Big_Squishy

I wish BoBo would dance more than screech and chirp lol. Someone's owner dances allot while doing the house work. I don't dance so well so I don't want my bird showing the world what a bad dancer I am.

Thanks that was the missing info I wasn't thinking about. Also I believe to make powdered cheese they use a very fast dehydrating process and then grind the left over into a powder.

I understand that cheese is ok in small doses and had already taken note of the possible sodium issue. I just had seen someone mention that they were using real cheese as a reward and I thought that if you are rewarding for a particular action word or whatever then the potential for giving the bird too much cheese is more likly. I would sugest that cheese just be a treat not a reward. I think that was more where I was going.

I have a friend in Florida that breeds Greys and about 4 months ago he hatched one with one solid white toe, nail and all. Nothing else about the bird is out of the ordinary just the one toe. Also after the DNA sexing results came in it was a Male. I have asked him to send pictures so I can post. I have also tried to get him to join this site but he spends 85% of his time out with his birds. He sells his Greys between $400 and $800 Ususally $400 to direct customers and $800 to the pet stores. Also offers a 1 yearguarantee if the new owner has it vet checked within I think it is 10 days. Didn't meant for this responce to turn into an add but for those of you that may be in Florida I know he cares greatly for all of his birds and it would be a good place to look into. I know he breeds other bird types but never really asked I lived too far away he only does inperson sales no shipping of his birds.

I saw someone mentionthat cheese was better for their bird than cheez its. Aren't birds lactose intolerant? All of the birdy cookbooks I have mention that it is ok for birds to eat cheese in very small amounts. BoBo gets a sugar cube sized piece every now and again, most of it ends up on the floor but I limit how much and how often. Most of the Cheez its crackers are baked and the worst thing I can see about them is the amount of salt. But I believe there are low salt and no salt versions. I am just wondering how would real whole cheese be better than cheese type crackers? Isn't cheese also more fattening?

I have been searching the post to see if anyone had mentioned their birds enjoying ice cubes. I haven't been able to find one. So I thought I would mention it now. BoBo 2 year old CAG is very tempermental when it comes to bathing. Sometimes he will tolerate a mist/spray others a small bowl with a turkey baster and on occasion time in the showerr with Dad(me) he will not shower with Mom. However, and I know there was a post somewhere about how our birds seem to try to bathe in the smallest bowl possible(can't find the post), like they haven't figured out that it would be easier to try the larger bowl. So we have a giant manzanita perch in our living room and it came with two steel bowls. The edges or lip of the bowls are very small and BoBo just has to be standing on the bowl to eat or drink even though the wood is situated for him to easily stand next to the bowl. This past summer it got very hot and since we do not have an air conditioner and BoBo has this dangerous attraction to fans I decided to fix the small bowl problem. Maybe it was more a problem for me and my idea of logic but I just had to do something. So I searched around for a large hard plastic dog bowl with a good sized lip/edge went to the plumbing section and found that a piece of a clean out drain plug that had a flat side and a beveled side/edge. I took one of the wood tapping dubble sided screws, (the kind that has a course thread with a point on one end and a finer threaded side with a flat top on the other, one you would use to screw a feeder bowl onto.) I used JB weld and attached the drain piece to the bowl and the screw to the drain piece. After setting I trimmed and smoothed any edges to help lessen the chance BoBo would try to bite this area. Once all set and cleaned I screwed the bowl to the perch and filled it with ice cubes. I piled it high and then added enough water to come to the top but not spill over. As soon as I placed BoBo on the perch he went right for the bowl and began playing with the ice, crushing, holding it and I think eating some of it. He flaps his wings and dips his head in the water throws some of the ice out but he seems to have a very good time. It isn't a very thurough bath but it entertains him, gets him wet and I think it even helps to keep him hydrated. I do have pictures that I will share very soon. I thought I would share this and see if BoBo is the only one that just Loves ice. He loves it so much that the other day I asked my son to get me a glass of water with Ice in it and as soon as the words Ice came out of my mouth BoBo wen right for his bowl and waited, when my son brought the cup to me BoBo said "BoBo ICE" for the first time and in the loudest voice possible. If you maintain a reasonable heat level in your home this winter I don't see this being a health issue, and an inexpensive toy and reasonably easy to clean up event for both you and your bird.

Will do, On my way home from work. Will log in once home, got some pictures and post to make. Good to see ya Dave!

