cdelatorrejr

My thoughts are heart go out to you! Please keep us informed as to the root cause.

I agree with the advise others have posted. I found the 7 week old age a great time to explore what your bird will and will not eat. At that age they are so inquisitive and will try food with different texture and color. My grey is 5 months now and he loves peas, carrots, broccoli and corn. He prefers his veggies steamed. Enjoy your TAG (Timneh African Grey)!

Awesome stands! I like the natural wood perches. Your greys are lucky.

I heard mini-macaws are good medium size birds. They have the personality and looks of a larger macaw but just smaller. The Hahns or Noble Macaw might fit your needs.

Maybe Blue can come stay with us afterwards and teach my 11 mo. old, Bobot, some good habits! Thanks for posting your story.

When folks take their greys outside harnessed, where do you take them? I live about 2 blocks from a large park where many sunbath, read, do yoga, walk dogs, etc. I do the walk from my house to the park at least twice a day - walking the dog and trip to the playground for Noam. My concern is there may be too many stimuli - dogs, kids and cats. On the walk, I pass two houses that have various outdoor cats lurking about. The cats are usually in the "ready to pounce" position even for my medium size Chow/Retriever mix. I guess I could take my TAG in the car to the park but that seems to silly for a 2 block stint. We are not too far from the famous Balboa Park in San Diego so that might be a possibility.

Awesome video! You mentioned a book. What book are you referring to?

I think having a bird is infectious to those who do not have them in their lives. My parents, now retired, were together with me when Bobot first came to me at about 6 weeks. They saw the joy and also the commitment I made towards him/her. My father, used to come and take Bobot out on his own and place him in his lap while watching some TV at the end of the day. They recently told me, they contacted the breeder and bought a 5 month old female eclectus. This was the bird my mother was fascinated with when I went to the breeder's home to pick up my grey. The breeder told me that when my father picked up the eclectus, he instantly knew my father was in love with the bird. In fact, my folks are regularly attending local bird shows with the breeder who has now become a family friend. About 3000 miles separates me from my parents but we talk regularly. Now when I talk to them, a good majority of the discussion is on 'Ellie' - the female eclectus.

What really did it for my grey and my tiels was an afternoon bath together! Before then, the grey would try and play with the tiels but the tiels were so afraid of the 'big bird'. One warm afternoon I decided to put them together on a playstand and give them a nice misting. The misting took their minds off of each other. Afterwards, they just spent a few hours preening. Since then, they are doing well together but not yet playing together. Who would have known they bonded because of an afternoon shower. Good luck!

Just to let you know, I was faced with the same decision. My TAG, Bobot, is about 13 weeks old now and after thorough research and reflection, I decided not to clip his/her wings. I am not trying to steer you either way but bottom line is... it is a personal decision to be made after extensive research and contemplation. I wish you good luck on your decision either way. If you do decide not to clip his wings, it is true your grey will be proned to many hazards. You can minimize the hazards but not completely do away with them. Training is the key by letting your grey know where he/she can go and where not to. It's been about 2 weeks now and my grey flys freely around the family room and already knows where to land and perch and where not to. Now I'm working on getting Bobot to stop landing on my head when I'm watching a good movie. :woohoo:<br><br>Post edited by: cdelatorrejr, at: 2008/08/19 00:41

Good luck in finding a quieter bird! I took in about a year will be looking for a medium size and quieter bird. I have similar requirements; even though I'm in a house, there is only a walkway separating both houses on either side. The front and back yards are larger. Dave007... thanks for your response on quieter vs. larger birds. My parents have an eclectus and say she is quiet.

Congratulations! What a beautiful TAG. It sounds it will require a little patience before s/he will trust and begin bonding with you. As for a balanced diet, you came to the right place. Search on various forum posts and topics on diet and hopefully you will find the info you need. Good luck!

Sounds too good to be true but I haven't heard of CNN writing an article on any "off the wall" hoax. Thanks for passing this along, I am interested in what testing reveals. It's quite possible.

Suzzique... I think getting your TAG to play on it is something learned. Most of our feathered friends would like to be with their owners all the time. You may try experimenting with various toys to hang on your playstand. If it has a base, you may want to get some blocks so s/he can climb down grab one and just start gnawing. This is what my TAG, Bobot, does. S/he usually stays on the stand for about 15 min. at a time, loses interests and flies off somewhere else in the house. I'm trying to encourage more time on the playstand by returning Bobot to it often.

I'm greatly impressed! But the one that got my attention was the stairs in the subway - so cool!

