Jayd

I'm very sorry to say this, Nutmeg is very toxic to our birds...Instead of butter or margarine,you can use "Canola" oil which is similar to the property's of palm oil......Please use natural apple juice/cranberry juice with no added sugar, sweet potatoes are very high in sugar by themselves...Sorry.... http://www.mdvaden.com/bird_page.shtml http://www.birdsnways.com/articles/plntstox.htm http://www.cockatielcottage.net/tablefoods.html

Let Milly eat what ever she wants, seed, pellets, veggies, bird bread, etc...Her food should be as solid as possible, If a Grey is given to much liquid, there poop becomes runny, this is because the more liquid they eat the less nutrient's/food is absorbed into there system. Please clean everything with the Apple Cider Vinegar and put a couple of drops in each water change, this is done for yeast infections.....

Please don't stop asking questions, If it's possible they will be answered. We can only iearn from our mistakes, and we don't always know if we've made a mistake if we don't ask. Let us help you. Dave answered your questions well, thanks Dave.....he can help you...

:cool: Do it again Sam.....The Wet-n-Wild Contest was soooo much fun....let's have another! This time, post photos, as many as you like(with captions) of your messy mouthed, covered in food, 'Zon.... Our Salsa, when she really enjoys her food, it covers her beaker and hangs like a beard... reeeaaaallllyy messy.... Same rules as last time, but I would like to get a bigger response from all of the Grey Forum so get out your friends and let this be fun!!! All comments welcome... Just make a post here with photo and caption. You'll have from today until the 27th of April to post your photos. Then, voting will be from the 28th to May 5th on a new thread I will post on the 27th. Okay, let's all get out and post...let's see those Down and Dirty Birdies!!!!

My sincerest apologies!!! Due to conditions, I can only read a paragraph or two at a time and then I have to rest for a while and get back to it later. It has taken me many days to get through your posts and others...the same thing holds through for my replies and posts. Thank God for Maggie that she can make sense of what I am trying to convey and she can type it out for me. Gilbert is fortunate to have the mom of bird moms to be his cornerstone. Gilbert and the loves before him were all meant to be...you know this. One thing you will find out is that some of the things he says now and how he says them will change in the future, showing that he is replacing the past with the present. You'll recognize this as a sign of complete trust and acceptance. Gonna rest now...to be continued...thank you for sharing with all of us...something you are so good at....giving. Love, Jay and Maggie

If I may say so, please try and give both your birds some plain yogurt 3-4 times a day. Mountain Dairy is an extremely good brand as is Activa. You can also get probiotics or acidophilus. Especially for Millie who is on antibiotics. The antibiotics destroy the beneficial bacterial in their stomach and intestinal tract and if it is not replaced, can lead to serious secondary complications. You can ask a vet up to your family doctor regarding the benefits. If they won't eat the plain, find a flavored yogurt with the least amount of sugar and high in bacterial count. 1/2 teaspoon a day is great. After they are well, 1/2 tsp a week is good for them (including yourself). Good food to supplement this right now is a well-cooked bean (black-eyed peas) and well-cooked brown or basmati rice, warmed to 109 degrees and fed by spoon. This is a complete protein and the cooked rice is well tolerated by ailing birds. Please keep us informed...thanks.. Jayd

Nilah is not only extremely liked and popular with her mommy Penny (Talon), also these grey't people of the forum love to look at her in the shower! A little history...Talon, our illustrious Administrator, is not only a bird person but also an animal lover. She has devoted much time and effort in creating this forum and the ongoing pursuit of maintaining and making sure it goes smoothly. She is a multiple animal person, caring for different species of birds, horses, kids and around Thanksgiving every year, turkeys. Nilah, who I am told is going through her Terrible Two's now, is always worthy of a photo op..whether a video or a snapshot. She is well-deserving of this honor...."First Wet-n-Wild Grey Forum Naked Forum" endeavor. And now...with no further adieu... Heeerrree's Nilah! :cool:

Some Grey's never say the name of the person they are referring to or talking about,they assume every one is aware of who they are speaking about...

Okay, the votes in, the choice is, the one you chose, the most liked, What was i talking about? Oh ya, "Wet Zon"...You've all chosen: TA-DA!!!!! THE CHOSEN ZON IS "NILAH: !!!!!!!! Thank you Talon, and thanks to every one for the participation....:cool: I'll post a sticky tomorrow, check back...

