judygram

Thats sound advice, Lisa, and the best part is they are teaching their friends about birds and their body language and hopefully some of them will become responsible bird owners one day.

Hello and welcome to the family, Kathy, glad you could join us. I'm sorry your first two attempts at your first introduction didn't come thru, it could have been during a time the site had a slight fluctuation, we have all suffered thru a similar problem before. But don't let that dampen your enthuiasam for becoming a member here. We would love to hear more about you and this grey you are talking about. I commend you for adopting a grey that had been abused and neglected for these are the real challenges but with lots of love can offer the best rewards. How long have you had this grey and how old is it? Please read thru the many threads here on various topics for lots of useful information that may help you with some of your questions. If you have specific questions just ask, we will do our best to answer and help you in any way we can. If you have a picture of Jake that you would like to share with us please do, we would love to see him.

If he is grinding his beak then he is contented and they usually do that when they are going to sleep. I believe they go thru a molt about once a year and you will see lots of feathers around his cage and the area around him, plus you will be able to feel the pin feathers. But there is always going to be some downy feathers lost but not like during a molt.

Well of course you have to show him you still love him and that he is not being replaced, you have enough for both of them, Clancy is a nice looking pooch.

Be sure to keep us informed of which one you pick and post us a photo of it after you get it, we would love to see it.

It takes time Jimmy for Cosmo to learn to trust you but in time he will and then the bond will come and you two will be set for a long, long time to come.

In my opinion, they are both good talkers, of course you know that talking is not guaranteed, a few do not ever talk, but most do. It is just your decision whether you want the bright red tail or the horn colored beak, that is the main difference and usually the Timneh is slightly smaller. I also have a sun conure, aren't they just like little clowns, I love mine, her name is Sunny.

Wow the pictures were up by the time I posted, great photos of Cosmo, Jimmy and thanks for sharing them with us.

I think you are doing good at this time, but yes don't rush anything, a week is not long enough for him to be really comfortable in his new home. You need to build trust with him before you will be able to set the bond with him but you are working on it. I look forward to seeing more pictures of Cosmo.

Hello and welcome to the family, Lilkk25, glad you could join us. Why should it matter which one you get, they both make fine companions, just mainly differences in their looks. If you want a grey you will have to decide for yourself which you want and it depends on what you are looking for in one. I personally have a Congo as do a lot of the members here and also some have a Timneh and a few have both. There is not a lot of difference between them. Maybe we should ask you a few questions to be able to help you determine which you prefer. Do you have any other birds now? Do you have any other pets besides birds? Do you have children, a spouse? We would like to help you but first you need to be sure you are ready for this lifetime committment.

I don't know whether I have made any difference in anyone's life but I know that the members here on this forum have made a huge difference in me since I joined in May. I count myself lucky to have found this forum and made so many special friends here, I am truly blessed. We have shared good times and bad times here but the important thing is that we shared the time with each other and we can count on one another to be there with whatever help is needed when asked. This has been one heck of a ride and I for one do not want it to stop so lets continue to share our lives with one another for together we can accomplish anything and everything. I wish you all a safe and happy holiday season:kiss:

Being materialistic is high up on my list of dislikes also, a lot of people think the more it cost the more you must love them. I like the lights and decorations of Christmas but the getting together with family is the best part. I love the time we spend with the children and grandchildren during Christmas and the thing that brings me the most joy is watching them open their gifts. The delight on their faces is priceless, they truly are God's precious gifts to Grandparents. We always get together on Christmas Eve and exchange our gifts and have a special meal. Food is high on the list also, there are special cookies and other goodies that I make every year that the family looks forward to at Christmas.

It sounds to me like the clip was a little too much and also maybe it was the first time he has been clipped and if so that might explain his behavior afterward. Being an older bird he is more set in his ways and he is mad now that his flight feathers are clipped and he can't even glide. How horrible for him to feel like a rock being dropped when he takes off to fly. It seemed that Charlie had started trusting and bonding with you until now but I believe in time he will learn to trust you again, you need to give him lots of time and be very patient with him. As for the dog, I am sure you believe that they are ok together but remember never to leave the dog and Charlie, when he is out of his cage, unsupervised for even the most friendliest ones can turn into disaster in the blink of an eye. I know you gave us a great introduction here but why not make another one in the welcome room and tell us a little more about your family so we can properly welcome you to our family.

Thanks for the tip Dave, I have heard of giving them bones before, but you have clarified the details for us.

I hate to see you cancel it too, but you are right, everyone is going to be busy from now until the end of the year with it being in the middle of the holiday season. Lets start off 2008 with a bang!!!!!!

Hello and welcome to the family, Kathy, glad you could join us and we look forward to hearing more about Sadie. I know what you are talking about, she was in the company of other kinds of parrots, probably some cockatoos also, and now she is screaming imatating their calls. Now that she is back home, she will gradually do it less and less and in time she will in all likelihood stop it completely. What you can do is ignore it, do not react to her screaming, your reaction will only reinforce her to continue it for the attention she gets. Do not pick her up or reward her in any way when she screams, in fact turn your back on her and ignore her, she will hate that. If Sadie is the third grey you have had, do you still have the other two, if not what happened to them? I am just curious to know and it helps to get to know you better. Please read thru our many threads on various topics for lots of useful information. If you have specific questions just ask and we will do our best to get you an answer and help you in any way we can. If you have a picture of Sadie that you would like to post we would love to see her.

It will not be an overnight change by any means, it takes time and lots of patience and persistence, but the rewards are handsome so keep at it, Kelly and keep us informed.

Thanks Tari....... {Feel-good-0002006E}

I am glad that you have such a big heart to take in Brutus and it sounds like he picked you first, he knew you would be a good mom to him and I am so glad he has a wonderful home with someone who adores him. He sounds very smart, but then aren't they all, but he seems to understand what he is saying and says it in the appropriate time frame. I think if you handle it right Brutus and a new dog can co-exist in the same house, just be careful to always supervise anytime Brutus is out of his cage and never leave them alone together. Be sure to let us know if and when you do get a dog, we would like to know what you get and how it goes with the introduction of a new pet.

Kelly the only think I can tell you is you will just have to remove him from your or anyone else's head whenever he tries to sit there. And since he was allowed to do that at his former home, it will take some time and perhaps hundreds or thousands of times of removing him but persistence will pay off and he will learn that he is not to do that anymore. I can understand the digging in part, Josey likes to sit on my shoulder and I have the talon marks all over my shoulder to prove it, you would have thought I had been in a cat fight.:laugh:

LOL, Cowgrl, it seems that Sandy put the pit bull in it's place, but just take time in introducing all the animals to her. My advice is never leave Sandy out when the dogs are in the same room, you never know what may happen, dogs will be dogs and close supervision is key to keeping everyone safe and sound.

Its kind of hard not to listen to Christmas music, it is everywhere right now, on the radio stations, at the malls, on TV, but I do enjoy it but sometimes by the time that Christmas gets here I have had my fill of it.

Yes please keep us updated on Sammy and if I had the power I would give you lots more karma, now that I have mentioned it, hopefully some of the other members will give you some, you certainly deserve each and every one of them. I don't think you ever introduced yourself in the welcome room, why don't you take a few minutes sometime and do that, we would love to know a little more about you and Sammy.

The previous two posters have given you some excellent advice, just ignore him when he squeals for if you provide any kind of acknowledgment he will take that as some form of attention and continue to do so. You don't want to reward bad behavior, just good behavior. This may take some time so be patient and I hope the situation improves, but keep us informed as to how it works out.

Beetlejuice - Geena Davis