danmcq

These poor rescues that have no idea of how to fly are truly sad. As the years of being a clipped and crippled bird continue, before they are given proper care, allowed to grow their natural feathers and finally be capable of flying. The chances grow each year that they no longer have any memory of being able to fly, if they ever were. The sad statement here, is it has almost become an accepted practice that breeders clip the feathers before releasing the baby birds to their first (hopefully last) family. The family then continues having the bird clipped thinking it's for the birds "Safety". By the time most birds get to a loving rescue home, they have no pectoral muscles, no sense of being able to fly and many times no drive to do so. I wish there were some ways to change the prevalent thinking to NOT clipping a birds wings, letting them fully fledge and leaving it up to the owner to decide based upon the new homes circumstances. I have a ton of respect for all of you who are getting those rescues back to health, fully flight capable and taking the time to work with them to become the wonderful flighted, sky gracing creature they were born to be. :-) They don't chop Dogs legs off that are going to be "Lap" dogs, to protect them from danger or running away.......<br><br>Post edited by: danmcq, at: 2008/09/14 14:02

No, Dayo will never go back in his Cage own. Even if I tell him to do so. ;-) My conure however, will just fly to his cage and go to bed when he is sleepy or if I tell him it's night-night time, he will fly over and climb down in his cage. It varies with every bird. :-) Most birds have a "Spot" they choose as their favorite place to rest or sleep.

Thats sounds like a huge improvement in the plucking and the bathing id the icing on the Cake! :-) Thanks for the update on Zahzu.

That good to hear Nims. Thanks for the update. :-)

Excellent information Dave!! :-)

Well, that was interesting. :-) I have no idea what they were saying, but she appeared to sing certain portions to the Grey. I guess you will need to translate a little. :-) Thanks for posting this!

This is really a good room to have now. There are several members here that have rescued Greys and other species. This will provide a quick way to find important information and help when dealing with a newly rescued Grey, lost bird etc. Thanks again Penny!! :-)

Great photo of Charlie. Thanks for sharing it. :-)

Thanks Penny!! This will definately be easier to keep track of health issues and for members to easily find them. :-)

Gaevren wrote: That depends on the bird. If it was previously tame and would step-up, the bathroom option may not be needed. That would require more trust building with time and patience. Offer treats in the cage to distract the beak and gently try to get him to step up. You can also come in from the back as Suzzieque mentioned. If it's a wild or breeder that you are trying to tame, thats a whole different story. Thats when many times a wing clip is necessary so they can only glide gently to the floor. Then you try try to have them step up on perches, moving your hand closer and closer to them each time you have them step up. after a few days they will basically be stepping up right next to your hand, then you can simply offer you hand instead of the perch to step up on. This could take several days to accomplish with a wild or breeder bird. The obvious answer to getting a bird to another room like the Bathroom would be to towel them and carry them in there or once they have glided down to the floor "Herd" them running along on the floor into the bathroom, close the door and sit and interact with them. :-) I personally never used the bathroom to train my wild conure. I clipped him, used the perch, substituted by hand over time and he got to where he would step up on command. he is now flighted again and has no desire to step, he just says, thanks but I'll just fly. ;-)

We purchased the Pak-o-Bird for Dayo with stainless fabric, medium size 15" L x 12" W x 18" H. He loves it. http://www.birdsupplies.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=PB00X

Very cool at such a young age. Thanks for sharing that. :-)

Desiree - So sorry to hear you have been let down at the last moment. That's just sad. Keep your stuff and keep on searching the rescues. Perhaps you could make a local contact at one or more local rescues with in driving distance. Establish a good relationship with them and maybe even volunteer when you can. This would do a few things 1) Help a Parrot 2) Fill the hole in your heart while waiting 3) Help the rescue 4) You will know the instant a Parrot comes in and have the first opportunity to take home the Parrot you connect with. :-) Hang in there!! :-)

Welcome and congratulations Sentra!! Bmustee has given you good advice. The two will need to be introduced at a distance with very close supervision to ensure neither gets hurt. It's GreYt having you here and looking forward to hearing more. :-)

:sick: I'm positive Berna Eeeeewwww :-)