Joey’s update….It has been a long time coming…. Flying: This is a miracle in itself…here was a bird that was clipped before he had a chance to fly, was clipped for over two years and kept in a cage, not counting the mental abuse during this time. Joey is a small Grey and is stunted somewhat due to an improper diet. His wings are a little short due to stunting from his previous diet. Muscle development in the back and wing area has improved tenfold since he has joined our household. Joey was with us approximately a year and a half before he tried to fly. We had put a small pillow on the kitchen counter for him. That length was about 20 feet from his cage and when he began to fly, he would crash-land in that area. His first flights were disastrous and he would crash as he flew full speed to that area. During the time before he began to fly, he would only raise his wings to stretch them but never flapped. When he would get on Jay’s hand, Jay would raise and lower him so he would learn to flap his wings and get some exercise. His flight altitude would be 4-5 feet and one flight was all he could handle. He would be extremely exhausted after one flight. He would only attempt to fly once or twice a week. This went on for an extremely long time until he mastered his cage to kitchen flights. Eventually, once a day, he would attempt to fly from his kitchen perch to the bedroom which was about 60 feet at his 4-5 foot altitude height. When he reached the bedroom, he would make a sharp left turn and crash-land by grabbing an Indian blanket that we have on the wall. At this point, he would wait for me to come in and get him. I would have to climb on the bed and he would be dangling by one foot with the other scouting around, trying to find my finger so he could get down. Joey’s update….It has been a long time coming…. A few weeks back, Joe flew into the bedroom and Jay decided to try to get him. When Jay got to the bedroom, he sat down at the computer desk because he was tired and called to Joey to come to him. Joey flew down and landed on Jay’s arm. The next day, Jay was sitting on the chair in the bedroom and Joey flew into the bedroom. Instead of flying to the blanket, he flew over and landed on Jay’s shoulder. As a side-note: whenever Joey flies, we always praise him and give him a treat. Less than two weeks back, Joey found out that he could fly from the kitchen and land on the side of his cage. He also has learned to do short controlled hops and flies over to Jay’s shoulder when Jay is sitting on the couch (about 5 feet). He has learned how to hover and do some zigzag maneuvers. This is not up to par for a fully flight-fledged Grey but the success for him to be able to fly, let alone overcome the fear is a major accomplishment for any Grey. After he lands, he stands tall and struts; showing the entire world how proud he is…he even says “Good Joey!” TRUST: This has been the hardest thing for Joe…we believe there is fear involved but we don’t know what caused it or what happened in his previous home. We know that he begged to be fed. With me, Joey will let me feed him by spoon for breakfast and lunch. If I try to give him a treat or a reward, he will turn his back to me. He will step up for me every time I ask. He will give me a kiss on the nose, tell me he loves me and calls me Babe. He basically ignores all the other birds in the house, except Spock. He will let Spock get within 6 inches and that is it. They will carry on conversations with each other; they will sit together in the kitchen and if Spock lowers his head and wants Joey to preen him, he will let him get to the 6 inch barrier and will warn him in Congolese that that is far enough. He will let Spock and Salsa play and eat in his cage but his outside perch is off-limits to anyone but him when he is in the area. Jay is Joey’s choice but I could not ask for a better relationship than I have with Joey. When he hears Jay awake in the morning, he will fly into the bedroom. If Jay is not up, he will ask if “Poppa okay?” and when he hears Jay moving around, he will climb over to the side of the cage that faces the bedroom and wait impatiently for the door to open. If Jay comes out when he is eating his meal, he will stop and go over to Jay and Jay will have to feed him. He loves to sit on Jay’s shoulder and if he wants something or a treat, he will make a kissee sound and bop Jay on the nose or the cheek. He will let Jay touch him anywhere but Jay has to be careful because Joey will get lovey-dovey and want to regurgitate. If Jay gets tired and has to move, Jay will tell him “Joey, go to momma” and Joey will step up, give me a kiss and go back to his perch. Joey is a mellow, calm bird and it brings tears to our eyes when we think of the bird we first brought home and how he has blossomed. He has not mentioned his previous owner’s name for some time now and has not asked for food or made rude comments on his previous owners. His vocabulary is extensive and he comes up with new words and phrases daily. His favorite game is “mimic me”. Joe will make a sound; say a word or a phrase. Joe wants us to repeat it the same way that he said it and if we don’t, he will repeat it again. As an ending note: If Salsa gets noisy and rambunctious, Joey will say clearly in Jay’s voice…Salsa!! Shut up!! P.S, This was written by Maggie, my better half.....

okay... Last chance to vote.......

Rio, Sphinx Blue Macaw, extremely endangered..... http://library.thinkquest.org/27257/spix.html

Happy Hatch Day! Try taking 2 boxes of Jiffy Cornbread mix and grease a 9x9 pan. Mix the cornbread mix with 4 eggs, a jar of organic baby sweet potato, carrot, pears or apple sauce (2 jars of your choice). Add some chopped apple or pear, some veggies (corn, shredded carrots, etc) and cook at 375 degrees for about 25 minutes or until done in center. For frosting, take plain yogurt and top with seeds, pellets, nuts, sliced or whole berries or whatever your baby loves...If you don't want to use a pan, use a cupcake holder. Apply yogurt just before serving...you can also sprinkle a little hard yellow cheese (shredded) on the top. If you wish to write on the cake, use the yogurt to decorate it. You can add food coloring if it is bird safe. (Wilton's)...just make sure it is safe Jayd and Maggie

Please do this with the fid's out of the room.... As Talon said,"2.5 acid water " You can spray "White Vinegar", which will also remove mold safely.....

