SamsDad

I had a Tmneh for 20 years and he was a great bird. He was little in size but big in ego - he ruled the house. He loved to be held under my chin or cupped in my hands. I've had a Congo for a little over a month. Also a great bird. The similarities are uncanny. My Timneh Nelson was more skittish and needed new toys introduced slowly. My Congo Sam looks at new toys with excitment. I think its just differences in personalities and the fact Nelson was wild caught, imported bird and Sam was hand fed. You'd enjoy either bird. Both are very smart and packed with personality. I had to say that the Congo's bigger set of lungs makes for louder noises! Tom

These are the little things they do that amaze me. Those little brains seem to understand things you'd never imagine they could. That's what attracts me to these birds. It changes the old saying of being a bird brain - now it can mean you are SMART! Tom

Michelle: Which feathers are he pulling out, grey ones or the white down tufts? Does it happen when he preens or does he appear to be grabbing and forcefully pulling them out. Plucking can be caused by your bird being frustated. It could be a simple as being a tantrum of sorts because he wants to be with you. My Timneh Nelson started shredding his chest feathers when he got mad - mostly when he wanted out and I couldn't let him. I found the solution by accident when I bought him one of those rope perches. He'd get pissed and chew on the rope instead of his chest. After he wore through one perch I got another but then picked up one of those small knotted rope toys and stuck it through the bars of his cage on one end of his perch at his eye level. He'd growl under his breath and chew the rope until he blew off enough steam to calm down. I also hung a small toy with a bell on the end above his door. He'd sometime climb up there and beat the SNOT out of that bell. I'm pretty sure he pictured my face on the side of that bell! Try to do your best to keep to a routine so he knows when he'll get time with you. I re-read your post and I wonder about something. You said you leave him out of his cage while you are at work, then spend time with him in the evening. I wonder if he isn't spending too much time out, so when you put him back in his cage, he throws a tantrum because as far as he's concerned he belongs on the outside. If this is true having him inside his cage while you are at work might get him to thinking his personal "space" is inside the cage. Both of my greys stayed in thier cages while I was away at work and I let them out in the evenings. Very often I'd find that later in the evening they'd put themselves to bed on thier inside perch because this was "home" and it was where they felt most secure. You bird may feel most secure outside, and time spent inside might be the stressor. Anyone else think this makes sense? Tom

Birdlover, Boy is it ever a tough decision to rehome your pet. You always feel like you are "giving up" on them and wonder if there wasn't something else you could have done. I faced the same decision about 10 years ago with my Amazon Franky. I had already had my Timneh Nelson for 10 years and I always wanted an Amazon. I figured I could easily handle two birds. Franky was a great bird, very outgoing and playful. He hed the perfect temperment for taking with me on drives and he loved to walk around the yard and to dig in the dirt while I gardened. He didn't talk much but he's lean out on my shoulder look me in the eye and say in a very soft sexy whispering voice - "hhhi..." It was really cute. But having a great relationship with my two favorite birds was not to last. Nelson my Timneh became VERY jealous and started banging on his cage with his beak when he saw me with Franky. He's then reach down and pull at his chest feathers. Now that I think back about it I remember him climbing into the corner of his cage where his back was against the corner, his feet splayed and he'd bend over to pull at his chest. To counter this I started spending more time with Nelson and that's when Franky's screaming started. H-O-L-Y S-M-O-K-E-S was that the loudest thing I'd ever heard come out of an animal. I live on 5 acres in the county and one time I was at the end of the property 600 feet away and I could hear him clear as day with the doors and windows closed!!!! :ohmy: At first it was infrequent. I tried to not re-inforce the behaviour so I took to covering him when he did it. Then when he behaved, I'd uncover him. This only worked for a short time. The glass breaking screaming became more and more frequent and it was joined by my wife and daughter yelling at me to shut that STUPID BIRD UP! Both of my birds had lots of out time and were placed in the family room where they could be in the center of activity, but things were deteriorating. Each bird wanted 100% of my attention. The screaming was getting worse, as was Nelsons acting out and self destruction. I had to make my choice and it was REALLY, REALLY, HARD. I decided that I owed my first bird my complete attention. He had been with me for 10 years and we were very close before Franky came into the house. I placed an ad for rehoming and ended up selling Franky to a great family for $200 including a cage. He was going to spend time in the center of thier small country store where he could interact with customers and be the center of attention. It really hurt me to see him go out the door that day, but I know it was the best thing for Franky, Nelson and my family. It wasn't long before Nelson was back to normal and my house was back in balance. I learned I was a 1 bird person. Its a little ironic too, because my wife and I had decided long ago to only have one child so they wouldn't have to share us with another sibling - I shoulda known.... Like the others have said, do your best to work with Rico until its time for him to leave. They sometimes go through periods of acting up and maybe he's just going through the Grey version of the terrible twos and he'll get over it... until he hit the terrible teens, and the bratty-snotty-monster-bird-from-hell stage. :evil: I think that's why they can be sooooo cute most of the time - so when they act up you don't end up having them for dinner with a nice brown gravy and mashed potatos. Huuummmm. which wine goes best with Grey, white or Red?????? If it doesn't work, you can rest assured you did your best. For my whole life, I've been great with animals, but I learned I'm only able to handle one bird - five cats maybe, but that's easy. I could be dead in my chair and they's still be happy sitting in my lap! Although come to think of it I bet Sam would enjoy picking pieces of my corpse apart until I was a big pile of shredded "stuff" in the chair. :blink: Tom

