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debstein started following At wits end and need advice , trying to understand Romo and Happy Romo Update
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Thanks so much for the response and help! It is good to know that he is 'normal', whatever that is. I guess I need to identify what sets hiim off. Tonight it was that I let him out of his cage, but was on the phone and turned away to finish my call.......so I guess he was upset that he didn't have my undivided attention. But then again, he is SO much better than he was a few months ago when he was angry ALL the time. Now he interacts with us more and is more affectionate like when he was a baby. Chelsea - I do wear a baseball cap most of the time when I am working around the house. Since Romo sometimes dive bombs my head, it provides a level of protection! Deb and Romo in N TX
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A while back I posted about the problems we were having with Romo, our 3 yr old Timneh. He was attacking me on a regular basis and I was about ready to rehome him. With no warning, he would fly at my face or at my head and try to bite me. I followed the advice given on this forum and Romo responded well. But someone on this forum posted that "greys don't attack" and I need to take issue with that statement. Even after everything we have done, Romo DOES attack, and I have no idea what causes his aggression. He is out of his cage 50% of the time, gets tons of attention from both me and my husband, has lots of toys and foraging items in his cage - but on occasion he still flies at my face or my head and behaves in a manner that indicates he is angry. Tonight, as I am typing this post, he is on my shoulder and puts his head under my chin to get scritches.....he is being incredibly sweet and almost loving. But 2 days ago, when I was getting his food ready, he flew at me and bit me on the shoulder hard enough to draw blood. I try not to react, but I feel like I have a schizophrenic parrot. Help!!
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A month or so ago, I posted about our 3 yr old TAG, Romo and how aggressive he had become towards me. Flying directly at my face, attacking my head without provocation and savagely biting me without warning - and I am his main caregiver! Y'all gave me great advice, which I followed. He's getting more out of cage time, I've protected all the wood furniture he was chewing, and if he doesn't want anything to do with me, I respect it and go about my business. I stopped taking his behavior personally - he accepts his baths now because he is going to get them one way or another, and once he realized that, he almost seemed to enjoy them. I tell him it's time for a bath and he stopped trying to get away from it once he realized it is inevitable. Yesterday he really wanted out of the cage, but I had to go to work, so I made him some scrambled eggs (he would sell his soul for scrambled eggs) and he was perfectly happy to stay in his cage and eat his treat. While I post this, he is perched on the top of the door, talking away to me, and since I am off work for the next 3 days, he can spend it all out of the cage if he wants.....as long as he behaves. He does still fly at me occasionally, but since I don't react anymore, it isn't as much "fun" for him. I can't thank you all enough for the help you provided, Romo has even had some moments lately when he wanted his head rubbed and cuddled, and that hasn't happened in almost a year!! Deb and Romo in N TX
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Romo went to the vet yesterday and had his nails trimmed and beak trimmed a tiny bit. I did NOT have his wings clipped, although my husband and mother think I am nuts. The vet was really good and handled him well. The worst part was moving him from his large cage to the small carrier - I tried to do it with the least amount of trauma, using a soft towel to contain him, although he gave me a really hard bite on the finger as I put him in the carrier. Can't blame him though, I wouldn't have been happy either. I have to drive 70 miles to the closest avian vet, so he was in the carrier for several hours, but he did well. Since then, I've just been trying to spend more time with him and read more on the forums so I can do right by him. Deb & Romo
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Thanks so much! I thought that Romo was already mature, I guess I thought that he was mature at 2 yrs old. He's done so well out of the cage today, although I have NO idea how I will get him into a travel cage to go to the vet tomorrow. He even flew to my finger and stayed there for awhile without biting or attacking me.
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Thanks to everyone! Romo has been out all day today, because it is my day off, and I will be off for the next 2 days as well. He has behaved well, enjoying the view from his huge playstand and spending time on top of the kitchen cabinets. I placed some tinfoil on the tops of the bookcases where he has been chewing, and I will be more careful when introducing new toys. After reading danmcq's thread about punishment (although I truly haven't attempted to punish Romo), I will put more acceptable landing areas all over the house. However, he has to accept me as his main caregiver, whether he favors me or not. Without me, he would starve. I just don't want to be attacked. I'll take care of him forever and will him to my grandson, but he can't attack me.
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Thanks so much for your response! I can't express how guilty I feel about his behavior....I raised 3 sons and never felt like this. Not a single thing has changed in his life. Our schedule is always the same, no new pets, no new food, no new hairstyles nothing. Romo is an excellent talker and in the mornings, he talks up a storm. I answer him back and repeat some things that he says. I say words and phrases that he hasn't said in awhile and remind him that he knows those words. He does seem to be fearful and lacks confidence. When I put a new toy in his cage, he is scared for days. I stuck a pepper from the garden in the cage next to his food bowl yesterday and he wouldn't go eat until I removed it. When I run the vacuum cleaner, he goes crazy in his cage, or if he is out, he flies around the house frantically. I used to be his favorite person, but my husband probably is now. I don't know why though, because Barry has practically nothing to do with him. Romo will sit on the fireplace next to Barry's recliner and try to steal food off his plate, sometimes eats popcorn with him, but Barry doesn't really want to interact with him much, just tolerates him for short periods of time. Romo doesn't usually bite Barry or attempt to attack him like he does to me. I feed him, clean the cage, talk to him, make his treats, let him out, buy him toys and fix his foraging packages. Tomorrow he is going to the vet for the first time in his life. His nails are long and I think his beak might be long too, although he eats wood like crazy. I know from reading posts here that you aren't in favor of wing clipping and I wasn't either.....until I had to defend myself against an attacking TAG. That Tippi Hedren action isn't much fun at all....and maybe it might be a temporary fix until Romo and I get on the same page again.