Oh and just a comment on the bird trainers technique. When Baby BoBo came home with us, we had some trouble getting him to step up. Everyone spoke of patience , posture and approach. Give your bird all the time it needs but be consistant. If you stand too far away or too close you let your bird know you are scared or are threatening. Also I have always used my hand and not my arm to have BoBo step up on. My arm is bigger around that his feet can grasp. I always try to use two fingers to more comfortably accomidate his feet and it also gives me a bit more control. The only time he is on my arm is when he chooses to move off my hand on his own. Also her comment about your bird being workable? Come on? all birds are workable, the question is not will they work to your unconditional wants and needs but will you to theirs. It's the happy medium I think people need to work for.

Our CAG BoBo only gets his nails trimmed when they appear to be causing him trouble grasping his pertches. I still do not have him towel trained but instead of clipping his nails I have be having them filed so they are not sharp but still long enough and pointed enough to allow him to be a as sure footed as a grey can be. I see no need to trim his beak, having rubbing materials that he can do his own grinding and scaling on will help. I am just getting back into the site from an extended time away but I know there aere some really good post about these kinds of materials. Also if you are thinking that beak trimming will make the bites hurt less I really think it may be the other way around. Bites are part of being owned by your bird. Generally the less you react to the bites the less your bird will try to bite. Not a given but generally this seems to be the case. I really think it depends on your pain threshold and how much it realy means to you to trust your bird and have them trust you. I guess I may be numb from the eyes down but I would rather be bitten a few times really hard and not react than being bitten all the time and having to let that come between BoBo and I.

Thank you! Very Much. I can't wait to share. but beware and ask Judy ya ever get in a chat with me I talk too much lol.

I am really not sure how this will be viewed and am hoping I am not doing anything wrong, but with BoBo (just over 2 years old) I have no real problem getting him in or out of his cage. There will be times he doesn't listen well but I do just like I have done with dogs and even my son. I don't yell but I raise my voice a little and change my tone all the while showing I am the boss. By this I mean I am insistant. I stay step up, he doesn't listen or backs away. I change my position and tell him to step up and even though he may bite at me (pretty rare anymore) I would hold my ground. My wife just doesn't have the right voice to do it, or hasn't found it yet. Also she is afraid of getting bitten. This is going to be one of those things you have to get use to and really watch how you react. You might even look inot stick training for those times when your bird is not wishing to be handled. I am not expert and have learned most everything thing I know from either this web site and the people on it, a few books and trial and error. Fortunatly I do my homework before the trials start. Be patient, take note of your birds habbits and your schedule find that compramise your bird is not just your pet but a new member of your family and so the give and take has to be there. Unless you have a booming voice like mine and the give doesn't always have to be as much (LOL) Good luck hope to have offered some food for thought. Big_Squishy

Hello Judy! I missed everyone too and am glad to see a good number of people from before. I feel terrible about just dropping out without saying anything but there was only so much I could do. BoBo is doing well. i would say Great bt he just hit 2 years old and has begun to change. I have been expecting the change but not sure what exactly to be on the look out for. I hope you are doing well and hope to do some catching up. I have to figure out how to post pictures and all of that again. First thing is first I have to start reading and catching up on all that I have missed in the past year. maybe you will even add me back to your firneds list lol. Hugs to ya Judy! P.S. Hi Dave

Thank you! I will check it out. I was looking at BlueAir systems. Almost all of them cost around $500.00. Looking into seeing if my health insurance will help with part of the cost. Thanks you once again for the info!

I have been away from GF for a good long while due to some health problems. Things are better but have gotten some very sad news. I am alergic to feathers. I started having respitory distress early this year. Though it was the flu, seasonal alergies or just stress from other medical problems I currently have. After a serious trip to the hospital last month, the Dr.'s finally started doing some breathing test. Found out that at the age of 34 I have developed Athsma and that besides being alergic to almost every type of grass in the US I am alergic to bird feathers. not just a little bit but seriously. I was told that I should find a new home for BoBo. I just can't do it. We clean 10 X more than we did before and I already thought it was overkill. Looking into an air filter system and am taking several medications to lessen my reaction. I thought it was the Dander (dust) but from what the Dr. said besides the dust , all birds creat a sort of oil that comes from the preening gland. When they did the "Scratch Test" the tiny little poke they gave me with the feather solution on it swoll an area the size of grapefruit on my back. So besides a respitory reaction I have a skin reaction too. This doesn't stop me from spending time with BoBo or really change the way I handle him for now. I am wondering if anyone else is alergic to feathers and what they might have done to make things better? I refuse to send our family member away and unless it will kill me he stays. I can live with being uncomfortable I just hope something can help. Big_Squishy

