chezron

Called the vet the vet doesn't know.

My husband forgot that cherry pits are toxic. He watched while our grey ate and split one cherry pit. I am sick with worry. Will on pit kill him? Please advise.

Brutus taps the wooden counter and other wooden objects. Does that count? He does like to drop things and listen to them make lots of noise though.

I forgot to mention that Brutus has more toys, bought and constructed, than is believable! I rotate them often. He has at least four large areas in our living area that are all his. He has the run of the top of the kitchen cabinets, top of several hutches, toys hung all over a chandelier, and his huge cage! He gets bored easily. I am constantly thinking of ways to occupy his hyper-active brain. He is totally sweet though. He has never bit me and obviously loves his Mother and Father.He LOVES life! I do love that about him!

Brutus cracks me up at times with his antics. What is the funniest, or most touching unique thing that your bird does?

Brutus is now 1 1/2 years old. He has figured out he can fly and land EVERYWHERE! And he does- or at least tries. He is unbelievably curious & not afraid of anything. I must keep my eyes on him all the time because I am afraid he will get into trouble. I love that he is confident, but how do you temper the exploration (& destruction) of every new thing? For some reason I think he is showing off for me, trying to show what a big powerful bird he is. I hope you have insight into this behavior. thx.

Brutus only seems to get his vocabulary from my husband. He listens intently to him. Brutus' latest accomplishment is the wolf whistle followed by saying,"What a babe!" Hysterical.

I am wondering about building vocabulary for greys. It seems that Brutus spends a week or two learning and perfecting a phrase or group of phrases. Once he is satisfied with his competency he quits saying the phrase and moves on to a new one. Is this what your greys do? Do they ever go back to phrases they have previously learned? How can you get them to understand that it can be a conversation? Do they make that connection naturally after awhile? I would love to hear about the experiences of others.

Justalady, Thanks for all of the information. I believe educating yourself is the best way to keep you and your loved ones safe. The government sure isn't going to do it. Do you allow your birds to play with plastic toys?

I ride my bike to school 15 miles rt We recycle everything that is recyclable: glass, paper, plastic, milk cartons, egg cartons, styrofoam, aluminum cans, aluminum foil, cardboard, newspaper, batteries, any paints, prescription drugs etc. go to toxic recycling.... you get the idea. We barely have a bag of trash a month, mostly just plastic wrap. All soiled newspaper from the bird cages goes in the compost pile, along with food scraps. We don't eat fast food, too much waste in packaging. We bring our own tupperware for take-out, and coffee mugs for take-out coffee. We filter our tap water and never drink bottled water. If we travel, I bring a empty glass bottle to fill with water on the plane. We use only normal ingredient cleaners that are non-toxic and biodegrade. We use only nonphosphate, low-sudsing soaps to clean clothes. Even our dryer sheets can be recycled. We drive a Prius, when necessary, getting 50+ mph Our landscape is totally organic and a designated wildlife habitat with flora to feed insects & birds, etc. We are waiting for LED lights because mercury scares me (enough of it in our environment already). We only buy low-packaging items, and don't use anything considered disposable. We try to buy the bulk of our, and our bird's food, as organic and local, and ALWAYS bring cloth bags to shop. All unwanted items go to Goodwill. Did you know they take OLD jeans, considered unwearable, because they are chopped up and used for insulation? In winter we wear lots of clothes in the house and keep the temperature around 65 degrees and 78 degrees in the summer. When possible, we open the windows for natural AC. I am sure there is more, but I believe it is very important for everyone to pitch in, in anyway they can. One person's actions have larger ramifications than we realize. And our biggest contribution to the environment is we don't have kids! Just fids.

Great plan. I will try it.. Thanks!

