TinyTimneh

thanks guys, i suppose the hunt continues. i'll be dropping by the local pet store monday (baby bird hunting YAYY!) so i'll hunt around and see what they've got and then head off to walmart and see. now the grey is ok with being misted by that's alot of water to spray and my hands cramps alot and water goes everywhere. any tips for getting him to bathe in a large dish etc.?

OH OH OH LOL, I JUST thought of this, does sub-species matter??? If i were to get another grey, would it be best to get another TAG or does it even matter?

the boys, FairY, have 'met' and live in the same room in seperate cages and altho i would NEVER EVER let them come into contact with each other they co-exist well as long as nobody feels that the other one is coming too close to their cage. I can get the TAG to step up even when he lands on the 'tiels cage so everything is fine there. the 'tiel and parrotlet have never met but they are both young and the 'tiel is submissive so seeing as the apartment will be new territory for all and the first meeting will be on neutral ground i am not worried. The TAG will not be allowed near the parrotlet so that's not a large concern either. As for a new bird, i want to get another grey A) because i love them (who doesn't?), B) the TAG was possibly bullied by a large amazon in his past (so i want to avoid large green birds, and specifically Amazons because they are loud and thus i would find myself homeless in a very short time if i got one) and C) i remember coming across a theory that african birds are less tolerant of mixed species flocks than south american birds who must often share ressources to survive so whereas an Amazon will accept another species bird in time a Grey will not... would a new female parrot be better than a male? (I have NO intention of breeding them and they will be housed in seperate cages)

you could try to teach the timneh to step onto a perch i guess but lemme say that that never worked for Jacko my TAG and it might scare her and make your bird associate you with bad stuff (i.e the perch) also, you have no way of knowing what yuor bird has experienced before concerning this problem, mebbe they too tried this and got fed up and harassed her with the perch. the protective nature could also possibly be fear that was misread, in either case i had the same problems with my TAG as far as him biting me whenever i went to touch him when he was on top of his cage in the beginning. i would recoomend wearing a thick sweater (cover your hand!!) and being taller than she is when she's on top of the cage and just keep at it, pushing your hand into her belly till she steps up then praise her lavishly. then, repeat good luck!

hi all! anyhoo, in a few months time i'll be moving into an apartment with a friend. with tihs comes the thrilling yet worrisome task of blending our two flocks. i have the boys, Sully the 'tiel and Jacko the rescued TAG, she has Mango the parrotlet. we were thinkng of setting up their cages in opposite corners of the living room, with a large playgym in the centre, sort of neutral ground. the question is then, how are we going to schedule playtime for everyone (the TAG is not wing clipped and cannot be)? we were thinking of having 'small bird' playtime and 'big bird' playtime so that everyone is safe. also, i might be bringing another fid into the house in a couple of months (i've already started picking out names hehe) was wanting another large bird and i realized another grey might be the best option in that my first TAG might be more accepting. should it be male or female? TAG or CAG (does it matter? i was leaning towards a TAG like them better) any suggestions?

all right, well, i'm gonna need some help from my fellow canucks if there's any! owning a plucker i desperately want to track down some aloe vera juice (the gel is EVERYWHERE lol, but never the JUICE). does anybody know where i can track down some aloe vera juice in this big ol' ice cube of a country lol?

well... jacko wasn't mine to name, and though i sometimes get weird looks and 'why the heck did you call him that?' i can't imagine him as anything else. sully the 'tiel got his name after the singer of a hard rock band i like, and with his easy-going attitude and kooky mohawk i thought it suited him just fine lol!

what you're gonna have to do (in my humble opinion) push your fingers/hand underneath his belly and don't give in even if he sqawks/nips and tries to run and once he does, praise him LIKE CRAZY in a very loud/exciting voice for a freakishly long amount of time. also, use a clear verbal cue BEFORE/AS you reach towards him (up, step-up whatever you'd like). in either case stop what you're doing now because the longer you and your little grey baby interact unsuccesfully this could form into a habit which you don't want! start over again and use a sweater to cover your hand if you are afraid of being bitten because the baby will sense you are scared and this will make him afraid too becuase you aren't predictable with your actions. good luck!

