LindaMary

I've had the same experience, Rosenzahra,when I take Maxi out in her adventure pack. Everyone loves her! Maxi's pretty laid back, too, and I seems to really enjoy it when I "load her up". I have also had that idea of getting permission to talk to schools and other groups about the birds - maybe together with my daughter - to spread the word about them and obviously to make the point about the commitment level involved.

Hi Ina, I give Maxi a little cooked oatmeal for breakfast several times a week. I cook it plain, with no salt or sugar, but I mix in little things she likes (pomegranate seeds, bits of chopped peppers, wasabi peas, edamame pods, frozen succotash) so she has to go hunting through the oatmeal to find them. By the end of the meal, she's made a proper mess and I can tell she has really enjoyed her food! Sometimes I give her a 5-grain hot cereal in place of oatmeal (it contains oats, triticale, rye, flaxseeds and spelt) - I think she likes that even better.

Maxi LOVES habanero peppers - almost as much as pomegranate seeds!

What a handsome fella! Thank you for posting tose pictures so quickly!

Yes, we will be lurking for photos tonight, Amberly! Woody must be picking up on your energy level too, I'll bet.

Greetings, Heather and welcome! I would love to see a picture of the evil 150-lb-mastiff-abusing cat. I have his/her twin - my black tuxedo cat is the neighborhood bully - tho a perfect gentleman with me.... :laugh:

BTW SweetFx - I LOVED the first picture of Rexxy and Sadie! Can't help myself showing it to anyone who'll stop by the computer to look. We should always remember that interspecies bonds aren't reserved to parrots and humans. Example : I have some friends whose German Shepherd adopted an orphaned baby raccoon - that was food for many hours of entertainment, too. I feel a new thread coming on - and Rexxy and Sadie are the inspiration! B)

Watch out for Dan. He tells it like it is ! {Emotions-000200B8}

Guess what? My name is .... Linda Mary and my daughter's name is Mary Morgan (but she's 13 now and hates the Morgan so she's just Mary) but my mother's name is also Mary so there are a lot of Marys around here! Thank goodness Maxi is Maxi!

I wish everyone who thinks about getting a companion parrot spent as much time up front really considering all the ramifications of that decision as you are spending. Karma to you for being careful, reading up and listening to your gut before taking the leap! Keep up the good work.{Feel-good-000200BB}

Could it be related to her approaching sexual maturity? There are a couple of threads in the forum on that subject - sounds like she may fall within the age range by some estimates...

I don't know much, Greg, but there was a galah at the store where I got Maxi, and over the six week period when I was visiting Maxi every few days, I saw a lot of her. She was a very sweet, cuddly bird, and very quiet, actually. They are powder-down birds, like greys (I believe all cockatoos are) - and she was definitely more noticably dusty than the greys. But I was really happy to see that another lady who was visiting her regularly finally took her home, because she realy was a sweet bird - very polite! That's just my input from my very limited personal experience - I expect you'll find people here with far more intelligent things to say!

He looks positively regal! I love the wide-open-mouth shot!:lol:

It's been a good heads-up for me to read this thread, as well as one on a similar experience Kaedyn had with Rigel last week in Georgia. Though a lot of people don't know it, parts of New England are actually quite quake-prone (including the area where I live) - and often it's the kind of geological activity that people don't really feel as a quake. Last year for instance (before I had Max) we had a rash of "odd explosive noises" and "odd smells" which turned out to be the result of natural methane gas expulsions. In October 2001 I was awakened by a 5.2 quake shaking my bed - I can just imagine how Max would've reacted to that! Anyway, since I expect I'll experience this at some point, it's been good for me to hear about how your birds have reacted - especially Aries's long reovery time. It really did rock his world - in the wrong way! - didn't it? So glad to hear he has MORE than recovered! You are to be much congratulated for successfully convincing him all is well - karma to you!

How about Silka?

