BaxtersMom

Welcome to the forum! I just finished reading Louies story. You are an amazing person to have changed Louies (and other animals) life in such a positive way. I'm sure you have a ton of knowledge that we would love for you to share on occassions. I would love to see a picture of Louie also.

I have tears in my eyes after reading that. That really touched me. Louie must be thrilled you found him and the abuse and neglect is over. You are amazing!!!

You may not be able to do anything about him not liking women. I think most greys (not all) turn out to be one person birds. Baxter started out liking both me and my husband but a few months after getting him he turned out to be pretty much my bird only. My husband can give him treats, pet him, head scratches but he will not allow him to handle him. He will bite my husband if my husband wants him to step up. They do still have a good relationship though. Baxter just made it clear who's bird he is to my husband. Perhaps your grey has had a bad experience with women and there may not be anything you can do about it. If you don't have an avian vet near you, you will need to find the closest one to you. If there is ever anything happen or your grey gets sick a regular vet will not know how to treat your grey properly. Atleast know where one is if such a problem should occur. If an emergency should occur you atleast need to know where to go beforehand. It could be matter of life and death and a regular vet is not qualified to treat birds and may do more harm than good. I would not clip the wings if you do not know how. A bad wing clip can really cause big problems in a bird. If they are not clipped properly or clipped uneven the bird may still attempt to fly and end up crashing and hurting himself. I have heard of other bad clips that have led to serious plucking issues too so please do not try this yourself. It is a personal choice whether to clip or not to clip but my opinion is that birds should not be clipped. I have 3 that I have never clipped their wings but I do have an exception which was my amazon. He was so scared when we brought him home and half wild. He ended up flying into walls and hit really hard a few times so we thought it was best for him to get clipped before he got hurt. I have a conure that is fully flighted and I will admit he is a pain sometimes flying like he does and have considered (briefly) clipping him but I do not have the heart to do it. It would break his heart. It would be like crippling him in my eyes and just can not do it. Each person has to make up their own mind about it. But before you do anything...please consider the grey (his feelings) and waht it will do to him in anything you do. Whether he can fly or not you need to "grey proof" your home. They can walk very well and will get to cords, plants and other "no no's" in the house. Even if clipped they can't flap hard enough to get up on things if they want to bad enough. If you do feel he needs to be clipped atleast in the beginning mayber there is a pet store that sells birds that clip wings. Many pet stores that sell exotic birds do clip wings and it doesn't cost very much. If you find a store that does sell exotic birds and they don't, then ask if they know where it can be done at. Your grey is still new to you and I would wait on clipping the wings (just my opinion) to see after he gets settled in good if he really needs it. He may not. Mine parrots usually just stay on their cages and don't fly that often and they are not clipped and never have been. Sometimes a flighted bird is not really even a problem. Don't think you have to clip the wings. Don't have his wings clipped untill you see that it will a be problem you can not handle. It takes a LONG time for them to get their flight feathers grown back so think long and hard if you really want to do it. And don't think just because they are clipped that they can't fly because they can, just not as good. I have heard of parrots getting their wings clipped and taken outside and flew away the very same day. Which leads to, after getting settled in, if you want to take your grey outside get a harness for him to make sure he doesn't fly away and get lost. So hang in there. Sounds like you are doing good. Keep reading the threads. You will be fine. Keep building the trust and offering treats. Keep us posted.

Baxter does that sometimes. I think they're just having fun. When Baxter does that I think he it seems he is usually happy about something. Sometimes music, sometimes he will do that after we get finished playing. Sometimes he does his head bobbing and then goes side to side like you described. Watch and see what is going on or has been going on shortly before you see him going from side to side. I'm curious to see what triggers it for him. I bet it's good

Baxter does that sometimes. I think they're just having fun. When Baxter does that I think he it seems he is usually happy about something. Sometimes music, sometimes he will do that after we get finished playing. Sometimes he does his head bobbing and then goes side to side like you described. Watch and see what is going on or has been going on shortly before you see him going from side to side. I'm curious to see what triggers it for him. I bet it's good

Baxter does that sometimes. I think they're just having fun. When Baxter does that I think he it seems he is usually happy about something. Sometimes music, sometimes he will do that after we get finished playing. Sometimes he does his head bobbing and then goes side to side like you described. Watch and see what is going on or has been going on shortly before you see him going from side to side. I'm curious to see what triggers it for him. I bet it's good

Yea!!! I bet you are so excited!

