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We also have a Grey with red markings on her breast and under the wings. She is only six months old so we don't know if they are permanent or will eventually molt out, but she has had these markings since we first saw her at age 3 months. We had a choice from several chicks at the Breeders but choose her because of the markings. The breeder told us that she is the first bird he has hatched with the 'red factor', so I am presuming it is caused by a recessive gene. Alexandra the Grey

It has been almost two weeks now since we brought Alexandra home and she is settling in nicely. She is still a little clumsy and has a tendancy to slip on smooth perches and end up hanging upside down, but most of the time she can right herself and it has been a few days since she has had a fall. She is bonding to Caileigh and will jump/fly from me to Caileigh spontaneously whenever given the chance. She is very easy to handle, has learned "step-up" and like being petted. She does not mind being handled and either of us can hold her, lift her wings and touch her head. We are starting to train her to wear a flight harness this week. We had her wings clipped before we brought her home but plan to let her become flighted at her next molt, once she is familiar with us and the apartment. Even with her wings clipped she can fly a distance of 20 to 25 feet (7 to 8 meters). Because of her tendancy to occasionally fall of her perch we are using the lower level of our finch/canary flight cage (30"x18"x16") as a sleep cage. She flew down from her perch the other day and had a face-to-face meeting with our Yorkshire Terrier puppy. Pecious is just about the same size as Alexandra and before an human could intervene Alexandra gave her a serious nip on the nose laying down the law on who is boss of the humans. All our parrots together Alexandra; Sweet Pea, a Blue Crowned Conure on my shoulder; and Einstein, a Green Cheek Conure. Alexandra on her perch next to Caileigh's desk Alexandra posing for the camera Alexandra playing in her cage

Yesterday was bath time. My conures, a green cheek and a blue crown, love their daily misting and getting into the shower with me once or twice a week is a special treat for them. I wish I could say the same about Alexandra the Grey. Misting her is completely out of the question. She will take off and fly away, inspite of clipped wings, at the first drop of mist. I can put her on the shower perch if Caileigh is already getting wet but she hates getting wet and after the shower I get the evil eye until she is dry. Once dry, an almond will bring forgiveness.

Welcome Konza. I am also new here and reading much more than posting. I look forward to hearing about you and your bird(s).

Thanks for the advice Inara. Yes, we are very aware of the "salmonella risk" of handling reptiles. For those who are un-aware turtle, infact most retiles, can carry salmonella bacteria on their skin/shell. The risk to humans is about the same as handling raw chicken and following the same hygene procedures as used in the kitchen when handing animals is recommended. Turtles have a bad reputation because many uninformed people buy a $10 Red Eared Slider at a flea market for a young child who promptly puts it into his or her mouth. Our biggest concern with the turtle tanks -- we 12 in the living room right now, ranging from a small 20 gal tank for a hatchling to a 180 gal community habitat -- is that many of the tanks are not covered (drowning risk) and all have a high intensity basking lamp (heat risk). This is the main reason we had Alexandra's wings clipped just before we brought her home. She can glide and fly a short hop but not fly uncontrolled around the house. When she molts we plan to let her become fully flighted, after she has become acquainted with us, knows the apartment layout, learned to "come", and is somewhat aware of the dangers present -- turtle tanks, cat, dog, kitchen, etc.

It's been 3 days now and Alexandra is starting to settle in. Here are a couple of pics of Alexandra on her perch next to Caileigh's desk. You can see her cage right behind her with the turtle tanks off to one side and in the background. Yesterday evening we had a stand-off between the cat and Alexandra with the cat sitting on top of the easy chair on the other side of the cage staring at the new bird and Alexandra sitting on her perch glaring at the cat all puffed up and making the most aweful screech. Today Caileigh was trying to teach the bird to say "Back OFF!!" to the cat... Is it normal for a 6 month old parrot to be quite clumsy? Alexandra is starting to catch on to "Step Up" and is comfortable riding a shoulder (with the occassion slide down your back). However she is very awkward trying to move from perch to perch in her cage and has taken a couple of falls. For now we have given her a finch size flight cage (30"x16"x16") as a "sleeping cage" at night in our "bird room" which keeps her away from the cat and safe from falls.

I have figured out that CAG = Congo African Grey and TAG = Timneh African Grey but what is an "fid"

As I sit here with a Conure -- my first bird -- sitting on my shoulder and preening my ear I can only smile.

Hello everyone. I am Caileigh's partner and the secondary human in Alexandra's new life. I never understood why people kept birds as a pet until Caileigh and I purchased Blue Crowned Conure last year. I knew then that she wanted a Grey, but Caileigh didn't have the time available to bond with a young bird and quite frankly I was more than a little daunted by the idea of a large parrot, not to mention the "warnings" some research gave me about Greys. What a difference a few months can make. The Blue Crown bonded to me and spends half the day riding around on my shoulder; I have become a bird person with a Green Cheek Conure, a pair of Canaries and a flock of Finches added to our home; and Caileigh has had to take several months off work to give her the time to be the primary care-giver and bond with a bird. As soon as we saw Alexandra -- when she was six months old -- it was love at first sight and I started planning on how to re-arrange the furniture to accomodate a CAG in the living room.

With our Conures I use sunflower seeds broken into small bits for training treats. What would be good training treats for our CAG? She is 6 months old and just came home to us a few days ago.