danmcq

So, did you lift the entire tree along with Harvey when you tried to get him off with the Talons clamped. He gets smarter and funnier everyday!! :-) Thanks for sharing this.

Congratulations!!! Thats a wonderful first step for Joey in learning aerobatics!!! :-)

The only way to sex a grey is dna or surgical sexing. All those visual theories are not accurate at all.

Oh Man, that area is very tender. Hoping you recover quickly from it. They are very stubborn sometimes with the harness.

What a great post Dave. I love hearing your years of wisdom come out in these explanations. :-) In watching my Grey develope from 6 weeks to 3 years (April 28th) their personality truly develops and changes in stages as you describe. I am seeing more and more separation from what ALL babies are seemingly like, versus the huge differences between adult greys. Thanks Dave!

Nice video. All those veggies, with different colors, shapes, texures etc. are obvisouly very interesting to Hawkins. One thing for certain, he is not afraid to explore. :-) Thanks for sharing this.

Hahahahahahahahahaha!!!! I nkow th efeeling. Dayo goes for my toes when he is around them. :pinch: Thanks for the morning laugh! :-)

Sheila, knowing how will you care for Charlie and all the vet visits you've been through. I know I have nothing to add. Greywings suggestion of misting with Aloe Juice maybe be the only soothing thing you can get on Charlies skin if you can raise the feather in that area to get them soaked. I know you are aware a Aloe Juice and probably already use it. But, it is an excellent alternative. Also, stay on the positive side as much as you can. You know how these Greys pick up on our apprehension and nervousness. :-)

I know how it feels and the fear it inflicts. I've made that mistake a few times and fortunatley there was just a little blood letting, compared to serious bite requiring stitches. I do carry Dayo on my shoulder everywhere and at times give him kisses. But, only from above to the top of his beak at times. However, even this is dangerous as we all know how fast they are. It's a risk I take and do not reccomend anyone else do so unless you trust your bird is calm, he is not too young and you know his body language so well it's almost ESP. Still, the riskh of a serious bite ALWAYS exists, no matter how much you trust your bird. GreYt advice Sheila, Greywings, Janet and Judy.<br><br>Post edited by: danmcq, at: 2010/04/08 16:26

Very interesting. I love learning new things. Thanks Crossfit and spinner! Now, I must go research what a "celiac" to see if we may have Vampires in our midst. Really though, I am going to research this. I had never heard of it. :-)

Is anyone saying Gluten is bad for a Parrot? Or is this due to a personal allergic reaction some people have? The reason I ask is Gluten is a special type of protein that is commonly found in rye, wheat, and barley. We normally feed these to our birds. I have never noted any type of affect and they have given oatmeal for example that obviously contain Gluten due to the Oats. This a a new one to me. :-)

YOu got it right. It is the fruit (nut:seed inside). In Africa, the Red Palm is what they dine on. Queen Palm fruit:nut is fine as well. Just make sure you give them a good cleaning and freeze what you won't use before thoey spoil. They strip off and eat the flesh, then leave the seed:nut.

Thanks Crossfit. I was not referencing wild birds hurting themselves. A bird loose in house, if freaked out by something, can burst into flight and hit a window or wall at 15 to 20 miles per hour when freaked. Resulting in a broken neck and instantly dead bird. That is what I meant by my post in a Cage versus out scenario when a freakish event such as an earthquake occurs. They may get battered and bruised in the cage, but they will not end up dead.

Ok, I'll use it on dayo and get all those loose feathers that are ready to molt out..... Oh Damn, Dayos stuck to the nozzle now!!! So much for a man trying to figure it out. :-)

Well if it works, use it! If you purchase the cd, let us know how that is received. :-)

Great weekly update. I truly enjoy them. They change so fast at that age, it is wonderful to live through this once again via your weekly posts. As Issac grows in intelligence and wisdom. Caging him once he is let out in the morning will become more and more of a challenge. I do not know how long he is out before you must go. But, around our home, if we know we are going to leave early, we no longer let him out. It is just too much drama to get him back in the cage that early in the day. Once he's been out all day, it is much easier to put him back in what he considers his "Holding Cell". Thanks for posting photos in your updates as well. I enjoy seeing his appearance slowly change as well. :-)

Very interesting article Crossfit. It is natural for all birds to fly during a quake. I would imagine, a flighted bird may do more damage to themselves out of the cage. The reason I say this, is if they are truly freaked out, they MAY fly into solid objects like windows or mirrors that they KNOW are there due to panicking. Much like a person running through a patio glass door or the like. The brain is definitely not engaged during high stress and adrenaline surges. It's good to hear everyone's Greys are ok, except for a scratch and some ruffled feathers.