I suspect many of us feel the same way - no one quite understands our love, obsession and interests in our birds. Like many, outside of my immediate family, whenever I talk about birds everyone dismisses my comments. Outside of this forum, there aren't many I talk to about aviculture. I am looking for local birds groups to join.

pmaholm... I went with the SMC WIPCAM-G. It has the common options for an IP camera but with audio also. Like minds think alike. I enjoy watching my FIDs at various times throughout the day; its a nice stress reliever.<br><br>Post edited by: cdelatorrejr, at: 2008/08/15 08:06

pmaholm... nice job! I too wanted to check on things at home while I'm out. I opted for an IP camera which is a little more costly but had the options I required. The camera is down right now since I'm re-arranging things but I should have it up in the next day or two. CDELATORRE Bird Bunch Web Cam http://www.cdelatorre.com/bird_video.php Lottyxx... I have also put up a webcam so I can check in on my FIDs throughout the day. I am an IT professional and worked through some of the kinks and requirements - uptime available that is configurable to guest users but 24/7 access to administrators, ability to control pan and tilt remotely, zoom capabilities and night vision, direct streaming from the IP camera to the internet cutting out reliance on a dedicated PC. You can see an article I posted on my research and hard work on my blog. http://cdelatorre.blogspot.com/2008/05/stream-video-from-ip-camera-smcwipcam-g.html If you are considering an IP camera as opposed to a tradition webcam you can contact me. Post edited by: cdelatorrejr, at: 2008/08/15 01:22 Post edited by: cdelatorrejr, at: 2008/08/15 01:24 Post edited by: cdelatorrejr, at: 2008/08/15 17:48 Post edited by: cdelatorrejr, at: 2008/08/16 20:32 Post edited by: cdelatorrejr, at: 2008/08/16 20:33 Post edited by: cdelatorrejr, at: 2008/08/19 00:06<br><br>Post edited by: cdelatorrejr, at: 2008/08/19 00:07

Oatmeal is a big hit in our family - KIDS and FIDS alike! If they don't see me preparing it one of them will quickly remind me. This is an excellent food providing vitamin B & E, minerals and a great source of iron, calcium and good source of soluble fiber.

Thanks everyone for your response. Trust ... thanks for the pictures; it gives me hope to see your children handling your grey.

My baby TAG, Bobot, is now 3 months and is doing well. He's full weaned, plays and free to fly while under supervision in our home. I did notice some new behavior with my youngest child, Noam, who is 2 1/2 year old. There seems to be developing some sibling rivalry between Bobot and Noam. Noam has been involved with Bobot ever since he came to us about 6 weeks old. Now, he's getting older and is exhibiting signs of jealousy. Noam was able to interact and play with him/her between 6 weeks to 10 weeks but now it has changed. Bobot takes Noam's toys and flys off. Noam usually cries and demands Bobot to return his toy. Noam is loud, quick and his playing is always accompanied with banging. I'm sure this bothers Bobot somewhat. At this point, Bobot does not want Noam to touch him. I am afraid one day Noam will get bitten. I know its all about socialization and I am doing things to get Noam more involved as Bobot matures: feeding treats, cleaning cage, putting fresh water and having Bobot perch on me while sitting next to Noam. Is there anything else I can do? Thanks in advance. Post edited by: cdelatorrejr, at: 2008/08/14 21:22<br><br>Post edited by: cdelatorrejr, at: 2008/08/14 21:34

Thanks lovemygreys for your sound advice from your experience. Bottom line is I want to support what is in the best interest of my FID. I feel the right decision for me is to keep him/her feathered. I just don't have the experience to draw from. Thanks again!

I just spoke with the breeder of my baby TAG. I let him know I wasn't going to clip its wings. I told him I want Bobot to learn to fly when I have him tethered using his aviator harness. He did bring up a few concerns about not clipping. First, he's not worried about Bobot flying but 90% of the time when he's indoors - crashing into windows, walls, etc. resulting in death, injury and/or an unplanned trip to the vet. Secondly, if the bird is accustomed to flying and is in his cage a good portion of the day, s/he may start to feather pluck and be generally unhappy. Can anyone comment about these two concerns?<br><br>Post edited by: cdelatorrejr, at: 2008/07/30 23:10

I am going to have s/he DNA'd and microchipped in a couple of months; my vet recommended to do the microchipping when s/he has developed more chest muscles.

Welcome Elozano and Yayo! Beautiful bird. I noticed your pictures of Yayo outside without a harness. How were you able to do this without him flying away? Looking for some tips and pointers since I'm going to start bringing my 10 1/2 week TAG outdoors.