Acappella

Miki sounds like more of a rescue/rehome than a pet. Is it possible the breeder tried to pair her as a breeder, was unsuccesful, and then sold her as a pet instead? I'm asking because for a young bird she is acting like a breeder, not tame to people. Whatever the reason for her behaviour the response is the same. Lots and lots and lots of patience. I'm talking weeks and months here, not days. Lots of us here have been down this road before you and have, with the encouragement and guidance of other forum members, ended up with wonderful loving companion greys. Take a look at this info from the training room. http://www.greyforums.net/forums/showthread.php?109373-Body-language-most-frequently-seen Also, do some reading in the Rescue forum room. You may even want to start a thread there about Miki. Your most important job right now is to get as much info into you as possible, and make Miki start to feel safe. Lots of time sitting as close to her cage as you can before she starts to shake or show fear. Talking softly to her. Keeping her environment as calm as quiet as possible. If possible, warn her before there is a loud noise, or if you can't, go to her and reassure her after something startles her. 10-12 hours of quiet dark sleep time will help her settle and make her more resilient. Don't rush her or pressure her. This is when you are establishing your bond and laying the groundwork for her to trust you. Thank you for giving Miki a new start. We're here to cheer you on.

And that is why I will never get a Too, no matter how cute. On migraine days Dorians' smoke detector beep is bad enough (although he's usually a pretty good by if he senses momma isn't feeling well). There's no way I could handle the Too scream.

Thank you for taking this grey into your home and heart. The most important tool you have is patience ( and of course the support of all of us at the forum family ). Don't get discouraged if you read here about other people and how they interact with their birds. We all have our own journeys. You might like to start a thread for Leo in the rescue forum room. Lots of people here have had rescues or re homes that arrived with lots of baggage, and sometimes it helps to vent to others that have walked a similar path.

Very nice job.

Such a sweet looking boy. I"d love to have a cuddler like that, cooking be damned! Well, I don't really cook, but you get the idea.

I have to admit, I saw this one coming.

Love how he's leaning into the spray. So cute.

We need some clarification pcarrot. Are your birds a bonded pair? That means, are they mated to each other? The impression your first post gives is that they are more wild. Do they interact with you or show any signs of being bonded to you? How old are they and how long have you had them? Knowing this will help us advise you. I agree with the others. That cage is waaaaay to small for one grey, let alone two. Even if you're only using it for a sleep cage, if you want them to be more tame and bond to you, they should each have their own cages. Your parrot's cage should be its' safe place. Maybe your male is doing something that makes your female not want to share a cage. You say this behaviour is sudden, but it's possible that she's been trying to tell you something for a while and you haven't noticed. Take a look at the thread in the Training forum room entitled "body language most frequently seen". It will help you understand what your birds are trying to tell you. Lastly, do not try to catch your bird in a trap of any kind. Not only will it destroy any trust you have, but the chances of injuring your bird are too high. I would get each of your babies it's own cage. (There's a forum room here specifically about cages and toys with lots of great information), and then make the cage a place they want to be in. Bribery works wonders. Lol. Fresh water and a favourite treat and some yummy food and she'll eventually choose to be in her cage. Hope this helps. Please post again with more information about your birds, like their names, and we'll try to help further.

You're a good parrot. I'll keep healing thoughts for your baby. <3

It does sound like he is seeking you out, both with his contact calling and coming to your room. Be careful of him perching on door tops. Birds have sometimes lost toes when a door was closed on them. I would put something in the way to make sure the door can't be closed whenever Jellybean is flying around. As for the glove and biting. When JB does bite you, can you get a sense of how hard it is? Is it finger amputating hard, puncture wound hard, or leave a dent in the skin hard? When are the bites happening? Are they in situations where you absolutely have to handle him? Eg. Dorian tends to bite at night when he doesn't want to go to bed. If he tries, I make a sad face and turn my back/ leave the room, and, if it's dark, I turn off all lights but the night light. I don't go back into the room until he is really calling for me. When I do I immediately offer him step up again. If he refuses, I repeat my behaviour. The message becomes clear to him pretty fast. "If I try to bite I'm left alone". Then when he does step up I praise and praise, give him a treat, and lots of scratches. Same idea if I want him to come into another room with me. What I'm doing is letting him make the choice and giving him some control. I believe it's key to building a trusting relationship. Of course, if he's in a dangerous situation you have to force a step up and take the bite but, as much as possible, try to steer Jellybean into making the choice you want him to make. It's time consuming at first, but you'll end up with less puncture wounds!

Mbs is hard to fight. Right. Ow I'm cleaning the original cage Dorian came in so I can sell it. I know myself too well to keep an empty cage around. The temptation is too great.

You describe the battle of the boing so well! I've seen similar fights with bells and swings. They're soooo funny in this mood, it's almost impossible not to laugh. I join in, encouraging "kill the bell, kill the bell".

I think I've come up with the perfect solution to the 'who is landing' problem...Contacts!!

Here's what the box looks like today.

Y'know, reading your description of how Gilbert's feathers are coming, and staying, in made me think of something. I think you need to change out his picture in your signature for a more fully feathered version. He's not that little half-plucked boy any more. <3

Maybe it was something in the air, because up here in Ontario Mr. Dorian was also in a MOOD all day yesterday! Hope things settle down for you and the boys.

