birdhouse

That is a side effect/benefit of fresh feeding the fids ...assuming you're a "good" eater. Better diet, better variety & better overall quality. You can't help but learn tons about nutrition in general along the way. Sometimes you may not want to know... lol but it really ends up being good for everyone. ...& anyone you happen to share with. think I'm going to try your popcorn recipe. TU Have to say w/everything I've learned about nutrition, I've yet to feel like I've come close to mastering it for the dogs, though. So good luck & I'd love to hear what you eventually work out. http://news.ucdavis.edu/search/news_detail.lasso?id=10666 As it happens, I need to restock my TOP pellets. After I mentioned it here, I went looking & it seems like they're very hard to find at the moment. The company is small & apparently a little messed up. So I'm really hoping nothing drastic has happened. Unfortunately, products tend to come & go & change all the time. So when I bumped into this somewhere along the way I bookmarked it. But I haven't done anything else, yet. http://www.eclectusparrot.com/pelt2.shtml Tell Mar I hope he loses the gimpy leg problem, soon. But I hope he'll still keep some of those extra cuddles for you.

I really, truly believe at some point, a sense of humor is the best defense w/some of our fids' issues. We help feed the Crazy when we get lost in things they do because our fids *always* react to our emotions. When they're already unhinged about something, it does not help to add our issues to theirs but it's very easy to do. I know exactly how devoted Stephen is. So yes I was kidding about being a woosie. But now I don't know if I should feel bad that I tried to lighten things up for a minute. Really, really sorry if those little smiley faces didn't convey that. I was however serious about using *canvas* gloves for protection while spraying since Isaac is that angry about being bathed. Don't know about leather, though. Who knows how it might have been treated & I fully expect Isaac will be ripping into them given the slightest opportunity.

What are you saying?!? You're not willing to bleed a little for the sake of Isaac's comfort! Wow, I obviously thought you were a much more dedicated parront. You disappoint me Stephen. You really do. :rolleyes: So, well, okay, if you insist on being a woosie about this, you can always get yourself a nice, new pair of heavy canvas work gloves to protect you delicate lily whites. And before you drop a bundle on a new humidifier, you might take a shot to see if you get lucky on Craig's List.

This issue really needs to be kept as visible as possible until help for the wild Grey population finally arrives. So thanks for posting this Steve. "Standing Committee approves annual export of 3,000 Greys from Cameroon Despite the best efforts of the World Parrot Trust and the over 41,000 signatories who supported the petition against the trade in Grey parrots in Cameroon and Congo, CITES' ruling yesterday ultimately failed to protect the birds from unsustainable trade, ignoring sound science, global public opinion, and the terms of their own Convention. Rather than ruling to protect protect these Globally Threatened Species, they instead chose to reopen trade from Cameroon, allowing 3,000 birds a year to now be legally exported from that country. As a result 6,000 birds will be taken from the wild as roughly 50% of these birds die between trapping and export. CITES also failed to suspend trade from the Democratic Republic of Congo. This is despite Congo's repeatedly exceeding their annual quota of 5,000 bird." http://www.parrots.org/flyfree/cites-results.html This last vote was taken in July 2012. It was a sad day for many people who really thought that maybe some better protection would be mandated for these birds. But I think CITES Standing Committee limited that quota to 3 yrs. So maybe next time we can encourage them to make better decisions if we all do just a little to help in the meantime.

Yeah, that spot is a little over preened. You might want to watch to see that it doesn't spread. In the meantime, you might want to read this thread http://www.greyforums.net/forums/showthread.php?200925-Isaac-Is-Taking-Out-Tummy-Feathers It is the season for fids to do feather damage, unfortunately. Hormones, lack of humidity & light, holiday related changes. It can all catch up w/these guys under the right circumstances. So you might want to take any applicable suggestions from that thread that you think might help.

