chimaysmommy

I was afraid of the same thing... Mine barely zipped. If you're able to zip it, keep it zipped and closed for a day or two. Mine seems to have stretched out enough to where it's not as difficult to close

Chimay insists on going to his night cage promptly at 9:00, and is pretty regular about waking up at or around 7. On the weekends, if I'm still sleeping when he wakes up he shimmies down to the bottom of his night cage and rips up newspaper until I unwillingly roll out of bed. zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz:silly:

<br><br>Post edited by: chimaysmommy, at: 2009/08/26 23:45

I personally don't have any experience with formula, Chimay came to us fully weaned and readily eating his veggies/fruit/pellets. And to everyone here, correct me if I'm wrong, I wouldn't think that there is anything wrong with continuing the toothpick formula method (is that new? Lol). But maybe while your giving her the formula, offer her something warm and mushy (i.e. sweet potato, bean mash, pellets soaked with warm water or low-sugar applejuice etc) in between the bites of formula. Alternate the two. As she gets more comfortable, she should be more willing to try new things. But if the formula is the only thing she'll accept right now, then your hands are sort of tied. Gotta keep the baby fed! Glad to hear she's at least accepting that from you. Keep us posted! Patience and consistency is key...<br><br>Post edited by: chimaysmommy, at: 2009/08/26 22:11

Aw what a cutie pie...

I know that this is an older post but THANK YOU Christina for the greYt success story on travelling with your grey. My younger brother will be graduating from the Coast Guard in October and we'll have to drive out to Cape May, NJ for the graduation. Since my mother is our only bird-sitter and will also be attending the graduation, Chimay will have to come with us. It's a 9 hour car ride and I am already stressing out over how Chimay will handle it. We're going to start taking Chimay on car-trips with us to get him used to the car rides (that don't end up at the vet's office...lol).

I love this topic!!! I started thinking about Chimay and his abilities in observation and intellect the other day as well. My boyfriend and I are both smokers, and we used to put Chimay in his cage when we go outside for a cigarette. Each time we do that I look at Chimay and say "we'll be right back!" Just in the last week or so, we've left him on his tree right next to the window when we go outside. We have a 2nd floor apartment, and can see him on his tree plain as day from our "smoking spot." Ever since we started doing that I tell him "be right back, see you at the window!" At first he would hop onto his Atom and try to fly to us before we got out of sight, but we always beat him. As soon as he is able to see us outside the window he puffs up and is satisfied on his tree. Yesterday, I was prepared for "the race" again, looked at him and said "be right back, see you at the window!" He had just hopped onto the Atom and was preparing to fly to us, but when I said that he kind of looked at us, cocked his head to one side and went right back to the tree and started scanning the grass below waiting for us to show up outside. I was amazed!!<br><br>Post edited by: chimaysmommy, at: 2009/08/26 21:28

Congrats on the new vocab!!! Now give that girl a piece of apple already Lol

Thank you ScottY!! That's interesting about the interior dimensions between the medium size and the custom size for larger Congos. We've taken Chimay out by the pond in his Pack twice since those pictures, and he seems content in it (he's very intrigued when his Daddy catches a fish...lol) but he has to turn around and face a certain way in order to stretch and his tail feathers seem to take a beating b/c any movement he makes rubs his tail against the bars of the cage. It's sufficient for now for taking him out on short fresh-air breaks, but I just don't think he'd be comfortable in it for extended outings. Thanks for all of the greYt info ScottY!!!! Love the pics of Alexander in his carrier!

Oh yes I really like that Pak O'Bird...How big is your grey ScottY?

Thank you guys!!!! I really appreciate it

LMAO! Now I'll make sure he's reading

Oh he agreed to it! That's how I know he's "the one." Lol!! Thanks for the well wishes guys

So my birthday is this Thursday, and last week my boyfriend asked me what he could get for me. Wouldn't ya know.....I didn't even hesitate in answering "A Jolly Ball!!!" He looked at me like :blink: I think I have problems...

