danmcq

I can view it now, thanks! LOL - What a cutie Greycie is. I always love hearing those baby sounds and watching them react to new things like a camera. The video ended prematurely I thought....... Couldn't imagine why.

Congrats!!!. Well it sounds like a normal first homecoming, with the exception of the mirror incident that thankfully turned out ok. I like the spelling of Greycie. That of itself makes it unique. That youtube video is not publicly viewable. You need to make it public in the settings for us to be able to view it.

Congrats!!! Thanks for the homecoming weekend overview and photo. I enjoyed them both.

Very nice, they do enjoy getting sun and seeing all the outdoor wonders.

Thats a tough spot to try and use an arm or hand to get a step up. They are in control from that position and know it. So if they do not wish to move they will bite. The most important thing a parrot owner needs to learn, is to avoid situations where you know a bite is going to happen. The head roosting parrot is a perfect example. The first thing to do if you can, is to stop a parrot from landing there by simply ducking before they can land on your head. If they do land on your head because you did not react quick enough. The easiest way yo get them off, is to just lean forward quickly in a direction you know they will not hit anything and can just safely flap down to the floor or if fully flighted fly and land somewhere else. Just don't use your arm. The those multiple bites a day will not happen.

It sounds like he does not know you are uncomfortable with the amount of pressure being applied. Dayo does this sometimes as well to me. I can take more pressure than my wife for example, but when it is verging on the point of true pain. I will tell him "Thats too Hard and pull my hand or finger away and then place it right back to him. He will then grasp it lighter and not painful. I will then tell him "Thats Better, your so smart! Thank You!". Also, sometimes while he is beaking too hard, I will not pull my hand away and just say "Thats Too Hard" as I look at him. He will look at me and lighten up to the acceptable level. With out proper feedback from us, they have no clue what is too hard and what is acceptable. When parrots interact with one another beaking, instant feedback is provided by the grey that gets too much of a clamp down then responds with a quick head turn and pecks the other. In my opinion, we need to follow this as a guideline.

It sounds like the grooming went well. In regards oscars size. The darker Congo's are a little smaller than the very light gray congo's. The lighter grey congos come from the Cameroon area of africa and are larger. They are both congo's. Oscar maybe be a small framed grey. Greys like humans come in small, medium and large frame body structures. The weight of 418 grams is still in the range from 400 gm to 650 gm weight range. The vet visit will tell how if oscar is under weight or not. My grey dayo, which is darker colored, is on average 480 gm. Before his primaries grew in after the breeder initially clipped him and he stared flying his weight averaged around 430 gm. Muscle mass adds weight in other words. The keel wound sounds like oscar may have come to you with an injury or it could have been from the flight he crashed in a little earlier this week. One thing to make sure of right now since the clip, is that oscar can only land on a carpeted on to absorb the hard landing if the clip is a little short and he drops like a rock. Which he may anyway since he really does not have strong breast muscles to madly flap those wings as he drops. So if the area his may fall in is tiles, you should place some towels or throw rugs to ease the shock of landing hard. Attending Dr. Pepperbergs would be a wonderful experience. i hope you are able to attend.

That sound like wonderful interaction and inquisitiveness on Tyson's part in his new home. Is he flighted? I would just enjoy vocalizing with him and making him feel at hoem as possible for now. See how offering a favorite nut for example is received by him in the cage. The action of him coming to the front of the cage when you are standing there could be friendly and it could also be defensive. Many greys are defensive of their cages which is their safe place and home. If he is not flighted, you could open the cage door in a few days IF you believe you will be able to get him back in the cage. One thing with the cats though, they are sight driven and you must watch very closely if you see Tyson's movement being tracked by them. Also, when you do open the cage and let him out, make ceratin windows blinds etc. are closed so he will not accidently fly into them. If birds with clipped wings are many times capable of of flapping and flying 15 to 20 feet sometimes and can harm themselves unintentionally.

This means that he was never truly allowed to fledge when young and learn to fly with grace and skill. Having been caged mostg of his 16 months, he has not developed strong wing and breast muscles YET to generated the lift he needs. This will jsut take time to learn. With more practice be shorter and intentional flights sby him to reach a t stand, counter top, furniture or you he will improve immensely. It si wonderful that he has landed in your home where he truly can "Get his wings" and be one with his new flock. Just a caution, until he learns what windows and mirrors are. Please keep blinds, curtains and mirrors closed or cover to avoid a hard crash in to them.

