dblhelix

Bummer. Does not look pleasant but I have seen and personally suffered worse! :ohmy:

Why take the risk? If you cook properly with Stainless there is little to no "sticking" problem. I would just get a quality stainless set and use that for all your cooking needs. Its not only concern for your birds, but the potential effect on humans as well!

I am very sorry to hear of this loss. As others have indicated there a numerous possible causes. It would seem the most likely to be some sort of invisible fumes. If at all possible please do have a necropsy performed as the information available from this painful event could be very valuable to you and members here. I send you warm positive thoughts during this difficult time.

All the best to you and Noodles given this news. My thoughts are with you. Please keep us posted.

Congrats all!!

It is rare if ever that a proficient flier that is familiar with its home would fly into a window. Proficient flier means the bird can bank, hover, fly up, fly down and land exactly where intended. I am not clear if Oliver was fully fledged as a youngster or previously fully flighted. If he was not fully fledged and the flights only recently regrown then you must understand flying is a learned skill for birds. It will take many months to over a year for them to really become flight proficient, gain muscle strength etc if they were not previously fully fledged. If they are new to flying then there will be a period where there are crash landings, maybe some flying into things etc. This can be a bit stressful to you and them during this time, but if you work with them and encourage them they will pick it up quite well. Some are more determined and quick to learn good flight skills than others. Once they are flight proficient they are very graceful and not really prone to having accidents involving flying into things at all. Of course you need to be sure that you can properly mitigate open doors, windows etc to the outside due to the possibility of accidental escape. In general if your home environment allows you to deal with open doors etc in a reasonable fashion it is healthier to keep the bird flighted if possible.

Congrats Carolyn!!!! {Communicate-0002011B}

Just about every morning w/o fail, Kip climbs down to the bottom of her cage, rumages around and tucks herself under the cage lining papers! She effectively erects a tent and she will hang out in there sometimes for 15 mins or more. When we come to see her she usually emerges from under the papers and greets us with a "Peek-a-boo". The attached video shows this!

The tip of the upper beak should come just about even with the lower part of the beak where it meets with the birds body (sort of like the chin). Look at the bird from the side when they have their head level. If the beak is right about that length then no trimming should be done. Most birds do not need and should not have their beaks or nails trimmed as they care for these themselves. Proper beak and nail length is important for their eating, climbing and overall ability to perch securely. Some birds may have overgrowth problems but it is actually rather rare, again as they file/trim themselves and keep them in check through use of wood and other chew toys. Hope that helps a bit. Make sure you see an Avain vet if you are concerned and want the best advice.<br><br>Post edited by: dblhelix, at: 2008/10/14 16:41

Fascinating. They show so much tendernous with each other. Thanks for sharing!

Hi cflanny, As a general statement practicing/working with your bird on flight skills, recall etc is a good thing. Teaching them where and when to fly and/or stay put is part of the whole relationship you build and expectations you establish. Certainly a flighted bird has a set of variables an owner needs to be aware of and prepared to mitigate. I personally think keeping a bird flighted is the best approach for overall health of the animal provided one has the environment to do so. A flighted bird, just like a clipped bird, must learn to stay put when expected and when to fly to you when called. Of course they are individuals and part of keeping a flighted bird is understanding and enjoying when they decide to execerise their flying skills. Knowing they will do this, you must patiently and repeatedly, over and over and over, condition them on what is acceptable and what is not. This is true for flying/recall and just about any other behavior the bird exhibits that you wish to influence. Again, they are individuals so no matter what you do understand nothing will be perfect and many things will take a long time to get to a point you may want (sometimes many years). Enjoy the process. So long as you are patient and committed you will build a trusting relationship to last a lifetime and you will both be greatly rewarded. B)

I think this is a link to the health concern mentioned: http://www.promedmail.org/pls/otn/f?p=2400:1001:1129641778648034::NO::F2400_P1001_BACK_PAGE,F2400_P1001_PUB_MAIL_ID:1000,74242

They are so cute. Love the "APPLE!" story. Kip likes to ask for stuf she wants too. Her favorites right now are "Want peanut...Peanut time. Peanut!" and "Popcorn!...want popcorn.". Too much fun!

http://www.africanature.com/Project%20Africa/wildgreys.htm

Hi Matthew - I too am fortunate enough to have some trusted folks (that like birds) stay at our place when we go away. I portion out/prepare most of the foods I want offered each day and I leave a list of daily "chores" regarding the routine (see my related thread "labor of love"). Other than that, I make a concerted effort not to make going away a big deal. I dont fret, spend much time telling Kip we are leaving or make a big deal. I figure if I/we dont make a big deal then it wont be a big deal to the bird!