I'm lucky, my 22 year old daughter, who was raised around my birds, lives close by and can come over to house sit and bird sit when we go on vacation. We haven't gone anywhere since I got Sam last month, but he'll be fine with her. Growing up she always refered to Nelson as her "little brother" so it was like taking care of a family member. Sam is her new baby brother so I won't worry - he'll be in good hands. Tom

HappyinGreece, I used it straight out of the bottle. Its the consistancy of water and has very little odor. It didn't roll off Sam's feathers like water does. It wet them down nicely. I thought it would be thick and didn't realize it it was made to drink. Once I read the label I could see why people said it was safe for thier birds. Because Sam get scratching time every evening I could tell right away his feathers felt softer and his neck feathers had a velvety feel to them. I can't remember which part of the pharmacy section I found it in. I just went up and down the isles until I found it. You can't miss it - not to many things sold in gallon jugs in that area. Dave - I don't think the extra cost was for her to carry it to the checkout. I think it had more to do with my saying it wasn't for me, it was for my bird. When she got to the checker area she was twirling her finger in circles at the side of her head and rolling her eyes. I think it was the $1 kookie kustomer charge. :silly: Tom

Great story! You are off to a excellent start with Dixie - no question she bonding with you very quickly. She's the same age as my Sam who I've only had a month, and he's a real sweetheart too. He and I have laptime in the evenings while we watch TV and I swear that bird would have me scratch him until there was no skin left on my fingers or feathers on his head! He does the nudging and will even try to get under my hand with his beak and try to flip my finger up onto his head. He'll make soft clucking, "bubbling" or kissing noises if I stop and don't respond to his nudging. The squatting and whining behaviour sure shounds like begging to me. Dixie is doing a great job of showing you she wants your attention. She got you and is now slowly wrapping you around her talon and turning you into a pool of melted mush! The more you get to know her and read he expressions the more she will amaze you. Greys are MASTERS of manipulation and you are sooooo doomed! After owning a grey for over 20 years they still amaze me. I find myself just watching them and wondering how can all this intelegence and emotion come from an animal that has a brain the size of a peanut? WOW, I soooo humbled. Enjoy Dixie and keep us posted. Remember - she's got you, and resistance is futile! Tom

I read on this forum that many people reccomended Aloe Juice for thier birds feathers and skin. Well, I was a skeptic but decided what the heck, it's only $10 so I picked some up at Walmart a couple weekends ago. Last saturday I gave Sam a misting with a spray bottle. I can't say he was happy about it, but it was time for a bath anyway so I used the Aloe Juice. I just sprayed him with a few ounces until his feathers were wet and I must say, I'm sold on the stuff. I've noticed during scratch/lap time his feathers have a silky smoothness to them that they didn't have before. I don't know if it was just getting the dust off his tail, or it it was the juice, but the red coloring of the tail feathers is now very vivid red. I just wanted to offer my thumb up on this product and I thank you guys for telling me about it. Tom