Welcome Desiree!! As Misty so well put it, think twice before having your Grey clipped. It would be a year before those flight feathers molt out and grow back in. Why don't you try leaving him flighted a while and see how it works out, rather than just clipping right off the bat? It's GreYt to have you here and looking forward to hearing more. :-)

They can fly as they were meant to inside or outside the house. A clipped bird can not in either case. believe me, they enjoy being able to fly in the house as their natural mode of transportation, rather than having to walk or be carried every where they go. The mention of a 75x75 flight aviary outside would be large enough to simulate actual long flights as they do in the wild, if they did laps back and for 100 times non-stop. They fly for 10 and 20 miles or more each day in the wild. even a 75x75 foot cage does not equal anything close to that.

OMG!!! I am speechless PThizzilini, I can only imagine your feelings, shock and horror to this terrible accident. You have my condolences and prayers.

judygram wrote: LOL Judy - I sent Karnak away for a while. :-) This is my all powerful intuition abilities I'm drawing on this time. ;-) Loki new video is great. I love that baby pant right at the beginning. Enjoy it, they rarely make it as the age. :-)<br><br>Post edited by: danmcq, at: 2008/09/12 15:14

Welcome BJM and Goose!! It sounds like your Grey has been molting and is probably over preening due to those new pin feathers coming in. The area over preened you describe is one of the first areas they start losing all their down feathers in. He has probably experienced a lot of irritation in that area and keeps preening to alleviate the problem. To stop the irritation, you need to mist him until soaked with Aloe JUICE which you can purchase at Walgreens or a health food store in Gallon jugs. Fill a Spray bottle with it and soak him good atleast every other day. I would do it AFTER he takes a shower with you. Just straight water will dry out there skin and cause the new pin feathers to become even more irritating. Also, purchase Red Palm Oil. You can find it online at health sites. melt and drip a 1/4 to 1/2 a teaspoon into his scrambled eggs, oatmeal etc. once a day. This is a product of the natural Palm nuts they eat in the wild that contain the oils, fats and acids they need to maintain good health and supple skin. Hopes this helps get you Grey on track. :-)

