kar2nz

OMG, I would quit, but my family needs the insurance, especially since my wife lost her job a few months ago. About a month ago, a Black Headed Caique died of massive bacterial infection. Two weeks later, two sun conures, whom I poured my heart and soul into, also died. A couple of days later, a Green Cheek Conure whom I also sold to a customer died. I may be able to come up with records of the autopsy reports. All records from the vets indicate that the problems originate with our vendor, way before we ever had the bird to begin with. However, the company I work for, is reluctant to sever relations with this "Bird Mill". My human children are defendant on my ability to provide medical insurance through this company I work for. I need legal advice badly. Particularly whistle blower acts. BTW, I have already secured another job, the problem is, insurance for my human children. Tears are flowing hear. What the hell do i do?

I'm with you on this one. Casper just stepped up for me the first time today. He's always loved my wife, but this is a big step for my own relationship with Casper. Best wishes on your long term relationship with this amazing bird.

OK, I'm sure this has come up before. But this is the first time it's been in my house. Is there some hope of getting Casper to quit cursing? LOL, it is amusing to some degree, but it can be embarrassing as well. Is it possible for birds to UN-Learn words? Can we discourage this without causing other problems?

I just can't believe it. After about a month of sheer hatred from this bird, he actually came to me at the dinner table and stepped up for me!!! I'm thrilled to say the least. I had begun to think this was going to be only my wife's bird. I've been singing to him. I think that's what did it... :woohoo:

My husband's Grey, Caspar, has actually picked me as his 'human'. (It was supposed to be my husband's bird). When he regurgitates in my hand, how do I respond? On the outside, I say "I love you, too" and tell him what a good bird he is and scratch his head. On the inside, I go 'ewww', and have to walk away after 30 seconds. Then I stay away for a couple of hours waiting for his food to digest so there is nothing in crop for him to regurgitate.

My bird does this when he eats scrambled eggs. But I've only seen him do this when I'm playing with him. My husband is convinced that the bird loves me and is trying to share his food with me. If this were a lovebird I would say this is the case, but do Greys do this also?

Casper still doesn't like me very much, but he does some pretty sweet stuff for my wife. He plays "Peek a Boo", and say "Bye Bye, I love you" when she leaves the house. Also, he hollers "Jesse!" (note the exclamation point. Jesse [my 15 year old son] gets fussed at often enough that Casper imitates it when he enters the room. LOL) Casper is so completely different from any other bird I've ever known that i feel a bit out of my element. My wife is so amazing with Casper. I'm humbled... Someday Casper and i will be friends. For now, I'm honored that he accepts my wife.

I am so very sorry for your loss. I wish I could say something profound which would make you feel better, but all I can say is I am moved by your loss. I'm sure there is a place for Coocie in heaven.

This post caught my eye because we have a VERY similar situation. We adopted a 5 year old Congo Grey named Casper here recently, and for the first week or so, he wouldn't say a word. i was told that some of his favorite words were profanity. So, stupid ole me, i start trying to get him to repeat these words. Casper let me know really quick how offensive he found those words when he finally repeated them back at me with hatred in his voice, and a very aggressive posture. (I'm just not used to a bird understanding what words mean so well, :laugh: ) Learned my lesson. I apologized to Casper, and I've only said sweet things to him lately, and only things which are NOT related to his previous family. (We figure he misses his previous mommy, and his favorite dog a lot, and think he probably doesn't appreciate being reminded of his separation from them.) Now Casper is repeating some pleasant things, like "hello", "bye bye" and many things his previous mommy taught him. He talks his butt off now, but it took a while. His tone and his expression have lightened up, and we've been able to make some positive changes in his diet. I agree that part of the charm of a Grey is their unbelievable level of mimicry skill. However, 2 other things are more important to focus on. 1) The bird's mental, emotional, and physical well being. and 2) your positive relationship with the bird. For instance... Adopted birds tend to come with cages which are really too small, so this is a good place to start for any bird. Make sure the cage is as roomy as you can afford, and loaded with interesting toys to play with and climb on. Adopted birds frequently are on unhealthy diets. Getting this corrected can make a difference in your bird's mood. Also, adopted birds are commonly used to poor handling techniques which result in aggressive behavior, or a depressed bird. Some birds are left in closets for years, or have been yelled at, or physically abused. A good clue that something like this has been going on is a bird that yells "shut up" or something equivalent, and shows aggressive posture when doing so. This is not always the case. Some adopted birds have been very well taken care of by their previous owners in every way, but some tragedy forces them to part ways. But, it's something to look for, and correct. If this bird is 5 years old, then you have 45 years to build a positive relationship with her. Love her with every fiber of your being. Take your time with her, you've got plenty of it.<br><br>Post edited by: kar2nz, at: 2009/02/19 17:22

