siobha9

Falconeer I am so sorry to hear about Tonto. I thought he was getting better. The poor poor baby. You must be devastated. I am thinking of you Siobhan

Well I suppose since you asked... I did like your jokes... here is some karma

Wow! Lots of questions! But fair play to you for wanting to get it right. I am no expert, just a parrot owner but I will give it a bash! More experienced people will chime in later to help you. Also lots of your questions are answered in other threads if you use the search box at the top. But anyway - here goes! Can teflon pans (george forman grill included) harm my CAG? Is it the smell or chewing it or being near it? Yes they can kill instantly- it is the fumes given off when they are overheated Can smoking harm my parrot? Not actual second hand smoke I would never smoke by my parrot but the actual smell of smoke in my clothes or on my breathe etc. I think it is actually the second hand smoke that harms them. Lots of our owners leave the room to smoke. I have a very teeney tiny spot of rust on a used cage I bought (roughly the size of a a pencil eraser) but the rest is like new and powder coated is that still safe or do I need to sand the rust and re powder coat it? I would personally. I can't imagine that would be good for him. What are primary toys a starting owner should buy right off for a parrot? Swing, dangle toys bells? Chew and foot toys. If I choose not to clip my parrots wings what risk do I run of taking my bird outside to a park etc? Is there a way they can have wings but can't fly away like a parrot leashe for example Yes there are a couple of brands of flight harnesses. I use an aviator harness on my greys, they arent clipped. Whats sites or links can I go to teach my parrot 3 simple principles step up, step down and don't poop outside your cage? All of these are covered in the training section of this forum. What if my sleeping schedule changes and my parrot is on a normal cycle do I alter his to match mine or keep him on his cycle and just let him be while I sleep. Ideally give him a routine and stick to it, but if that means you arent going to get time to interact maybe you should alter his. If it is going to change long term then change his, but if it is only for a day or two then leave his schedule alone. Is it safe to let a parrot roam the house freely when you are doing things like taking a shower or cooking dinner or in another room doing laundry etc? Or must they be supervised 24-7? It only takes one good bite to chew through an electric cable. I supervise mine... but then I am a nervous mother! And I have two greys... double the trouble. My roomate has a red crested or macaw (i think thats the name?) they get a little red on the top of their head. Can CAG's bond with other parrots and play safely or do other parrots tend to fight when together? They usually fight How often do you need to clip their nails? How often should they shower? Misting vs Showers? Is it ok to wet their heads etc? I don't clip my guys nails... they have concrete perches to file their nails on. They shower every 2 or 3 days. Yes soak them as thoroughly as you can. There are threads on how to bath them on this forum too. I own a motorcycle not a car if the parrot had to visit a vet etc would it be safe to take him along in a parrot backpack where he could breathe but wouldnt be exposed to high winds? Would the vibration and noise frighten it? I have no idea! Whats a parrots normal wake up and sleep cycle? And how often should I cover the cage when it sleeps? They need 10-12 hours sleep otherwise they get crabby. I dont cover their cage, I just turn out the light. How can i tell if my parrot is too hot or too cold or feeling just right? Good question! I dont know ! How often should their litter box be changed and cage bars cleaned of poop and excess food? Every day at least!

I know what you mean. Parrots and all their stuff can be quite expensive. But your grey doesnt know the difference between shop stuff and home made. Here is a thread on home made toys http://www.greyforums.net/forums/african-grey/54949-homemade-toys.html#54949 There are lots more if you search for "toys"!

Congratulations on your new baby... what is his name? How old is he? I bet you are having loads of fun already!

Are you sure H2B and my hubby aren't related???? That definitely sounds like something he would do!!! {Feel-good-0002006E}

I am sorry! {Love-000200C5}

22 plus tax at the higher rate!!

Congratulations on your baby girl!

I think it needs to be a bit more than occasionally. I mean I never gave Liath treats... at all! All her treats came from hubby. I was the one with the cuddles and the scratches and he was the treat machine. He still cant cuddle her the way I can, but she isnt quite so mean to him now. We got a second grey about a year later, and the roles are completely reversed. Although I can pet his grey, just not as much as my own. I do feed her her normal food though.

