Trustdace

Well I have been training Congo to step-up and step down and has gone very well. I'm sure it has learned step-up 100% and step-down 80%. The kids and I are having so much fun, we have a blast and loads of laughs. Recently my daughter has taken upon herself the task to teach Congo how to talk. I spend the evenings watching her speak to Congo in a high pitched voice and Congo just staring at her and a little whistle or squeal is what he answers her. My wife asks do you think Congo will talk? My daughter answers, " yes mommy of course Congo will talk quickly, right daddy?"! I don't want to discourage her because she's so excited and I say yes baby Congo will. In the back of my mind I was thinking that there are no guarantees that a bird will talk and at 5 months old it is too young. Last night my daughter had Congo in her room conducting one of her training sessions. I could hear her say, " hey baby!" repeatedly in a high pitch. This went on for about 15 minutes. I was watching tv in the living room and she came out of her room and left Congo alone in the room. She began explaining to me her techniques and what she tought would work and briefing me on her progress. All of a sudden she started talking to Congo from the living room "hey baby!" "hey baby!" to my surprise Congo started making some weird noises like if it was in a rythm, something we never heard before! The wife even came out of our room saying what's that! My daughter was excited and went into the room and talked to him face to face but no answer from Congo. She said what happened it was making that strange noise before but now it stopped? She continued her training until she was exhausted and fell asleep. Today, just a little while ago, my daughter continued her daily talk training and Congo would just whistle and squeal. I was observing the whole operation and I asked her to come to the living room and be quiet and wait. After about 2 minutes Congo started making the noises again like if it were trying to talk; at least that's what it seems to us. She wanted to run into the room but I stopped her and told her to train the bird but from the living room where the bird cannot see her. Sure enough no whistles or squeals but these curious noises. Does this distance trigger the birds want to communicate? Does anyone have any comments or suggestions on this? I would appreciate the advice.

Well Connie Congo's nails are all black. The feathers look like the female's in the pic you posted too.

Great pics of Gandalf. He looks so funny and he's definitely enjoying his bath. I will try this with my grey Congo. B)

Well thanks for the replies you guys and i love Connies pics depicting male and female birds thanx! Anyway I DNA sexed Congo 7/26/08, last saturday. We will know for sure in about a week. Until then, the guy who DNA'd Congo said from his experience that it is most likely a female. I myself am guessing it is a male. :unsure:

That is one beautiful amazon Tyco. It reminds me of my blue fronted amazon Buffy. She flew away when the wife left the door open about 7 years ago. i'm currently considering getting a cuban amazon chick a breeder is offering me. Well thanks for sharing the pic. S/he is beautiful!:side:

Yeah since readind the peanut debate post I also stopped feading seed mixes that contain peanuts. Vitaseed is a mix i used that Congo loves but I don't want to take the risk. Vitakraft has no peanuts.

Cool I will continue to offer different veggies;)

Cristina consult with your vet. It is important because the vet will tell you if it is a mite or other parasitic problem. Your grey looked so healthy before. Are you giving it enough attention? I read that when you gave it new toys it stopped for a while. Remember that these animals thrive on interaction as being part of a flock. Anyways consulting your vet is the best bet and something to consider is revisit the diet you are feeding your grey. B)

Yeah maybe a pic will help shelly. It doesn't sound like something to get alarmed about. Just continue to monitor your bird.

Well Tyco I feed Congo a seed mix called Vitakraft it has different seeds like sunflower, and different grains. Congo loves this seed mix. I have used Fiesta and Bonanza in the past too.

Thanks for the replies guys. I hope Congo will get used to eating all types of fruits and veggies.

I believe this forum has all the information you will need to know about your grey and then some. What really makes this great are the people on here. Oh yeah Mel I saw your post on the toys. Those are very creative. I'm sure your bird will have fun with them.

Thanks again Dan I really enjoy the pics. You have beautiful animals.