Sorry, but most of the physicality is probably going to make things worse at the moment. Contact would be better limited to his head. You can rub his beak & feet. But don't pinch his beak between your fingers to encourage a regurgitation reflex. Definitely no body contact. If he wants to snuggle, I guess I'd let him because I think it would be upsetting if you didn't since it's part of your normal relationship. But, I don't think you should do anything physical while he's on you. And I'd really try to limit it to just a minute or two then distract him vs strictly speaking stop him, if that makes sense, so he doesn't feel rejected. I know this is like one of those nightmares where you want to pull someone out of harm's way but all you can do is watch because you're frozen in place. I am sorry. I really do feel your pain about this. But it's really important to try as best as you can to minimize your own stress so you don't feed it to Isaac because it will only make it worse. Did you ask the vet about feeding Chamomile? btw

Easiest place to find Natural Organic Aloe juice is major drug chains. Walmart is the cheapest I've found, though. It's usually somewhere in the pharmaceutical section & the people behind the counter don't usually know where. Ask them to check inventory. If the stores around you don't have it, they can get it or you can order online & ship to store. And no, you don't use it in the humidifier. Only direct spraying. Lighting is required to be 5500K. You can get a fancy rig at a pet supplier. You can also buy a bulb & put it into any lamp. I've just switched out my normal lamp bulbs so that all the lamps around the fids have them. I got them on Ebay.

That's a good start! When I suggested you ask about the Chamomile, I didn't think to suggest you check out the Rescue Remedy that Katana600 uses w/Gilda. But maybe you could check that out too. So assuming your luck holds & it's "just" hormones, you've got 3-6 weeks of fun ahead. Did the vet cover handling, light, etc? Every little bit helps even when it doesn't fix the problem. And the more you can keep Isaac busy w/other things, the less time he's at his feathers. Usually everything they really like to shred or destroy & keep it coming! Kura has zero attention span when she's hormonal. So I try to make sure she gets something different a few times a day. Hint: to keep from going broke, I usually take toys out before they're destroyed & reintroduce them later. Still wouldn't rule out bathing as a likely cause, though. Or at least a contributing factor. Either way, a slightly more aggressive bathing campaign might be good, too.

Happy Hatchday Marco! So greyt to have been able to watch you grow into the little beauty you've become.

Jeez Dan! Where do you find these things! lol

It sure sounds like Lilly was meant to be there. So try to have a little faith that things will all work out somehow., okay?

It always amazes me that they get put thru so much at the vet & come out of it pretty unscathed, for the most part! I don't know how that works, but it's certainly a small blessing. As far as Isaac not being fond of baths; doesn't matter. Well, it would certainly be nicer if he liked the actual bath time. But it's the after effects. So just go for it & don't pay any much attention to his drama. You can try to work w/him to see if you can find a more palatable delivery. Will he go into the shower w/you? Will he play in the sink if you run the water? Or can you interest him in a dish bath? Also, thinking you might read thru this thread under the circumstances http://www.greyforums.net/forums/showthread.php?200091-Very-concerned-about-Talon

Wishing everyone lots of good cheer & all the best of the season!!

Thanks for the great pics! But I don't think Dayo like's the head elf very much given her body language. lol Although I don't know if you did it on purpose, but, you also just gave me a great idea. From now on when I'm reading, I'm going to stick a sheet of paper in my book so they can nibble away. Then I won't have to be all mean & chase them off if they decide to customize my book for me. So thanks for that, too. ")

I'm glad you got a vet appointment so quickly. Hopefully they'll rule out anything major & should make you feel better. Your bond w/Issac being what it is, he's going to feel any stress. So the first thing right now is finding the most stress free way to proceed. The good news at this point is that he's "only" feather barbering. Since he's chewing his feathers, not pulling them out, he's not causing any damage that can't disappear w/the next molt. That's a very good start. There are a number of relatively harmless things that can be causing this. Something as simple as objecting to holiday decorating or even the level of energy. You said nothing had changed that you were aware of. But are you sure you haven't brought anything new in or maybe done some rearranging? Issac might also be hormonal. Have you seen any changes in him at all? One of mine is a chronic seasonal barber. She was picture perfect in October. But she's a real mess right now. Given her history for the last 4ish yrs, she'll be gorgeous again come April/May. She just gets a little bananas during her version of mating season. I would also recommend aloe baths to start. No matter why they're doing it, a nice bath can do as much good for a fid as it would for us. You can also use Chamomile. I get dried flowers at a local grocery store. Spraying a weak'ish tea is soothing. Feeding whole flowers has a bit of a mellowing affect. Pretty much the same as a person might get drinking a nice cup of chamomile tea. It seems to help Kura some & she loves it. So it might be something else to ask the vet about this afternoon. Hope you'll post as soon as you get home. We all know it's much easier said than done. But try not to worry in the meantime, okay?

