Lyric

Hi Andrew and Tui! Nice to meet you. Lyric and I watched some of your videos on youtube today and thought they were great. He is 15 months old (TAG) and not talking yet but I still think one day he will. He loves giving kisses and appreciated that part of the conversation between you and Tui. Keep up the good work and have fun in your travels!

Here's a picture of me- I had to share too.

I go to the "everything's a dollar" store and get cheap bird toys. For instance, they sell a big package of plain ol'popsicle sticks that will keep Lyric entertained for a few minutes anyway. I also got him some plain untreated baskets to play with. These things might not last long but a few minutes of entertainment is worth a dollar!

Hi Rick- nice to meet you. Scarlet sounds like a fun bird.

I like those names! Welcome to you too- I'm new here too and must say enjoying myself. I get bored at work and this gives me something to pass the time til I can get back home to my little flock!

I know these posts are from quite awhile back but I was reading through them and thought I'd reply anyway. By the way CeasarsDad I love your picture of Ceasar- what a beautiful grey! My Timneh is 15 months old and he averages around 300 grams, but I weigh him first thing in the morning before the morning bomb- so I guess he weighs a little less than that. It fluctuates slightly from day to day.

I think I would fit right in with your club. I've been bitten by all kinds of birds- here's a funny story for you. Several years back I was really into cockatiels. I had a pair that was fairly tame and didn't bite hard. I went to a local store that carried lawn and garden supplies and also birds- not sure how the birds fit into the scheme but I didn't care. They had a cage full of pretty tiels and one male lutino that I just had to have. The salesman is getting ready to get him out for me and put him in a carrier box for me to take home and I say, "Oh I can do it- I have birds, I'm used to them" Famous last words! I reach in and grab the bird and he chomps down HARD. My eyes start to water and I'm hoping I won't pass out but I don't say a word because I don't want the salesman to laugh at me or say anything after I told him I knew what I was doing! That bird drew blood and I drove home with a throbbing finger and him in a box. AFter that I always respected his beak and never gave him the chance to bite me again! Hee hee. We all learn a little from our experiences or if we don't at least we had the opportunity to! My TAG bites occasionally but I can usually tell if its going to happen. He puts his little head down and makes a certain chirpy sound and I know I'd better watch out. For the most part he's good though but I can't wear jewelry around him- I probably wouldn't have ear lobes if I did.

In my internet research on birds I came across the following site that I thought was very interesting: http://www.sheldrake.org/nkisi/ Basically, it is about a research project that involved an African grey named N'Kisi and his owner Aimee Morgana. Aimee spent hours with her bird, and he had developed quite a vocabulary because of her efforts. She had discovered that he seemed to have knowledge about things she was thinking about or looking at even if she wasn't within his sight. She contacted a guy who had done research about dogs knowing when their owners are coming home before they arrive. The project involves interspecies communication and telepathy. N'Kisi was videotaped in a separate room from Aimee while she looked at pictures of certain objects that N'Kisi knew the labels for. In many instances he could describe what she was looking at- it seemed to me that it proved a certain amount of telepathy existed between the two. This was done in 2002. I haven't been able to find any more updated information about the two or any additional information about this project. There is also a cute sound clip of Aimee and N'Kisi interacting with a toy. I thought people on this site might be interested in reading about them too. I'd like to know if anyone on here has experienced anything similar with their talking birds? I find the whole prospect very intriquing and one more step in proving how intelligent other species besides us can be, similar but also very different from the studies involving Alex. Hope you enjoy it.

Regardless of whether or not Lyric talks I'll always love him, but he is 15 months old and not talking yet. He learned to wolf whistle real early and does all kinds of whistles (even some with vibratto) and clicks and does the normal grey sounds. I "thought" I heard him say "Pretty bird" one day but wasn't totally sure. I wasn't sure if he said it unclearly or if I just imagined it because I wanted him to talk so badly! So, possibly he's saying pretty bird or maybe I just have a good imagination. I'm waiting for the day when he talks non-stop! Oh, he also makes all kinds of sounds anytime I'm on the phone- must be a thing with greys.

My TAG sometimes gets to come to work with me (when it isn't too cold outside). Otherwise, I have him out for an hour in the morning to eat his glop while I get ready for work. Then, I come home at lunchtime and make lunch for both of us and he's out another hour. Once I am home for the evening (around 5:00) he's out for the rest of the night until bedtime unless he just wants to go inside and rest for a bit. All in all he's out quite a bit. He spends those times either playing on the playstand on top of his cage or on a table playing in my kitchen. I'd like to get a play tree but haven't come up with the money for it yet. He likes to be within my sight at all times if possible. I also tell him where I'm going when I leave the room and "I'll be right back" if I will or "Bye Bye" if I'm going to be a while. I'm sure he understands what I'm telling him, even if he doesn't like it.

