Luvparrots

Oh I love to hear about others' amazons!!!! Great photos of Chili Pepper! What beautiful weather and Chili looks quite happy being in the sunshine!

I have put Louie's travel cage on the floor and he has come out of it and sat on the top. But if I try to touch him or try to step him up, he just flies away. Louie is fully flighted so what may work for a clipped bird, does not work with Louie. I have tried calling him with his favorite treat next to me and he won't come for that either. Louie has learned to say, "come here Louie" in English though . LOL!

Hi kfs, please do check out our Nursery Room. Dave the moderator there is a treasure trove of African Grey information. He has helped me oodles with my 6 month old CAG. Let's be honest, he has helped me with all my parrots! LOL!! Welcome to the Grey family can't wait to hear more about your new companion!

My parrots don't spend a lot of time in their cages, mostly sleeping or eating. If I could have an ideal cage for each fid it would probably be 3 feet high and 6 feet or more long. Mine don't spend much time on the floor of the cage or below the main perch for that matter. I had an older ekkie that preferred smaller cages so I can understand that. So let your fid decide which he prefers and then everyone is happy!

Yes we mature people can still teach a whippersnapper a thing or two!!!! LOL!!!!!

Jeff my parrots all love the boings and use them all the time. I have one in each room of my home and three in my office as that is where the computer is and I spend a lot of time in the office thus my parrots are in there a lot also. Also my Louie is not a screamer. He and Ana Grey talk a lot but no screaming. I live in a house in a rural town in Washington State. Never had a complaint about my birdies they are pretty quiet. I beleive it depends on the parrot and if the parrot is happy life is mellow.

Yes, I also use vinegar and water in a spray bottle.

Oh I love it!!!! Rocky is a happy water baby! I love that first picture! What a regal zon Rocky is!!! Can't wait to see your new signature picture!

Very nice photos of Dayo and the sunshine! That's great that you can roll the whole works outside.

Looking on the internet it seems that Lysol is harmful to birds/parrots. I also use vinegar and water.

I don't give my parrots sunflower seeds. They get other seeds and nuts but never sunflower seeds. Have you tried Safflower seeds, less fat.

Penny, that's a great idea and Louie speaks Hindu at least once a day. A whole bunch of words as if he is holding a conversation. I can't repeat any as it is a very fast language. My daughter believes he is repeating half of a telephone call. There is a couple from India who run the local minit mart and I have thought of taking Louie up there for a translation, but he is speaking English every day now and I'm too "mature" to care about learning another language. He has said the words "step up" and he knows what they mean because I step up the other two every day in his presence. Right now, I'm more interesting in getting Louie to come flying to me for a treat instead of his holding back. I want him to really trust me enough to come to me and let me touch him. He is such an awesome zon and I love him to pieces!

Oh the joys of having a flighted parrot!!!! Try three that are out all day long!!! My three follow me around all through the house and they have boings and perches in each room. If they are on me and I want them off, I just flick my shoulder and they go flying and have to choose a boing or perch to light on. Because they are flighted they have no problems. If they get to be too much trouble I just send them all to their bird room where I can close the door. They have toys and their cages and foraging things in there so they are content. Because I live alone, I can easily see that there are no "dangers' around that they can get into.

What a scare!!! So glad everything turned out okay for Timmy! Hopefully he will soon forgive the owiee!!!

I have some of those "none tip" stainless steel bowls. I had to remove them as both Sterling and my zon, Louie, can pop them out in a flash! Heavy ceramic bowls work for my two heavy lifters!

I have tried the "handshake" but Louie is afraid of hands so he backs away. He will "kiss" my cheek if I ask him to but that is an act of faith (on mt part) as he always has that beak much wider than I like! As long as it is Louie touching me, he is okay. I'm the one whose touching is off limits.

Jeff, Louie follows me around all day long in my home. If I go into the kitchen, here comes Louie and as well as the other two. He doesn't like taking food from my hands so I usually place his treats in a foraging spot near him after first trying to get him to take it from me. I have no problems getting him back in to his cage for whatever reason, he goes in usually without a problem, or after he flies around a bit. I believe so he can get rid of excess energy before being "locked" up. I so wish I could talk to his former owners again, as I believe he is leery of women. I do plan to continue to work with him as he is now a big part of my life.

I so wish I had asked the lady who brought Louie to me more about his background. She was from India originally and Louie spoke Hindu. I do know he belonged to her husband and that when the husband became ill, Louie was moved outside "with the greys." They apparently raised Congo greys. She called Louie "wild". All I saw was a beautiful Blue Front amazon in a cage made for a canary/parakeet and I wanted to give him a home. I tried to call her a few days afterwards but her telephone number was disconnected. I've kicked myself three-fold for not asking more questions when I purchased Louie. Louie is a wonderful zon and so full of energy and love so I can wait for him to trust me. To be honest, my kids, who don't like my parrots, like Louie the best! Go figure!!! LOL!!! His English gets better all the time!!!

So here is Louie's latest video. He is not afraid of me and thinks I'm pretty tasty but he still will not step up!! The one nice thing is that Louie does not really bite me very hard. And if you say he is just "checking" to see if the arm is steady, well trust me, it is!!!!!! He will touch my hand and even my shoulder at times but he just will not let me touch him in any way. I ask me to come here at least once a day and he does open his wings and lean over as if to come, but then he changes his mind. But, I am still hopeful and will continue to be hopeful. Some day!!!! Don't think I have not considered clipping him just so he "needs" me. But that is not something I can do very lightly, so I will do it the hard way and just keep trying. He will go into his cage when I ask and come out and into his travel cage when I ask so I really can't complain. I just wish I could cuddle him like i can with my greys.

Glad you found something that works for you in your house Stevie! I use the "get out of there" voice with my gang. This works for me and Ana Grey and Louie have learned a new phrase.... which I hear back at me at least once a day (with proper emphasis)!!! LOL!!!

My parrots all love fresh snap peas and eat them whole as soon as they get them! To my fids, snap peas are great treats!

Great Biscotti video. I really enjoyed listening to this smart ball of feathers! Please give that guy some peanut butter!!!! He deserves a treat! LOL!!

My first was grey was clipped by the breeder when I first got her, asking the breeder did no good as this breeder believed in clipping, it was safer for the grey. It took about a year for the feathers to regrow and during that time I had to carry my Ana Grey around. Did this help her to bond with me and to trust me? I don't know. Any how, I knew I wanted my grey to fly. I have always loved to watch birds flying so I was determined my grey would be able to fly. I was already a member of this Greyforums The first thing I did when I found a grey was to learn all I could about them. This forum was wonderful and I was excited not afraid to finally bring my baby home. I placed ceiling swings and boings throughout my home and when Ana Grey came home these were the places I put her. I also placed toys and foraging stuff at each landing place and she became accustomed to these spots. The spots where placed in front of windows and close to where I would be sitting or watching TV. As my other parrots arrived, Louie, the zon, a re-home, has never been clipped. Sterling Gris, the CAG, was only lightly clipped by the breeder (before I found him) so has always been able to fly and these two just followed Ana Grey's lead and now sit on the perches and boings in each room. I believe if your grey can see you and has things to do at specific places in your home designated for them and if they are confident and flighted, they can enjoy themselves at places suitable to everyone.

My pleasure. I'm glad it helps!!!! Love our greys, yes we do!!!!!

Welcome to Rocky! Can't wait to see more photos and hear more about your new zon!