birdhouse

Spencer's a strong willed little character. Even by grey standards. lol But I love the way you interact w/each other. It will be interesting to see what if any chance in dynamics happens once Navarone settles in.

Good to read this! Kikki sounds like he's a very special boy. I think once you both start to build some trust & learn to communicate you're going to have a greyt relationship.

Shameless bump. But it's for a good cause. It is creeping up on zero hour faster than that counter's moving. I can't do much else but try to keep this visible for anyone who hasn't seen it yet. Thanks for everyone's patience.

EXCITED...? WHO'S EXCITED?? So cute! All of you, actually. lol Very encouraging start. Think we'll be seeing a lot of pics of Navaro in the future. Doesn't look like he minds a bit.

I don't how long the petition will be open for signatures. Strictly speaking, the committee meets today, Switzerland time. I have no idea where on the docket this issue is or when the petition needs to be submitted. But it's still thousands shy of the 10,000 mark. It gives me the warm fuzzies to see our members contributing, though! Hope we keep helping that number improve. Maggie & Jay - I didn't see that thread before I posted mine. I wouldn't have started a new one if I had. Sorry! But maybe it's just as well that it ended up in more places where people might see it.

lol You're missing one of the most basic Grey rules. "ALWAYS keep the parronts off balance. If they understand the rules, change them! A little chaos goes a long way towards keeping total control!" I think you've done greyt w/this problem. You put your ego aside ( big points!). You didn't give up even when you were on your last nerve. You tried a variety of solutions until you found answers. Your relationship w/Gryph will always be a work in progress. Right now, it sounds like you two are doing some very good work.

I was thinking the same thing, Dee. Maybe they're literally uncontrollably happy to be reunited. That would be a mostly happy dilemma. Of course, everyone still has to figure out how best to survive the craziness. But it sounds like you're a great referee. So I'm hoping for everyone's sake that it's just a matter of time until things settle down.

It's so hard when they fight being medicated. When Kura was sick, my sweetest girl turned into a completely uncontrollable raptor. It took so much out of her, when she needed it the least, that I had to put her meds in food. Even as sick as she was, she'd always eat a little clob of warm oatmeal off a spoon. So I could mix her meds in & be sure she was getting a full dose. I did have to mix it w/cinnamon to counter my unfortunate choice of banana flavored antibiotics, thought. Is there any food Java loves enough to use to deliver the meds the easy way?

...hhmm, nope, that was me, somehow. I just went back to check because I was thinking how the top edit "turned itself" blue when I inserted it. I didn't know why & still don't. But I liked it, so I left it that way. I think whatever happened, I may have messed w/the hyperlink location. SORRY! MY BAD.

I buy them once in a while as a treat. Last time I went shopping I was going to pick some up. But there was this real cute toy that I thought Phenix would like. (wrong!) I got that instead. Got the email notice from MySafeBirdStore & realized we may have had a very close call. I hope everyone else is as lucky

There must be something wrong w/the site. Top & bottom are identical from cut & paste. They should both work or both be broken. That's all I got... Sorry!

I wish the test results had been better. As much as this has to hurt, you did a good thing in recognizing your limits & doing what's best for the poor guy. I'm so sorry for both of you that it came to this.

I have to admit that was something I was thinking while I was watching the vid of everyone in your quite lovely aviary. "More beak. More mess." Glad they aren't biters. But I'm still pretty sure I wouldn't want to get beaked, either. lol I've never seen any posts from anyone else who has one. That makes you very very unique in a very big membership. How did you happen to adopt them?

><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>< I JUST HAD TO EDIT THE ORIGINAL PETITION LINK. SORRY, DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED. IT WAS WORKING FINE EARLIER. http://www.change.org/petitions/urgent-petition-tell-cites-to-suspend-trade-in-african-grey-parrots ><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>< The CITE Standing Committe meeting is 23-27 July 2012. WORLD PARROT TRUST USA has apparently set a goal of 10,000 signatures. Their counter is currently closing in on 5,100. So, by all means, open the social media flood gates. Social awareness can not only help the cause now but in the future as well.

One raindrop at a time makes an ocean. Thank you!

Why! do they always have to get sick at night & on weekends? I'm sorry you have to wait even longer to be able to know what's going on & what best to do next. Just try to keep Java warm & comfortable & try hard to focus on a happy outcome. The whole flock is keeping their fingers & claws crossed for Java & send lots of e-hugs for you both!

It looks that way. Just in the past couple of days there have been a number of articles about it. http://www.traffic.org/home/2012/7/17/solomon-islands-at-centre-of-captive-breeding-shenanigans.html http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2012/07/19/singapore-named-bird-laundering-point.html http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-18858872 http://www.asiaone.com/News/Latest%2BNews/Singapore/Story/A1Story20120718-359772.html

