chezron

Sorry I didn't know what latitude Serbia is sitting on--my bad. To get the calming effects of sun Grumpy must go outside, sunshine through windows doesn't work because all of the beneficial rays are blocked.

That is so funny and amazing with Gilbert!

Does Grumpy get trips out into the sunshine? Boy it really helped my grey. He stopped mutilating his feathers within a couple of days of regular sunshine. I know you live in Serbia, so that time is probably limited.

I would use the above recipe, but DON'T USE DAWN DISH SOAP! It has too many toxic ingredients! Use a non-toxic soap like Dr. Bronner's. Goal: Replace all toxic chemicals in Dawn dish soap. It’s puzzling how a company that promotes itself as a rescuer of wildlife can get away with selling products containing toxic ingredients and tested on animals. It’s not as surprising, though, once you learn that the company is Procter and Gamble. Procter and Gamble owns Dawn dish soap, a product full of toxic chemicals, encased in plastic packaging with images of seals, ducks and claims of caring about wildlife on it. Tell Robert A. McDonald actions speak louder than words. Tell him to prove that his company is really concerned about its customers and wildlife by switching to only organic ingredients in Dawn dish soap. To list just a few of the toxic ingredients found in Dawn dish soap, there’s Trisoclan, an ingredient found in some of Dawn’s antibacterial dish soap products. This chemical has been linked to heart disease and heart failure and it also impairs muscle function. Studies have also shown it to be a potential endocrine disruptor, which can cause cancerous tumors, birth defects and other developmental disorders. Another chemical, sodium bisulfate, can cause life-threatening side effects if ingested. Quaternium 15 is a formaldehyde releaser that can irritate skin and eyes as well as cause non-reproductive organ toxicity. The European Union has deemed it unsafe for use in cosmetics. And of course there’s the ever- mysterious “fragrance,” which the Food and Drug Administration doesn’t require companies to list the chemical makeup of. For a company with billions of dollars at its disposal, it’s certainly being cheap with its quality. Tell Robert A. McDonald we shouldn’t have to be chemistry majors in order to understand the products we’re using in our homes. Tell him it also doesn’t make sense that a product meant to be used on dishes which will be eaten off of would contain ingredients that could be poisonous if ingested. Ask Robert A. McDonald to change all of Dawn’s dish soap ingredients into non-toxic, organic ones.

My good friend has two Eclectus parrots. They are in fine feather and she feeds them fresh food and provides regular trips into the sunshine. It is true that the female can get a little moody. She loves her birds though. Questions to consider. Will you be sad if you don't take this opportunity? What does your intuition tell you? Why is the former owner giving up the bird?

Good points Birdhouse! I would like to try your suggestions Acappella but I am not handy and need to find someone to help with a project like that. A stuffed frog like that would just be an invitation to chew out the eyeballs to Brutus -- he would not be scared, intrigued yes, but not scared. I think I will try one perch and see how it goes. Brutus is really (fairly) non-destructive except for door mouldings. I think the wood is so soft that it is really satisfying to bite off chunks. I really think that someday if I replaced the top piece of moulding with a harder wood he wouldn't enjoy trying to break it as much. Maybe I will try one door to see how it goes...

Yeah, I had one of those chandeliers too. We had an electrician remove the wiring and now IT IS a birdie gym. Love to watch Brutus upside down and flapping his wings on that thing. Kinda miss the light though...

Explain to them, as you would a child, that you will be gone for 4 days and x-amount of nights. I really think they understand time and will be a lot less stressed if they know when you are coming back. Explain time in terms that they understand like how many sunsets, or dinner times, or breakfasts, or number of pieces of toast (or whatever works). Then you will know that they know when you are coming back and maybe you won't worry quite as much ;>) Anytime I leave I tell them when I will be back and I try to never be late--always early. Enjoy your trip. They will be fine. Oh! By the way, I find they are also less clingy and/or angry when I get home too.

When Brutus notices me cleaning up a poop spot on the floor he always says, "sorry" like he knows he isn't supposed to poop there. I know he has NEVER pooped on me or any other person he is sitting with. He seems knowledgeable that it is not good to poop on people, but this is not something I ever taught him. I never did teach him to poop on command, but he avoids pooping in his cage and on people. Are your birds similar? Do any of them poop on command?

Brutus will never land on me unless I invite him. I would try the suction cup perches if they work on walls too? I worry the suction will fail. Maybe I can look at them and see if I can attach them another way. I need a handy person! Do you know of an extra hard wood or maybe that Trex fake wood to repair the upper piece of my door jams? I was thinking I could get the gnawed pieces removed and hard wood put in place and repainted. And then install some perches. I think it might work? maybe...

There is an IQ Air multi-stage air cleaner that runs all of the time. Also have the windows and screen doors open anytime the weather is nice, which is most every day here in San Diego. I also roll the guy's in their cages outside on most days. They range in age from 6-13 years and are in excellent health.

Separated for 8 months and soon to be divorced. I worry about introducing new guys to the idea that I have pet parrots. Most people have dogs and cats, but not birds. Has anyone handled this situation? I recently joined an internet dating site and was told by a random guy that the fact that i own parrots is a major turn-off for many guys. I thought, "well too bad" but it is a concern. I know ideally that if Parrotsare an issue I am better off without guys like that. Just curious what others think.