I don't know what they are called. I'd never seen them before either so I had to get it when I seen it. They must make them somewhere though cuz Judy has one that says B R A T. I guess just keep the eyes peeled for them and hope you run across it like I did. It's so festive looking in the cage. I love it! I didn't see anymore at the store but next time I go I will see if there is any more.

Hello. Welcome to the forum & Congradulations on your decision to get another grey. You can find greys in some pet stores that sell exotic birds but I would go with a breeder. They are more reasonable priced if you go the breeder route. There are several members on the forum who are from California that might get you started in the right direction. Also if you can find a copy of Bird Talk magazine they sometimes list breeders in the back for different states. You could do a google search and see if anything turns up in your area, too. Hope the others can steer you in the right direction. In the mean time please check through the various threads here on the forum. They are filled lots of great information.

I have some names now:laugh: Here are a few african names and meanings. If nothing else it's fun looking them up;) Omari~God of the highest Dakarai~Happiness LuLu~Pearl Ami~Saturday Child Mandisa~Sweetness Abeeku~Born on Wednesday Deka~Pleasing Bello~Assistant. I like Mandisa (sweetness) and Bello (assistant). You need an assistant for all your flock members.:laugh:<br><br>Post edited by: BaxtersMom, at: 2009/03/16 22:06

Oh, it's adorable!! I'm so jealous! I have never had a baby, only older rehomed/rescues. You must tell us all about your new bundle of joy. What a cute picture.

Does this mean you are taking the little baby grey? I don't have a suggestion for a name but what I did with Cooper was look up names from the region he came from on the internet. Can't remember right off hand but I think Cooper my amazon is originally from South America or Mexico. How about looking up African names and find one that means love or blessing, etc? I picked my top names, asked others for name suggestions and I didn't go with an ethnic name in the end. Someone suggested Cooper and I liked it. It means barrel maker:laugh: I ended up having a contest and Cooper it turned out to be. How about a contest? It was fun.

Thanks everyone. Baxter really has come a long way. When I first brought him home he didn't even know How to play with toys:blink: . I had to teach him. It took him awhile but now he does like to play with them so I am thrilled.

I got it at a pet store called Pet O Rama. It was $12.99 which I thought was a pretty good price. The one that says AMAZON had a few more letters and cost $19.99.

The thing I got for my Baxter that he just can't do without is toys made of acrylic. He is the most interested in acrylic toys than any other kind. They cost a little more than other same size toys (not much though) but they are almost indestructible so it's a good buy. They last forever and mine stays intrested in playing with them for some reason. My husband still calls it a bong no matter how many times I tell him it's a boing:blush:

My grey didn't play with toys much when I first brought him home but a few things he loved since day one was paper and cardboard. At first I had to tear a few pieces/strips up in front of him and he quickly caught on. Another thing he really loves is just plain cardboard boxes. He will chew those for hours and hours. Not real big boxes and you might have to cut a box down to only about 2 inches tall so it's not too big. Corrugated boxes are best but my Baxter loves all cardboard (better than most toys too) Good luck.

Good Luck Penny. My thoughts are with you. Divorces are often messy and I sympathise with all the stress you are going through. (Been there, done that myself:( ) You GO Girl!!<br><br>Post edited by: BaxtersMom, at: 2009/03/16 20:03

I don't think we have a list here (but I may be wrong) but You could try to google it and put in Avian vet with your location. That should pull up any in your area.

Congradulations on picking out Tuki:) Boy oh boy, those feathers are coming in. He is adorable!!! You should make a baby book and save all the photos, first words, first haircut aka first feather that falls. :laugh: They are just like having a child.

Oh how neat. BRAT would be great! I've never seen any letter ones before and I jumped on it when I seen them there. I would love to see a bunch of different ones with different sayings. They are very colorful too and look nice in the cage. Baxter is doing very well, too.

