other creature. Actually, it's pretty simple and more importantly, it works for most. Post edited by: Dave007, at: 2007/12/18 19:51<br><br>Post edited by: Dave007, at: 2007/12/18 19:55

Hey Judy Listen, just stop all of your whining and moaning. After a while it's gets boring. Let's be honest, after a certain time, it's starts looking like a repeat performance. You know, like a rerun of Law and Order on TV. I'll do my part in making you feel better right now and it has to do with that *cooking* stuff you mentioned. I never said you would be doing the *cooking for me* nonsense. I specifically said you were the Moderator but obviously, it went over your head so I'll explain the whole thing in a different way. Let's make believe we're talking about a house of ill repute. This house is filled with workers who are doing the actual labor. You being the moderator, your job would be to make sure that all outside clients are given what they pay for. You would be directing the clients to the proper doors. Afterward, the clients will pay for the services they've just received but only to you. You in turn will make sure that the workers are given their correct percentages of money they've earned and not a penny more. Then, the rest of the funds will be given to the site owner/administrator of the establishment who will then pay you for the well done job you're doing in keeping everything running smoothly. So actually, you're not one of the workers. You're simply their boss. SO, you really won't be doing any of the cooking. Your job will simply be that all of the food is properly served HOT and STEAMY with all the trimmings that the client desires. Understand now? If you don't like the name Moderator, we can always change to Organizer<br><br>Post edited by: Dave007, at: 2007/12/18 19:22

Everything that's happening is good, even the time and age of your bird. Their first molt can happen between 10 to 16 mts old. The fact that there's two tail feathers in the tray is just a coincidence. All greys and other parrots will lose tail feathers as well as flight feathers all year long. One or two at a time. It's not a part of their yearly molt. The tail feathers get old and dried up and new ones push the old ones out. Not to worry, everything's cool.

HEY HEY HEY!!! Sometimes, a single post can wind up going in way too many directions and people wind up misunderstanding another person or persons' reply or replies because it's hitting on personal beliefs, and passionate people who have any stones at all will reply in a personal and sometimes combative way. Sometimes people need to have the last word because they feel that others will think that the person who doesn't have the last word is the eventual loser in the war of words. This battle isn't gonna come out with a happy ending. Sometimes, personalities conflict with each other. I'm not gonna say who's right and who's wrong. If I did, I should be kicked in the ass. It might sound naive on my part but there comes that time when people who are part of a family of passionate lovers of something such as animals need to call a truce, shake hands and concede that each combatant is both a winner and a loser. In other words, it's a draw. Each person has proven that they love their animals in many different ways. The only subject that doesn't fall into this catagory is one person telling another person that they physically abuse an animal. No one here did that. The world of animal lovers is very much different than the world of electronics lovers. Electronics don't love you back. As far as these kind of things happening with other people---well, it happened between me and another person on this board. Lots of things were said back and forth. Other people got involved. The subject matter was very serious. I let loose, this other person let loose, other people let go but finally the calm overcame the storm. Back then ,this person and I eventually were BSing with each other on the IM a day or two later and we both had the sense to realize that what happened was yesterday and we realized that today was today and we both hoped that tomorrow was gonna be better than today and yesterday. So, tommorow turned out to be pretty cool. Things were so cool that I tried to date this person. What happened? 1--this girl actually said I was much too old for her. 2--my wife beat the s*hit out of me. Seriously,the important thing was that we made peace with each other. Without any words being spoken, I knew that I was happy and I'm sure that this other person happy at the outcome. The other important thing was that bygones were just that, bygones. Sometimes, in the battle of the words in the boxing ring of the internet, there comes that time when you have stop listening to your cutman in the corner and try a different approach. Now for Nychsa, from what I've read so far, the problem seems to be the acts of friendliness and acceptance by your bird and your boyfriend. Listen, so what if the bird doesn't like him? Lots of birds don't like certain people for a thousand reasons and you can look at that visa versa. He comes over every few weeks and stays for a week. Come on now, why is he coming over AND STAYING?? He's interested in your body, not the bird's body and that's important. What if he started coming over and showed your bird a great amount of interest but put you on the back burner? So come on now, this whole thread is just becoming a war of words. It's been stated by the parties that love of animals is important and exists. It's been stated that the parties here feel sadness towards places that have to do drastic things with unwanted neglected animals. It's been stated that the parties here are glad to be a part of their animal's life. Probably, the animals are too. Nychsa, concerning yor question... You wanna know who's the ruler of the roost here. Well, actually I'm the Roost Ruler here. It's well known so it isn't mentioned alot. You wanna be part of the roost? Well, there are things you have to do. 1--you have to chip in with the rest of the female flock here in order to pay off my mortgage. 2-- you'll need to chip to pay the taxes here. 3--Concerning my food, I only like prime quality foods. True, they're expensive but after all, I am the roost ruler. All the side dishes must be made to my standards. The desserts will be made on a daily basis. 4--My cars..I love my cars therefore you'll have to chip because both of them enjoy high octane fuel. True, gas prices are very high but it's part of the price you'll have to pay to join the roost. So, These are just a few samples of things you'll have to participate in so that you can be a part of the roost. For any extra information, just contact Judygram because she'll help you set up a weekly plan schedule. She is the moderator of my roost.<br><br>Post edited by: Dave007, at: 2007/12/17 23:25

""""""My husband is home during the day but they don't have a very good relationship. Harrison won't let him pick her up or anything. He goes in a talks to her and stuff like that""""""' You should use that to your advantage. If there's someone home, there should be no problem letting him out during the day. A bird doesn't have to like or get along with everyone in the house just so he can get out of the cage. One thing has nothing to do with the other. Think about it, would you feel better knowing he's out of his cage and cooped up or in his cage and cooped up? Do it two times a week to break up the boredom and routine that might exist every day. Your bird will thank you.<br><br>Post edited by: Dave007, at: 2007/12/15 22:42

Most greys have their first *major* molt at approx 12 to 14 mts. Afterward, they molt every 9 to 14 mts. Many molt the way you describe but there are also many others that drop feathers all year long in small amounts. Basically, the cage tray always has small amounts of fluffy feathers every time you clean the tray. If you have a very well feathered bird, you won't actually see the surface breast feathers in the tray, just white fluff. You'll see wing and tail feathers in the tray periodically but there's no set time that they fall out. A feather or two here and there once in a while throughout the year. As far as the bird that's *barbering* himself, you won't see a heavy molt simply because he's doing it himself. I saw the picture. All feathers die. How long they take to die depends upon humidity, dryness of the air, how close they are to well lighted windows etc. Tiels, budgies, australian parakeets,quakers and all other long tail parrots molt differently and more often. When your birds' feathers die, they will fall out. A fresh new feather is behind the dead feather pushing it out.