Congratulations on Hawkins homecoming! The photo shows he is indeed a beautiful and exploratory Grey. Thanks for sharing this. :-)

lovethatgrey wrote: She does obviously understand the meaning of "I'm Sorry". What a cute story, even though it was a dramatic moment for you. :-) Emma is one smart Grey!

Mango is HiLarIous!!! :-) Thanks for sharing the video of him.

Dayo is used to the Vacuum and likes the noise and also riding on whomever's shoulder is vacuuming. Well today, Kim was Vacuuming and Dayo was sitting on his T-Stand eating some food. Next thing I here is the Vacuum shut-off and Kim come stomping in asking if "I" am watching Dayo and know what he's doing. I give my best puppy look and say "No, Why?". She then tells me when she vacuum under the T-stand, Dayo looks down, grabs a BIG talon full of seeds and throws them down, she then Vacuums them up, Dayo looks down and then proceeds to throw another Talon full of seeds down. She said this happened 4 times and thats when she shut the Vacuum off and came stomping into the family room where I was. Well......after I got done laughing my butt off and she looked at me with total disdain. I said "YOU know what he just figured out, right?". He just realized the Vacuum not only makes noise as we push it around, but it makes things disappear! He confirmed that to himself during those 4 test to see if the seeds disappeared when she ran the Vacuum over the seeds again. :-) I have a feeling we MAY need to cage him to accomplish Vacuuming now.......

Like you said Lyn, it's the "Moment". Dayo has those with me once in a blue moon and I cherish them. But, the million moments are good bites, if I try to get in his space without him offering for me to "Come on in".

Well Jane, Rangi sounds more normal to me than Kea. I can only base this comment on my experience with Dayo. He does not like any other bird sitting on us, except himself or another Grey and he chases other birds in flight as well. Greys by nature are a "Species Only" Parrot and do not flock with any other Parrots, like Amazons, Macaws and Conures do. Even when Dayo and the 2 clutches were babies, the Greys huddled together and drove away or moved away from the Macaws, Conures and Too's at the breeders when they were all out together. My only thought about taking him again to the bird mart, would be to keep him on a harness. he could end up hurting or getting hurt himself in the right circumstances in a fight. :-)

Robin - Thats hard for me to really say. It all depends on the different actions you have taught Dixie to come to believe is the correct context(s) for the word "Help". I only use words and phrases in one context and make sure I only use it when I am performing that action, asking a question, giving him something etc. Janet - It's not so much patience, as it is just consistency. I keep using words all the time in correct context and some Dayo has not used...yet. I believe they pick up and actually use, what THEY find interesting, useful, fun and it benefits them in some way either physically, mentally as in Joy, a feeling of self worth, accomplishment etc.. So, if you just use "Drink of water" each time you give your Grey water. It's not patience, it's just something you are son doing with out even thinking about as in an auto-response. Perilyn - Your absolutely right. At first most is just words and sounds they seem to like and use hit and miss. But, just like a human child learns speech, a Grey starts making those synaptic connects and soon is producing meaningful phrases and correctly using words for what the desire, need or are doing. Jan - I actually taught Dayo "Thank You" about 6 months ago and he uses it consistently in context now. I used the same scenarios for "Thank You", as I did for "Good Job". When I asked Dayo to step up, move (to fill a bowl), give me a kiss etc. and he did so, I would then say "Thank You" and praise him with a smile, high pitched voice and plenty of "Good Boys". It took about 4 weeks for him to grasp when to say "Thank You". I am no "expert" on "Teaching Greys to Talk", but I have found that consistency and praise works for Dayo. In fact, my suspected wild caught Conure Jake is all of a sudden talking, probably from recognizing Dayo gets actions from us when He talks.

I started teaching Dayo a new phrase "Good Job" about 2 weeks ago. I started training him to understand this concept by telling him "Good Job" each time I asked him to do a task and he completed it. Such as turn the water off, pick up toys, wipe his beak etc. Now there is no doubt he understands it. My wife fills dog water bowl, Dayo - "Good Job...", I clean a poop up, Dayo - "Good Job", wife washes a container, Dayo - "Good Job".... now every action we perform is rewarded with that phrase upon completion. I believe our home has become the most "Positive" environment I have ever slaved in. Seriously though, when you want your Grey to associate and use words in the correct context, be sure you are consistent and describe an item or action the same every time you offer it, do it, enter your home, leave your home, answer the phone, cook dinner etc.<br><br>Post edited by: danmcq, at: 2010/04/04 03:03