birdhouse

subtext: can't believe anything birdhouse says as usual So much for working things out.

Jeff, I am sorry. But for what it's worth, I want to tell you how much I appreciate the effort. Thank you very much for everything you said.

Apparently they didn't get the message soon enough to keep me from responding as requested. There was a time when I would have said we were each others biggest fans. And yes, we had a phone call where I asked you not to quit the forum. Sadly that ended when I defended someone else who I hoped you'd treat differently. In response, you unfriended me because you said that was betrayal & that you would never read any PM from me again. In the year'ish since, I've been defending myself on the open forum at every turn. We both know that even though Jayd may eventually "thank me for this useful post", it didn't erase the insinuations & outright accusations that I really didn't know what the *#@(& I was talking about. Far, far worse, it continued to threaten if not actively pollute other member's threads. Which left me to step around you or walk away from the forum until I could manage to try again. I have no stomach for unnecessary drama & I am no saint. However well or badly I've done to date, I just can't manage it anymore. I've said, "Uncle.", on my own fairly inconspicuous thread. All you have to do is let me up & walk away satisfied that you finally made me say it or realize that this has gotten fairly far over the top & just dial it down. A little genuine consideration would probably go a long way at this point. But it is of course up to you whether or not you chose to address my future posts or if you resign. But this is not an all or nothing situation & quitting never solved anything, Jay

********************************************************************** ********************************************************************** To anyone who I have offended, I sincerely apologize for having posted inappropriate content for this forum. ********************************************************************** ********************************************************************** Jay, I'm sure that you would say that you'd never intentionally harass, undermine or generally target any member of this forum. So I expect you to respond w/amazement when I admit that I'm feeling all of the above & then some. But, if you were to "view all posts" for "Birdhouse" & read anything I've posted for the 1st page it returns, maybe you'll get some small inclination as to why I wait w/dread for response to everything I post & why I am asking ...nicely... if I might hope for even the smallest break. Since I know what a devoted advocate you are when it comes to the love & harmony of all things Grey Forums, I know you'll understand & I thank you so very much, in advance for every little bit of kindness in this. With my deepest gratitude, Valore

^^ Really!! Loved this little vid! Love to hear parrots laugh!

Before I could get Phenix more than semi-handlable & while he refused to eat anything besides seed, he went mad for drinking out of a cup. He still is (see avatar ). Any cup will do. But his unquestionable fav was a huge bright orange & red tumbler. And like Luna, he'd try almost anything if he thought he'd get to drink from it. Try offering other cups & drinks to see which is really the trigger. You might also have stumbled onto a very nice way of introducing new foods. I made Phenix veggie juices & smoothies, for instance. It was amazingly helpful w/him. It was a bit of a mixed bag as a training aid, however. Sometimes he'd go along w/the behavior/reward idea. Sometimes, he was just too distracted by wanting to get at the cup. No matter. It was a fun way for both of us to bond & socializing w/o having to worry about him taking a swipe at me. Very much appreciated at that point in our relationship!

That's a real challenge, unfortunately. Especially since most of us have to replace our cages not from real damage, but just because the paint's gone. Around here, re-powder coating a cage costs at least as much as a semi decent new cage. Very hard to find someone who uses non toxic paint & they don't guarantee how long it will last, either. DIY paints seem to have pretty bad VOCs. Many claim to be safe for humans once they're cured. But they often continue to emit fumes (sometimes for life) that are at least potentially harmful for fids. I did repaint a stand a couple of years ago. At that point, Rustoleum swore some of their paint was safe after a couple of weeks curing. And by that I mean I called Corporate & went thru like 4 different departments to get their unconditional assurance. Since it wasn't a part of the cage where the fid would actually come into much contact, I went ahead w/the job. I just left the stand in the shed for a month before I brought it into the house. So, you might check w/Rustoleum to see if they've changed their formula.

For the record, straw bursts are fairly large & not normally foot toys. Kura just didn't feel like waiting for me to hang that one. Since she's big enough to, she carried it off while my back was turned. lol No exceptions, straws are a universal fav here & have always been a go to for me. They're colorful & light weight, but big enough to be a little challenge for a medium or small fid to handle. I can do bunches of things w/them. Did I mention that they're cheap? I've actually never had a problem introducing them to any of the fids. But if there was any reason for concern, here's yet another idea for how they might be offered. http://parrotoutreachsociety.org/donationsstore/market-place-2 And this is how it's done http://hiphiphooraymagazine.com/crafts/drinking%20straw%20project.pdf

http://screen.yahoo.com/lol-parrot-225025156.html;_ylt=Atbn5XY1IxEFroOFvuOe0PYumkEv;_ylu=X3oDMTM5NDdubDRwBG1pdANDeFMgUEFBUyBWaWRlbyBQbGF5bGlzdCBCYXIgTG90dXMEcGtnAzgyODZjMmQzLTZjMzQtMzI3Mi05ZWRmLTdkYjM4NmZhYjdkNwRwb3MDNwRzZWMDTWVkaWFQbGF5bGlzdEJhcg--;_ylg=X3oDMTBnZWh2ZDd1BGxhbmcDZW4tVVMEdGVzdAM-;_ylv=3?pb_list=42930141-f7ae-4eb8-89d9-bce31bb9e2f1

