Char

Hey now watch out teaching them to read. Before you know it the world will be run by Greys and we wouldn't have jobs.:lol: Except for cleaning up after them, scratching their head and intertaining them. Which is what we do now.:lol: Interesting concept. Keep us posted.

Edi, the breeder I am getting my bird from this spring will have greys also. Not sure if they ship. I am going with them because their birds are vet checked, tested and immunized my the most respected avian vet in the state. Do a google search for Dr. Sam Vaughn. Also the price would surely be less in this area (Kentucky) than in Washington State. Of course you may wish to visit your bird or pick it up yourself so prefer to go local. I could check out the greys for you when I go to pick out my amazon. It is Hilltop Aviary in Harrodsburg KY. http://www.hilltopaviary.com/index.html I just called them to ask if their Yellow Napes are getting amorous yet (they are) and turns out he has a little female Congo that was on deposit but never picked up. He also told me that every bird he has is vet checked by Dr. Vaughn every year. This is the exception in this area of the country. I am in nearby town so I would help you in any way I could. Post edited by: Char, at: 2009/02/05 15:35 Post edited by: Char, at: 2009/02/05 16:19<br><br>Post edited by: Char, at: 2009/02/05 17:15

I sometimes miss my non-stick stuff. All mine is stainless steel and cast iron now. I would not risk any of the non-stick coatings.

How long was he boarded. Maybe it has something to do with the medical treatment he had and now he is afraid. I would give him a little space and let him recover from his ordeal. Still get him out of his cage, talk to him and feed him treats by hand but don't push the physical stuff until he is ready. I have also read a suggestion once to go back to feeding formula on your lap for a little while to help the bird learn to trust you again. Many years ago I had a yellow collared macaw that was the sweetest thing until he got sick and had to undergo some x-rays and other medical treatment. After that he was afraid of me, would run from me and bite. I notice a hat in your photo. I have heard of birds being afraid when someone is wearing a hat. Just a couple of suggestions. I am sure some of the more experienced members will come along soon with more.<br><br>Post edited by: Char, at: 2009/02/05 02:50

Mollysmum wrote: Surgery?:lol:

A video would be even better!:lol:

How cute. Mine has never slept like that.

Our routine is as soon as I get home I change into old pajamas or t-shirts. There are buttons missing from all my pajamas. The best thing I have found is distraction. And yeah she can feel that little plastic hook on the front of my bra strap and digs after it like she looking for gold. Ouch! I save plastic tops from milk jugs and stuff like that and give it to her when she starts. A piece of paper works too.

Since you mentioned the kitchen tube roll.. I was at the vet the other day and he gave me some handouts. One of them said that the glue in paper towel rolls may contain zinc. I used to give them to Whisper all the time even though I wondered about the glue. I thought well it must be okay everyone does it. But I won't any longer.

Redkim that is to funny and typical. I am trying with a little success to teach and interest Whisper in playing with a ball. She was not much interested last night. When I held the ball out to her she preceded to rub her head against it to scratch.I told her that was not the game I had in mind. Oh they love those scratches.

There is a variance in shade from bird to bird. My Congo is kind of a medium grey in color at 14 months old. It seems to me she was lighter when I first got her at 4 months but not much and I can't say for sure. In the pet store the other day they had some 5 mo olds who were very dark so it seems that age has nothing to do with it. I think there are just some variance in color. This photo was taken without flash and pretty much shows her color as it is. Post edited by: Char, at: 2009/02/04 01:49 Post edited by: Char, at: 2009/02/04 01:50 Post edited by: Char, at: 2009/02/04 01:52<br><br>Post edited by: Char, at: 2009/02/04 01:53

Mine won't eat sunflower seeds either. Or any kind of nut. When I offer her one she looks at me like I am crazy.

Ash is gorgeous. Mine is the lighter color like that also.

When I was recently at the vet they gave me some handouts and one of them suggested moving the perches also. I haven't up til now but was thinking about it. I only have 3 perches. Maybe I need more?? I only did 3 becuase I wanted there to be some open space in case she fell. Seems would be a lot more likely to break a wing or something if you were hitting a perch on the way down. But I don't know, just my thinking. I would like to hear what others have to say.

What a cutie! Congrats.

