danmcq

Cool Photo Tracy!! Wonder if Dayo wil let me tape a ribbon to his head hmmmmmmm

It does seem to be a common thing for any Parrot to "Try". Most people discourage it as LovemyGreys indicated. Very odd dreams :-) Looking forward to hearing more from you rollemup. Any significance to the name?

Welcome DigitalFeather and Nike!!! Cool Picture and a cure baby Grey you have there. Looking forward to hearing more and seeing more photos. :-)

Welcome Joel!! Great to have you here. We do indeed love to talk about Greys and their wonderful characteristics. Looking forward to hearing more from you. :-)

I'm on the Same page with Dave (fellow astronaut) in regards Chet Womack and all his training products. I fell for his advertisements, got the video of him using sticks to "Tame" a bird....they also sign you up automatically for their crappy "Best Parrot pellets" that will come monthly at 29.95 a bag unless you call or email them and tell them to stop sending them, which I did right off the bat. Chet does seem to have improved his knowledge and skill set over the last 2 years, but nothing new or earth to most of us experienced Parrot owners that have had to deal with each of our respective Parrots personalities and back grounds i.e. hand-fed versus a wild Parent raised bird. You will find each Parrot responds differently for each methodology used in attempting to stop biting for all the various reasons they may elect to do so. They are all individuals and respond to different techniques. The great thing about this forum, is you have the input from MANY Parrot owners with each of them responding to different tactics in different ways that hopefully will result in a solution for you and your companion Parrot. :-)

Poor Talon, is the Bacterial infection in her Eye's only or also in the rest of her system? Assuming you will now need to apply both the Eye drops and oral antibiotics, it will be twice the drama on you both. Hopefully Talon will become a little more accustomed to the toweling and spend less time attacking it and anyone else with-in beaks reach. LOL - Talon has definately figured out your body language and/or has gained the ESP ability. :-) Please keep us posted Penny, we care so much about Talon, as I am sure you already know.

Happy B-Day Sammy and congratulations Bettyboop. :-) Dayo turned 1 on April the 28th.

So far, my experience wit Dayo our 1 year old Grey, has been that pure word repition does not work with him. We have said "Good Morning" every morning for 8 months, Dayo does not. We also ask "Want out?" every morning, he does not. We say "Step-Up" everytime we have him do so, he does not, he simply lefts his foot. He says "Are you ok?". We only say that if some odd crash and burn happens or when something we walk by with in our hands causes him to scream. :-) He says "Hello", but very rarely, we say it everytime we enter the room. He rarely says "What are you doing", I ask him this constantly. He seems to pick and chose what "He" thinks must be verbalized for some snister, ulterior motive, I believe, and refuses the remaining words he hears constantly just to spite us. ;-) B)

There are times they will bite, as when they just flew to there favorite counter top to chew up the wifeys purse. They know that counter is off-limits and as soon as you see them there you are coming to "Take them away". They will bite, if they don't want to be moved. This is the time, if you know they will bite, to use the Fist of Iron and just push it steadily and easily under them stating to "Step-up. If they do bite as your hand goes under, it does not harm you and they must step up to be moved. I went though several cycles of this with my Grey (maybe 20 times). Now when I say "nooo" and walk over, he just lefts his foot to step-up because he knows he is moving and wants to make it seem like he's a "Good Boy". Which I do tell him everytime he does it and I make a big deal out of it. The down side.....sometimes he will fly back over just to get me to come, make him step-up and then "Praise" him.

Thats great news Carol!! He certainly looks healthy in the photo. :-)

Hello, Tracy has given good advice and a great link with great information. You wrote: "His cage was 4 ft high, floor space 1.5ft x 1.5ft, then we changed to a smaller cage so he was at our level and he is much better but still mean." The first cage was actually too small and you placed him in a smaller cage? They need plenty of room to fully extend their wings and also romp around in. Minimum cage size for a Grey should be 4 to 5 feet tall, 32 inches wide and 36 inches deep. The bigger the better. Has anything thing changed in the room you keep him in? Anything changed family or pet wise? Greys are very sensitive to change and the smallest thing can set them off. The more information you can provide, the better. :-)

Hi Smokey, He sounds like a normal Grey "Getting Bad" on his toys or any other in-animate object they can intimidate and practice their "Grey Kung-Fu" on. :-)

Hi Dave, "How many times have you seen people get upset because their bird won't conform to what the vet says?" Answer: Ummm, I think around 1231 times. "How many times have you seen people get upset because their bird won't conform to what the vet says?" Answer: I believe around 123 times. "How many times have you gotten the feeling that a person feels that what the vet says is set in stone?" Answer: About 204 times. "Now for other important things 1--try to use a lighter color. Blue can't really be read without high lighting it. Failure to comply with this will cause me to put a major complaint in to corporate headquarters on this board. The charge will be *Intentionally trying to cause bad eyesight and blurred vision for other members, especially older members such as Judy and Tracy and some others." LOL!! Sorry.... Compliance: All text has been changed to standard coloration, Bolded and Italicized for easier reading and to avoid any chance of having my Head lopped off by HQ. "2--When is our next space launch date?" Answer: Well after the last "Astronaut Farmer" trial run I went for, the next "Good" launch date is on the 4th of July. Might as well add to the fireworks ;-) "3--You buying lunch?" Answer: Yes, I have purchased 5lbs of Harrisons, 10 lbs of Zupreem Fruity flavor for desert and 20 lbs of Sunflower seeds when we watch a Baseball game. "4--Will the ship have a proper, modern, up to date Porta Potty?" Answer: There is no need for a porta-potty in Space. I have installed a really nice Throne. When flushed, it just shoots out into Space and freezes instantly and becomes a micro comet traveling at the speed of 200,000 MPH matching the speed of our Ship. It is jettisoned under high pressure though, to ensure it takes a different path than our ship. We don't want anything rear ending us when we slow down for entry on Mars ;-)