Phenix 3 favs are demolishing wood (especially molding ), tearing paper (rolls of adding machine tape, coffee filters, napkins) & what I call straw bursts. Phenix doesn't really do photos. So here's Kura w/one. Luckily, they're a unanimous favorite around here. But even the most secure greys can be freaky about new toys. So, maybe single straws for the moment in Irwin's case. There are lots of ideas on the Homemade Toys & Playstands forum. This is also another source for diy toy ideas. Might give you some super ideas for once Irwin's really acclimated. Meanwhile, you could use some of the materials alone to start building his confidence. http://www.parrotenrichment.com/books.html

Seems backwards, but I had more trouble staying out of trouble w/the little steamer. I don't know whether it was the attachments or what.

So much easier if you didn't always have to factor that in. But just hope it's progress & Yay!!

This sounds like a fine start, especially given Irwin's history. Even more encouraging because you said, "We have had him for about three weeks now and he is already taking treats from our hands." Many new parronts want everything to happen immediately. But you've obviously got the patience to go slowly. Most everything about Grey Time translates into slow motion. But waiting builds trust & that's the biggest thing in building a relationship w/these fids, especially when they're rehomed & coming from less than ideal situations. So, very good on you! Everyone's pretty much given you great advise about the basics. Suggest you read everything you can about body language. Then pay close attention to eye pinning, posture, feather fluffing & the heart beat tremor of Irwin's chest. All that really remains is to wait for him to tell you what he's comfortable trying next. You want to try hard to stay w/in his comfort zone as much as possible. Basically it's all about letting him come to you &/or explore new things once he's built up enough confident. Assuming that you know he's healthy, you don't really need to worry too much about his lack of activity right now. It's a natural reaction to being in a new environment. His activity level will help you know how he's progressing. You can try giving him little bits of things like short ribbons & string, buttons, Popsicle sticks, pony beads, clean plastic bottle caps, ect. This will give him more reason to get comfortable w/hands & being near you. It will also help teach him to play because he may not know how coming from an aviary. Once you find out the types of things that hold his interest, you can fill a feed cup & see what he'll do. Once he'll play w/familiar foot toys, try stringing some together into a homemade hanging toy. Start small & hang midway down the cage vs overhead until he knows it isn't threatening. Feel free to skewer some nice pieces of veggies to hang, too. Just plan on cleaning up before anything spoils. All that should to take you thru the next few weeks at least & hopefully, several stages of trust. Hope you'll keep posting questions & sharing Irwin's progress & welcome to the forum, Shelbie.

Wingy, I got a floor model after I wore out my first hand held cleaner. The only thing I wish mine did was carpet. Although it will do a little freshen up. But I use it to clean the walls. I have paint, paneling, vinyl wall paper & varnished wood. I did have to learn a little restraint. I lifted the varnish on a stair once! lol But once I got the hang of it...!

Bitter sweet post. But that would be "the mark". Any sane, rational person w/the patience of a saint would have long since run screaming & everyone would sympathize. People who are marked to rescue such amazing creatures are totally re-dedicated after one single moment when it's so blindingly obvious why they just have to. You are going to bring him around. Pretty soon, you'll get to dance w/your sweet baby again. One other thought, though? Maybe next time, swallow the lump in your throat & agree? Gus told you in so many words that he's finally starting to get it. So will it confuse him if you don't tell him the truth? Then you could move on to a separate thing & find any excuse to drown him in all that overwhelming love!

I fostered a Patagonian Conure who was to this day, the loudest bird I've ever met. These are normally loud, vocal birds that I think should only be kept in an aviary. Screech might actually have given Gus a run for his money! He'd been abused & was afraid of literally everything. So everything set him off. He had 1 decibel level & almost never stopped. It was real clear he was upsetting the rest of the flock. Very little normal activity & body language 101. Phenix sat on the bottom branch of his cage, cried (Waahhh!!!) & told Screech to stop it, over & over & over. But that's the only time w/any screamer who has come thru, that it's ever had any seriously noticeable effect on the rest of my fids. If you separate Gus, my guess is it could complicate things even further. I could see it going either way. But if your only concern is the rest of the fids, then ask them what they think. lol If you don't see them specifically reacting, other than in the moment, if it were me, I'd really try to leave him be & work w/him in a normal environment, first. I know Too's have a rep for being dependent to the point of being neurotic. I've never worked w/one because I can't breath around them, though. So I'm only saying this in general. Not specifically understanding the particular quirks of the breed. I know it already seems like a lo-ong time, under these circumstances. But it really isn't. Everyone also has their limits, though. If everyone can't get "adapted" to this, it's going to make the problem so much harder to solve. So be fair about it & do what's best for all of you. This is a miserable problem to live with. I really wanted to drop off chocolate & alcohol after a couple of your posts. But I still think you're up to the challenge. Meantime & I'm serious, really good noise cancelling head phones are an excellent investment.

