GorgASS

i just got the results back...HE'S A BOY!!!

now that my baby's feeling much better... he's started to act differently towards my kids (ages 3,5, and 7) all of them can still pet him, but if the bird is out exploring on the floor, and they walk in from another room, he flaps his wings and runs towards them. they of course, turn around and walk away from him, so he chases them. at first i thought maybe they were scaring him, so i did a test. if i was petting him and they walked in, there was no reaction. but if i was sitting next to him or if he was playing by himself and they walked in, he'd chase after them. now i've read that some older grey's will purposely (for lack of better words) bully people they know are afraid of them, do you think that's what he's doing? he's only 11 weeks old. today i had each of the kids walk in seperately (with shoes on cuz they were afraid he'd bite their toes lol) and told them to just stand still if he runs at them. he did run and flap at them, and they did stand still and after a few times of them not moving he stopped trying to scare them away (or whatever he was doing) do you think once he knows he can't scare them or whatever that he'll stop this behavior? and do you think that's what he was trying to do? (scare them) i must admit it was pretty funny watching the bird chase after the kids. and i want to add his feathers weren't puffed up when he was doing this. he still let's the kids pet him when i am, i just can't figure out if he was testing boundries or if he's jealous or something. also, he won't step up for anyone but me. he's still learning to step up, but doing really good at it (i think) except when he's on the floor, then i have to pick him up, but when he's in his cage he steps up for me no problem. my boyfriend can't get him to even tho he does it exactly the same way i do...any suggestions on why this is happening? sorry for yet another long post, but you guys are so helpful and i wanted to write the whole story of what was going on.

azzie: thanks! i was just curious what was wrong with onions...i won't be feeding my baby any either! lol carolandfamily: i haven't heard anything from her! nothing. no email back, no returned phone calls...nothing at all. i'm a little pissed about it too. but it makes me wonder...if she did know he was sick and that's why she wanted him gone before he was weaned, what would of happened if i would of said i wasn't comfortable hand feeding him? would she have gotten him meds so he would get better, or would she have let him die? she had to know something was wrong with him cuz his poop smelled horrible and she has been breeding for years. i know next to nothing and i knew it wasn't a good sign. i'm just glad he's with me and getting better. like i said earlier, he's been chattering away and making happy sounds and playing with his toys so much more than before...i know he's feeling better!

azzie- that's why he's on the second med. the vet said the first one is to kill the e. coli but sometimes antibiotics kill the good bacteria as well as the bad, so that's why he's on the second. i can't remember exactly what she said on how it worked tho. i went to copps this morning. they have a salad bar with vegetables and fruit for like $5 a pound. i figured since my guy's not really eating anything it'd probably be cheaper to but stuff that way to till i figure out what foods he likes. so i got a bunch of diff. fruits and veges. i chopped up some spinach, celery, carrots, califlour, brocolli, red yellow and green peppers, and put them all in his dish, wondering if today would go untouched as it has everyday i've offered anything but apples...HE ATE SOME!! he was really going at the brocolli until he dropped it and it went under the grate lol. i'm not too sure if he ate a little of everything or just picked out certain things but i'm so excited he tried it! i figure i'll do the same tomorrow and try fruit the next couple of days and see how that goes. he's also making diff. noises than he was before. he was only doing the same hungry squack all day before, and now he's been quiet(he NEVER was before unless he was asleep), he's been making kind of a squeaky noise (hard to explain), a higher pitched noise, and i think he was growling at his toys. not a growl growl like the youtube video someone posted...i think he was playing with his toy and ?growling? at it. anyone else know what i'm talking about? also, can they have radishes? and i've heard they can't have onions, does anyone know why? and i was so upset the other day about the vet results i forgot to tell you all he took his first flight!! (he's done it 2 more times since then) he's hopped around flapping his wings but this time he was on his playtop that was on the floor and he decided to get down and before i could get to him he flew to me...like 5 feet! i was so excited!

the list of tests they did were: avian complete blood count avian chemistry avian blood sexing (optional of course) culture and sensitivity test the culture and sensitivity test was the most expensive test they did but that's the one that caught the e. coli. i'm so sorry to hear about you losing your baby happy in greece, i'm glad my story isn't going to end like that now. thank you for all your responses, as of this morning i haven't heard anything back from my breeder...not that i'm surprised. my little guy seems to be doing better. (i think) his poop was smelling pretty bad which is another reason i opted to do the culture. it was so bad even if he was in his cage and i was 10 ft. away, if he pooped i could smell it. anyway, he pooped a huge one this morning and no smell! i don't know if one dose of meds could of started to help already or what but i hope this continues! i also took the blankets out of the bottom of his cage, so he'd be farther away from his poop, so there'd be no chance of re-infection. even tho he's only 11 weeks old now, he's been climbing up and down the sides of his cage really good and i am home all day, so i don't think the blankets in case he falls are necessary at this point, or at least until he goes back to the vet to make sure his e. coli is gone. i do have a question tho: how do you wean a baby? my breeder never really said specifically how to, just to email her with what was going on and she'd tell me what to do. now that all of this has happened i doubt i'll hear from her. he is eating really good on his own (only pellets and apples tho, he won't try anything else) and i'm wondering how to get him from 3 feedings a day down to 2, so any advice would be welcome! thanks so much!

