danmcq

Awww, he's just trying to get you to join in in the fun and pay more attention to him. Thus the reason he keeps looking at you while doing it. Thanks for sharing this video, I enjoyed it. Nothing like watching a grey battle and scream with their battle cry!

Most rescues are good and responsible organizations that know there limits, budget, staff etc. But, some just become hoarders, are under staffed and not enough funds to properly care for the birds. It is sad when this happens and I pray these birds get to good rescues and/or bird people looking of a parrot to rescue. But, just be aware that not all rescues are "good" for the bird. http://www.whiotv.com/videos/news/moraine-birds-seized-from-local-business/vHDZc/

Yes, then they control how close they get and interact with one another. They may or may not like each other, you just never know. Let them meet and start interacting from a distance and you will be able to tell if they wish more close interaction when they start getting closer and checking each other out.

Wow, that's what you call a fast change from frightened grey of new home to "Lets enjoy each other"! You shold be proud of Tango and yourself. In regards the towel, just let him get used to the look and feel. Once he is used to it you may find him playing with it and wrapping it around himself. Let this evolve naturally and interact when you are sure he would enjoy you doing so with him. It is important that he views the towel as something enjoyable, not just what is used to hold him when you must.

Glad Judy and Talon got you in the right direction. I hope the two enjoy each others company while at your home.

Never been through this with a "care for Grey or other bird" for a year absence. But do know, Dayo recognizes and calls people by their names a year from the last time he had seen them. Just a recent example of this, is my son's pit bull Roxie had not been here for a year, but he brought Roxie over two weeks ago and the minute Dayo saw Roxie, he started whistling and yelling " Come on Roxie, Come here". This shocked me since she had grown from the puppy she was then, but knowing their intelligence and mental capacity, it should not have.

LOL - I personally say "No Bite" when a toe gets bitten on the rare occasion I don't notice he is going for one. Then I pick him up off the floor and sit him where I can see him. Of course that doesn't mean he won't fly right back to the floor, but I just retrieve him again and the cycle may continue a few iterations until he gives up.

Do not clip your birds wings to stop an issue such as this. It is not the answer. The answer is teaching your grey that attacking other animals is not acceptable. If it cannot be stopped, they must be kept separated from each other because I guarantee you the grey will one day lose the battle and be dead in the blink of an eye.

NO. In the wild greys stay with their parents until 2 years old, then quit being reliant upon them and start looking for a mate in the flock. They do not just "Switch" their favored human when they turn 2 or 5 (about the time they sexually mature). Mu wife has always been the favored one and remains as such after 5 years.

Harrison's is recognized as one of the best pelleted foods for Grey's. I personally always buy the High Potency coarse, due to my grey only eating perhaps 4 or 5 of the pellets a day. I mix them in with his seed mix. It is sometimes very difficult to get a bird on to pellets 100%, but I have never subscribed to the idea of wanting to, unless you do not provide a well rounded diet of seeds, nuts, veggies, a little fruit and bean mixes etc.

Enjoy!!!

Just wanted to share this wonderful story: http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/need-to-read/2012/03/29/missing-parrot-finds-owner-s-nine-year-old-daughter-at-school-91466-30647696/

Judy is right, he is warming up to you very nicely. I sit next to my greys cage at lunch time and even though my wife is his love muffin, he has gotten to where he enjoys me giving him scratches through the bars and rubbing his beak and he will rub his head around guiding my finger. But, I must be careful, because if I miss any body language that he is done, he can spin that head around faster than a speeding light beam like exorcist and nail me. I don't mean to imply this will happen to you, just passing on things I must watch for. I think a tree stand in your office would be great. That's what I did as well, although I cannot take him in my parrots in during work hours because they carry on too much and customers complain.

I loved this video, it is impressive that Brutus has learned "Where do you live, 4560 La Mesa". Thanks for sharing this. Yes, Dayo is on Youtube. Here is just one of the many: There were some crows out at our waterfall Dayo could see through the sliding doors directly in front of his cage. Thus the crows coming up several times as he chatted.

I am looking forward to that video of Brutus and LOL at the Godzilla description!

An african grey that has been been socialized with humans and picked a favorite will not be a good breeder nor will they prefer another grey over that favored person. In fact, there is no guarantee Ruby would even like the other grey you might bring home. Why is Ruby having Brad as the favored an issue? There is never any guarantee just because you or anyone decide that you want a grey that you will be the favored one. They decide that, not you. I am the one here that wanted a grey, found it at 5 weeks old and visited him 3 or 4 days a week until bringing him home. I am not the favored one, my wife is. But so what? I love Dayo, my wife does and so do all the other people we have in our lives that he has been socialized with over these years. I do not understand why you believe getting rid of Ruby is a good decision or why? It makes no sense to me.

