zooman

so sorry I too just read your story...poor little guy...sorry you had to go through this

haha what a way to wake up

Well I can def relate with you, Zuri my TAG turned $ this year and he is def going through same kind of thing, like the others said..breatheee I truly think this will pass as its slowing down with mine, this year has been the rockiest with my TAG and tested my will and patience. The main thing is to be calm as possible and dont lose your cool, as much as you want to. Also agree no shoulder if possible, hes in a power position there. I know how it is, i would go into Zuris room and he'd be puffed up and smashing his bell pinpoint eyes and im like whoaaa sleep o the wrong side of the bed my friend? I would find shredded newspaper piled up in a corner with his down feathers and went hmmm, he also did the "mating dance" but always later in the evening, in the morning it was more why werent you opening this cage 5 mins ago! It progressed to the point i took a horrible bite on my arm where its like he wouldnt let go, ive been bitten before but never like that everrrr, completely out of the blue and unprovoked. I had given him a few mins to calm down and came back talked to him and calmed him down and no eyes no puffed up and even he lifted his foot to say im ready and bammm. As soon as he was out of his room he was an angel all day. the point i said ok enough is enough is when id let him out of his cage in the morning and he go for a bite when id unlock his door and missed, he"d fly to me for a nip and fly to his cage. that was last month. So I took him for a vet exam did all his blood work and clipped him not full but enough to say hey bud your behaviour sucks! you need me and i need you, and now you cant dive bomb me as well. well since i have 3 weeks ago or so, its seen a huge difference, hes calmer although still unsure and grumpy in the morning, i havent been bitten, i know its given me a tad bit more confidence as well, i also recommend before being with him to take a deep breath and calm yourself, i truly feel they sense our emotions and if we are tense so will they. I walk in all cheery which is nottt me in the morning haha but trying to start the day off right. hope this helps, your not alone, my zuri was and is my best little buddy and ill never give up on him. hes just going through something like yours is. good luck

I made my own from a large cat carrier. cut the sides out and holes on the top. I then wrapped it with pet safe screening and use s.s fasteners. inside drilled for 2 cups for food and water. lastly I installed a rope perch inside. has worked well for 4 years. saved myself $200 this way. crate cost $30 plus maybe $25 in materials.

thanks for sharing, just like children we all have our ups and downs with them and work through those as a family. Im going through something similar with mine sexuallly maturing and becoming a bit of a nest (cage) protector in the mornings, your right, overnight almost he went from pinned eyes and me walking away to now swooping over me in less than a month, i figured out what i did wrong and now working through it. I let too many people give me poor advice when i knew what to do in my gut, last few weeks settled down. so keep at it.

yes patience is a virtue, and one a grey does not have.

As the others have said all opinions are correct in my eyes. i also say she must be adapting well to home if she feels comfortable enough to nap. I remember laughing when i read if it was on here or online somewhere where birds need 10 hours of undisturbed sleep...i cant think of any possible way a bird could do that stting high in a tree at night with 100's of other birds and night sounds and night predators lurking, unless you have her in a room with the tv on and your up to wee hours of the night with her or a party animal, shes probably getting enough sleep on her own. I have mine in a sleeping cage in a spare bedroom all night so if he doesnt get enough its not my fault.

exactly, you are correct. they are not in the wild and thats the only thing i think he could have. I buy the right foods and give him lots of time with me and everything i personally can afford to give money or of me. wish i could say the same about feather chewing but we are working through that now, its a mild case compare to some but doing everything we can.

haha well that was for bi yearly blood work, when I left there it was $390 bill so def hit to my wallet. yes that groomer is out to lunch. wings don't grow in that fast. even nails maybe I trim every 2-3 months if.

never had my avian vet ever tell me to trim the beak. my grey is not a wood chewer so most any vet has done was clean up the peeling outer layer. they always told me his beak was perfect length somehow he finds his way of trimming his own beak

when I brought my Tag home he was on tropican pellets but I tried to switch to Harrison's twice no go. he is eating zupreem pellets and vet told me its not as great as Harrison's but good. for some reason he never took to Harrison's so if yours does great. highly rated food

of course! I respect anyone who respects their pets and treats them with the best care they can. I know we all love our Greys and other pets. does that mean you don't trim your Greys nails? or don't take them for a yearly vet exam? they do blood work every 2 years making sure he's tip top shape. little comfort for me but costs $200 though.

I agree proper towelling is not abuse. I do trim my own nails in the shower since he knows he gets to gulp some water for his reward but...when he goes in for his yearly exam he gets towelled and i remember the first time he screamed murder, went today for his blood work and exam and first 10 seconds he growled and then tried barking like my dogto see if she'd let go, we all laughed and he calmed down was he having fun? probably not. haha i find even hes getting better with strangers. her towelling in that video was not my issue at all, she did it fast, first vet visit with my first "avian" vet she ran after him all over the room now that is stressful but it was my first time and i was a newbie and knew nothing, def last time he went there though.

This past year my TAG started to do the same thing with his cage area, never been bitey with me but now i think hes entering into sexual maturity (hes 4) and makes a nest like pile of paper in the corner of his cage. I open the cage and he either pins his eyes and bites or fluffs out and i say ok ill come back later to him, always in the morning and never annnyy other time. it reached my limit when he would swoop down like a robin protecting his nest and nip me and take off. I was unable to give time outs as he was free flighted. So with the avian vets advice she said try to do a semi wing clip...i know i know some people go garrrr, but seriously calmed him. He can fly still no problem but not amazing like before. they only clipped maybe 3 feathers on each wing. just something to keep in mind if it gets worse. Im using this time to restablish to him that behaviour is not ok without nips from him, because im his favourite too so its been so weird. anyways good luck.

both are great ideas, vet wrap i find he likes to pick away, i screwed in a couple sandy perches and a bird safe wood perch. sisal works but make sure its not coated with anything.