I started a thread yesterday about a topic that I care about & thought many members would endorse. But I'm surprised to see the thread's gotten no love & very few hits. I thought maybe I put it in the wrong place. So I thought I'd try again because the CITES Standing Committee will meet in 2 days. And the more public pressure these types of organizations feel, the more attention they are apt to pay to any particular issue. Could members please take ten minutes to endorse this petition which could potentially help save tens of thousands of fids from a needlessly cruel end? Thank you. Valore ><><><><><><><><><><><><> I JUST HAD TO EDIT THE ORIGINAL PETITION LINK. SORRY, DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED. IT WAS WORKING FINE EARLIER. http://www.change.org/petitions/urgent-petition-tell-cites-to-suspend-trade-in-african-grey-parrots ><><><><><><><><><><><><> "Next week ...(the CITES Standing Committee) will decide on the fate of thousands of wild African Grey Parrots. Specifically, Congo - one of the largest exporters of these birds - is hoping to continue the practice of legally capturing these birds to sell to Asia and the Middle East. Their quota of 5,000 birds is regularly exceeded. And in Cameroon, despite a zero export quota for this species, a total of over 5,000 birds were exported in the last four years for which data is available. So, this decision next week will decide the fate of thousands of African Grey Parrots traded … every year." http://www.greyforums.net/forums/showthread.php?196437-Petition-Against-Wild-Trade "CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, also known as the Washington Convention) is a multilateral treaty, drafted as a result of a resolution adopted in 1963 at a meeting of members of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). ...Its aim is to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten the survival of the species in the wild, and it accords varying degrees of protection to more than 33,000 species of animals and plants. In order to ensure that the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) was not violated, the Secretariat of GATT was consulted during the drafting process.[2] Only one species protected by CITES, the Spix's Macaw, has become extinct in the wild[3] as a result of trade since the Convention entered into force..." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CITES

Got an email from 911ParrotAlert-owner@yahoogroups.com. Thought this sounded like a very good thing for members to check out. "Next week in Switzerland (July 23, 2012), a small gathering of people who decide how wildlife can and can't be traded around the world (the CITES Standing Committee) will decide on the fate of thousands of wild African Grey Parrots. Specifically, Congo - one of the largest exporters of these birds - is hoping to continue the practice of legally capturing these birds to sell to Asia and the Middle East. Their quota of 5,000 birds is regularly exceeded. And in Cameroon, despite a zero export quota for this species, a total of over 5,000 birds were exported in the last four years for which data is available. So, this decision next week will decide the fate of thousands of African Grey Parrots traded … every year. Now is our chance to urge CITES to protect this Globally Threatened Species from such unsustainable pressures. If we can get CITES to adopt a trade suspension from these two countries, we'll not only spare thousands of birds, we will help turn the tide on the trade in wild parrots for good. Please join us, sign your name, get all your friends to do the same, and help us save thousands of wild parrots today! http://www.change.org/petitions/urgent-petition-tell-cites-to-suspend-trade-in-african-grey-parrots Extra reading of interest http://www.avianweb.com/congoafricangreyparrots.html#ghana http://www.avianweb.com/spixsmacaw.html now extinct in the wild Spix's macaw. thanks!"

When Phenix first came home there was next to no intelligent info to be found. I was so grateful when I discovered Bird Talk. Loved the pictures & learned so much about so many different birds from this magazine. Makes me sad to hear this.

I don't think Gilbert's ever going to be easy, even by grey standards. Give his current rate of progress, I think a lot of his anger issues will evaporate once he's truly comfortable in the world, though. It's good to hear that he's angry at you & he's taking it out on you. Sorry! lol I mean he's not seeming generally withdrawn & plucking. It's also fortunate that he has been bonding so well w/your daughter. One more person to give him a reason to continue to be social even while he's working thru his issue dujour w/you. lol

Sure. You run that risk. But I personally don't think it's much different from having multiple dogs, cats &/or kids. You do the best you can w/everyone's personality type & end up w/what you get today. Great sense of humor, honest commitment & superior referee skills are kind of must for success. Two schools of thought, here. One, get 2 babies who grow up together. Or two, spend time w/the new grey & fully appreciate what that means & how it works, first. Then decide if another fid is right for everyone. Either way there are no guarantees. It comes down to personalities & lifestyle. You really have to decide what's best for your particular flock.

Jay! Tell them that after they fix this particular craziness. Gives them something to look forward too. lol Zypher, I'll bet a nickel this is one problem being compounded by another. You guys may not respond to Hattie, but you do react. Wince, set your jaw, grind your teeth, sigh. Greys have scary body language awareness & supersonic hearing. Hattie knows she is getting your attention. She also knows she's pushing your buttons & that's fun. I'm guessing the other part of the problem, is that Hattie may be getting up w/the birds because she's made friends w/some of them. We're not early risers around here, either. But during the warm weather, my otherwise quiet tiels would start this loud, high pitched calling any time from sunrise on. Turned out my neighbors were having the same problem w/theirs. I finally figured out they were all talking to the Cardinals & each other. Even when I couldn't hear everyone they were definitely answering each other. Hattie's an outstanding talker. I'm thinking the fledgling flock creature followed her natural impulse to communicate w/others in & around the house. It was just a fortunate accident that imitating the squeaky hinge taught her another greyt way to go about it. If I'm right, you're looking for a way to block out the wild bird calls. It will take a while for Hattie to realize she's back to being isolated. But then she should ease up on the calling. As long as you guys actually learn to honestly ignore this particular call, Hattie will probably move on & find some other fun sounds to experiment with.

Since it's been so hot & because I've been trying to encourage Phenix to socialize w/Kura, I've been giving them baths together. It's been going pretty well. Phenix only tried to grab Kura's tail twice. Today, I got Phenix set up, then went to get Kura. But she was busy in her cage. Rather than stress her I went back & did Phenix first. I left Phenix to drip off while I went back again for Kura. I got her all settled. I reached for the mister. Then Phenix yelled, :eek: "Kura!! Duck!!" Yeah, I completely lost it.

You might want to cut back to 2-3 times/wk. It may be too much for him & then there's the stress, too. And I'm w/Zulu's Mom about nylon cord & sponges. They can be a real problem once they start to unravel/fray.