My psychic powers tell me it is male. I am psychic. I knew my grey was female even though everyone else thought male including the avian vet.:laugh:

My 14 mo old Grey only has 5 tail feathers left. I She has not plucked them but broken them off. She is rough on them when she preens and climbing around on the cage she splays them on the bars of the cage and damages them that way too. In fact the way they are rubbed around and through the cage bars I am surpised she has any intact. She also chewed on them a little earlier on but not much and I don't see her doing that anymore. She has not damaged any in a long time though and the first one I noticed was when I moved her cage. Hope this helps a little. I makes a difference if the feathers you are finding are whole with the shaft intact or if they are broken. Let us know.<br><br>Post edited by: Char, at: 2009/02/03 15:02

Thanks everyone for your support. When I take her back she will still have 7 days left on the medicine. I am going to take it with me and give to them and say "Here are the meds I bought. Please make sure the baby gets them". They are so deceitful. When I talked to the husband he said the bird must have got it from the formula and they did not hand feed THIS bird the breeder did. he knows the bird didn't get it there. Funny thing is his wife told me she hand fed the baby for 5 months and she took a long time to wean. I kind of doubted that when I called them for the hatch date for the vet and they couldn't tell me. I hope my story is a lesson to others looking to buy a parrot. Also how important it is to take the bird for a checkup immediately to CERTIFIED AVIAN vet. That was the first thing she asked me when I told her the bird was sick. She wanted to know if the vet was certified avian. I was happy to tell her I drove 1 1/2 hrs to take her to the most respected avian vet in the state. If you look at the fine print on most warranties it says Certified Avian vet.<br><br>Post edited by: Char, at: 2009/02/03 03:54

Congrats on the new baby. He is adorable. He is very lucky to have you.

I also hope the bird ends up in a good home. As for losing the vet fees..I believe in Karma. What goes around comes around. The last person who cheated me out of money was soon after that diagnosed with a brain tumor.

Well after I got over being mad I realized that I can at least feel good about getting the bird the treatment it needed and that makes me feel better about the vet bill. Who knows if it would have gotten what it needed before it was too late.

I called the pet store today and told them I had decided to return the bird. They will refund my money but not the vet bill. $193 with meds. They said that that is retail prices and they will not pay that. The creeps! I can not return her until Saturday so of course in the mean time I am treating her. I wish so bad that I could get off work tomorrow and take the bird back so they would have to spend the money themselves to treat her. It just makes me so mad.:evil: Stay away from Bird Farm in Youngstown Ohio and Florida. Now for the good news. I found a breeder in a neighboring town that should have Yellow Napes in the Spring. They vet check, test and vaccinate their birds. Post edited by: Char, at: 2009/02/02 18:51 Post edited by: Char, at: 2009/02/02 18:52 Post edited by: Char, at: 2009/02/02 19:07<br><br>Post edited by: Char, at: 2009/02/02 19:56

Thanks Dave. You echo my thoughts but I was feeling guilty about returning the bird to what will be less than desirable life. I have a big heart but I did not pay for a rescue and I did not pay a rescue price. I just needed some affirmation from a knowledgeable source. As far as my feeling go I have not really been able to bond with the bird since she bites me every time I touch her. What I am really feeling is guilt and feeling stupid for making this mistake. I will have to wait until next weekend to make the 12 hr round trip journey back there and in the meantime I will give her the meds which by the way has not been easy with a bird that wants my hands for lunch.

I took the new BFA to the vet yesterday. She seemed fine but I wanted a check up to be sure she was healthy for her sake and for the warranty. It turns out she has a yeast infection and a bacterial infection. They put her on 2 different medications. I would not reject her based on these treatable conditions except they lied to me about her handling. She is not as tame as they led me to believe. She bites and strikes out at my hands as soon as she sees them. I was willing to work on this and hoped to bring her around until I learned of the health problems. These infections indicate to me she has not been cared for properly in the 8 short months of her life. I am worried that there may be other health problems that would take another $500 to test for. The reason I was willing to drive 6 hrs one way to a pet store is because after talking to the owner she convinced me that this little female was the sweetest thing alive. I wanted a female and I wanted an amazon that had been handled and was sweet and tame. I arrived at the store before the owner got there and the employee told me the bird had not been handled in months. I almost walked out and forfeited my deposit when the bird appeared so unfriendly but it was beginning to snow heavily and she kept saying she would be ok once I got her home. I called the store and they will either refund my money or pay the $200 vet bill. I am really torn. Would it make me a bad person to return the bird? Am I selfish to want to start off with a healthy and tame bird. If I return her I can wait until Spring when the local pet store where I got my grey will have some new birds in and I can get a bird that has been vet checked, tested and immunized and already weaned on Harrison's just as my grey was. Of course they are more expensive but it is really starting to look worth the extra money now.<br><br>Post edited by: Char, at: 2009/02/01 23:27

Sooooo cute.