It just hit me that one of the reasons all my window and door moldings are chewed up is because my grey doesn't have anywhere else to land. I mean as I gaze down the hall there are only door frames to land on. Has any Grey owner added an occasional wall perch throughout their homes to accommodate a bird whose primary means of locomotion is flying? I think I would have far less chewed wood if I had done this. Please direct me to any photos of wall perches if you are aware of any. I am not talking about birdie gyms but wall mounted perches. My grey guy loves to be where I am and it would sure help him if he had a place to fly to. In the main living space he has an atom, several cages, his food stand, and a play stand. In the living room he has a tower, a window ledge, and a railing. Anywhere else he just has furniture and doors. I don't like him on the furniture unless it is covered because he is sure to gnaw. Does anyone have wall perches?

Update: Moved the birds out onto the deck when they sanded and put down a coat of oil-based sealer. They took the door off its hinges and completely taped off the opening with plastic. I don't know how they did it but there was NO DUST! I trained a running fan into the room to help keep fumes from moving to other parts of the house. I have no idea if this helped, but it made ME feel better. By evening, the smell was almost non-detectable and I moved them inside with all the windows open. They had to use an oil-based sealer to match the color of the existing floor. This morning they put down a coat of water-based polyurethane and the birds were outside for this. Within an hour and a half the smell was not even detectable on the side of the house where the birds live. I brought them in the afternoon, but kept all the windows open. I also have an IQ Air air cleaner that runs continuously. This seems to be less of an issue than I thought. They are putting down two more coats of WBP and then they will be finished. Really once the water-based polyurethane is dry (and it dries fast!) it does not smell. Also, since the birds are on the other end of the house with multiple windows, two french doors, and a huge patio door there is an abundance of fresh air. I am glad this forum exists! Your comments and advice helped me decide to use water-based polyurethane. I am grateful.

Thank goodness he didn't include the cord in his destruction!

Brutus likes his organic pellets with red palm oil (he likes that they crunch), but he primarily eats a fresh food diet. So I don't have to make new food every day I have developed some things I do to save a little time. I have 3-4 cooked mixes of veggies, grains, and beans that I cook in quantity and freeze in little daily containers. With a couple of defrosted containers of those I mix red palm oil and flax and chia seed for the day. Most of the bowl, though, is fresh fruits and vegetables cut up every four days and put into individual containers. So everyday is fresh fruits and veg, plus a cooked veg, bean, and grain mix. Occasional foods are wild caught sardines & salmon, cooked chicken drumstick bones, scrambled egg, and nuts. Once in a while I give a little piece of gmo-free, saltless potato chip or cheese. Brutus LOVES chips! SALT IS VERY BAD FOR BIRDS THEY CANNOT EXCRETE IT! I think your vet telling you that nutriberries are enough is like telling a human those shakes-in-a-can are enough for proper nutrition, and we all know that is not true. Greys thrive on a varied diet, just like we do.

This just cracks me up every time I look at it!

Funny Picture of Brutus

SOOO glad you guys posted! This makes my decision iron clad! I will definitely use water-based polyurethane. Oil-based is just TOO TOXIC with off-gassing.

I was hesitant to go with water-based polyurethane as i didn't think it would match the existing oak floors since they used an oil-based polyurethane on the old floors that gave an amber hue to the wood. Talked to the floor guys today, and they think they can get a pretty good match with water-based polyurethane. I said, "great!" let's do water-based instead of oil-based. It dries much quicker and doesn't off-gas nearly as much. Each day I will just roll the guys out onto the deck for a few hours until the odor dissipates. I can totally open up the bedroom getting treated and it is on the opposite side of the house, and it should dry in a couple of hours. If I even think it is too smelly to bring them in, I won't. I have a gazebo with curtains, where i can roll them under and cover them with additional sheets if they must spend the night. I will let you know how it goes.

I read the thread and feel even more queasy about having the guys around. I hope to see more posts! I think i will call the vet tomorrow for his opinion. Another question: Would the fumes be as bad on the second floor?

I am getting the wood floor in my master bedroom refinished. This will entail 3 coats of oil-based polyurethane spread over three days. I live in San Diego where the highs are 70ish and the lows are around 53-55. I live in a isolated cul de sac at the end of a long driveway. People cannot easily come down unnoticed, if not by me, but also by my two neighbors. My floor guy says he will apply early in the morning and the house will be habitable (for humans) in 6 hours. I am not familiar with how badly polyurethane volitilizes and affects air quality. Here are my choices: 1) Move the parrot cages into the garage and open both garage doors during the day, and closing the doors at night, and leaving them in the garage. I worry about someone taking an interest in them while visible in the garage. I guess i could get some locks for the cages. 2) Moving the cages out onto the deck all day (we have hawks) and rolling them in at night. I will be out there with them most of the time. 3) Moving the cages onto a balcony deck outside the living room where they will be more isolated from possible human interest, but still there is the hawks, and rolling them in at night. 4) Taking them for several days to a boarding facility. I hate this option as I will be subjecting them to an unfamiliar place with possible disease. Any suggestions?

Real sunshine is best, and really just 15 minutes most days is sufficient. When you can, try to take your grey outside because you can't improve on Mother Nature!

I haven't read the whole thread, but i will tell you what WORKED for Brutus. He has never mistreated another feather since I started taking him outside into the sunlight at least 15 minutes a day. And i feed him a cooked chicken drumstick bone once a week. This was suggested by my vet and IT WORKS! Please try it. It has nothing to do with dryness, and EVERYTHING to do with Vitamin D, the sun, and its role in assimilation of calcium. I have written about this in the past, and spraying with aloe just masks the problem, just putting a bandaid on an existing problem. Sunlight is AWESOME! Please try it!

Good point about the temperature! It doesn't get under 40 here and i forget.