being as this is not a grey, i might make a suggestion. (not suggested for greys) this is a method one of my customers suggested for conures, and it has always worked for me. it produces sweet birds that do not resent being handled. when the bird goes to bite, grab a hold of his head, cupping your hand over the back of the head, and covering the eyes. allow him to maintain his foot grip on whatever he is perched on. he will struggle, but don't let go, and hold your hand in such a way that he can not successfully get a bite. maintain control for 5 seconds. then, let go of his head, and say something very calmly to him like "are you done yet"? this can be done repetitively if necessary, but i would not continue doing it for very long each session. if he's not done biting you after a couple of minutes, try again later. be persistent, and be consistent. add to this treatment, treats you know he likes out of your hand. save the attempts at petting for later, like maybe a week or two. this may, or may not work with a linoleated parakeet. i've only worked with one of those, and he never tried to bite in the first place, so the issue never came up with him. this method has worked on ever conure i've come across, with the exception of 1. this method has turned birds around others labeled "problem birds"

i work in the pet field, and feel lucky to work without the childish influence of commission. i generally try to talk anyone considering a pet out of it, telling them ALL the downsides of any companion animal they are considering first. for instance, i let people know that if they live in an apartment complex, and they bring home a sun conure, their neighbors would have them evicted because of the noise. if i'm successful discouraging the customer, then the pet/parent match up wasn't right, and therefor probably shouldn't have happened. in the end, there is really only ONE reason good enough to bring ANY animal into the house, and that reason is, that u absolutely can't do without it. i'd say u fall into that category. i don't think anyone could talk u out of this with how excited u are. certainly doesn't seem like an impulse decision to me. also, u said you've been around a grey before, so u should already know what u are getting into to some degree. so, being as u absolutely have made up your mind, do what u can to prepare for the baby, but don't stress about stuff u just can't prepare for. you'll do what u have to do in order to be the best family you can be for chimay.

Casper is quite petite for a Grey. I don't remember the exact weight the doctor said he was, but she did comment that he was a bit smaller than normal. Also, she said he was a bit darker than normal. We have no plans for breeding him, so i guess it doesn't matter what subspecies he is. All that really matters to us is that he seems to be fitting in quite well. From your description though, Casper certainly wouldn't be a Cameroon Grey. P.S. I looked up Jean Pattison, and read the article you may have been referring to. Casper sounds like the Ghana variety she describes. He's tiny and dark charcoal grey with bright red tail feathers.

Welcome to the forum. Congratulations on your new Grey. We only recently adopted ours, so i'm not giving any advice. The cage we have for our sun conures was given to us, and we like it so much that we are considering another for our new Grey, Casper. Its actually a cast iron ferret cage which we converted into a bird cage. Its huge for our sun conures. Its reasonably sized for a grey. Its called a "ferret nation" cage, and we can get it locally for pretty cheep. Anyway, i share your joy in anticipation of your new grey. Casper is so great, and we've only had him a few days. We are SO LUCKY to have him. I hope your relationship with your grey becomes very rewarding for everyone in your family.

Welcome Rocky's Mum. I joined like 4 minutes before u did, and we've only had a grey for two days. So, I'm not going to be offering any sage advice about african greys anytime soon. :laugh: He's so different from the south american birds i'm used to working with. I look forward to hearing about Rocky. Much Luv to u and Rocky from Casper's new family

Thx to everyone for their input. Wow, Tyco's mom. U really have a diverse flock. Is Gizmo a Hahn's? I have a freind at the aquatics shop i work for who recently aquired a Hahn's. I would also like to hear input about his personality. I am thrilled to say i think we won't have to wait a year and a half. He already allows the older children, my wife, and myself to at least pet him. He only willingly goes to my wife though. The rest of us can touch him, but picking him up is hit and miss for the rest of us. To DavidH. Thx so much for your appreciation, but Adopting Casper is truly a thrill for me, not a labor. I just love the problem cases. Its so fulfilling! I'm so lucky! The wonderful birds I've managed to get at bargain prices, or for free. And they are all so cool. Overcoming obstacles makes it that much more rewarding. I just hope we are not finally out of our league here with a CAG. To everyone once again, thx for sharing your input with us. We needed to know how this was going to be different, and your responses help a lot.