{Characters-00020057} I was still a baby way back then.....

Skuffy wrote: It could be up to a year or longer, depending on when they are due to molt...

There are lots of things you can use, but you just need to be careful about it. Natural ingredients always work great. Tip no. 1 is put Bently securely in his cage and open the windows for 30 minutes. Try cutting a lemon in half and microwaving it... leaves a lovely lemony scent in the air. Make a natural beeswax polish to rub onto your furniture. Use a few drops of essential oils in your water when you wash the floor. I have also heard that there is a pet friendly Febreze available in pet shops. It isnt for sale here (Ireland) but you may be able to source it somewhere. I also roast a few coffee beans every now and then! Or put on a fresh brew of coffee. I don't use pot pourri because my birds are not clipped and I found one of them sitting happily on the rim of the dish shredding it - which definitely cant be good for them Siobhan

You just need to make sure that your husband keeps handling him regardless of the nips etc. If he gives up (as my husband did) it is a LONG road back to where he is at now. Also if you keep back his favourite treat and let your husband hand feed that. So if he loves sunflower seeds, dont put any in his dish, and let your husband feed them to Biggles (Love that name!). My husband has started working on trick training with my grey to interact with her without actually handling her and she loves it. But the biggest tip is don't give up! Siobhan

That is definitely a young bird (I love the mucky face... so cute!). It is very hard to tell from pictures what a bird is like, but he looks healthy and happy. And he is clean apart from his cute face! Good luck with him! Siobhan

It just goes to show... bigger is not always better...:whistle:

What are you hoping to use the clicker for? Is it to distract him?

That is SUCH a clever name for a bird! Welcome to the fourm. For those of you who have never heard of Biggles, he is a really posh fictional British pilot. Here is a picture of one of the books

Hi Marlow, Are you hoping to get a grey particularly or just any type of bird? Its just that although greys definitely arent the noisiest of parrots (I have a little pipsqueak of a caique who can outscream my greys any day!) but they are vocal and may not be the best for an appartment. But it is good to see you are doing your homework first Good luck with the landlady! Siobhan

Cute in an ugly sort of way!!! How many birds will that make? Siobhan

I honestly believe that if YOU couldn't help this grey then he is probably beyond help. I feel sorry for the little guy, but the person to blame is the one that caught him from the wild in the first place. Good luck with the others! Siobhan

I must confess there were 1 or 2 teeny little rows in our house the first couple of months. My kids probably wondered who this raving monster was who would literally become hysterical over a dirty sock found on the floor or a teaspoon which wasnt in the dishwasher. You understand don't you? Just teeny weeny rows, tiffs really, hardly worth mentioning actually! But now I consider myself to be quite sane, relatively speaking No seriously though, it is hard, very very hard. But it is well worth it, financially, personally and everything. Not to mention how proud you will feel when you FINALLY kick the habit. 3 weeks is great - don't knock it.... And sure maybe a few more members might join you???? Any takers??? Siobhan

Eventually - she says at 18 months off them! But occasionally, very very occasionally I would still rob my granny for a cig ! {Feel-bad-00020063}

She is probably just too young. I COMPLETELY understand your frustration. I remember begging with her, please just say hello and I will get off your case. I used to imagine that sounds she made were this word or that word and my family would laugh at me and say don't be ridiculous, she can't talk. Well almost to the day she turned 13 months she started with Hello, all day long. Then she added her name. By the end of that month she had 2 or 3 more phrases. And now I have no idea how much she can say, she is now 20 months old. If she can do the wolf whistle, it is possible that she will talk, as that it is still an imitation, not a natural sound. BUT, not all greys talk. And not all greys talk in front of people. We have one member here who has a closet talker, will only talk when her mammy leaves the room. Have you tried hiding and listening to her? Honestly, hard as it is, I recommend you give it time. If you are frustrated talking to her, she will pick up on that. Keep it natural. I feel your pain, I have given you some karma to cheer you up Siobhan

Tom Sellick - Magnum PI - YUM! same question.... When you were growing up, who was the one you dreamed of? Such as getting married to a actor/actress or singer.