Dan the wife and I think Kodak was definitely a beautiful doberman and a beloved member of the family. Thanks for your post we even learned something new. It is evident you are experienced with these wonderful animals and that you can appreciate the breed. This is one of the reasons I am enjoying being a part of this community; people like you. It is comforting to know that I can ask someone not only about the African grey parrot but dobermans as well. Thanks again for your post I really appreciate it:) ;) . My apologies to anyone else if I made them feel discomfort because of the pic or my response. As I said before I know all you here are animal lovers as I am too. Its kind of hard to take a shot hinting animal cruelty when the well being of my pets is priority. Anyhow, I want to thank all of your replys and I will always respect everyone else's opinions. I only request discretion and consideration as adults that we are. I say this because although cropping the ears and tails of dogs will raise flags it is far from being a cruel or inhumane practice. It is legal and reknowned dog organizations approve of the practice. In conclusion I hope this puts an end to the issue and we can move on. Thanks!

Ok, ok, hold on you guys. Being the wonderful animal lovers that you all are it makes perfect sense for the over-reaction. First of all i've kept dogs since I was 9 years old. I am 32 now so that's 23 years under my belt with dogs. Let me clear up some info that lovemygreys put out here. The term for cutting the ears is cropped, for cutting the tail is docked. The tails are docked at 3 days of birth. The cropping of the ears is practiced not only in the U.S. but internationally (just tune in to any televised dog show). Absolutely no vet will crop a dogs ears before 10 weeks of age; the ears are to small to get a good sizing for proportional growth as to the head in the future. Most vets recommend 12 weeks is the best time and that is what my dogs is 12 weeks. I had this procedure done by a proffesional licensed vet who has been seeing my dogs, my other family memebers' dogs, and my personal friends' dogs for over 14 years. While this surgery is totally unnecessary (call it a cosmetic uprgrade if you will) there is a slight benefit from it; the ears are easier to maintain clean and it is easier to treat ear infections if the dog does get one. Is neutering or spaying your dog really necessary? How about removing the dew claw? My doberman Ace is showered with love by my wife, my kids, and me. All my pets are. As you can see in the pic he sleeps on the bed with me and the wife (he's taking over my side; I'll be using the doggy bed soon). My other 2 dogs, the pugs, one sleeps in my daughter's bed the other in my son's. I shell out $50 for a 35lb. bag of super premium dog food. They eat better than I do ( the wife just feeds me T.V. dinners and beer). What I want to say is that I treat all my pets like my own children. I posted this pic hoping that another member who shares the same hobby like dogs and birds could appreciate, as well as with the rest of you. I really enjoy this forum and have made friends with some of you. Sadly there is a lot of animal cruelty going on all over the world. Those of you who think it is cruel to crop a dog's ears watch animal planet. You see dogs being neglected, starved, being beaten to the brink of death, laying in their own feces, and mostly puppies. That is cruelty and people who allow this to happen should be punished. I bought Ace as an anniversary gift for the wife, as a loving gesture for what we both enjoy together. Altough he was purchased from a professional breeder and has show quality with champions in his pedigree its is highly unlikely I will ever show him. Cropping his ears will just make him a good looking stud. Lovers of the breed certainly know what I mean and can appreciate these dogs beauty.:evil: Post edited by: Trustdace, at: 2008/07/27 16:29<br><br>Post edited by: Trustdace, at: 2008/07/27 16:33

I do not feed my grey grapes at all. High sugar and not much nutritional value. I feed it papaya, apples, and bananas. I also feed it cantaloupe melon. I did feed it strawberries before but like the grapes they are high in sugar and acidic.

This is the first time Congo ate broccoli. I of course had the camera ready to snap a pic.

Yeah well we like ours docked or cropped. It is common in Pit Bull Terriers too.B)

Believe me I don't agree but like kitty said its an AKC standard. It was the wife's choice but it makes the dog look so much better. It really looks worse than it is.....honest. :side:

Thanks for the great post Dan. I will continue to let my grey perch on my shoulder. But like Talon says I will let Congo stay there as long as I want.B)

did you resize? and then save?

Here's our doberman Ace and our grey Congo. And yes that's my wifey!!

I believe it's worth the wait. I got Congo fully weaned and it makes a huge difference knowing the odds are in your favor. Just wait a little longer.B)

Your grey will settle down before you know it. As for the cat don't take the risk. Supervise them both when contact is possible between them.

Congrats Carolyn great looking playstand. Your grey looks very healthy too. Excellent pic. Good jobB)