My Timneh Nelson did NOT like new things being put in his cage. He's growl and scream depending on how scary the item was. I'd have to set it in sight and move it closer every day or two. Then the last step was to hand it on the outside of his cage or put it right next to it. There was no ther way. Then when it went in I'd put it in a corner away from his dishes and it could take a couple days before he'd work his way over to check it out. Now the opposite is true with my new bird Sam. He's seems to know what toys are and he's right there to check a new one out. The only thing he's been scared of is a perch that my wife bought him. It does look like a coiled snake, so I can't really blame him - but it hurts my wife's feeling though. When you think about it bird must be suspicious of new things in the wild. A careless, curious bird could be snapped up easily by a sneeky preditor. You are just seeing this instinct in action. Tom

Thanks to all who replied. I knew you folks would understand my euphoria over my first month with this amazing little guy :cheer: I know having 20 years of experience with greys helps, but I have to give all the credit to Sam. He's been the one to initiate many of these breakthroughs. He started only 4 days after coming into my home with his dancing back and forth from the corner of his cage while flipping his wings, like he wanted to fly to me. I walked over to him and he lifted his foot to be picked up. He initiated the head scratching, and when he was ready for more, he moved up against the side of my face to lean on me while I scratched. Then came the request for me to play with him and his making goo-goo eyes at me while he sat on my shoulder. With each step Sam made it VERY clear what he wanted. I bet if he could, he'd be dipping his talon in ink and writing me little notes that he could hold in his beak for me to read! "LETS PLAY" "PICK ME UP" "I WANT A BITE OF THAT" "LETS CUDDLE" "YOU'RE MY BEST BUDDY". I have to admit, this whole relationship building thing with him has been the result of a perfect storm of sorts. Just when I brough him home my wife had started, and continues to work some very long hours. I have all evening to myself to work with Sam which I'm sure has accelerated our getting to know eachother. Add to that, his great personality and the fact I'm sure his previous owners nice job of socializing him. He was given up for re-homing because she and one of her kids developed alergies to his dust. She was in tears when I went over to meet Sam. When I came to pick him up she stayed in the back of the house, I sure because she was upset that he was leaving. If feel I received him from a loving home who did a nice job of raising him his first year which only makes it easier for me. Thanks to all thse cosmic tumblers lineing up, I hit the jackpot and got a golden bird. I couldn't have done better if I'd taken a bunch of grey parts and built him myself. This little bird with the peanut sized brain has me TOTALLY figured out! MY training has been going well so far - or so Sam seems to think. Its great to read your stories about your special birds. We are all suckers for these little feathered friends and I bet we ALL know the answer to the question - who owns who??? Tom

Great point Dave and one aspect I missed in my suggestions. For better than 10 years I was able to reach into Nelsons cage to take him out, and to put him back without any problems what so ever. Sometime after that he decided the cage was HIS and that fiddling around inside it was something you did at your own risk. Even when I was cleaning the cage and he was on the outside, he'd love to climb down and nip at me. On the outside of the sage it was more of a game, although he could pinch pretty good. I'd put my head below him and he would bang his beak off the top of my head and pull my hair. Inside the cage it was more serious - he could, and would sometimes draw blood. If I was going to clean his cage or spend any time with my hand inside I had to open the door and let him come out first. He'd bite if I tried to get him to step-up from his perch on the inside. I just learned to let him come out then get him to step up from the cage top. I respected his firm insistance that I NOT pick him up from the inside of the cage. I had my rules for what was acceptable and what was not, and so did he. I did use the fist trick for a while but it worked out better if I just let him come out before picking him up. We reached an understanding. This may be what Tarah may end up having to do. It is a learning proccess for both her and her bird. I guess it really isn't much different that new relationships with another person. It takes time to get to know eachother. With time comes an deeper understanding and trust where you open up to eachother but you also learn the other person's likes and dislikes. There's things you like that they don't, and vice-versa. With Nelson I was able to cuddle and hold him but I was NOT allowed to touch his belly or scratch him under his wings and that was ok. Now the biting when she tries to put him back in his cage can be a tough one. Nelson started doing this too and he bit HARD. He just plain didn't want to be put to bed - it was his betime temper tantrum. For a while it was ok because he'd put himself to bed and I just closed the door behind him, but there were times where he just wanted to sleep in the top of his cage. Despite the great relationship he had with our cats this was something I couldn't allow because thier basic instincts as preditors remains. Fortunately I was able to put my other hand over his head and he'd lay down. This was something I learned to do when he was scared or upset. It calmed him down. I could put him in the cage, and with a single motion roll my hand to get him to put one foot down say "step down" then remove my other hand from his head. He'd still try to strike every now and then, but if I got the timing right, it worked quite well. After many months of doing this he became better about being put back in the cage, the cycle was broken and the problem faded. By removing the pain aspect for me I could remain calmer and so could he. He try biting now and then and I'd have to go back to covering his head for a few days and it would be ok again. We have to be creative, aware, patient, compassionate and be willing to be trained by our birds as much as we train them. Its a relationship after all and it takes two to make it work! Tom

