SunnyBird

My dog grifon/poodle mix raised my siamese cat when I brought her home. Teddy my dog had given birth once when she was 7 years old. This happened 2 years later. She actually started lactating and breastfed the kitten for a few weeks. A few years later when I brought home my daughter, I had the impression that she wanted to do the same for her - I had to let her check everytime the baby cried to make sure I was doing everything OK for the first few days, and then she let me be LOL! :silly:

It seems that the grey personality really is quite different than the caique, eh? I guess you are on a learning curve too, right now :-) Also, the smaller the bird, the more nervous it is by nature, no? Mango is getting really pretty now. Thanks for the new photo. {Feel-good-000200BB}

She's a real beauty. Congratulations and may she stay healthy and bring lots of joy. Can you tell me which forum you are referring to? I'd love to learn more about these birds. Thanks!

Would it be possible to take the kids with you or do you live too far away? Alternatively, perhaps your mom or another family member can check for you?

My heartfelt condolences to you. I recently lost my bird too and I know how much it hurts. Healing the heart takes time. In the meantime be strong and brave and remember the good times you had and that love transcends all and lives forever. There's a reason for everything.

Well Alex wasn't super messy but here he is with a tomato seed on his beak.... :woohoo:

I intend to order from Northern Parrots in the UK. Does anyone have any experience with them? http://www.24parrot.com Cheers!

Happy Easter to all of you! I've got to get off this damn computer and start packing. I'm on vacation for a week. Yippeeeeee!!!!! <br><br>Post edited by: HappyinGreece, at: 2009/04/10 19:21

No, from what I've seen they can be large, just not too "heavy". B) Alex in my daughter's room...

{Feel-good-000200BB} {Communicate-00020110} {Love-000200C5} {Nature-000200C9} And the Easter bunny's happy too!!!!! Thanks for letting us know.

Thank you so much for your kind words. I'm really sorry for you too. Do you have a bird now, after you gave the second one back? I'm waiting for a local breeder to see if his greys will hatch any eggs and I'm thinking of getting a TAG or two this time around due to the character descriptions. But of course, I'll take whatever he's got in the end cause I miss my little Alex..... Crazy me, I found a CAG window sticker in the pet shop the other day (was going there just to look at their birds...) and I stuck it on the side window of our car.... Now my husband has to look at it whenever he gets in the car HA HA and he complains to me that Alex is responsible for the bird poops on the car! :laugh: Anyhow to get serious, I'm shocked at how quickly they can just up and die. Your story does sound very similar to mine but I did not have an autopsy done and the vet did not suggest doing a poop examination. In hindsight, I should have asked for one but this time around at least I'm prepared.... I need to go and chase down the vet who examined Alex when I first got him. Supposedly they did a poop exam on him when he was still in the pet shop and they were supposed to give me the results but they never did. Anyhow, I cleaned all the parts of the cage with chlorine and hot water and I steamed all the toys and bowls and anything that I could fit in the pot that wouldn't melt. This was the advice I got from Nasy, a member who lives here in Greece. She lost her first bird too. If you have any more advice I'm happy to listen.

OMG I just read this topic for the first time. I am so happy that Sherlock made it through - SO happy for both of you. I just lost my Alex with basically the same symptoms!! I did not get him to the vet in time. He died in my arms right after the vet appointment. It crushed me and I can't stop blaming myself and I promised myself that I would be paranoid careful with my next bird. I was also giving Alex tons of food (fresh veggies, fruits, seed mix, sometimes fish, and was letting him try anything I was eating (except for chocolate, avocados, soda and coffee). He still preferred almonds, walnuts, sunflower seeds and brazil nuts above all and we were giving him as much as he liked cause I figured he was a growing boy.... Did I kill him with kindness???? Is it really so dangerous - too many nuts? Does anyone else know about this?

He's growing so fast - na sou zisee! ( a Greek blessing when you have a child - May he live!)

I've had dogs cats fish and parrots but right now I have nothing but my daughter and my husband and the house seems so empty!!! {Characters-000200D2} All going well there are some babies on the way during the course of this spring!! 1. 1 siamese kitten (born last week) 2. 1 himalayan kitten (also born last week) 3. A TAG or CAG (to be determined by nature (egg availability) and/or impulse (nearest pet shop)! I saw a baby CAG on Saturday that looked at me and said "coo". I melted... 4. Then next year..... the dog (haven't decided what kind yet) 5. In 2 years an amazon or a second AG???? ....and hopefully my husband will still be around after all that! :lol: No more fish for me unless it's an outside pond... Here's a picture of me and my dogs 12 years ago.. they have all passed the rainbow bridge and I've been without a dog for 6 years now due to frequent moves. Long enough I would say....