Hello, I am not exactly new but I am sure many things have changed since I was last on. I believe my last post was in 2009 so it has been a while. I dropped off the face of the earth due to some health problems and although I am not all better I am good enough to get back here and continue to learn more about building a strong relationship with my CAG BoBo and ensuring he is healthy and happy. I hope to finally have something to contribute that is helpful. Glad to be back! Big_Squishy

BoBo CAG Male 1 year 1 month just started his first significant molt. I will be attempting to take some detailed photos to post here. I will use photobucket unless there is a better place. If others here have the ability to take photos as well and they include basic info about their Grey this might help others identify some of the normal changes in our birds. (skin, color moisture, mood, etc... This could also help if your bird has other than normal conditions, yeast infections, trama, illness etc..., detailed photos ( which should not replace Vet inspections) could aid or point us owners in more of the right direction as far as initial responce and actions. It will take me a few days and I will post BoBo;s photos of his molting areas and offer a bit about behavior changes. JC<br><br>Post edited by: Big_Squishy, at: 2009/03/17 23:40

I am glad I foudn this post. Now BoBo has not gone through anything like this however his first big molt has just started. I would like to know. After a month now, how is he doing? Do you see significant feather growth, is he still picking them out? I hope and pray all is well and continueing to progress. JC

well I will look into everything that has been listed. I did not know that bathing was something that you could over do with a bird from such a humid origin. Everwhere I read it says at least once a week, many places say as often as you can get your bird to. Sugest that it will help to keep your birds skin soft and the pin feathers will be less irritating. Not to mention keep the dander down. I believe you just giving you some insight to why I was doing what I was doing.

I bathe Bobo (CAG) as often as 3 times a week. He still does not like it , however I can normally get it done with little fuss. I have noticed that on a few occasions that Bobo will have water under his skin on the back right side of his neck. I can see is slosh around. I goes away within a few hours but it worries me. I thought that maybe it was water in his crop but then remembered that the crop is lower and in the front for the most part. What is happening, is this some sort of physical way his body deals or reacts to the stress of being bathed? Am I doing something to hurt him or that could hurt him? How might I prevent this? JC

Thank you for the sugestions! Where do I get information on this clicker training? Is it costly?

