Acappella

Stewart sounds almost exactly like Dorian when I brought him home. Dodo was cage bound and didn't know what toys were for. He'd only had acrylic toys in his cage. His previous owners liked them because they were indestructible, but because of that all Dorian knew toys were good for was beating them against the bars of his cage (still a favourite activity btw). Even the most basic foraging is still beyond him, and toys that other birds would destoy in a week hang around him for months. He also liked tearing paper, so I took that info and ran with it. Every toy I make for him have two things in common. They are made up of a lot of colourful paper cupcake cups, and every toy must have a bell. I've had him for 5 years now, and he's only just started lightly chewing on some of the soft wood pieces I include in most toys. My advice is to compare Stewart as little as possible to other birds here that had lots of enrichment experiences and toys from babyhood, and meet him where he is.

He's probably going to need more than a few days to settle. There are exceptions of course, but most greys are slooooooooooooww to adapt to change. To give you an idea, when I re-homed Dorian it was six months before he volutarilly came out of his cage, and 2 1/2 years before I could get him onto my hand and move him to another room. He's an extreme example. However, my patience has been rewarded with a confident and happy bird that will be with me for a very long time. There's no rush. Remember how long greys live, and let your new companion settle in and feel safe.

If this opportunity wasn't meant to be, another will present itself. Your bird is out there somewhere. Welcome to the forum.

Ahh, patience. I believe that has to be one of the top-ten most often used words on this forum. Right up there with poop, mess, cage, toy, poop, money, food, feather, and poop!!!!!!! These guys are great at teaching patience. When you're dealing with an animal as long-lived as a grey, you learn to speak in terms of months and years instead of days and weeks. Have fun learning and waiting for your baby, and welcome to the forum.

I have a cat. It helps that Jac (kitty) has never been outside so he's not a hunter. In fact, when Dorian startles off a perch and flies unexpectably, Jac runs the other way. On the other hand, Dorian isn't afaid of Jac at all, so it's really Dorian I have to watch. He's been trying to get a taste of cat-tail for years now. I never leave them alone in the same room if Dorian's cage is open, and if they ever get too close to each other all it takes is an "I'm watching you two" from me to scatter the troops.

I think all greys need a bird-safe bell they can beat the daylights out of. It's better if Dorian takes out his frustration on it than on me!

Well, it re-liquifies old poops, so they're easy to wipe up.

I have one of those Shark hand-held steam cleaners and I love it. It loosens up dried on poops, blasts seeds out of hard-to-reach places, blows away birdy dust, and leaves things really clean. Of course, Dorian has to be somewhere else because of the heat. Only down side? The heat 'refreshes' the poop smell! lol

everyone here rocks! Good luck with the project.

Is the cage in a corner where he might feel less vulnerable? Maybe cover part of it even during the day so he feels more sheltered. Could be you have the forums first agoraphobic birdy.

Dorian will use either of his feet to step up, but will only step onto my right hand. Any attempts to distribute the back-of-the-hand scarring to both my hands is met with refusal.

I love the name! Is your son a 'Buffy' fan by any chance?

Well, I certainly don't know anything beyond the basic info when it comes to breeding greys, but I applaud your attitude towards research. I think we should encourage someone who wants to be a responsible breeder, because when it comes to bringing our babies home we want them to come from caring informed breeders. Maybe you could PM Dave007 and see if he can guide you in the right direction.

Off topic, but my cat JAC's name stands for Just A Cat. DJ is beautiful. You're one of the lucky ones that has a bird who doesn't act like water will kill him

Aside from the clip/no clip question, sounds like you've found a good breeder. My only question is do they allow their birds to fledge before they do the clip? Dorian was never allowed to fledge and since he's been with me his flying has not improved too much. He's clued in that he has these things attached to his body that can take him from place to place, but he is very hesitant to try to fly. When he is startled off a perch by something he used to have some very messsy landings. The landings are getting better, but he still flys like Super Dave Osborne, if Super Dave was also blind and drunk! (non Canadians may have to look up the Super Dave reference).

Or an analysis of the wing feathers of a bird, what ones are neccesary for full flight, safe gliding etc. She could site the article on feather grafting that's on here somewhere.

Funny, this is something that's been on my mind. I've been single for the whole time I've had Dorian. Between caring for my Dad and dealing with my own health issues dating was not even on my top 100 list. Plus, being in my very small home town hasn't exactly been condusive to finding a partner (I didn't date the locals when I was a teen, and the pool hasn't improved in the intervening years lol). Now I'll be moving into my own home in a new town, and dating has been on my mind. I have no idea how Dorian would react. He is so bonded to me he might not take kindly to someone else being around. That being said, I could never be with anyone who didn't take my connection to Mr D. and my commitment to his well-being seriously. I'd allow time for a learning curve, and he wouldn't have to be as crazy as I am for Dorian, but respect for me would mean respect for my priorities.

My big worry about having a cage outside without you around would be an animal coming around to investigate. It may not be able to get to your bird but it could sure scare her badly resulting in a broken blood feather, or just a major attitude change, and you wouldn't know exactly what caused it. Your bird's biggest need, other than food and shelter, is to be with you, so as long as the cage is big enough for her to spread her wings comfortably and play, I'd go for a cage that she can be near you in.

I love love love my cage from Avian Adverntures. It's easy to clean, easy to put together, the dishes are birdy-proof (no way for birdy to get them out of the holder and fling them about. The doors all have built-in locks that are very effective. Really, can't say enough good things about them.

Big key to getting them to try something new to eat is to let them see you eating something. Since greys live by the motto " what's mine is mine, what's your's is mine" if them see you enjoying something they'll be more motivated to give it a try.

Glad to hear another bird's life has changed for the better!

Hi Vicki. I was just wondering how it's going with your new-to-you birdy?

The first time this happened to Dorian I was on here stressing out, so I understand your worry. Every time this has happened to Dorian its sorted itself out, sometimes in a day, sometimes in a couple of weeks. Don't worry about it unless it seems to be bothering karma. If she's behaving normally, I'd just keep an eye on it and give it time to fall out.

I just read through the whole thread and have been smiling all the way through. Love the fact that in every picture your baby is either playing, or just finished eating, evidenced by the food 'round his beak. Looks like you have a very happy, very lively boy coming your way!

and there are no stupid questions <3