Hi, all. I've been bouncing around the forum replying to posts for the past month or so and realized I had not offered an update as to how things are going with Sam. Its been almost exaclty a month since I brought Sam home and, I have to say to this point, I've been VERY VERY lucky. Sam has been a wonderful bird! I find myself having many of the apprehensions of a first time grey owner despite having owned one for 20 years before getting Sam. Things like: when will he really start talking, and learning the words I've been trying to teach him, or the sounds of my house? Will he bond with me? Will he be cuddly like my last grey??? Will he ever learn to like fresh vegetables? Can I get him to eat pellets instead of just seed? Well, he's already answered most of those questions in only a month's time! He's already picked up the sound of our phone's buttons being pushed and I hear some of my words mixed in with his mumbling and whistling. The bonding has been very rewarding with new progress every few days. We have what I call "lap time" every evening for an hour or two while I watch TV. It started with him on my lap getting scratched on the back of his neck only. He wouldn't let me scratch him anywhere else but that's ok, it was a start. Then I let him move up to my shoulder for scratching. Week-before-last, he started crawling back and forth from shoulder to shoulder across my chest trying to find the best side for a scratch. I leaned back in the chair to make it easier for him and it wasn't long before I noticed he had moved closer to my face and he was leaning against my cheek while I scratched him. After a few days of this, I reach up with my other hand and very lightly cuped it over his back for a few seconds before he'd back away. Within a couple days he stayed there with my hand over him, and I started lightly holding him against me. Now only a week or ten days later, he is laying down on my chest as I hold him and scratch him. He'll even stay laying down with my hand held on him for a couple minutes if I stop scratching. He's learned to make kissing sounds when he wants a scratch. I've also been working on expanding the scratching areas to his whole head face and neck and he now loves it all being rubbed or scratched. We start on the neck, then he turns his head for the side and upside down for the chin, and back to the other side. I can now rub his face till he looks like he's going to go to sleep. Last night, after a while of scratching, I decided to try another spot. I started sliding my hand along is neck while scratching, then down his side under his wing and he seemed to enjoy it. He's never liked being touched on his body up until this last week, but he lifted his wing a little and let me rub his side all while being held close. I think we've crossed another trust milestone and it's GREAT! I really enjoy this one on one time together in the evenings. Its relaxing for both of us. Last night for a few seconds I though he was getting snotty because he lightly struck at the hand that was scratching him. He had reared up a little and acted like he was going to bite my hand again, flipped his wings a little and struck at my hand. I said " what are you doing?" as he did it again, then realized where I'd seen this behavior before - when he was playing with his toys! He was getting silly and wanted to play so we goofed around for a couple minutes much like I playing with a kitten. My fingers would go after him, his feet and beak, then he'd go after my fingers and hand in return. When he did get a hold of my finger he was very gentle and so were the "stikes" as he lunged at my hand beak open - it was all in fun and his eyes were sparkling almost like he was laughing. This is a first for me because Nelson wasn't a playful bird. As for his food preferences. I purchased a seed/pellet mix and he eats the seeds early in the day and I hear him crunching some of the pellets in the evening. When I bring my dinner into the livingroom, he must know its time to eat and he'll climb down to the bottom of his cage to forrage. He'll work on an almond or Nurta-Berry dropped to the floor from breakfast, and then he'll go over to his Veggie bowl and forage there then up to the bowl that contains only pellets. He's doesn't eat a lot of the veggies but he does eat some so overall I'm pleased with his diet now. Of course, if he sitting on my shoulder when I eat, ANYTHING that goes into my mouth MUST be yummy and he wants some. I'll pretend to eat a bite of something I want him to try and he'll reach over to get some. Hahahaha - fooled you into trying something new! He ABSOLUTELY LOVES tea - I only give him a small occasional slurp but he then fights me for the glass and I have to put it WAY out of reach or he'll go after more. Sometimes I'll let him grab an ice cube to crumble. Do birdies get brain freeze??? I think his previous owners must have fed him from thier plate or by fork or spoon. He'll take food from a spoon or fork that he won't take from my fingers. He likes pasta and wild rice IF fed by spoon or eatten off my plate. (Pssssst... don't tell anyone about this. My household rule has ALWAYS been DON'T FEED THE PETS FROM THE TABLE!) I told Sam, "if you don't tell, I won't tell..." hehehehe Last night he has taken to staring me in the eye while sitting on my shoulder lightly working his beak. I'm getting a soft eye flash and he's mumbling helloooo and making bubbling or clucking noises. I think Sam is saying "I love you" in his birdie sorta way. Who can resist something like that!!!??? The only bad habit he's had since I got him - that is finally fading, is the tendancy to grab a finger in his beak and squeeeze it to get what he wants. Its not a bite, just a chew, but it can hurt when he has the fingertip. Up until recently, he does the finger squeeze then lowers his head for a scratch. I've been removing my finger and saying "don't bite, ask nice", then I lower my hand to my lap away from him. He'll look at me and lower his head again. I'll wait a few seconds then give him and scratch and praise him for asking nicley. As of a couple days ago, I notice he is doing the chewing much less and is asking nicely much more often, sometime with a soft clucking or quiet bubbling noise. The bubbling noise is new and appears to be his way of a saying something nice to me. A couple of cute things he does and has been doing since I brought him home: When he's excited about something he wants, like a treat or me opening his cage to take him out, - he growls softly under his breath. I thought at first this was a nervous, scared growl but it isn't. He'll do it in the morning when I drop a couple peanuts in the shells in his dish. It's like he just can't contain himself and its his birdie way of mumbling, "oh boy oh boy oh boy". Its really cute. The noise he does make when he's a little nervous about something is a soft hhmmmfffffffff. Its not really a hiss or a humph but is a softer combination of those sounds. Then he'll come over and check out the item or action that worried him a bit. It's his slightly fearful "huummm, what's that???" He is accepting of new things like new toys, but every once in a while he get a little suspicious of something and makes that noise. Ok, there's the update. Sam is AWESOME and the little guy has me wrapped around his little talon. Life is GOOD! Thanks for listening to me gush. Tom