Welcome to the forum. The others have given you so much good information here to think about and apply. If you let him out of his cage as described, the problem will always be how you are going to get him back in. The first thing to try is see if he knows "Step-up" using say a one inch diameter 12 inch long perch you slowly move forward and under his his body asking step-up? Watch to see if one of his talons start to raise, if so he will step up and you can then just place him in the cage with it letting him step on to another perch in it. If he is not willing to step up, the best thing to do is use a towel, not welding gloves. You do not want him to associate bad things with hands. Do you know how old is Jaq'O? That ride in the back of the truck with out a doubt had him terrified and confused. The arrival at a new home, new people, new cage and new everything inside the home has him very nervous. I think the best thing you could do at this time is to leave him in the new cage and just let him chill in the security of it. It will take days or even weeks for him to settle completely in and get used to his new surroundings and loving people. Getting bitten, especially by a mistreated and new parrot is not at all unexpected as he is protecting himself from he perceives as a predator and enemy initially. Thus the great comments from everyone here saying to take things very slowly. So do not be discouraged that he was not over joyed and just willing to jump in to your loving arms for hugs all the way around. A parrot is unlike a dog in every way. They are not domesticated and are still very wild at heart even if born, hand fed and raised by humans. Their primal instincts are that of a wild parrot when what the perceive as adversity strikes. You did the most important thing of all and that was rescuing him from the deplorable living conditions he was in. The best thing to do know is make him feel safe and loved. This only comes through a lot of time and patience. As the others have already said, do the following things: 1. Leave him in the cage. Out of cage time now is not the most important thing. It is him getting used to everything from a safe place. 2. Sit near and just chill, talk to him, watch TV, read a book etc. just sitting right next to his cage. 3. Carefully offer treats he may love like an almond, pistachio, walnut, piece of apple, grape etc. Try this through the cage bars, but watch closely to make sure he takes the treat rather than bite the fingers offering it. 4. Make certain the cage is placed where he can see you and family from so he feels like a part of the flock. 5. Watch his body language to determine if he his in a aggressive mode mode i.e. coming at you with head lowered and feathers ruffled meaning he is going to bite or wants you to back off. If he is just sitting with feathers fluffed, maybe preening or grinding his beak, he is a happy camper. There are many more things than this small list, but they are the basics in bring home a rescued grey. Please post as often as you wish with any questions or comments. As you have seen, we have many knowledgeable members here that love to help.

Do not stress over the pellets being eaten or not. It is not crucial nor necessary that they do, as many bird food manufactures and vets push them as necessary. If over time as jay and maggie indicated they eat a few after you try various brands, great! If they never eat pellets so what? The important thing to maintain is a well rounded diet of seed mix, nuts, a little fruit, a lot of veggies, beans, grains, a chicken bone sometimes, a little meat sometimes etc. This is the diet they eat in the wild. Remember pellets do not exist in the wild, they are man made and evangelized by the companies as a "Must Feed" to line their and reseller pockets. Keep your baby intrigued and happy by giving him the experience of discovering new tastes and textures each day. It will greatly enrich his life and make him happy and healthy.

Greys are very clumsy when young. As wingy suggested, keep perches low and bedding or even towels on the bottom to cushion falls as they occur. Your grey will climb all over that cage and fall from various heights sometimes. If you do place towel on the bottom, they can easily be shaken out and washed when soiled. IN regards food, just keep preparing and offering various veggies, beans, fruits etc. slice em, dice em, serve raw, serve cooked etc. They will slowly try each item and days they will eat one or a few pieces, then the next day they will ignore that item and eat something else. You'll learn this as you go.

As others have said, only time and patience will slowly evolve how close your Bella and girlfriend will become. You are the "Chosen One" and that is the way it is with greys and even other parrots as well. Any other house hold (flock) members are second fiddle and have much less interaction abilities most the time with them. The grey, not the human will decide when and how much interaction will take place over time. Your girlfriend is going to have to except this and just chill. As Judy said, they can sense emotions in a heartbeat and no one can mask it. I guess in a sense it is much like Humans, some people we love, some we are friends with (no head scratching though ), some we barely tolerate and some we out right hate and want nothing to do with them. Most importantly, just love and enjoy that intelligent sentient being you have become privileged to share your home with. You will be amazed each and everyday at how intelligent and talented they are.

LOL Stephen! Dayo is the same way with toys we have played with over the years together. He gets so excited playing with a ball, bottle, wiffle ball etc. that he will fly at and attack my hand holding it or if I throw it he will follow in flight and swoop down and pick it up like a hawk, then take it to a counter or back to the floor and give it a good thrashing. It amazes me how similar Isaac and Dayo are in many things. BIG FUN!!!! I believe it is as Nancy says, we have given them the door to do this and we can stop or take it away. Dayo does know, if I pick something up and block his playful but intended attack/playing the game he just has to wait until I throw it or drop it. I must say though, sometimes it pisses him off so much that he will fly directly at my face, however I am aware that it is coming when he does that and just block him and he swerves and sometimes tries to then swoop around to the back of my neck to give me a good pinch. Most the time I am fast enough to just duck and he fly's over my head.

Great video of Brutus. He is a very clear talker! Don't you just love it when they ramble like that? I do.

Sorry we got a little zany. Steve posted a good link and he is right, there had been many wrong theories over the last hundred years in regards avian smell and taste abilities. Science is learning more each day, as always. Ever bird species is unique in what senses are important for survival. One of the best studies I have found so far on various birds can be found at: http://people.eku.edu/ritchisong/birdbrain.html There is no doubt our greys do taste and smell. Just from personal observation of my grey and conure, texture seems to be very high on the eat or toss priorities, next would be the taste if it did not get tossed the instant they picked it up.

Well I ask Dave in return. Which expert orators can scarce effect by all their little artifice of eloquence, to wit, a raising the attentions of their auditors to a composedness of thought, this a bare look from me has commanded?

This is garbage. Parrots learn to talk in real-time while interacting with the persons in the household as they do and describe WHAT they are doing at that moment. Parrots are highly intelligent and KNOW what they are describing or asking for. They do not just "Parrot" what they hear over and over in a recording. If they did happen to, it would not have any meaning to them. Our parrots will tell you they want an apple or the cage door opened etc. due to them learning those words and phrases as you speak to them just as you do to human children as they are learning human language. The only reason for devices like this or cd/dvd with recordings is to make $$$ off of uninformed new parrot owners. The only reason I am leaving this post instead of just deleting it, is so any newbies will know to disregard any such claims of magically teaching your parrot to talk via a repetitive recording/playback device.