depends wat you want, cockatiels are a little less demanding and definetly not as aggressive on the whole as quakers. personally, i'd lean towards the cockatiel if i were you, especially if you have other birds already as the little 'tiel will be able to take it in stride if he's not played with a ton much better than the quaker will. also, being the proud owner of little sully i can tell you that the night frights aren't seeminlgy as bad as what popular belief makes it out to be. i don't ever think in the year i have had him that he's ever had a serious case if any at all. if this still worries you i've heard it occurs more in the new color mutations and fancy mutations so you may just want to stick with the normal grey ones. also, a high prech in the cage for him to sleep on that is not near any toys etc will help prevent damage to himself if it occurs. good luck!

well sully i'm ashamed to admit becuase of this problem is not super tame (he'll step up but is awfully nervous) and isn't quite as used to the normal handing jacko is (he startles usually and flies off if i move) buut i just finally ralented and clipped his wings this morning (the frist five flight feathers on each wing) and now he flutters nicely to the floor. SO now he'll be able to come out and chill with me alot more so that he'll finally a happy and tame little guy! YAAYY

Thanks guys, everybody's still okay at my house. the move to the new place has made things much better, much less hostility between the two now that they both have their own corner and the TAG no longer feels as if the whole room is his. there have been some incidents of the TAG landing on the 'tiel's cage but whereas before there was alot of hostility and chasing (and mauling of my fingers!!!) on the TAG's part he now will almost instantly step up onto my hand from the 'tiel's cage and does not seem to go after the 'tiel anymore (of course i ALWAYS react quickly so it's possible i've never given him the time to!!)

Jacko eats just plain old hagen tropican pellets, no muss no fuss. i do this becuase i'm a student and much as i'd like to, don't have the time to feed a fresh food diet. these pellets are quick, convienent, and have no artificial colours etc. (he's a plucker). he gets as much as he'll eat in one day daily in the morning. also, i will, if i have any, supplement his diet with seeds and nuts that i buy for myself (great for his foraging toys) and he gets the occaisional grape or carrot or spinach etc if i happen to have any handy and am munching on some myself. and yes lol, very rarely he will get something as a treat, (chips, bits of pastry, apple bits from apple pie, things like that but nothing that's an absolute no-no). and as much as i HATE admitting this, because I KNOW better, if i'm short on cash and time i will run out and get the old-fashioned 'parrot' seed mix (i try to make sure it's as good as it could possibly be tho)

i definetly know where you're coming from, jacko had much of the same problems. foraging toys could be a godsend to you right now, so i definetly recommend that. just take her favorite food and block of wood with holes in it etc. and stuff her treats in there (obviously you're going to have to show her there's food there and let her munch etc so she gets the idea). a big foraging toy favorite for jacko was a gatorade bottle with holes and paper and seeds etc stuffed in it (added bonus with this is she'll have to dig the paper out to get at the food and thus learn how much fun flinging paper is in the process!) the flinging things away tells me she doesn't trust you (try turning this into a game with her and saying UH OH etc everytime she drops it and retrieve it for her) but the main thing for you will be just to hang out with her (no eye contact or touching, just chill) also try sitting on the floor by her cage and reading a book, parrots seem baffled by ppl sitting on the floor so she might come down to see wat you're doing (offer her a treat with no eye contact or talking if she does). it's definetly hard to gain the trust of an older grey but it's also the most rewarding experience, becuase these little rescues seem to have the most fascinating personalities! good luck and keep at it!

i ended up purchasing a small 'friend' for my TAG, a tiny male cockatiel Sully (don't ask me what variation lol) they never were out of their cages at the same time, and i never expected or wanted them to physically interact. but they did chat and talk from day one. but then things went south... Sully now has been bitten twice, once on each foot and although he has healed i feel terrible. he now has to stay locked in his cage becuz despite a decent wing clip he was still able to flutter away and land on the TAG's cage... with disastrous results. I either need to teach the cockatiel not be to so nervous with me or teach the TAG to like him. I cannot put him in another room and i cannot take him out of the room. Luckily, the TAG does not go after him when the TAG is out and about exploring, unless that exploring takes him climbing up the side of Sully's cage and I make sure that he NEVER has the chance. should i give him away? i think the TAG's plucking would be worse without the cockatiel nearby to talk to tho. I have also thought about a severe wing clip in order to ground Sully so that he could come and out and play, but know that that could do more harm than good.