Having a bird was never on my radar. Then a pet store opened in my home town. The owner and I met in a community group and I started going into the store. Well, she had her pet gray, Dorian, in a large cage in the middle of the store and I was immediately drawn to him. As I researched CAGs I began to realize that Dorians life could be a lot better. He was kept in his cage 100% of the time. The only time he was taken out was to have his wings clipped. He was extremely cage territorial and totally afraid of peoples hands. He was the victim of the bone-headed way some people behave toward animals in stores. Also Bev, his owner, was treating him like the Too she had before him, and it was clear to me that he was not benifitting from this treatment. Dorian was extremely high strung and nervous all the time. Also, his water and food didn't get changed on a regular basis, and his cage was filthy. But what could I do, he wasn't mine. Well, Bev hired me to work a few hours a week in the store and that gave me a chance to work with him one on one. I would change his dishes, clean his cage, sit and talk to him, even open the door when I could do it safely. Then Bev was diagnosed with breast cancer and I, and another friend from the community, took over the store for months while she was treated and recovered. By the time she was up to coming back to the store Dorian didn't want anything to do with her. All he knew was that she vanished from his life, and she didn't have the energy or the will to put in the time and effort to win back his trust. She could see that Dorian had bonded to me, but she wasn't ready to let him go. Then she had another cancer scare (a false alarm this time thank goodness), and she decided to sell the business to the woman who had been keeping it open along with me. I asked if she would consider selling Dorian to me and, after a lot of thought, she agreed. And so that is how DohDoh came to live with me.

She totally looks like she's smiling in the first picture. Lucky girl.

Dorian is making the best of the situation:p http://s226.beta.photobucket.com/user/Schemda/media/IMG_0239.mp4.html http://s226.photobucket.com/albums/dd158/Schemda/?action=view&current=IMG_0239.mp4

Congrats on the addition to your flock. Don't be discouraged, you have years ahead if you. A week is little more than a blink in grey time. My advice would be to not force a step up or removal from the cage. Instead, offer a step up and if Lucy doesn't comply tell her "ok, maybe later" and step away. Make the world outside the cage look like big fun that she is missing out on. Eg. I used to sit on the floor outside Dorian's cage with my back to him and "play". Sometimes I'd work at making a toy, sometimes play with the cat. After a few minutes I'd stand and offer him a step up again. Or I'd offer a step-up before leaving the room. I'd ask if he wanted to "come with mom" and when he declined I'd leave the room for a few minutes, then return and try again. Repeat and repeat and repeat. Took months with Dorian, but he is especially cautious because of his life before me. This approach does two things. It lets your fid know that you respect their wishes - this makes them feel more secure and confident. At the same time you're taking advantage of their flock instinct to want to be "with" other flock members at all times, and you're using their curiosity (that's why I'd sit with my back to the cage) against them. Grey's hate to think they're missing out on something. The more you act like you don't really want them to participate, the more irresistible participating becomes. Lol

And on that day we won't let you down. Gilbert's recent improvement has me really wondering about the rescue remedy and if it would have helped in Dorian's early days with me. I think he's happy now, but he's still a bird who rarely plays, and he's never caught on to the 'birds are supposed to chew stuff' thing. I believe it's because he only had acrylic toys in his cage when he was a baby. You know, the type that are popular with owners because they last forever. There's nothing wrong with them, but they should have been offered along with other, destructible toys. No matter what I do I've never been able to convince him to chew on any wood toy. The best he does is to bash them against the cage bars, 'cause with his early toys that's all he could do. As far as flying, I think it scares him too much. Maybe if there was a little brother or sister here that he could observe flying he might get the idea, but that's not a good enough reason for me to enter into MBS land. I'm so happy that Gilberts little feathered soul has finally opened up and entered into the world of love and fun that you've had ready for him since he joined your flock.

Sorry, I giggled at the visual with Gabby. I've done that walk in my very early days with Dorian, only it was my nose he was hanging from! Congrats on the progress with Bongo. Isn't it great when they finally decide it's safe to take a step towards you in your relationship. <3

Well, if Romeo is on you when he's doing this you say 'no' and remove him, either to a playstand or his cage if he's flighted (sorry, I can't remember if he is). Same if he's just near you, like on the back of a chair. He loses the option of perching there. It's a birdy time out. You remove him for a few minutes and then give him another chance as if nothing happened. Repeat (and repeat and repeat...) If he loves being with you, and his behaviour means he can't stay with you, he'll eventually understand that doing a certain thing means he loses the privilege. I'd find a couple of old shirts to wear for now. Call them your training shirts. There's a good chance his behaviour will get worse first as he's trying to figure out why your behaviour has changed. Just be gentle and consistant.

Every single spot and stand Dorian has must have two things - a bell and a roll of receipt paper! Try making toys with paper cupcake liners. They're a big hit here with my paper shredder.

Very important to ignore the screams. Don't respond until birdy makes a noise you find acceptable. When a 'good' noise is made respond and praise. Otherwise you'll be in danger of accidentaly re-inforcing the scream. And try not to feel guilty. Focus on making the cage a safe and happy place to be. Explain why he has to be in his cage to him. Like Nancy says, they start to understand the difference between going in the cage for bedtime and going in for 1/2 an hour while you cook, even if they don't understand all your words. Just like putting a cranky toddler in a car seat, sometimes it has to happen even if they're not in the mood!