chezron

Good point Marana. it could be an awful coincidence. I am glad, though, that Charlie lets you scratch him at night. That's a good sign. I hope you figure it out. Maybe just be patient and don't push things. Is it possible to stop taking the medicine, for just a few days, to see what happens? I certainly wouldn't recommend that if it would be life-threatening or if it was a course of antibiotics. Will you be taking the medicine from now on? Seeing Charlie fear you must be traumatic. Having a new bride is a big life change for you and Charlie. Could your wife give him treats to get on his good side? Is she open to life with a parrot?

Brutus and Pancho have cages right next to each other and have never attempted to fly to each other's cage. We have had Pancho for two months. This may still be a honeymoon period, so to speak. Pancho has been unfailingly sedate, polite, well-mannered, calm, sweet, and gentle. He steps up easily and gladly eats anything offered to him. He is so gentle when he takes food from my hand, or fork, or spoon that I am amazed. I even got him to say "Hello Pancho" before I give him a treat. He does show a little grumpiness when it is time for bed, but WOW- big deal! Pancho watches the antics of Brutus, the grey, all the time. He seems fascinated by him. As for Brutus, he learned the name "Pancho" in an hour and put together, "I love Pancho" all by himself. I think he REALLY does though. It turns out Pancho loves showers and spreads his wings and acts all goofy when getting sprayed. I think his love of showers has influenced Brutus to relax a little more during shower time. I thought this was a good sign - one day something spooked one of the birds and he flew off, followed by the other two. I felt like this was "flock" behavior and a sign that they saw each other as flock mates. Anyway, I sense that pancho has a "fun guy" inside of him and I hope Brutus brings it out. If he doesn't that is okay. It seems that the Amazon and the Grey were switched at birth since Brutus is such a nut and Pancho is so cautious. What has been your experience with rehomed amazons?

I am glad she is okay.

i do not mean to be adversarial, but my experience has been quite the opposite. My birds poop in a just a few, predictable locations. My grey has NEVER pooped on me. Maybe others have had different experiences.

MarcusCag, How do you serve the greens? Do you put them in a bowl or weave them in the bars of his cage? Brutus immediately throws out anything green, except for sprouts. He shreds celery, green beens, peas in the pod, and broccoli, but I doubt much of it is swallowed.

I dunno about the name change because they seem to really get attached to their names... Congratulations on the new bird. And yes, let the vet be the bad guy and do the trimming. Maybe you can call him both names? He sure is beautiful. How old is he?

I hope your father recovers. First, do not react to the loud calls. If anything, leave the room when he makes irritating noises. If he gets attention at these times, even scolding kind of attention, it is still attention, and highly desirable. The goal is to remove yourself and your attention while he is squawking. As far as the destruction goes, we deal with damage control periodically. We just took a lamp in because he gnawed off parts of it. Maybe try to keep doors closed to rooms you do not want him to visit? It is imperative that he never out of view, for his safety, as well as, yours and your belongings. Does he have lots of toys, does he get regular trips outside into the sunshine? I find these two things keep my grey calmer, more occupied, and less destructive.

Well, he sure likes you! I think he thinks he has a new mate. I just ignore obvious sexual behavior and come back to him when he is a little less crazy. They seem to become sort of "possessed" when getting sexual. You do not want to encourage it, because as Dan says, they can become violent when rejected.

Maybe give him a small treat when he actually does step up. I had to do this with my quaker because every once in a while he gets head-strong and will not step up, and stubbornly clings to the cage bars rather than step up. Small pieces of cashew cured that tendency. I think it is a game for your bird at this point.

I will add that we recently added an 9-10 year old Amazon to our flock of a Quaker and a CAG. Our CAG learned to say "Pancho" within an hour and shortly after put together, on his own, "I love Pancho." Pancho has been home for two months and neither parrot has had any interaction with the other, but Pancho observes Brutus constantly. Brutus is a very active clown. I believe they like each other even though neither one has flown to the other. I think Brutus will get Pancho out of his safety zone (safety zon- haha). Both birds are out of their cages all day - under supervision. Pancho LOVES showers and I think that has helped Brutus start to enjoy the process. Even though there hasn't been direct interaction I believe there it so much going on between them that is not verbal. I believe they are good for each other. So I hope my experience helps you make a decision. It is, after all, only one family's story.