Well a couple of things come to mind. Fred is 13 years old with a lot of history and fairly set in his ways. Only have been in your home for 5 days is pretty much nothing in terms of being 13 years old. You have not even begun to see his true personality and developed any true trust and relationship levels with him at all. Allowing any bird you do not have a good understanding of their behavior on a shoulder is not recommended at all. They could do very serious and crippling damage to ear, face neck and eye. Do not allow him on your shoulders at all for now and maybe never based on this behavior. In regards getting bitten savagely when trying to return him to the cage was another mistake. He did not obviously want to go back and thus the bites received. I can only assume he is clipped or he wold have just flown off when he realized he as going to be caged. Thus to stop that, he bit. I would recommend using a perch for a step up if your gong to return him to his cage. You can also try having a favorite snack like a nut or a bowl with favorite fruit in it to make him wish to go in for that special food item. I really recommend slowing down on the up close and personal interaction until he has settled in and some level of trust is built. Otherwise this is going to continue to spiral downwards to where you will not trust him and vise-verse. Many older greys prefer just sitting in a room on a perch, your leg or lap and preening or watching the activities you are in. They are normally not cuddle muffins most the time. Since he prefers women over men. Taking him bcak to the cage may be easier and MAYBE bite free if you are the one he gravitates to. He could not only dislike your BF, but also view him as separating your BF from you. Also, if it is evening time, turning lights off so it is dark normally will help in returning tot he cage. They do not see well in the dark and will feel more willing to just go along for the ride assuming you know where your going. One thougth on that ear bite as well, Fred may have done that out of spite becase he wanted you, not your BF. If this whole preference for women is true. Your BF is the second and unappreciated person in that home. Let fred wander over to him on his terms and comfort level, not your BF wanting to get close to him's desire. My wife has been our grey dayo's love muffin since he was 14 weeks old. She could and can do anything with him. Now years later, i still receive bits now and then, but I am able to cage him on my own. My wife was the only that could return him to the cage bite free.

Hi Jay, not certain why this was provided? I am not writing a college or scientific paper, which I had to do when obtaining my BS in electronic engineering. I am writing a non-scientific book for peoples reading pleasure. Not for the stuffy scientists out there that still do not believe a parrot does anything but "Parroting".

Welcome Bugsysmom! It's GreyT having you here. When you get a chance, please go to our welcome room and introduce yourself and Bugsy. Have have a huge manzanita tree stand. It is not blasted, which is merely a preference. I got mine from a birdmart they put on every six months. You can always get the best deal at those. If however you do not have one with in driving range or that will not be happening for a long time, you can find them online for various prices. http://www.ebay.com/sch/sis.html?_kw=Sandblasted+Manzanita+Parrot+Tree+Stand+bird+perch+Cup http://www.birdscomfort.com/manzanita_tree_playstands.html http://www.birdontherocks.com/index.php?option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=15 http://sierramanzanita.tripod.com/

Yes!!! Timber is not only letting you know where he is, but most important to him, is knowing where you are when separated and you contact call back. This is a wild instinct that will never go away. To be separated from the flock means certain death to a lone grey in the wild. The second flock member they will call for desperately is their mate. Then listening intently for their mates distinguishable return call that only they, out of a hundred fold flock has an individual discernible name or sound they make for singular identity. No one can ever stop a grey from contact calling. The only thing you can do, is try to change the perhaps annoying and loud call with a softer call like "I hear you or just a minute". However, as their desperation increases, so will the volume and type of call they use to ensure you hear their urgency and respond.

Gracie loves you very much Jeff. As Janet said, the beaking is normal behavior to a parrot in that upclose interaction. Dayo has done that to his love muffin, my wife since day one home. However, I wol dlike to caution you, as you already seem to be careful and aware. At around 18 - 24 months old, dayo would occasionally nip her cheek or lip too hard. Not out of anger, just too hard. It seems close to the same you are experiencing. My wife avoids those accidents by not getting her face that close to dayo when he is staring the regurging and and friendly activity. She just praises him and once he calms down a little, then she will get face closer and nuzzle him.

Most likely it is just friendship Janet. I have seen many greys that live in homes together that display this type of close interaction and it had nothing to do with mating. Just great friends that would even preen each other. Enjoy!!

Welcome to the forum. The belch sounds and story of it being used towards the dogs is hilarious. The first day in your home sound like a ton of interaction for such a short time period. Maybe try to slow it down a little and let Tyson settle in and become accustomed to the new home, people and dogs. I am actually shocked you did not come back with a bleeding bite from trying to get a step the first day home. Just go slow and easy to build trust with Tyson. I would worry about plucking issues later once he is settled in. You never know, it may stop if he has landed in a loving and patient home he starts feeling safe and happy in.I look forward to updates.

The perch is definitely the way to go with oscar for now. Many people with aggressive rehomes use a perch as the first method of getting a bird to step up. As oscar becomes more acustomed to the perch. You can start slowly over time moving where you are holding it closer and closer until your hand is almost touching his talon when you get him to step up on it. At that point in time your hand or arm would become acceptable to him in place of the perch.

Trust/Treat training is GreYt, as his reaction confirms! Dayo does some crazy tea pot moves as well and it is very entertaining to watch. The good thing about the vet visit, is the frustration will be towards the vet, not you. Looking forward to hearing more.

Dave - Your posts are always so true and factual. We as the stewards of a still very much wild african grey must recognize, that through the instinctual dna built in to them, the wild will never go away. A grey is a grey. The best we can do, is understand their wild life and environment. That is the foundation for understand the best ways to interact with them and provide them with as rich an environment as we can to accommodate their flight, gymnastic, foraging and mental abilities as possible.