Tarah, First off, I'd like to offer you some comforting information. MANY of us here have experienced this behavior to some extent or another. Please don't be discouraged because this dosen't mean you've purchased a bad bird and that there's no hope in having a nice relationship with him. Greys are intellegent birds that like to see what makes things "tick" and this sometimes leads to them testing thier owners - especially new ones. Think of them as manipulative toddlers. They'll manipulate you by being cute and needy, and they will manipulate you with temper tantrums. The relationships with our birds is a delicate balance of "who-owns-who" or better yet who's in charge. It's not a simple as maintaining dominance over the bird because that can lead to a bad relationship where the bird doesn't trust you. It a give and take relationship where your bird tries to tip the scales one way, and you gently tip it back into balance. With time and patience you'll learn how to do this so don't worry. There's no black and white way to to handle your situation, it will take some creativity and CALM determination but you gan get through this. Other people have offered some good advice and I'll toss out a couple other ideas. You bird is still new to you house and he might have been a little extra passive until he felt more at home, now he testing you guys. You may have to stop and back-up to the beginning, like you just brought him home and you need to get aquainted. Give him some space, don't try to pick him up, just sit and talk to him, bring him treats and let him watch you guys go about your dialy household life. The trick is, you'll want to use his instinctive need for social interaction to seduce him into wanting you. Go slow, and watch for signs he's interested. If you let him out of his cage you may need to use a perch or perch-sized stick instead of your hand to have him step up on to put him back in his cage. If you are afraid he'll fly, close the doors to the room to limit where he can go. Roll his cage into a small room and sit with him with the room's door closed so if he flies you won't have to chase him. IMPORTANT NOTE! I've used the bathroom for this but you MUST be sure the lid is down on the toilet! You sure don't want him to fly in and drown. If you use the bathroom it can sometimes be helpful if you can get him out of the cage and then have your husband remove the cage from the room, then leave you too alone. This can reduce some of the cage/territorial reaction from him. Above all remain calm no matter whatever happens! Greys LOVE DRAMA and if he can get you yelping and jumping it will just make it a fun game for him. One other thing to try when you want to reach into his cage to get him to step up. If he strikes at your hand slowly remove it and make a fist. Do this to make the skin on the back of your hand tight and reach in again with the back of your hand facing him. That way if he stikes there'll ne nothing to grab a hold of and you can let him make a couple strikes. If he changes directions just rotate your hand so he hitting the back of it. Most of the time it'll only take a couple strikes before he figures out he can't scare your hand away. Hold it there for a couple seconds, slowly open you hand then try a step-up. If he bites, pull back out of range make the fist and try again. The idea is to show him he can't manipulate you into withdrawing your hand. Greys are problem solvers and thier beak is thier tool, if it doesn't work, they'll learn and try something else. Do your absolute best to keep your energy level low, to be calm. Again its like a toddler throwing themselves on the floor screaming when they can't have thier way. If you step over them and go about your business, they'll learn it doesn't work. If you give in and they get thier way they'll do it again and again and again. If these ideas fail, don't give up, back up, and clamly try again even if its the next day. I had to tame my first grey who was a wild caught imported bird. He screamed if you came close to the cage and would bite like his life depended on it so I know EXACTLY how frustrated you must feel. I went slow, used compassion, seduction, and patience. He turned into a great friend who loved to cuddle, cupped under my chin. Yes, he got bratty now and then and tested me, but we alway worked it out and I was able to rebalance the scale. Keep in mind you may have this bird for 20, even 30 years or longer so a few weeks or months of work now will pay off in many years of good times. Remember - they have the intellegence and emotions of a young child and they'll use BOTH of them on you. I'd sometimes laugh when my Timneh Nelson was being a brat. I'd say to him, "you may have control now, but I have the bigger brain, and I'll get it back!" I'm sure in his little birdie mind he was saying "oh, yeah??? We'll see about THAT!" :evil: Hope this helps. Keep us posted. Tom