This is great research on your part Judy!! I wonder if the post alarming everyone on those bags containing Teflon was incorrect and the culprit is actually a culprit that has been confirmed and studied by the FDA? The chemical is called Diacetyl which is released as fumes when you open the HOT bag. Here is an article from the NY Times on microwave popcorn. GARDINER HARRIS / New York Times 5 Sep 2007 A fondness for microwave buttered popcorn may have led a 53-year-old Colorado man to develop a serious lung condition that until now has been found only in people working in popcorn plants. OSHA Leaves Worker Safety in Hands of Industry New York Times 25apr2007 Lung specialists and even a top industry official say the case, the first of its kind, raises serious concerns about the safety of microwave butter-flavored popcorn. “We’ve all been working on the workplace safety side of this, but the potential for consumer exposure is very concerning,” said John B. Hallagan, general counsel for the Flavor and Extract Manufacturers Association of the United States, a trade association of companies that make butter flavorings for popcorn producers. “Are there other cases out there? There could be.” A spokeswoman for the Food and Drug Administration said that the agency was considering the case as part of a review of the safety of diacetyl, which adds the buttery taste to many microwave popcorns, including Orville Redenbacher and Act II. Producers of microwave popcorn said their products were safe. “We’re incredibly interested in learning more about this case. However, we are confident that our product is safe for consumers’ normal everyday use in the home,” said Stephanie Childs, a spokeswoman for ConAgra Foods, the nation’s largest maker of microwave popcorn. Ms. Childs said ConAgra planned to remove diacetyl from its microwave popcorn products “in the near future.” Pop Weaver, another large microwave popcorn producer, has already taken diacetyl out of its popcorn bags “because of consumer concerns” but not because the company believes the chemical is unsafe for consumers, said Cathy Yingling, a company spokeswoman. The case will most likely accelerate calls on Capitol Hill for the Bush administration to crack down on the use of diacetyl. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has been criticized as doing little to protect workers in popcorn plants despite years of studying the issue. “The government is not doing anything,” said Representative Rosa DeLauro, a Connecticut Democrat who leads a subcommittee with jurisdiction over the food and drug agency’s budget. Exposure to synthetic butter in food production and flavoring plants has been linked to hundreds of cases of workers whose lungs have been damaged or destroyed. Diacetyl is found naturally in milk, cheese, butter and other products. Heated diacetyl becomes a vapor and, when inhaled over a long period of time, seems to lead the small airways in the lungs to become swollen and scarred. Sufferers can breathe in deeply, but they have difficulty exhaling. The severe form of the disease is called bronchiolitis obliterans or “popcorn workers’ lung,” which can be fatal. Dr. Cecile Rose, director of the occupational disease clinical programs at National Jewish Medical and Research Center in Denver, said that she first saw the Colorado man in February after another doctor could not figure out what was causing his distress. Dr. Rose described the case in a recent letter to government agencies. A furniture salesman, the man was becoming increasingly short of breath. He had never smoked and was overweight. His illness had been diagnosed as hypersensitivity pneumonitis, an inflammation of the lungs usually caused by chronic exposure to bacteria, mold or dust. Farmers and bird enthusiasts are frequent sufferers. But nothing in the Colorado man’s history suggested that he was breathing in excessive amounts of mold or bird droppings, Dr. Rose said. She has consulted to flavorings manufacturers for years about “popcorn workers’ lung,” and said that something about the man’s tests appeared similar to those of the workers. “I said to him, ‘This is a very weird question, but bear with me. But are you around a lot of popcorn?’ ” Dr. Rose asked. “His jaw dropped and he said, ‘How could you possibly know that about me? I am Mr. Popcorn. I love popcorn.’ ” The man told Dr. Rose that he had eaten microwave popcorn at least twice a day for more than 10 years. “When he broke open the bags, after the steam came out, he would often inhale the fragrance because he liked it so much,” Dr. Rose said. “That’s heated diacetyl, which we know from the workers’ studies is the highest risk.” Dr. Rose measured levels of diacetyl in the man’s home after he made popcorn and found levels of the chemical were similar to those in microwave popcorn plants. She asked the man to stop eating microwave popcorn. “He was really upset that he couldn’t have it anymore,” Dr. Rose said. “But he complied.” Six months later, the man has lost 50 pounds and his lung function has not only stopped deteriorating but has actually improved slightly, Dr. Rose said. “This is not a definitive causal link, but it raises a lot of questions and supports the recommendation that more work needs to be done,” Dr. Rose said. Here are some further links regarding this topic and chemicals in the bag material and the "Artificial Butter" ingredients: http://www.osha.gov/dts/shib/shib092107.html http://www.startribune.com/lifestyle/health/12092821.html http://fooddemocracy.wordpress.com/2007/10/08/dangers-of-diacetyl-and-butter-flavored-microwave-popcorn/ http://www.progressiveu.org/190000-microwave-popcorn-causes-cancer

LindaMary - Some say TAG's can become sexually mature a 3, most Congo's become so at 4 or 5 years old. The wing rubs and such are ok, you just need to stop when you see them getting their birth control devices out.

It sounds like a continuance of the first molt, with the medium size and larger Gray feathers coming out now. The tail feathers will be coming out also. Soon you will have a magnificent Grey in all his glory and the much fabled solid bright red tail. Oh, and fully flighted, if you don't clip him. :-)

I hate to say it, but it needs to be said, clipping one wing is not the right way to clip. Both wings need to be trimmed equally so when they flap down to the ground, it is a straight and controlled flight down. This is not possible with only one wing clipped. It will spiral down and crash uncontrollably into things. It is impossible for them to correct that spiral themselves, much like an airplane with only one wing. It is odd the vet chose to knock your bird out for a wing clip. This is not a normal practice. Toweling is the normal restraint for wing and nail clipping. I hope all is well with your Grey today. :-)

The first Molt is the largest, basically replacing all feathers over a period of months. The head/neck and chest are are normally the first to start going. be prepared, your going to have those little white down feathers everywhere. The medium to larger feathers then start to Molt out and finally the Tail and Primaries.