Oh, thank you to all who have encouraged me to continue! 7 months man time fly’s – My eyes are starting to turn a little lighter now, to almost a silver-charcoal color. Here is a shot of me eating a snack while surfing the forums at 7 months old. It’s starting to get colder, the days shorter ( December) and I am really starting to get itchy and keep finding all these loose down feathers. Boy, looking down through my cage grate, I see almost a semblance of snow covered ground. When dad cleans and changes the paper, he always mists it with water before he pulls it out. It keeps all those down feathers from floating away when he pulls it out. Mom and dad were starting to get worried I was starting to pluck or something at first. But, they talked to the breeders and also posted a question on the grey forum and a very knowledgeable man named Dave007 with decades of experience breeding Grey’s, working in a rescue with many types of parrots and helping problematic Grey’s he rescued himself answered. He told them what was going on and that the first molt is always the largest. I am just getting rid of all my baby feathers. Dave007 also advised them to mist me with 100 percent Aloe Juice until drenched at least 2 or 3 times a week, to keep my skin nice and supple and less itchy. So they take me in the shower and try to convince me it’s fun. I don’t like the water hitting me so I just sit up on the bar and watch. They keep taking me in there, showering and then when I don’t get wet. They just get out, dry off, place me in the bottom and mist me with a spray bottle until I am completely soaked with Aloe juice. I hate it that I can’t escape! Yep, I am growing up (I think) and starting to think maybe I should start seeing if I can have my way sometimes. Lets what happens if I um, let me think about this…not step up! Here comes the request and hand, ok backing up a little, showing a little body language that it's not what I want to do. Drat’s, it didn’t work. They just kept coming forward and I stepped up. Then they took me and put me in the cage so they could leave. Not really a positive experience or what I wanted. I am going to have to rethink this strategy! I also don’t want any more of that baby formula or human baby food. I just turn my head or push the away. So they quit offering it and now give me more of the bean mixes, birdie bread, lots of cut up veggies cooked and uncooked. I like them both ways. They also sneak some stuff in they call Red Palm Oil. It’s good for me, but if they get too much on it, I can taste it and will not eat it. I think they are still slipping it to me and must investigate this further. I am becoming very in-tune with the function of this flock. Mom and Dad are the “Big Birds” and everyone else seems to do what they ask. In return, they give us a good home, plenty of food and lots of good times, well most the time except for those darn showers! I have to watch out for the Dobermans. They get very excited when I flap by and sometimes jump up and snap at me. Dad always tells them “DOWN”, which they do and then tells them to go on and to leave me alone. I must learn that sentence once I can figure out how to make those sounds. They seem to obey every time Dad or Mom say’s it. They are so dumb! They do everything mom or dad tells them to and also just follow them around mindlessly. I tried to reach down and bite Bentleys ear one evening and Dad quickly pulled me up and was very upset. I don’t know why? I was just going to give him a little friendly beaking to see what it felt like. I am getting pretty good at flapping as hard as I can. I can usually make it from the kitchen all the way into the living room about 20 feet away and land on the couch. Sometimes I don’t quite make it though and need to find a safe place to land. Still figuring all the objects out that may be a good crash landing spot when I have engine trouble or run out of gas. Sometimes I land on Mom or Dad if they’re in the path and grab real hard with my beak to steady myself and find a good footing. They don’t seem to like that very much and wiggle a little, I’m glad they were there at those times though. I must think about all this some more and make some important decisions about how I want to fit into this flock and let my wishes be known and claim what my area and things are Mine, Mine, I tell you!

Thanks all! Well, I guess it's time to continue a little more. I did speak with a few other authors on greys regarding their thoughts on a few snippets. Their comments were a little negative, such as "You cannot possibly know what dayo is thinking". Then encouraged me to write it from my perspective. Though I do not totally agree with their critique, do see their point and criticisms I would receive from the parrot/scientific community. Personally, I do believe i have some limited insight in to what dayo is thinking and why at times. So, it will be a while, but I will continue with more.

LOL, I can picture that interaction. Oscar 1 you 0.

Indeed they are! Here is a study and video conducted that displays problem solving and requires flock/team work: http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/12913981

Your new grey at 6 years old is fully an adult and independent. He just lost his soul mate, flock and home. This is a huge shock to a grey and 2 days is nothing in terms of the time it takes for a rehomed grey to get used to the new surroundings and people. You are going to need to take things very slow to build trust with him. I would suggest at this point in time to leave him in his cage and interact with him by simply being in the room, sitting next to him, read, watch tv, talk to him, offer a nut etc. Did you or coul dyou possibly get as much information as possible on him from the previous owners? What was his daily routine, what was his diet and accepted foods or favorite treat? This would give you insight as to how to make him feel more comfortable and entice him for a step up using his favorite treat.

I cannot view this video either. I get the message "Video no found".