and i forgot to add... exactly my point lovethatgrey. what if the other babies have it? there were 3 in the clutch mine came from (that i'm aware of). what if whoever bought those other 2 took them to a general vet (like i did at first) and said they were fine? they'd end up dying!! the only reason i ended up going to another vet was because i didn't like the first one, and i actually almost didn't get a swab taken from the butt because that was one of the things the first vet actually did (he looked at a stool for parasites) so i thought it was fine. thank god for some reason i told her to do it otherwise this may have never been detected until it was too late! notice to all those thinking about getting or who have just got a baby grey: get ALL lab tests done (even though it's definately not cheap!) you'd hate yourself if they missed something just because you didn't want to spend the extra money. that's what made me do that one extra test i think. i thought this bird is basically going to be my permanent kid, and i know if one of my human kids got sick i would pay anything to make sure they got healthy again, no matter what the cost. *sigh* sorry i keep going on and on

i emailed the breeder saying my baby has e. coli and saying she might want to get her birds checked or at least be aware and watch for signs. i didn't say anything about her paying for anything because after looking at her website (which had both a 3 day and a 10 day health gaurentee in diff. spots) and looking at the paper work she gave me when i bought him it was unclear who would be responsible for the bills, so i thought i'd just tell her what was going on and see what she said. she wrote me this... He came from my hand feeders house the night before I got him to show you him, and the grey baby was the last baby he had in the brooder and of course the only baby in my brooder as you saw. so I just have to clean out the brooder before the next babies come. THANK YOU and another one before i even noticed the first one... my vet says I would have noticed diareah from her if she had e coli, as I have never had e coli here. and it takes 7 days to show from first comeing in contact... and its been that... and I havent heard any thing from you about the baby having bloody stool from e coli..... hmmmmmmmmmmm so i replied... he doesn't have bloody stool or diarrhea. his stool is normal looking, but it does have a foul odor, which it's had ever since i got him. in fact when the vet called me today to give me the results of wednesday's cultures she said she was very surprised at the results because he looked so heathly. i wasn't emailing you trying to get you to pay for the vet bills or for the meds he's on. my intentions were simply to make you aware of the fact that he has e. coli so if any of your birds (or apparently any of the person who was doing the hand feeding birds if they have any) were to get sick, you would know that they could have been exposed to e. coli. you said in your email that e. coli doesn't show up until 7 days after being exposed. i took the bird to the vet on wednesday, and that's when the cultures were done. on wednesday i had the bird 4 days, so the bird had to have come in contact with e. coli sometime before wednesday march 25, if the 7 day thing is in fact true, which would mean he had it when i got him from you. at this point i'm NOT trying to get you to pay for anything, i just wanted to let you know what was going on. i'm insulted by the hmmmmmmm at the end of your email. nothing in my previous email to you insinuated that i wanted you to pay for anything, and i didn't say anything that warrented that as a response. like i said, i was only emailing you so knew and could watch for signs in your birds, should they have any. i'm sorry this is so long, i'm sure you didn't need to read the email's, i'm just very insulted. no where did i say or even hint at the fact that i was expecting her to pay for anything! and yet i get that as a response. honestly i almost wonder if she knew he had something and wanted to get rid of him before she had to spend $ to get him healthy. the only reason i say this is because the very first time i talked to her she asked if i would be willing to learn how to hand feed him so i could bring him home early. i said i'd have to think about it because i didn't know how hard it was and she assured me there was nothing to it and it was very easy. it was only AFTER i picked him up that i read all the hand-feeding stuff on this forum and got really worried. (i'm doing fine at it...but what if i wasn't!) and now after the email she sent with the hmmm at the end, expecially when all i did was tell her what was wrong so none of her birds died! i could understand her being a little defensive(maybe) if i was trying to get her to pay for everything and she didn't think she should, but i never even hinted that's what i wanted!! either way, i'm glad i got my baby, sick or not, and i'm glad this was caught before anything happened to him, who ever has to pay(which will be me i'm sure) i'm ok with that. not happy but ok with it. why is it when a person is just trying to be NICE and prevent others from getting sick right away he must have gotten it from something I did. the vet even said she was sure i did nothing, and she'd write a letter saying that if i wanted/needed her to. grrr!! i'm so upset right now. thanks for letting me vent...again

so i just got a call from the vet...all my little guys lab work came back, and he's totally ok except for the ract that he's got e. coli!! he's on 2 diff. medications for it, and the vet was very confident it will clear it up but i'm just pissed he even has it in the first place! so now i have to try and get some money back from the breeder (10 day health gaurentee) which i'm sure isn't going to be easy...wish me luck...i just needed somewhere to vent...thanks!