Sam comes out when I get home from work at 4pm during the week. He goes to bed around 10pm. On weekends he's out from the time we get up until bedtime, unless we have to be gone for several hours. Each evening he gets 1 - 2 hours of lap/shoulder time while I watch tv or do some chores like feed the kitties - last night it was over three hours of lap time. I scratch him and he preens me, then himself. Last night he wanted to play with my fingers so we goofed around for a while - it was cute. Tom

Nelson my Timneh would start getting noisy a while after sun up even if he was covered. This wasn't bad in the winter time but in the summer the sun comes up very early this far north. I enjoyed the noise but my wife could get grouchy if he woke her too early on weekend mornings. Now Sam is different. He's totally silent until one of us gets up. Even then, if I leave for work early and leave him covered, he'll eat his breakfast and settle back down until my wife gets up and uncovers him. We both sleep in on the weekends and Sam is still quiet until we get up. I'll be curious if he stays this way as he gets older. Tom

WELCOME HOME Murphy! Thanks for sharing the photos. Cute guy! My Timneh Nelson would beg for food from my hands on occasion even as an adult bird. I viewed it as a great sign of our tight bond. Just wait until your little guy coughs up some slimey dinner for you. He's too young but now but if you are lucky, when he's older he'll "slime" you. Enjoy your new buddy. These are amazing birds and your home will never be the same. In the last 20 years I've been without a grey for 3 months. My home was so empty and quiet for those 3 months. I look forward to coming home every day after work to see my bird Sam. You will find yourself doing the same I'm sure. Tom

Hahahaha. I was reading this thread and found myself wondering if you'd find these kind of postings on a dog or cat forum!!?? EEEWWWWWWW!!!! :sick: I can't tell you of the number of near misses our cats have experienced when sitting under the bird cage. I also have to laugh at all the comments on BIG bird poops. We had a name for those from my TAG Nelson. We'd call them Goose Poops! :blink: I'd swear that little bird shrunk in size after dropping one of those bombs. You'd know when one was coming because he'd drop his behind waaay down and would wiggle back and forth. When he'd hit his water dish we'd say Nelson was making "poop soup". Oddly enough Sam is a dainty pooper - bigger bird, smaller poop. Go figure. Tom<br><br>Post edited by: SamsDad, at: 2009/05/12 04:22