Another thing I have read but have no personal experience with at the moment is that you should prepare the bird just like a small child by telling it about the puppy (like it's his puppy) and preparing the way for it by using the puppy's name in the same sentence with the bird's name, like "Grey's puppy Spot is coming", "There's Grey's puppy Spot", etc. This way he is also investing and sharing in the relationship. I'm sure it will work out fine as long as your grey gets his share of attention!

Congratulations and power to you! I hope you have a good memory - trying to associate visuals with the anatomy - you will have to memorize all the muscle groups and there are many!! Also pay extra attention when they show you how to not hurt your fingers, hands and back... It might be a good idea for you to start some yoga exercises... it really helps spring chickens like us not pull a muscle! :silly:

Tycos_mom, can I have your recipe for bean and rice mash or is it already posted somewhere else? Also, the brocoli is given raw, right? Do you cook the vegis? I tried to feed Alex a mostly raw food diet, since in nature there wouldn't be any cooked food.... Do you find that the take the food easier if it's cut into little bits? (Sorry I went off topic...)

I'm sorry to hear about this but I'm so glad you caught it in time. What is the course of therapy? I'm not surprised that your breeder doesn't want to get involved. My breeder did not even have the courtesy to answer my email when I wrote to him and told him that my little Alex died suddenly... Anyhow, I would appreciate if you can give me the list of tests you did so that I can ask for them specifically when I get my next bird. Perhaps I could have saved Alex...

Thank you everyone for your kind words and wishes, both on this post and through private messages. It's so great to have a forum like this to back you up. Many people really don't understand how quickly, deeply and unconditionally we can love our animals. I have posted another topic I would love to have your feedback on. I'm wondering about where I should go from here. I really do want to share my life with another bird (or two - if that makes THEM happier too) but I don't want to make a mistake. Alex was a good bird and I sure hope I will be blessed someday with another good-natured and curious bird like he was, and I have the opportunity to help him reach his full potential. I really miss Alex badly. Again, my sincere thanks to all of you. One of the many reasons I want to get another AG is because this is one of the best forums I've found and I don't want to leave!

After the recent passing of Alex I decided that I would try to find a local breeder and not buy another imported bird. I figured the bird would be healthier and acclimatized to the region, plus it would not have been traumatized or injured due to it's importation. Alex came from Belgium and I have found out that many birds coming from European breeders die within the first few months of their lives. Anyhow, I have been in touch with a guy who started breeding as a hobby and his collection just kept growing. I have not met him in person but I hope that I will be able to visit his aviary eventually. His website is www.tropicalbirdfarm.gr. His personal favorite is amazons but he does get a few AG eggs every year. His prices are a little higher but it's probably worth it. I will find out in a month or so if there's an "Easter egg" for me... :laugh: He doesn't let you take your bird before it's weaned and that's good for me because I don't want to have to syringe feed a baby bird right now... Anyhow, his TAGs are ALOT cheaper than his CAGs, so I thought, what if I buy 2 TAGs instead of 1 CAG? There are some of you out there with direct experience on this and I'd really like your advice. 1) Will they bond with me or ignore me for each other? Or will they fight over me? 2) Will they learn to talk or not find the need to do so since they have each other? 3) Should it be male-female or it makes no difference? 4) Will I have to separate them during training sessions? (I once had 2 doberman pups and I couldn't train them while they were together. They would either start fighting each other out of jealousy for my attention or not listen to my words...) 5) Will they be able to live in the same cage since they are growing up together? (I have a HUGE one) What are the advantages and disadvantages if I buy them now together or if I buy one this year and another one next year??? Or maybe I should just buy a CAG this year and a BF amazon next year???? Please enlighten me with your wisdom and personal experiences! Thanks everyone.

My condolences and heart felt sympathy. I lost my dog when she was 18 years old 6 years ago and my cat at the age of 12 last Easter. Now I recently lost my CAG. It's heartbreaking when they leave you to cross the rainbow bridge but the love you shared with them is an incredible experience which is priceless and worth all the pain of eventual separation. We will all meet again....

and another

Alex

I downloaded the photos from my camera the other day and realized a had taken a few more pics of Alex a few days before he crossed the rainbow bridge. I'm using one of them as my new profile image. He's proudly wearing a black cap (from one of my daughter's bratz dolls LOL) and in the other photo he's "brushing" my daughters hair. Too cute....

Congratulations Caitb! He is beautiful.....sigh How old is he in these photos? Is he weaned or are you feeding him formula? Also, can you tell me where you got a DNA self testing kit? I would love to buy one to have for the future (when I hopefully will get a second chance to raise a AG). One thing though, I had found a lab in the UK which tested feathers which you send in by mail. The instructions said specifically that they have to be freshly plucked chest feathers, not feathers which have molted. I think they need to extract some blood cells from the quills to do the testing. That's why I was going to wait for a while - didn't want Alex to lose his trust in me.