Glad you caught it before Sterling got home, Pixburgh29. Might not have been the best way to start the greyt adventure. Congrats on the big weekend btw!!

I'd started by saying I didn't think the peroxide was necessary & why. After that I was talking about cleaning w/vinegar. My bad if it didn't read that way. I actually don't use that combination on my cages. I love my steam cleaner for bigger sanitizing jobs. I'd tried it because I'd read about using peroxide & vinegar here, actually. But the fumes bothered me. That made me look into the chemistry, which is why I put it out there. The MSDS testing ref'd was for a 5% peracetic acid solution. I'm not convinced the combo is actually bad to use. Just should be handled w/caution. http://msdsviewer.fmc.com/PRIVATE/RESULTS.ASPX?FORMAT=d__MTR&SUBFORMAT=d__CPNA&LANGUAGE=d__EN&PRODUCTID=79-21-0--5&productID_option=d__value

...thanks to My Safe Bird Store for notifying all their customers, even thought they don't apparently carry any Kaytee product themselves. http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm340596.htm * Going to post in 3 places, so hopefully everyone sees it this time.

...thanks to My Safe Bird Store for notifying all their customers, even thought they don't apparently carry any Kaytee product themselves. http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm340596.htm * Going to post in 3 places, so hopefully everyone sees it this time.

...thanks to My Safe Bird Store for notifying all their customers, even thought they don't apparently carry any Kaytee product themselves. http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm340596.htm * Going to post in 3 places, so hopefully everyone sees it this time.

Due respect, but I've read some things that suggest vinegar alone makes a nice antimicrobial wash. By that I mean antibacterial as well as antifungal. Many source references have been posted here in the past. But alas, our forum search engine... I am going to take the lazy way out rather than track it all down again. Anyone who wanted could take a fly by Wikipedia's vinegar page & sort thru the fact vs fiction there, though. My motto is "Never really trust Wikipedia. But it's as good a place as any to start." Vinegar can also be made more effective by combining it w/other household ingredients. This was a study which combined vinegar & salt, for instance. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9713753 Vinegar contains a weak acid known as acetic acid. When combined w/hydrogen peroxide some amount of peracetic or peroxyacetic acid can form. How much depends on nerd science about concentrations, temperatures & functions of time. Short version is that's why it's best not to store these 2 beasties in the same container. http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_happens_when_you_mix_vinegar_and_hydrogen_peroxide Material Safety Data Sheets (required by the government) shows health risks for as low as 5% paracetic acid that include skin & eye irritation as well as potential problems in case of inhalation ...for humans. Our fids' respiratory systems are generally thought to be more sensitive than ours. So, I just figure it's simple enough to avoid contact in any form. One of my other motto's , especially where the fids are concerned is, "Better safe than sorry." http://msdsviewer.fmc.com/PRIVATE/RESULTS.ASPX?FORMAT=d__MTR&SUBFORMAT=d__CPNA&LANGUAGE=d__EN&PRODUCTID=79-21-0--5&productID_option=d__value

I couldn't leave a fid if they got that hysterical, either. I can't imagine that you can teach them any behavior while they're that upset, anyway. Somehow, you guys keep figuring out how to cope w/everything your challenging little flock throws at you. So have a little faith. You'll work it out w/Gus before he turns you into a drooling mess. Hopefully...

:cool: Grey Forums Safari! :cool: I'll have to bring back an extra nice souvenir for Phenix, though. It just seems kind of wrong to be leaving him to go to Africa of all places.

Your call, but vinegar is usually more than good enough for general light cleaning. You can, but there's no need to dilute it or go crazy w/rinsing. The fumes won't hurt anyone & vinegar is actually good to eat. Hydrogen peroxide & vinegar (in any order) are really only needed for cleaning the scary stuff. Unlike vinegar alone, the combo gives off harmful fumes when they're combined. So you & your fid shouldn't be breathing it. And you'd want the cage fully rinsed & dried before returning the bird. I spray, then leave for a minute to let it work. Then soak a microfiber cloth in clean, warm water & wring it out to the point where it doesn't drip while I'm scrubbing. One of the great things about microfiber is that it holds a lot of liquid w/o dripping. The cloth holds enough clean water to rinse the spray & still manage to wipe excess moisture all at the same time. You can wipe the area w/a dry one or let it air dry. Standing water isn't good for the powder coat. You just want to avoid leaving puddles in the welds & crannies that will eventually lift the paint & cause rusting. Eventually, you could also look into getting a steam cleaner. I usually use vinegar when I'm light cleaning & use the steam cleaner for more serious cleaning or more thorough sanitizing.