That's GREAT! Both of my greys liked bathing in thier water dishes. Nelson learned to slightly tolerate being in the shower but he made it clear it was NOT fun! He'd sit like a statue, blinking like a toad in a hail storm. Sam tries to bathe in his water dish but geeze, a Congo bathing in a 4" bowl!!?? Today I tried using the spray bottle on him while he bathed. With the first ffffft of the bottle the party was over and it was time to get away. :angry: Its hard to tell from the photo but it looks like the water bowl is on a bracket connected to the outside of the cage. If so, did you find the bowl at a pet store? Online? A "bath" dish like that might be perfect for Sam's cage. I could hang it off the side of his cage closest to the table with my Orchids on it. Sam could water the flowers when he splashes about!! :cheer: Tom

Nicole: Be patient and you will find one. I looked for months and finally found Sam only 3km away from my home! Don't worry about age either. My last grey loved to cuddle and be scratched even when he was 20 years old. My older grey Nelson loved to sit on his play stand next to my chair while we watched TV in the evenings. When we were quiet and calm watching TV so was he. He would sit, look around, preen and nap. Good luck. Tom<br><br>Post edited by: SamsDad, at: 2009/05/10 23:20

I had Nelson for 20 years and he never changed his personality. There were times he got nippy but I think most of it was my fault. I'd get busy and handle him less and we'd kinda forget how to react to each other. Once I got back in to a routine he settled down. Even during these times we had a good relationship he just got used to throwing little temper tantrums when it was time to put him back in his cage. In some ways he got better with age because he just became one of the family. Despite being a whid caught import bird he became quite cuddly as he got older. He loved me to cup him in my hands under my chin. Because we were bonded so well I never experienced any problems when he came of breeding age. I'd just get barfed on - "sliming" as I called it. Of course all birds are different so your mileage may vary. Tom

I'm kinda thinking a hat with a perch on top, and some toys dangling off the sides, and a treat dish incase Adaya gets hungry.... Oh, and you'll need a bell. It better have a chin strap, 'cause this hat sounds like FUN!!! Seriously, dulling the talon points is your best bet to start with, although a cap might not be a bad idea. When Sam gets shoulder time with me - like right now - I put on my "bird shirt". It's a sweatshirt that he can climb around on and grip, plus I don't really care if he should decide to try to hole punch the shoulder - although this is discouraged - or poop on the sleeve! It's kinda funny because he is getting quite used to it. While I've been typing he's been grasping the loose shirt and climbing around the front of my chest. While hanging off the front of me, he's getting a little goofy and beaking my chin. Its the "hey, stop typing and play with the super cute birdie" trick. Geeze, I'm such a pushover! The only drawback is when its bedtime he knows to move the back where those pesky "step-up" hands can't reach - that smart little monster. How about putting your hand on your head when you hear her coming? Maybe she can learn the hand is the landing spot and you could progress to just holding your hand out? A sore scalp can't be any fun. Scratches upon scratches OUCH :pinch: Tom<br><br>Post edited by: SamsDad, at: 2009/05/02 06:50

The 26x36 should be ok. Like the others said, having your bird hang out with you, or near you when you are home is the important part. The ideal is to get the largest cage possible for your bird, but our homes can't always accommidate large cages. When I got Sam, the previous owner gave me a choice of two cages. I could have had a large, tall cage, but this would have to go in our familyroom in the back of the house. Now that my daughter has moved out, this room is used infrequently so I chose the smaller cage which fit perfectly in our livingroom. When I'm home his cage is open, with toys on the outside so he has room to roam and goof around. I have a simple playstand that I can take with me to the kitchen so Sam can help prepare dinner - official taste-tester you know (or food-flinger depending on his mood). Later in the evening he gets lap-time where I watch TV while scratching him or, like now, type on the laptop. Type, scratch, type, scratch, type with one hand, scratch with the other. :silly: A Grey in a smaller cage with lots of stimulation, playstand time, and time with you is more important than a Grey in a large cage sitting quietly by himself. Bordom and lonelyness are bad for such a smart social bird. Tom

Uhhhhh... this smells a little fishy. I bet if you follow though with the deal there's going to be some "fee/cost/expense" that will crop up along with a lot of apologies. I've read stories about people getting a great deal shipped to them for a small fee. Then when the item shows up, the shipper wants to collect a large amount to release the item. A little voice in the back of my head is crying "scam, scam, scam". How did you hear about this? Tom

Oh no, I'm sorry to inform you that Cleo isn't an African Grey... she's an African PURPLE! Sorry, couldn't resist a little sillyness. :laugh: Tom

Here's Sam's cage with Sam posing for the camera! Tom