Probably our most set-in tradition is Lullaby Time. Each evening before her bedtime, I take Max out of her cage, cover the cage, sit Indian style in the armchair in the corner and play one side of a particular Zamfir (flute music) tape. (We've been listening to the same one at bedtime for at least 10 months now.) As soon as I'm seated, Max crawls up onto my left shoulder and starts settling down, gritching her beak - sometimes looking for a head scritch. It's a nice peaceful pattern we both expect now.

This is the type of story that we should remind ourselves of when we wonder why our birds sometimes do things that seem completely unprovoked or illogical to us (e.g. biting "for no reason", throwing mysterious hissy-fits, etc.) Their sensory tools are just literally wired and tuned differently from ours. Hope Rigel doesn't have to notify you of too many aftershocks....:whistle:

Maxi first discovered that game with empty cat food cans that I wash out and stack on the end of the kitchen counter till the next time I go downstairs to put them in the recycling. I think I'd only had her for about a week when she was running around on the counter one morning and dicovered this treasure trove of wonderfully clangy objects that she could use to make Mama pick-up-and-put-back-for-the-next-toss. What fun!! :evil: The next challenge was: now how far can I actually pitch these babies?:evil: :evil: :lol:

Wow, I had never seen a Jardine's - what beautiful colors and gradations! Thanks for posting those pictures!

I am very sorrry to hear you're having to go through so much all at once! Sometimes it just seems like everything happens at once, doesn't it? I'm sending you all the luck I can find...best wishes and you are in my prayers!

Pat and Caroline have given you great advice, prettybirdie! Take things in steps - you can get many of your questions answered just by looking around on here. A side note re: harnesses : if you order an Aviator harness, it comes with a DVD showing you how to get your bird adjusted to it over time. That's really for much later, tho: you still are working on some real basics. (I am just starting to work with my 20-month-old Timneh on harness training, and I expect it to take months for me, even without her having the backstory your birdie has!) Mainly I just want to gve you a BIG pat on the back for being so conscientious and doing what you can to give this bird a good home. Sounds like the poor thing has already been through a lot, and it's wonderful that (s)he has now landed with someone really dedicated to doing things right! That's big responsibility to be taking on at your age, but I think it's wonderful that you are taking it on, and karma to you for that!

Greetings, Erin and Elmo! Welcome to the forum! I'm sure you'll find it's a great resource to help you with your new feathered charge. You can learn a lot just wandering around on the various threads - I certainly have! - and always feel free to ask questions. Therer are a lot of very experienced, friendly folks on here, and they're always willing to help! We'll look forward to seeing some pictures of Elmo soon!

I agree with Judy - take your new baby along. It can also be an opportunity to gradually introduce your other family members to the bird, including doing any education of them that may be required (being respectful of the bird, etc.)

Yes, Janet, I had an issue with one of my credit cards within the last year. Someone in Florida racked up $8,500 on it at two Walmarts and three CVS's in the course of 1 day. It was actually a card that had theoretically been retired the month previous due to a security breach in a regional grocery chain I use - I already had a new, replacement card in use, and there were legitimate charges on the new card on the same bill. The bank's fraud department handled it for me - I got yet another new card, all the fraudulent charges were expunged, and I just had to fill out one affidavit. Logistically, it was handled pretty easily, but the stress factor was definitely there! It hasn't stopped me using my cards or ordering on-line, becausethe truth is I don't know how whoever it was got hold of the old number or was able to use it after it had been retired. But it certainly gives you pause, doesn't it? :ohmy: For one thing it convinced me that I'm not in fact crazy (as some have called me) to keep track of every penny I spend or get in Quicken and always know exactly what my bills should look like before they arrive...

I have all kinds of questions, Lu. I am assuming you are talking about leaving her, cage and all, outside at the sitter's location? How old is she? What is she used to? Do you have another cage she could be inside in? Do you have snakes or rats where you live? Those are just starters. I can understand your concerns - I'd feel uncomfortable with this choice, too. Let us know a little more, okay?