Welcome home baby grey! Let us know how she progresses.

Thank you for helping our country. I wish you and your husband a safe and quick return. Before I bought a grey, I watched grey videos for a year on my computer. Have you seen the African Grey, Oliver's videos? He has his own website. His owner's name is, I believe, Jill Lang? Google him- he's funny. It is comforting to watch much-loved parrots on the computer. Good luck!

Regular trips outside into the sunshine fixed my grey, who had started to fray his feathers. The vet also said to add a cooked chicken drumstick bone to her weekly diet. Not only are his feathers more beautiful, he is in a calmer mood, and he has completely stopped mismanaging his feathers. He started preening normally almost immediately after he started getting his regular dose of sunshine. This worked for us; I hope you find what works for you and your grey.

Oh, and I forgot to mention that feeding them a high quality diet of organic fruits and vegetables, with high quality grains, beans, and occasional meat, cheese and nuts is time consuming! Between shopping, preparation, cooking, freezing, and planning, my birds eat better than we do.

Zoom, your experience with a rehomed Amazon is similar to mine, only backwards. We got Brutus first, and because he is so sweet, we rehomed a 9-10 year old Amazon. We have had Pancho for almost two months, and he has been unfailingly sweet, docile, polite, eager to please, and obedient. I am REALLY looking forward to a freer more fun-loving amazon. Not that he isn't awesome now, but I feel he would enjoy life more if he felt like he had the freedom to express his true-self. This sweet boy may be his true self, but I don't think it is. I will keep you posted. JD- I agree with the previous replies, in that, a bird is definitely not a pet, in the regular sense, and more like adding a toddler to the mix.

Two things: I had a parrot before and didn't realize the importance of regular trips outside in the sunshine. He broke his leg which I should have attributed to low calcium because of lack of sunshine, which in retrospect was most certainly the case. I now make sure to get the guys out most days of the week for at least fifteen minutes each time. Also, parrots are a tremendous amount of work, cleaning, socializing, snuggling, and playing with them requires a lot of time. I had no idea! Much more time than for a cat or dog. I wouldn't trade though.

Well I'm stoked and chuffed for you!

Thanks for the update. You are a good mommy! Zak is a beautiful bird! It sounds like you are working very hard and enjoying Zak. I understand about the "afraid of getting bitten" part. It does seem that mutual trust, built over time, is beneficial for your bird and for you. I have found that regular sunshine really mellows my bird out and he is much more sweet and laid back.

What did the vet say?

Todd, We only have one cage for each bird. I also go to bed early, so noise is not a problem. We also have the birds near the kitchen which is separate from the living room where we have the TV. When we cover their cages they "shut off" immediately and do not respond to additional noise outside their cages. I guess you could see what works best.

Did you teach him to wave? That is so cute.

How Funny! You're right silence is not usually a good sign.

Handsome big boy! I feel as sappy about my Brutus too. He is either cracking me up or melting my heart!

Jimpster, the quaker puts himself to bed according to the level of darkness. Brutus and Pancho HATE to go to bed! I usually put Pancho, the amazon, to bed once it starts getting pretty dark. He objects and growls, but, it is bedtime after all, and he goes. Brutus usually stays up a little longer to hang out with me. Sometimes, if he stays up too late he gets obstinate, and flies to a high window sill where I cannot reach him without a ladder, so then I have to get the ladder out and he comes down willingly at that point. I do sing him the same song every night. Silly, but that is the extent of our routine.

ALL of my parrots hate to go bed, but Pancho, the amazon, REALLY hates to go to bed! He growls and lunges, but he still goes. I have to use a stick because I am a little afraid (okay a lot) of his beak. I cover their cages at night. I am pretty sure they did not cover his cage before- is that the problem? What do you think? Should I leave his cage uncovered at night?