Well, like i said, i'm a student and only working part-time so money is tight, but as soon as it is possible a visit to the vet is in order, as well as new larger cage, uv lighting too! he also loves to dance with me too! (and he's better than me lol) but i am torn between laughing and ignoring this behaviour because it is a sexual behaviour with him (he also displays and clucks for me when he does this) veggies and fruits (carrots, bananas and oranges are his favorites!) he eats with gusto (even when he first came to me) actually, but wat i need is a way to perhaps prepare a mix of fruits and veggies etc. that i can store in the fridge so i can give him them on a daily basis

Thanks guys! Well, I'm very happy to say that in these two years he has made progress in leaps and bounds (now steps up like a champ outside his cage even from atop his cage, despite that in being up there he looks down on me) i am also very blessed that now that he does so he is not a biter (any attempt to touch him two yrs ago and he would either run or lash out) however, it would seem to me that he is almost too docile for a older male grey. did he fail to develop emotional independance as a chick? did they perhaps cuddle him too much and not teach him to play and explore? the fact that cuddling is all he seems interested in doing when he is with me seems to support this. lol, as much as i love having a grey who's a giant teddy bear bird i would like to see him do other things! any ideas? altho as i write this i'm still nursing a sore finger lol, but his normal periods of hormonal behaviour appear about this time anyway and only around his cage

I've heard that it can help a rescue grey if they r renamed. Supposedly this is because it gets rid of the negative associations to the old environment. Is this a good idea? Can it be done? And if so, wat tips and tricks r there to teach the grey it's new name and actually get it to respond to it?

The poor little guy has a host of other problems. Any help would be appreciated. 1-He is, unfortunately a feather plucker, but just under his wings and over his back. (i have a feeling this results from everything else) 2-Will not bathe! (Likes the mister on occaision, and will in very cute amazon style have a bath) 3-He shows no intesrest in interactive play, like games or anything like that. 4-(In a way I am happy for this because it shows he is comfortable with me) he does the 'cluck dance' every time i pick him up, and altho i put him down and ignore the behaviour it continues! I have a feeling most of this stems from the fact that he probably was not provided for during his developmental phase and i have read that you have to lead the grey back into the phase again. BUT, how do you do that with an 8 year old male grey?

I received my little TAG 2 yrs ago when he was five or six. I know little of his background. Aside from that i am his third home in his life, and the lady from which i purchased (rescued?) him had lived with him after the relative she had purchased the bird for no longer wanted him. He has no band on his foot either. when i went to visit i found him in a smoky basement (also in the room was an ailing 30 yr old amazon) with no toy other than a ratty cockatiel bell, and two old chewed dowel perches to sit on. She let him out of the cage (which was at least 20 yrs old), then grabbed him and pried him off the top of his cage and handed him to me. I, needless to say, fell in love. When they brought him and his old cage to me he was contained in a old beer case!!! He ate seed and wtv else they gave him in the past (including coffee, steak etc.) I quickly educated myself and now he is faring much better in terms of diet (hagen tropican pellets) i wish i could feed him a fruit and veggie supplemented diet but i am a student and pressed for time. However, his problems continued. He wouldn't play, and it took weeks of a toy sitting in his cage for him to begin chewing. Now he luvs to chew and shred things. But he refuses to take any interest in anythhing else, like puzzles etc. He attempts to chew them but that is it, (and because they r not chewable he quicky drops them), it's as if he does know how to do anything but! Any ideas?? I'd like to teach my grey how to use his brain!

hi everyone, my little timneh Jacko (rescue sort of...) has been with me for two of his 7-8 years (i was told by his previous owner he was 5 or 6... and she'd had him for three years)needless to say he came with 'many issues' (however is delightfully unfinicky with his food) i am looking forward to finding answers to my questions here and finally being able to make my little guy (girl? jacko's never laid an egg so i presume with his age that had he been female he would've done so already)whole and happy as he very much deserves to be!