Hey Grey-lovers, Brutus has figured out that he hates bathing. I used to take him into the shower and use a spray bottle on him, but now he will not have it. He flies off and will not cooperate. Every once in awhile he will dunk his head in his water dish, so I know he must, on some level, want a bath. I really don't want to force him to take a bath. I think mutual consent is the way to go. Any ideas? I put a tub of water in the play area of his cage and he is just trying to destroy the container the water comes in. Let me know of any possible solutions. Thanks

Wow! Dave- you have peace with THREE quakers! I am impressed, and much more calm about the whole situation now. Brutus is like a big goofy golden retriever and puts up with most anything. He really amazes me. We take him downtown in a backpack carrier and all sorts of people talk to him. Dogs go by and kids scream, and nothing fazes him. One time, though, a rambunctious dog made him growl. That is the only time I have seen him upset.

Brutus has a little brother who is a quaker parakeet named Jimpster. Jimpster and Brutus didn't have much previous interaction as Brutus is flighted and Jimpster was not. Since then, Jimpster's flight feathers have grown in and he flies to wherever Brutus is hanging out. Jimpster is obsessed with Brutus and whether he is getting food or attention from us. Brutus is fairly complacent, and sometimes chases Jimpster away, but more often than not he allows Jimpster to hang out close by. Now, Jimpster is getting brazen and going into Brutus' cage. I am afraid one of these days it may turn ugly, and Brutus could seriously hurt Jimpster if he gets tired of the little squirt barging into his space. What has been your experience with companion birds?

Don't you worry about birds of prey? Where I live in a subdivision I see hawks all the time, that would love to have Brutus for lunch. I only bring him outside in a bird backpack. I knew of a person who had his cockatoo snatched off his shoulder while out for a walk.

Brutus goes to bed between 8:30-9. He is really good about not making any noise until he realizes that we are up, sometimes as late as 9:00. If we get up early he wants to get up too. He is a thoughtful boy.

It turns out this is a special greeting just for me. He doesn't do it with anyone else. It IS funny! I have no idea where he got it from.

I am curious, what is an atom?

I just ended up taping the cords and pulls to the back of the blinds. The blinds are no longer usable this way, but at least Brutus will not be able to get to them. Scarves and feather boas, I am afraid to say, would make the whole affair especially enticing for my boy. It would be like putting out an invitation. But whatever works for Zzero. Thanks for the suggestion.

Dan, Hiding the cords behind the slats worked for awhile, but he has figured out how to pull them through. And he is not always there at the blinds, he just has a small period in the afternoon when the cords become irresistable. At that time, I have to watch him "like a hawk" so to speak. One time, he wrapped the cord around his foot and scared himself. I thought this episode might get him to stop, but it hasn't. What I worry about is when my husband is home, he doesn't watch him as closely as I do because his office is further away. I am thinking of enclosing the cords and knobs in something like a tube so they are no longer visibly enticing. Thanks for your input.

I would like to have the bands on my two birds removed. The vet says there is a potential to damage the leg on removal of the band. He says it is better to just leave them on. Is this true? Or should I find another vet? I WOULD NEVER have them VOLUNTARILY PUT ON. You can see the gap clearly in the band, and how it could be a cause for harm.

How about toilet paper rolls? We stuff newspaper and treats in them for minutes of entertainment.

Before we got Brutus we had horizontal wood blinds installed in most of our windows to filter the hot sun. Brutus finds them fascinating with all their cords and chewable wood. Now I don't mind if he chews, but the potential for great harm or death is very real from getting tangled in the cords. And, it is not like he doesn't have a vast array of all sorts of shreddable toys, cardboard, ears of corn, clothespins, paper towel rolls, dried pasta, and anything I can think of to entertain him. You get the idea. He just keeps going back to the blinds. My question is- Should we take them all down? What do you think? They were professionally done and must be taken down by someone who is trained (not me). I have tried tucking the strings behind the blinds, and that worked for awhile. Maybe if I could encase the strings in something, that could work too. What have you done about this problem?

Just an overdue update on this topic. I ended up following my instinct and not getting this bird. It turns out one of the store employees later commented on, "what a neurotic bird" it was. I waited and picked up many more African Greys in the next year since then, and lo-and-behold I picked up Brutus. We had an immediate connection. He was so calm, strong, and steady. I KNEW he was the one. We are now a happy family. He brings us so much joy.

I guess it is better to be safe than sorry. Thanks