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We have had Romo almost 3 years, he just turned 3 and we got him as a fledgling. He was always the sweetest bird until he matured and then he became hard to handle, aggressive, and just downright cranky. He is fully flighted, gets up on my bookcases and eats the wood and is completely undisciplined. And I'm sure it is my fault. He has a huge cage with lots of toys that are changed out often, gets the best food, plus fresh veggies and fruit every day, and some foraging toys as well. When I feed him, he attacks the food and throws it at me, when I let him out of his cage, he sometimes flies straight at my face to attack me, or if I walk through the room, he will fly at my head and try to attack my hair. When he is out of his cage, he has a huge play stand made of natural wood with a view of the back patio and lots of toys hanging on that too. Every once in awhile he acts like he wants to be nice, but it is so rare that I can't tell you the last time he did that. I used to let him out of his cage every day for several hours, but lately I only do it a few times a week. I have to take him to the vet to have his nails clipped and his beak checked, and I think I want his wings clipped so he will be a little more dependent on me. It would be much easier for me to be around him if I wasn't as fearful as I am now. I'm not enjoying him any more and he obviously isn't enjoying his life either.....he does not pluck feathers or engage in any self-destructive habits. I want to do what is right for him and am completely open to any constructive suggestions you experienced and successful grey owners might have......I don't want to rehome Romo, I want to have a good relationship with him and not be afraid of him. Thanks, Deb & Romo
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Thanks for the info about Parrot Fever! I just received my first order from them - even with shipping, it was cheaper than other online places. I bought 5 lbs of Harrisons High Potency Coarse, 1 bag of Power Treats and 1 bag of Pepper Nutriberries. I ordered on the 4th and it arrived on the 8th, so I would say that is very good service, since I am in TX and they are in VA. Plus they added a free birdie bagel to the order, so Romo will have a new toy to play with. The funny thing is that Romo hated the Harrison's pellets when I first tried them. He liked the Hagen, so that's what I fed him. Then last month, he was out of the Tropistix and I bought the Harrisons again and this time he LOVES them! I can put 3 or 4 different kinds of pellets and he will only eat the Harrisons. Go figure. He'd better not change his mind, because he is a Harrison's bird now!:laugh:
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Between life, work, and a broken computer, I haven't been on the forums in months, but thought I'd post an update on our TAG, Romo. He is 18 months old now and is such a joy in our lives! Romo started talking recently and says: Go Cowboys! Touchdown! Pretty Bird Baby Bird Bubba Bird I Love You Good morning He also makes a ton of noises, dog barking, whistles songs, and since he started talking, he is picking up a new word or sound every week. But mostly he is still so affectionate, he loves to be petted and rubbed all over and is such a sweetie. He does have an occasional "bratty bird" day, but they are few and far between. Since he is our first parrot, we really had no idea that he could be such an affectionate addition to our lives. Happy Holidays, everyone!
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Romo didn't like the palm nuts the first few times I offered them. Then I forgot all about them in the freezer for a month - and tried again. Now he LOVES them! I guess he had to decide on his own terms. He also likes the food I bought from BirdDelicious - I give it along with the Hagen Tropicans and Tropimix that he adores, plus fruits and veggies. He's an easy baby to keep happy!:laugh:
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Congratulations on Elmo talking!!! He sounds very precocious and super smart. :laugh: Romo has been trying to talk for awhile - he may actually BE talking and we just can't figure out what he is saying! :unsure: He started mumbling about 2 months ago, and now his talking has cadence like speech, but just isn't clear enough to know what he's saying. Romo's about 8 months old, so it seems like he will be a talker.
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Actually Hannah, when I saw the pic you posted of Juji's playstand - it inspired me to ask for one for Romo! :laugh: Barry loves woodworking stuff, and since we live in the country, we have access to lots of trees. I'm sure that Romo will chew it up over time, but I'm equally sure that we can replace anything he chews up!
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My hubby, Barry was watching way too much tv lately, so I asked him to build a playstand for Romo. When I came home from work last night, he and Romo were ready to show me this!!! http://www.silkiechickens.com/romo.htm'>http://www.silkiechickens.com/romo.htm It's huge and so cool - I want to hang a boing from one of the hooks, and need to get some more toys, a rope perch to go across the V of the tree limb, and some bowls to mount. At first Romo was scared of it, but he's warming up nicely, especially since it has so many irresistible toys on it. And Barry put casters on the base so I can roll it from room to room. And best of all, it only cost about $20 to make - the toys will probably cost way more than that. The limb is bird-safe pecan and he sprayed it with oxine, so it is clean and germ free. I can't seem to get pics to post today, so instead here's a link to a page with playstand pics. http://www.silkiechickens.com/romo.htm
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Romo didn't want anything to do with a bowl of water or the sink. I started asking him if he wanted a bath and taking him with me in the shower. I fill a spray bottle with hot water and mist it over him - he seems to really enjoy it. He has a shower perch and enjoys being in there but doesn't like the actual spray from the shower. He just gets his misting and then keeps me company.