Welcome Larry!! Sorry to hear of your loss in the house fire, very devastating, I'm sure. It's great to have you hear and look forward to hearing more. :-)

Nice photos of your Goldfish Tari!! :-)

Congratulations on the new B&G> What a beautiful girl she is!! :-) Looking forward to the "other" newby photos. B)

It's good to hear he is settling in and becoming more perky. His weight is not seriously low and in fact, could be normal depending on what his normal weight was previously. Thanks for the update, it is wonderful to hear he is getting back to normal. :-)

The fist of Iron is a well known method, if employed quickly enough or ahead of time to avert a serious bite from a known biter. Thanks for posting this, it is a good quick example/tip of it. Unfortunately, most unsuspecting people get a digit nipped good before they search for ways to avert a bite. :-)

It's great to hear you have him home and from the photo have a great looking playtop cage for him also. It seems you are learning very early they want to be with mommy as Acapella so well described and gave good advice on other items as well. Congratulations!!

Nervous is normal and so are all the questions you will have as time progresses. They make contact calls and if happy, they will just make every sound they know. :-) Nice photo of your new baby. Looking forward to seeing more!!

Happy Mothers Day to all you Beautiful Women Greyformites!!!! <br><br>Post edited by: danmcq, at: 2008/05/11 18:05

Oh Talon, I am sorry to hear of Talons Eye and possible respiratory infections. Lucky for you it's only been your nail so far. :-) We're all rooting for Talon and you!!

Dave - To answer your questions directly with no personal (which I think is very important) information given: A person goes to one Vet and he says Brand A is the best. Another person goes to another vet and he says that Brand B is the best. Another person goes to another vet and he says that Brand C is the best. Answer: None of the Vets I have seen quoted or that others have visited are nutritionists for each species specific Parrots nor have they personally done years of research to see how any of the Brands A to C Pelleted diet only long term affects each species. Therefore, all they are giving is their opinion based on literature they receive from the Pellet supply companies and word of mouth from their circle of other vets they confer with One bird refuses Brand A but likes Brand C. Another bird refuses Brand B but likes Brand A. Another bird refuses Brand C but likes Brand B. So, this is question is .. 1---Which vet is right? 2---Which vet is wrong? After all, all the vets are good vets with good reputations. Answer: There are too many factors to say who's vet is right or wrong. The bottom line is, any Vet thats states "Brand A,B or C is the only diet you should feed your Parrot is WRONG. I do not see Harrisons, Kaytee, Browns or any other pelletized manna falling from the sky, growing on trees or growing from the ground. Whats right for one persons Parrot, may not be correct for the next, example: 1) One persons Parrot may have diabetes and require a specific diet 2) One persons Parrot may have Liver problems and require a specific diet 3) One persons Parrot may have Calcium deficiency problems and require a specific diet 4) One persons Parrot may have Heart problems and require a specific diet 5) One persons Parrot may have no problems and it does not require a controlled specific diet and can enjoy a robust and natural Diet of Seeds, Nuts, Fruits and Veggies. The above health factors are what vets hopefully are basing their recommendations on for the sake of the Parrots health. 1--Will the bird that uses Brand A, as opposed to B, or C be healthier? Answer: NO 2--Does attitude, friendliness, plumage or lack of have anything to do with what they're eating or not eating? Answer: Of course it does, they must have a well rounded diet to have all the above mentioned health related attributes. Do you really think 1---that the bird who is eating Brand A or Brand B or Brand C is really eating that brand because it's supposed to be healthier or 2-- or is it because the bird simply likes it?"""""""" Answer: Because they prefer it. I'll add two more questions... 1--If a person's bird refuses to eat the brand/brands that's more recommended, does that person have to live in fear that his/her bird will not be as healthy nor live as full a life as opposed to other birds that eat the more recommended brand/brands? Answer: NO 2--If you do find that there's problems that exist, what's your solutions? Questions: What problems specifically?? Comment: I hope you find the above answers directly meet your requirements. :-)<br><br>Post edited by: danmcq, at: 2008/05/12 14:37

Thanks for all the feedback my fellow Greyforumites. :-) Yes, it is incredibly easy to want more Parrots. They are all so adorable and each type has traits of their own that makes you want atleast one of each. But, the reality is, you only have enough time, love, space and resources to keep a limited number happy and free as possible. Thanks again. :-)

Can't wait to see the photos and hear how the touch down went at home. :-)