Hi SweetFX - I think you are looking at cut dried figs. Very high in calcium as things go and healthy for the birds. As with anything fresh you should always cut them and inspect to ensure there is not mold etc...but otherwise they are good treats. I like to eat just about all the stuff in these pics myself!!

Yeah, Hawaii trip makes up for a lot!! Yes its a recent Kip pic, taken the day we left for HA. We have noted before that Kip is a pretty girl. Her feathers consistently look very nice all over and her beak as well. I do think the diet has a lot to do with this. Not really mentioned/seen in the pics here is that I also dribble red palm oil over the fresh foods each day when offered. I think that helps a lot...plus maybe Kippy has good genes!! :laugh:

Earlier this month I went to Hawaii for ~2 weeks. We are fortunate as we have some good friends that more or less move into our place when we leave and take care of the "kids". We were gone for 12 days and I prepped Kip's fresh food aliquots prior to leaving to make it easier for the folks to feed her. Put each aliqout into a zip lock bag. Kip pretty much gets something similar to that pictured below each day in her fresh bowl along with a constant supply of good seed mix, some harrisons pellets, maybe some other random offerings and of course fresh water all the time..My wife says I take better care of the bird than I do of her! :blink: :ohmy: :laugh:

Everyone recently responding realized this post is about a year old now, right? Good advice in any case! B)

There is a history and a bit of a mystery, apparently by design. I understand the current owner started the site due to his love of Greys and seems to more or less want to remain anonymous. In the first few years there were not all that many members and there were some start up challenges. Then last year, 2007, several of us came here from another forum and went on to become Mods and/or Admins helping to make this place what we all enjoy today. Perhaps some of the others are willing/able to provide more info. One thing for sure, we all think its the best darn Grey forum around!

Greetings hanadupre and welcome. I dont see if you mentioned (or know) how old the bird is that you acquired. Also out of curiousity do you have previous experience with birds? My guess from the subject line is maybe not. I ask only because experience can help identify "normal" behaviours (like normal scratching etc) vs potentially health related issues. In general, any bird in a new home will take at least a month and up to 6 months or more to really feel comfortable in a new home, with a new owner, new sights, sounds smells...everything. Remember these birds live long lived (usually 50+ yrs) so many take to change cautiously as you or I might if we are all of a sudden in a brand new place. It is fairly standard for them to go through some phases, expressing the desire for cuddling and establishing independence as they acclimate to a new place. Beaking you describe is usually a normal behavior. Please provide a little more info on yourself and your new bird. Read around this site as there are many many informative posts about many topics. Also feel free to ask questions as I am sure the many valuable members we have will try to help. It is not likely that your bird is ill. However it is usually best to have a wellness check performed by an avian vet if you are not sure of the birds history etc. Keep us posted and welcome!<br><br>Post edited by: dblhelix, at: 2008/09/18 05:43

So sorry to hear of this. In most cases the beak will regrow w/o problem provided the "root" is not damaged. Similar to our human fingernails. From how you describe the injury it sounds like it will grow back. However, you may well need to hand feed soft foods for some time since (as you know) w/o the beak they cannot properly eat. In the wild such an injury would probably result in death due to the eating issue but in captivity we can overcome that! I would not jump into any sort of calcium or other supplement w/o a vets advice. This "might" be a good idea, but simply medicating (calicium included) can cause more harm than good in most cases and can be dangerous, particularly if your bird is on a fairly balanced diet. This should also be a lesson of the dangers household fans represent to our precious pets(ceiling and standard fans). Hopefully we can all resensitize ourselves to this and learn from this unfortunate event. Keep up posted on the recovery process. My thoughts are with you both for a quick and complete recovery. B)

Welcome bluekkiwi! B)

Yep, looks like a normal healthy turd to me too. Kip often has a big bomb like the lovely one pictured here after holding for some time (like in the mornings). Certainly would not want that landing on my head! :laugh: :side: :woohoo:

If it came down to it (like a real fight), the cat would kill the bird hands down, claws or not. Think of the body mass alone, most house cats are what around 15 pounds? Most greys are say around 500 grams...thats about 1 pound of bird to 15 pounds of cat (with lots of sharp teeth). Thats like me (weighing 180 pounds) trying to take on a very agile something or someone weighing 2700 pounds. Cat wins if it ever comes to it. All the more reason to keep him flighted! <br><br>Post edited by: dblhelix, at: 2008/09/06 09:07