Oh I can't tell you how relieved I am to hear that Lily is safe and sound after such an ordeal...Kudos to your wife for keeping her cool and to BOTH of you for your greYt teamwork! I hope your feet are feeling better! Your lily is a beautiful grey and thank you very much for all of the very sound advice you gave on this post.

Hi Jay! It definitely sounds as though your new grey isn't used to you yet. If/when she flies again and lands on the ground, try not to approach her from a standing position. Sit on the floor and talk to her, and approach slowly. Think of it from her point of view (literally)....with her way down on the ground, and you towering over her she might feel very threatened and frightened by this giant two legged creature cornering her. The crash landing is startling enough, and you want to do what you can to calm her down and realize that you're there to help her. When Chimay is doing any "exploring" in our apartment, I'm always sitting or lying on the ground nearby. He seems to get anxious when I'm standing with him on the floor in unfamiliar surroundings. It might help if you just sit outside of her cage and read, or talk to her. Encouraging stuff...when Chimay chirps and whistles, I say things back to him. Telling him what a good boy he is, stuff like that. I think he likes hearing my voice in response to his noises. And if I'm not mistaken, bird droppings should not have an odor to them. Are you sure that is where the smell is coming from? If so I might suggest a call or visit to the vet. How long have you had her for? Please post pictures if/when you have the chance!!! <br><br>Post edited by: chimaysmommy, at: 2009/08/25 19:42

Happy Hatch Day Barney!!!!!!!

He swore in this morning and will be leaving for Cape May, NJ today...it's official! Our hometown will now be only a vacation spot for him for the next 6 years. My mom, my brother, his girlfriend and I went out for a final celebratory dinner last night and I think we held it together very well. As soon as the door shut behind him we started crying. He'll be in basic training until October then coming home for a few days after graduation before being shipped out again. I am SO SO SO very proud of him, please send positive thoughts his way so he kicks serious A$$ in boot camp!!! :laugh: I'm going to miss him terribly!

Charlie certainly sounds like a man who knows what he wants! Lol!

Yeah it's definitely a tighter fit than I'd expected...I'm going to look further into that Pak O'Bird for sure. I think that he's at least happy to be able to go outside without having to wear that evil harness

Abula I had just taken a peek at your profile and saw the pictures of your grey. Can I ask what are the dimensions of your grey's cage? It seems to be rather small...not sure if it could be playing a role in his aggression/biting issues or not. I agree with a former post to this thread: It seems that your grey has chosen you dad as his favorite. Unfortunately there really isn't anything that you can do to "change his mind," and I don't think that his choice of your dad is because you did something wrong. You really just have to be patient and continue POSITIVE reinforcement...rewarding good behavior and ignoring the bad (no punishments beyond an in-cage time out for a few minutes). Wildiesel's post on 8/8/09 gave some really greYt advice. No matter what progress you may/may not see, you must remain consistent and patient.

Hello Rain! Congratulations on your new grey! Unfortunately I do not personally have any experience with older birds but I'm sure there will be plenty of others on this wonderful forum who will have some greYt advice for you!

That's a really good idea...I think that we'll be taking at minimum a good 15 minute walk outside in it each day. He was in it for about 15 or 20 minutes this morning before he started acting like he wanted out. I don't want to push him too far and make him stay in it longer than he's comfortable, so that it stays a positive experience

Ha ha! I think it's clear we've all seen the possessed side of our greys...lol! Chimay does the same thing. Sometimes he gets into such a "disagreement" with his wiffle ball that he'll arch his body up, wings flared, and let out this awful disgusting screech as though he's temporarily turned into some sort of predatory hawk. Lol! Sophie sounds totally normal to me

Yeah it was pretty overcast this morning, that second pic is one of about 2 minutes of sunshine we've had all morning unfortunately. Hopefully it'll be sunnier out tomorrow and we can go out again! Thanks!