i kinda thought the same thing...these birds are beautiful all by themselves...nothing is needed! but i wonder if in plucked birds if it would be beneficial.

so the vet visit went well. i was really impressed...this one definately knew what she was talking about lol. he got a full check-up including blookwork (i'll know the results in a couple days for some of the tests and a few weeks for some) he didn't even have to get feathers plucked...she did blood for the sexing i was pretty happy about that. he weighs 426g...and tycos_mom, she said his constant squacking was probably a result of being taken from everything he knew and the change coming home, as well as an attention getting thing, but that he definately wasn't still hungry so that's awesome!! so i will def. tell you all how the tests came back as soon as i know. also, for those of you with weaning experience...for every feeding today except the morning one (he's on 3 a day) he's started to eat his pellets about 30-45 min before i usually feed him. when he did this at his lunch-time feeding i let him eat his pellets, but had to interupt him so i could feel him so i could take him to the vet. then tonight (as we speak actually-i should have fed him already) he started eating 30 min or so before i feed him and since i don't have anywhere i need to go i'm letting him eat. he's been munching for about an hour (off and on) so far and he hasn't been whining for me to feed him so should i just let him eat? that's what i'm going to do i just wasn't sure if that's what i should be doing. when he's done eating his pellets and starts to whine i'll hand feed him, but since i'm weaning him i should let him eat on his own if he wants...right? just wanted to run it by someone who's been here before and has had some experience. thanks!!

http://www.parrotwrapz.com/PHOTO_GALLERY.php there's a link to a photo gallery of birds wearing these 'wraps'. that's what i mean...i guess clothes wasn't a good choice of words

yes it is...even if it is a drive lol! i have to tell everyone...i've been saying "up" when i pick up my baby and "down" when i put him back in his cage (duh lol) today he was on his perch flapping his wings, so i thought i'd take him out so he'd have more room...i stuck my hand next to him and barely had a chance to say "up" before he jumped on my hand! and he went back on his perch as soon as i said "down"!! it's been a lot easier to get him on my hand today as well. so i'm not sure if it was a fluke and he just happened to step up as i said "up" or if he's actually learning...either way it's awesome!!just had to share ♥ also, i was just wondering pple's opinions on bird 'clothes'...i've seen them a few places online...what are your thoughts? i'm not sure how i feel about them...

well my baby's got another vet appointment tomorrow lol...hopefully with someone who ISN'T an idiot!! it's at 2 so i'll let everyone know how it goes!

i checked the aav.com and the closest vet is in appleton, which is about1 1/5 hours away so that's where we will be going. driving a few hours a few times a year isn't too bad

that's what i thought! (about the dna) i'm taking him to another vet i think...after i got home i realized he didn't even weigh my bird!! he picked it up (one handed which he didn't like one bit!!) felt it a little, pet it for a while, then put it back and checked the poo. i'm feeling quite ripped off at this point. another vet i called today said my visit had to be pre-paid since i'm a new costumer, so i said ok. then when she asked for a credit card # i said i'd pay when i got there, but before the visit. she said it had to be paid before she would even make the appointment! i think that's crap! so tomorrow i'll be on the hunt for a new vet...wish me luck!