I thought a long time about what to name my TAG, but eventually came up with the name Lyric because I think it's kind of unique, could be a girl or boy's name and I figured a musical name would be good. His official name is "Lyric Angel" although my boyfriend thinks it should be devil instead because he insists he is the devil. (they don't always get along so great!) When I used to raise cockatiels I had a Sunny and Sidney so all their babies had S names, and my parrolets were Ziggy and Zelda so all their babies had Z names. Z names are a little harder to think up though! Lyric's parents are Tarzan (because I loved watching Tarzan growing up and figured it was kind of an african sounding name) and Akasha (from Anne Rice's book "Queen of the Damned"). My other pair of greys are Isis and Osiris because I've always loved Egyptian stories! Eventually maybe I'll have a Cleopatra too!

Just wanted to give my two cents worth as well. I love the books mentioned in the very first post. "For the Love of Greys" was so wonderful because I totally agree with her idea of how to treat your grey with respect. "The Alex Studies" IS hard to get through but worth it. The work that was done with Alex is such an inspiration to us all. We know how smart our birds are but here is someone who was trying to scientifically prove that to all the non-bird people out there. I have a few books to recommend but they are all at home and I'm at work. I'll have to get the info about them and post back later.

Those are all great stories! Laurie- I too have hidden in the other room to avoid letting Lyric see me eating something he shouldn't have! Hee hee- we are definitely in the same boat there. Otherwise he gives me such a look- I start to feel guilty and wonder if I really need to be eating whatever it is. I'm glad I'm not alone in how I feel about my bird. Thanks for sharing and i look forward to more stories.

Everyone that knows me and my bird thinks that he is the most spoiled bird ever. I swear that bird has just about every toy known to birds (that I can afford). I sometimes cook special meals just for him. Otherwise I always try to share any bird-safe foods that we are eating with him. He thinks if the rest of us are eating then he must be eating too. Watch out if you don't give him a bite! He has taken over a small table in my kitchen and that is his favorite place to play when out of the cage. He likes to play with toys in his water bowl and also loves the all time favorite bird game, How many times will you pick this up if I fling it on the floor? I love spoiling my bird. He is really my small feathered child (that it is legal to lock in a cage and leave for an hour without supervision). The only thing I worry about is if something ever happens to me. I don't think anyone else would give him the attention and level of care that I do. I also don't know what I'll do whenever I have time and money to actually go on a vacation. I may just have to take him with me! Share your stories with me about what you do to spoil your birdie child. I look forward to reading them! :cheer:

Thanks for the warm welcome. I think I will enjoy being a part of your family! Judygram, I originally purchased a wild caught male timneh (back in the days when they were still being imported). I wanted a tame handfed Congo but couldn't afford it, a wild caught Timneh was much more reasonable at that time. I tried to tame Tarzan with gentle persuasion but never had much luck. Eventually I found him a mate, a wild caught female that was traded to a pet store for another bird. So, Akasha came to live with us. They bonded almost instantly. I never really tried to tame Akasha. Both birds are accustomed to my presence and will take food from my hand but won't step up or tolerate being handled except unwillingly in a towel. I had a nestbox on the cage for years with no luck. They wouldn't even go inside it. Then, I noticed them mating a couple of years ago and decided I would give it a try again. I put the nest box back on and it didn't take them long at all to go inside. I think it was just meant to be. Akasha had 4 eggs in that first clutch. The first egg I think took her by surprise and was cracked on the bottom of the cage when I found it. She successfully laid 3 more inside the box. Of these, only one was fertile and produced my little Lyric. I was so happy to have a baby grey of my own to raise. After I took him away at 3 weeks old they immediately tried again. They laid 3 eggs and none of these proved to be fertile. I took the box off once I was sure they weren't going to hatch to give the little lovebirds a break. I just put the box back on again two weeks ago and they have been mating every morning since a few days after I put the box on. I'm expecting to see eggs within a few days. I don't know if any will hatch or not but we'll see!

Just wanted to say hello. I've been reading posts on your forum for some time now but never felt the need to create an account. I decided to become more involved so here I am! I have kept/raised/been owned by birds for most of my life. I have bred and handfed cockatiels, lovebirds, pacific parrotlets and Timneh greys. My pair of Timnehs decided to surprise me after more than 10 years by producing one chick in Aug 2006. Lyric will be 2 years old on Aug 27 2008. He is the joy of my life and was well worth the wait. Anyway, hello to all of you and just to let you know, I've enjoyed reading about your birds and getting helpful advice off your site. Thanks!