I particularly love it when all mine are beak grinding at the same time. They all sound a little different & it's just the sweetest thing to listen to. They all have their own special something, too. Charm has the cutest little birdy chuckle that I love. Kura has a soft "Eww" sound that's hard to describe, but it's basically a special version of I love you. Phenix has a nonsense word that would definitely seem to mean something very good. It sounds almost English & it's adorable. I have no idea where exactly it came from but it makes my heart sing because he only says it whenever he decides all is well in his world.

Aww! They pretty much all like to get it just right before they make the grand debut. She'll have plenty to say when she decides she's ready & it will be well worth the wait!!

Store bought aromatics are a crap shoot. The problem is generally additives, fillers & the carrier mediums. Even if a particular brand or scent didn't cause any problems, doesn't mean anything next time because manufacturers change their formulas sometimes. Homemade potpourri can be easy, fun, safe & natural. Also nice because it's custom made exactly the way you'd like it to smell. Pure ingredients can be found online, in the grocery store & even in the backyard. Diffuser oils can be created w/a carrier base like olive or almond oil. Our fids' senses are more sensitive than ours though. So they might not agree w/every scent combo. Like the way we might like some perfumes & get a headache from others. It's safer to use any non-edible combinations in a different room. Also a good idea to keep anything that's made w/anything toxic to the fids out of reach. http://www.bing.com/search?q=homemade+potpourri&pc=MOZI&form=MOZSBR

Hope it was lots of fun & wishing you many, many more!!

Every shot could make a greyt Xmas card! Think if I had to, I'd vote for the last one, though. Well, maybe the first one. Or well... ")

Think Steve said it perfectly. There are some times when they don't quite realize how strong & sharp that beak really is. So if you just keep letting Amanda know w/o any fun drama (because sometimes they also like to tease), she'll figure it out pretty quickly. Sounds like you're relatively happy together other than that, though.

Hope Mar recovers very soon. Poor guy! Maybe you could rough chop his food in a blender while he's on the mend? But great news otherwise. It takes some research & work to fresh feed a healthy fid. So good on you!! A 95% pelletless diet is actually not such a bad thing though. It's good to continue to feed some pellet(s) occasionally because they can be really handy. Like traveling or during evacuation or power outages from natural disasters which it seems like many more of us have been experiencing in recent years. So it might not be the worst idea to let them keep the Nutriberries. I also feed my guys TOP Organic Pellets often enough to keep them from balking at them ...just in case. Since they're 100% human grade organic, I feel like they're a decent fit w/our mash diet. http://www.mysafebirdstore.com/cart.cgi?group=537&child=541

Phenix is more of a wood guy. Kura's the big shredder. Of everything I've dreamed up though, her absolute favorite is when I hang a roll of paper towels. If you read it thru, this thread discussed a few different shreddables as a solution to the problem... http://www.greyforums.net/forums/showthread.php?200091-Very-concerned-about-Talon/page2& These ought to give you a couple of more ideas. http://www.parrotenrichment.com/images/PEAB_V1.pdf http://www.phoenixlanding.org/PEAB_V2.pdf Warning: Toy making can become highly addictive!! This tends to be particularly true in the deep dark dead of winter. Anyone realizing they have indeed been affected should please inform the membership as soon as possible. We will require pictures. Lots & lots of them. ")

Don't know if it will ever get mentioned, but it might be interesting to find out how old Athena is when she starts to speak human. Wondering if there will be any difference than w/our members' fids.

Wow, KimKim, score!! Quite a nice little steal. Nice job hanging it & nice pic, too. Babalau looks pretty happy w/it. Congrats to you & Timber, Karen! Always a greyt feeling when they finally come around. Phenix was basically the same story. Once he suddenly discovered the thing, it became his favoritest. So, hopfully, it will be worth the wait w/Timber, too.