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Hi all, Just wanted to give an update on Oggie. It has been a few months since Oggie said his first word and now he is one of the best talkers I have seen. It usually takes about 2 -3 days for him to pick something up and work it out until it sounds just right. He now has hundreds of words and phrases that he says daily. Usually first thing in the morning and at dusk is when he talks the most but also whenever he is bored. My favorite is that when trying to teach him Hello I would say "say hello" so now he says "say hello" to which I respond by saying "hello" and then he says "good boy". He also sings "bad bird, bad bird, whatcha gonna do?" and "bird, bird, bird, - bird is the word". He says "I'm hungry" when I feed him and calls our dog ziggy by saying "come here Ziggy" and clicking. He says "I'm a pirate", "whatcha doin?", "I'm a bird brain", "Its okay", "Hello baby" Big Bopper style, and so many other things. Sometimes he will hear something on TV and say it in the next couple of days. So for those of you with late talkers there is hope.

Many may have seen my posts about my bird Oggie and my worries that he would never talk. At a year and a half he showed no signs of even trying to talk. He would copy any whistle he heard but no voice like sounds. I surfed many sites with all of them saying that Greys are not likely to talk if they haven't by a year or a year and a half on the outside. I had resigned myself that Oggie would not be a talker. At two years old he started to make noices that sounded like voices and it actually scared me as I thought someone was in the house. Oggie is now slightly over two and as I type this he is saying hello repeatedly and very clearly. So far this is his only word but it is a fine start and I could not be happier.

This is as I thought especially when I could not find any info about it on the web. With bird owners warning about every concievable danger and no mention of this I found it highly unlikely. Not to mention how many keep birds of different species together. Both my birds (that is my AG and my son's dusky) immediately went for a well bird exam and were given the okay although the vet is having me give my AG milk thistle for a month and new directions on diet then a recheck for possible anemia (as the vet put it very unlikely and more likely a diet problem). It is just nice to get some feedback. Thanks

We went shopping to get my son a budgie (parakeet)and found him a fine one but the same day I had several breeders tell us that the budgie could spread a disease to my AG and they should not be kept in the same house so we took the budgie back and instead we got a Dusky Conure. We were told by the breeder that there was no problem with the Dusky and the Grey. Later I had a vet tell me that it is not budgies but Conures that have the disease that can spread to the Grey and then another vet said he new nothing of either being a problem. Does anyone have any info on this or can point me to where I can find such info. I'm not sure it was a disease or bacterial problem or what.I am just trying to get some definitive answers about it. Thanks

off topic I was told to remember T-A-C-O No Tomatoes Avacados Chocolate Onions and that all were bad for parrots (with tomatoes it is actually the seeds)

I too had this problem with Oggie (now 9 months)Everytime I left the room he started up. This is just his way of locating. What I did was completely ignore any noise coming from him that was irratating. I acted as if he was in a frequency that my ears did not register. I did not call back, look at him, nothing. Yet when he did quiet down I would wait till he was quiet for at least five minutes and then I would go to him and give him attention. Of course as soon as I left again he would start again but I remained dedicated and also I would wait till he was quiet and then I would call to him if I was in a different room with a simple "hello" or "whatcha doin'". It took a while but now he rarely goes off and when he does it is only for a few moments. He realized that loud outbursts do nothing but lesser calls get a response. Good luck

There has been much talk about Teflon and parrots recently and some of it has become hard to wade through. While Teflon itself is chemically inert and non-toxic, it begins to deteriorate after the temperature of cookware reaches about 490 °F[6](237 °C), and begins to significantly decompose above 660 °F (350 °C). These degradation products can be lethal to birds, and can cause flu-like symptoms in humans (see Teflon flu). By comparison, cooking fats, oils, and butter will begin to scorch and smoke at about 392 °F (200 °C), and meat is usually fried between 400–450 °F (200–230 °C), but empty cookware can exceed this temperature if left unattended on a hot burner. A 1959 study, conducted before the FDA approved the material for use in food processing equipment, showed that the toxicity of fumes given off by the coated pan on dry heating was less than that of fumes given off by ordinary cooking oils.[7] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teflon Basically you have to really scorch the stuff to be a problem but I don't take chances and be careful of any and all fumes around Greys

Different things I have read on how to deal with a scared Grey. I don't know how well they work but thought I'd pass along the info. Approach with your hands behind your back and talk sweetly. Look at him/her sideways, like glancing, as birds take two eyed stares to be predators. Try setting the perch at different heights. Some prefer higher some lower. Play peek-a-boo games where you look from around a corner or look down then back at the bird then down etc. Never, never show aggression or scream as Greys can hold grudges for a very long time. When I brought Oggie home I was so dissapointed that he was nippy and scared and didn't immediately want to cuddle and ride around on my shoulder. I didn't know much about him and I thought boy I have made a huge mistake. I decided to educate myself and read everything I could and took things slow. Now he is my best buddy.