Thank you, so wise........

Correct, all paint is un safe for our fid's, even "powder coating" if it has "Zinc"in it..As a side note,"Galvanized" wire is extremely deadly to parrots..[zinc

Do you have an update for us? My heart is worried and would like to hear some news... Jayd and Maggie

You might be thinking of "Colloidal Oatmeal" grind old fashioned, long cooking oatmeal, uncooked, in a blender. I grind about a cup at a time, and grind it very finely in my blender, in a dry state, add to water to make a thin paste,apply it to the affected area. Dave007 knows of a product on the net for parrot. You might want to check with him...

Okay, time to vote!! To this thread, post your choice by the person's name and caption under the photo. I wish to thank everyone for all the wonderful posts and the help you have given. Notify your friends and let's get out and vote!..:D:D

Ray, you are indeed a special person and all your feathered and furry friends along with us at the Forum are proud to have you shine on us....Jayd

Greys do not necessarily need a reason to pluck nor does stress have to be involved. Not every Grey plucks, even under the worst condition. Plucking can be caused by dry skin, a disease, stress, diet. It's inherent that they know what the outdoors is...from the time a hatching has senses, (smell, sight, etc) they can tell the difference in the air when the door or window is open and they can see differences because they can see into the ultra-violet range which we can't.When a Grey looks at a Grey, they see more than shades of grey, white and red because of their ability to see in the ultra-violet range. When a young or old Grey look out a window, they can tell there is a difference, the same as a human. A Grey in the wild doesn't bite but he knows how. When 2 Greys play and bite each other, they get a mouthful of feathers. If a Grey is playing with you and bites you, he gets a mouthful of skin (Ouch!). A Grey (parrots) are wild animals. First and foremost, they think as wild animals. This is ingrained in them. When people talk about sounds and whistles that Greys make, (or calls) from all over the world, all Greys have similar sounds that they make and they mean the same thing to all Greys. This is part of their genetic make-up. Parrots, no matter how friendly or loving they become, they are captive, not domesticated. They have to learn to be friendly and loving to you. Knowing about the outside is the same as a baby bird knowing how to eat and fly.

My signature states: "A Grey is a wild animal removed from the wild, bred to be companions. They are long removed from being able to take care of themselves but not so long as to forget at times they're still wild...so it's up to us to make sure we protect them. We're the reason they demand all this attention." It will be approximately another 200,000 years before a Grey is considered domesticated such as a dog or a cat. Their memories of the wild are passed on from generation to generation.

What you have stated is basically correct. In Greys, the intelligence and emotional levels are extremely high so because of this,they are capable of complex thoughts. It takes very little for them to become emotionally unstable. They have extremely long and good memories and they are capable of comparing present conditions with previous conditions. Simple example: If a Grey is offered and teased with an almond and are constantly denied this almond after tasting it once, he will eventually assume they cannot have an almond. Compound this with any physical or emotional abuse, even if it was unintentional, they will not only remember this,they will try to figure out what they did to deserve it. Some Greys are more stable emotionally than others. So it is very important when you interact with a Grey, (a new fledgling or an older bird) to do exactly what you mean...with only their best interest in mind. All parrots are this way to some extent. A Grey has the intelligence and emotions of a young child so always treat them as such and use positive reinforcement. Their baggage or diary is always with them to always to compare with...a happy or unhappy past. Please read this; http://www.greyforums.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=213&catid=5&Itemid=4

This I know is true, I can feel it in my heart...

Ray, what you say is true...You and Cricket have a very special relationship indeed...but there is different types of bonding and different types of relationships regarding our feathered companions. As you know we have "sexual bonding" which definitively has a sexual overtone [with regards to two Zon's, Zon and human,or Zon to another type of parrot/animal.] Then we have a "companion bonding" as it appears you and Cricket have. Then a relationship such as Janet and Louie.[the type most have.] You can also have a bond/relationship, with out physical touching that isn't caused by "lack of trust" but from the character/inherited attitude. [they can't live with out you,but would just as soon bite you,with no physical contact.] Some Zon's, not all have "inherited attitude problem", Two examples: A Double-yellow headed zon, usually have a problem with aggressiveness that pop's up now and again, as opposed to a Mealy zon, which are quite "laid-back" to everyone...I don't like to use the term "Bonding" except when talking about a "mated pair" of birds. You can have a bond or relationship with your bird that isn't based on trust, but on love/chemistry, Example: Your bird can love you unconditionally and still bite and/or disobey you.