Last one

Few More:) <br><br>Post edited by: BaxtersMom, at: 2009/03/16 19:37

Baxter got a new toy today and I just had to share with everyone. I love it and best of all he does too:woohoo: He likes the acrylic toys the best and I found a nice big one with the letters that spell out GREY. They had the GREY and an AMAZON one so I got that too. It wasn't in the budget but I just had to have them. Best of all they both love them. Here's a couple pics of Baxter with his.

I was impatient too at first so I understand but it is very important to let him get comfortable in his new home. The more comfortable he gets the less you get bit:laugh: so there is incentive to taking things slow. I mentioned before, I got bit alot by Baxter in the beginning because I was rushing him (and scaring him) because I wanted to handle him. It was pretty painful and if I had just let him settle in better I may not have gotten bit at all. It didn't take me long to learn though and it was much less stressful on both of us. The way to earn his trust is to talk to him, sit by his cage. Tell him about your day or your plans for the day, talk about the weather, anything. If you read, read aloud to him. If you don't read, maybe you could just for him. You can sing, whistle and just talk to him so he knows you are a friend. And give him treats for him to take from you so he knows your hands are not "bad or scary". One of my biggest break throughs was when I had a project of something I was putting together. I did it a few feet from his cage and wasn't even interested in Baxter at that moment but he was very interested in what I was doing. He watched intently and eventually started making noises right in front of me. He got very curious and that is the key. Let him get comfortable and curious on his own. Let him go at his pace. If you try to push it, you will only go backwards. There is plenty of time, too and no need to rush. I am glad to hear that you have a new cage on the way. The one you describe did sound much too small. When the new cage comes and you get it all set up, remember that is going to make him nervous a bit too. You might want to have it near his current cage for a day or so so that he can see it (less scary for him) before getting him in so he can get used to it before putting him in it. Some greys are scared of new cages and some go into new cages with ease. You will just have to watch and see how yours reacts. And by all means, leave the cage door open and see if he wants to come out. It might take awile for him to come out so don't be disappointed if he sits in his cage with the door open for hours or even a few days. He will eventually come out. Keep us posted;)<br><br>Post edited by: BaxtersMom, at: 2009/03/16 15:10

Of course he was screaming out of fear. You scared the you know what out of him. Yes, there are many better ways to give a grey a shower but first you have to let him get settled in. You may have had a big set back giving him a shower like that and lost all trust you might have gained. If he is scratching alot perhaps you might want to take him to a vet for a wellness check and make sure he doesn't have anything wrong with him. I think most greys do scratch somewhat but not excessive. As for the shower, first I would let him settle in and get comfortable. Build up a trusting relationship. Remember he has already gone through a lot. Try and look at it from his side. He was just taken out of his home, doesn't know where he is or who you are, does not know where his former owner is and he is really confused and scared right now. Take things slow and let him get comfortable. Don't think you have to do everything in one day. It may take several weeks to several months for him to settle in and be comfortable. You must go at his pace, not yours. As for showers, Alot of us use mister bottles and 100% aloe vera or water and mist them with it. Alot of greys don't like it or just tolerate it. I would go real slow at first. The key is to not frighten them. Maybe just a few misty squirts in the air and let it fall on their back. It all takes time. Please do not rush him or push him into situations that will frighten him. He is already going through a big change by changing homes and people. He does not understand and is probably very nervous and scared. It didn't help by putting the cage in the bath tub and turning the shower on. That could have traumatized him. You said you put his cage in the bath tub and turned the shower on. Is this the cage he spends all his time in? His home? If it is the cage he lives in it is too small or you have a huge bathtub. Greys need a lot of space. The bigger the cage the better. I have mine in a cage that is 36" wide, 24" deep and about 50" tall and some think that is not big enough either. My grey came to me in a cage that was 24" x 24" x 50" tall and I felt it was still too small for him. They need to be able to stretch their wings out without being crowded. Please keep reading through the many threads here. If there is something you would like to know just put it in the search box at the top of the page and click your enter button on your keyboard. If you want to know more about showers, put "bathing" or "showers", if you want to know about aloe vera put that in the search box or "diet" if you want to know about food. Or just ask here on the forum. From what I've read you need to be more patient with your grey and go slow. His pace, not yours or he may not trust you.