the vet visit went good (i think lol). he said my baby was doing really good, which is awesome! he also said i should wait to dna till he was fully weaned but i don't see how that would make a difference...he also didn't do any tests, he just checked his poo for parasites. is that normal? i was under the impression there were tests of some sort that should be done, unless maybe he didn't cuz he isn't weaned yet?? he said he had recently amputated a grey's wing because the grey had plucked it so bad that once the feathers were gone it started pecking at itself, so it seems like he's got experience, but yet he had never sent in a sample to get a bird sexed, so i'm not really sure what to think...i do live in a relatively small town but you would think SOMEONE would of wanted their bird sexed wouldn't you? tycos_mom: (and whoever else has a baby) when/how did your grey learn how to perch? i'm just curious cuz i padded the hell out of his normal cage and removed all perches except the ones down low and he immediately went and perched. no falling off...nothing. right now he's sleeping standing on the floor, but if he's awake he's been on the perch pretty much all day. it didn't seem like he needed to learn anything-he just knew how, so i was curious if yours fell at first or anything. also i was worried about him climbing up the sides and falling from the top and getting hurt, that's why i didn't put him in his big cage right away. i went and bought a smaller cage last night and put him in there, and before too long he was climbing all the way to the top (24") and all the way back down-like he already knew what he was doing. the breeder said he was only in a brooder, so why isn't he really having any problems with this new stuff? i'm definately not complaining or anything i'm just curious why he's doing so well. you can tell he's new at the climbing thing cuz he can't always find a place for his foot to go, but he's doing really good. i also tried some apples, strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries today. he seemed to like the apples, which i gave to him this morning, but so far he hasn't gone near the other stuff. it came as a mix frozen, do you think it was just too much at one time? (too many different things i mean?) i'm going to go to the store tomorrow and get some baby food and stuff and try that since it's more like his formula now...hopefully he'll like that! sorry for the long post lol!!

he's still on 3 handfeedings a day, and it's going really well. just curious how do you go to 2 a day? he ate some apple today, and we leave for the vet in a few minutes here, so i'll let you know what they say! i put him in a smaller cage last night at bedtime instead of his aquarium and this morning i fed him and left the top off and the next thing i knew he was perched on top of one of the sides of the cage! so i had to get him to step up onto me to get him to the ground lol. he looked like he was going to try and fly down! he's been doing this hop wing flap thing yesterday and again today so i think he may be getting ready to try and fly!!

i fed him some cooked carrots and some mashed potatoe today...he seemed to like the carrots better lol. i'm thinking we'll try fruit tomorrow...raspberries and blackberries are ok right? i bought some frozen mixed fruits and those are in there, just wanted to make sure he could eat them.

my grey is 10 1/2 weeks. i'm just afraid of him climbing to the top and falling...the cage is about 4 feet high...maybe i'll go buy a smaller cage and put him in there for now...i will need a smaller travel size cage eventually anyway lol

what kind of cage do you have him in? my breeder said i shouldn't put him in a cage for a few more weeks so he's in an aquarium at the moment but i can't put any perches in there so how will he ever learn? i thought maybe if i remove all the perches and put one down low, and remove the grate at the bottom maybe i could put him in his cage. any thoughts? to me it looks like he's trying to climb up the side of his aquarium, so i'm not sure if i should put him in his cage cuz if he does climb up the side and falls, it could be quite a fall...3 1/2-4 feet. i don't want him to get hurt. anyone have any suggestions? i tried looking for a suction cup perch at the local pet stores but can't find one...

it's been going really good! he's being quiet right now...i think he's getting ready for a nap he's been letting my kids (3, 5, and 9) pet/touch him. i had him out on the floor earlier and he was all over exploring EVERYTHING!! worse than a baby i think lol! he's was digging around in his cage like he's looking for something earlier, but he did spill his food all over so maybe that's all he was looking for. i weighed him and he wouldn't stay completely still but he's around 400g...the breeder says he's looking like he'll be a bigger cag. i'll let you all know what the vet says tomorrow and his(or her)name as soon as i know if he's a boy or a girl!

i picked up my baby yesterday!! i'm not sure of the sex but i'm going to get him tested when i take him to the vet tomorrow...i think i'm hoping for a boy lol. he doesn't have a name yet since i'm not sure of the sex, but i have a few picked out. he's been making noise almost constantly since he got home and is attacking his toys! lol i was kinda surprised how he just started playing with them right off the bat. anyway, just thought i'd share the good news with everyone!!

i don't mean to offend you tyco's mom, but are you sure he's 7 weeks old? i only asked because like i said in another post, i saw a webcam of my bird, and counting the weeks from the hatchdate she gave me, my bird is about 9 1/2 (i saw it around 9) weeks and has no where near that amount of feathers. i'm just assuming that since my bird is older than yours it would have more feathers. am i wrong to assume this? or do feathers come in at different ages for different birds? sorry if i offended you at all, that isn't my intent at all, i'm just confused. can anyone tell me if birds get all their feathers around the same age? and tyco's mom, shady sure is cute either way lol!<br><br>Post edited by: GorgASS, at: 2009/03/25 04:52

you know when i was pregnant with one of my kids (don't remember which one) i was told (pretty sure by my doctor) i shouldn't stand next to the microwave while it was on. i can't remember exactly why, but after reading the link above, i plan to only use mine when i have no other choice. basically when i run out of time. kinda scary when you think about it...what else has hidden dangers no one is telling us about?