It has been a few months sinceI was able to get on here and post. My family just finished going through a nasty child custody battle. I am happy to say I now have sole custody of my son. SO life is better by the day. No here is where the problems are. BoBo our CAG will be one year on Feb 2nd. We have already discovered that he has take to me and really does not like Amanda (my wife) BTW we got married 22 Dec 2008 For the past 3 months she has been BoBo's primart carrer and I have been hands free 95% of the time. BoBo is not very happy about this and has been showing it. His vocabulary has not increased much although he has made some serious atempt to say hello, Fragmanted speach saying BoBo Pretty Bird , just BoBo ( several diferent tones and volumes) and Good BoBo. The past 2 weeks BoBo has been squalking or honking like an african goose. He will also make some very shrill screaching sounds that will go on for hours if not either put in his cage or if I not Amanda give him attention. Belive me I know to give in would only be counter productive and is the last resort. I am not sure what else to do to change this. I do make more preferable sounds to try to get him to change the noise but it only works for the time I am interacting. Second problem, BoBo has been biting me, seems he think he can get away with it. I do the earth quake when he trys while sitting on my arm, howeve when it is time for bed and I request a step up he will show a defencive stance and try to bite or move around his perch to avoid my reach. He will also jump and try to fly the other direction. I have no fear of being bitten I just do not want this to become a habit. I do not want my family to see him as the nasty mean old bird. Last but not least when ever I have BoBo sitting on the chair behind me, (I have a gamer chair and will rub and scratch his neck while I play) He is happy to get the attention but wants to be right up under my chin and very close. Now normally I would take this as a good sign with the exception that ifI do not continously give him attention he will bite. At such time I will get up and put him in his cage and I put the sheet over it. I amm looking into a behaviorist and going to some companion parrot classes taught by an Pat Malloy Ref: Pat Mulloy, RVT, Avian/Exotic Nursing Team Leader Pat (Patricia) Mulloy was born in South Dakota. Her early years were spent on a farm/ranch. Animals have always been a major part of her life including years spent riding horses. She graduated from high school in Pierre, South Dakota, and attended college at the University of South Dakota. Her family located to San Diego County in 1967. She has worked as a secretary, bookkeeper, administrative assistant, police dispatcher, and operated a day-care center. She has worked for the Navy, the Air Force and Boeing Aircraft Corp to name a few. Since animals have always been a passion for her she went back to school. In 1991 she graduated from San Diego Mesa College's Animal Health Technology Program. She passed her California State Boards and is a Registered Veterinary Technician. She started with Acacia as a Mesa student in 1990 and has never left. Over the next 16 years she developed her love for and knowledge of birds. Since 1996 she has been the Avian/Exotic Nursing Team Leader. Pat has developed Acacia's Avian Behavior Program. She conducts regular behavior classes. She is also available for private behavior consultations. Her latest addition to the behavior program is the Acacia Avian Social Circle – a safe place for clients to socialize with other bird owners and for their birds to socialize with each other! Pat belongs to the San Diego County Veterinary Medical Assn., California Veterinary Medical Assn., and Association of Avian Veterinarians. She is on the Advisory Committee for the Animal Health Technology Program at Mesa College. She served on CVMA's State RVT Committee for 6 years. She has lectured at the Wild West Veterinary Conference in Reno, at the Association of Avian Veterinarians Conference 2 different years, at the North American Veterinary Conference in Orlando and to local clubs and organizations. She teaches the avian anesthetic class at Mesa's RVT Program. She frequently participates in career days at local schools. She shares her home with her pets Misty, a red-lored amazon, Jake, a blue-fronted amazon, Whitey Cat, a 18 year old domestic shorthair, Toby a 7 year old akita-border collie mix. In addition she is "nanny" to a geriatric Chow Chow named Fu Fu, 3 Hyacinth Macaws (Huli, Sapphire & Nino) 2 Blue & Gold Macaws (Maggie and Quickdraw), a Scarlet Macaw (Ruby) another red-lored amazon (Petey), and an African Grey parrot (Bird Brain). Things at her place can get quite noisy! Only the strong of heart and ears visit!! In her spare time (what little she has) Pat teaches skin care with Mary Kay Cosmetics, volunteers at her church and spends time with her nieces shopping and going to movies. She loves old movies (especially comedies and old musicals), music (especially jazz!) and theater. I know these kinds of classes can be expencive but is well worth it for our BoBo. However, with the $10k lawyer bill this extra expense could be very hard to swallow. I have been searching the forums and have found alot of information that we have already put into practice. Maybe I am not being as patient as I thought but this kind of behavior needs to be curbed and re directed. I do not normally do this but my cell phone number but I am open to calls that might help. It is not like I can't change my number. Plan on doing it here in a month or so anyways. So here it is 619-315-3596 We are on pacific standard time. Very Respectfully, Big_Squishy AKA. JC

Just realized our EQII server is not crushbone but in fact BUTCHERBLOCK. Opps. Brain fart on my part.

Well I am glad we are not the only geeks. I have a buddy here at work that is a MASSIVE WOW fan. I have played it , still have an active account but prefer EQII. As a matter of fact we just started a new guild on the Crushbone server and will be looking for quality people that want to join. My wife to be and I met shooting eachother on Xbox live playing Ghost Recon and then moved on to Call of Duty 4. Look us up if ya happen to play, my gamer tag is listed in the first post. We have 2 xbox 360's, 1 Wii, 1 PS3 and 2 computers. Our bird BoBo will learn the geek language lol. JC

I had posted a question about people with birds and any video games they may play that entertain them. now I am just wondering if there are any fellow gamer geeks out there and what they play. My wife to be and I play on the Xbox 360 and play Call of Duty 4. My screen name is Big_Squishy76 We also play Everquest II on the Crushbone server. Just thought I would see what else we might have in common and ya never know, maybe we might geek out together and talk about our birds while we shoot people on Call of Duty lol. Post if ya wish and don't if ya don't JC

BoBo loves to sit and nip holes in my shirts. At first I thought he was doing it just to get a hold, unfortunatly this is only the case sometimes. BoBo seems to like to punch holes in my shirt, kind of like the old fashion juice can opener. The other night he managed to finish off the colar of one of my shirts and I really was not aware he had done that much. I have plenty of old shirts I am just really short on shirts I can or will wear in public. maybe I will put on one of my old fight deck jersies and let him have at it. Thanks again. I will keep working with him. v/r JC