rbpittman

Two F.A.R.T. days in one week - all in favor? Princess Jill, since Goddess and Empress are already taken, I'll settle for Madame President. Or Dominatrix...lol.

More good news about GBG - he has continued to put on weight and two days in a row without plucking! YIPPIEE!

Bang Bang, Rebel's dead, I almost wet myself! That is so funny. Dixie will lay in my hand, but that's about it!

Dixie doesn't seem to want to get along with anyone - when Gen. Grey get's here we'll see how things go. My other two birds are a sun conure and umbrella too. Gen Grey is a grey.

During the 4th here we covered the windows so the flickering wouldn't bother Dixie and we turned the tv up louder. It was my children setting off fireworks. Dixie sat on my shoulder through the whole event and didn't seem fazed by it, but that may be because she was next to me.

Prayers will continue, but you are exceptional for the lengths you went through to get Rishi the help that was needed. I'm so happy to hear he is doing better and hope that it will continue, keep us updated on his progress.

So sorry to hear about your being the victim of a crime, I wish I was there to beat up the bad guys for you. I promise there wouldn't be anything left but a greasy spot when I was done with them! Spock is so intuitive as to make you feel better and understanding that you were not in the best of moods. He's a great grey!

I have ladders around Dixie's cage since she's not flighted. She uses them to wander around the room, get from her cage to her swing, over to her playstand, etc. We love our ladders.

Well the only experience I have with a parrot bite is that of Sterling grabbing my wrist while I was trying to get him to step down onto his perch inside his cage. No blood, no visible bruises, but very tender for about a week. I don't really consider that a bite since he was "hanging on for dear life" in his eyes. He's not done it since and this was our first experience with step down into his cage. He now has it mastered on any surface. Will keep fingers (and toes) crossed that I never experience the bite! Unfortunately, mom, Paul, Sarah and LP have all experienced the bite of one or other of the fids and would qualify. As to the t-shirts - look at http://www.classb.com - we get our scout t-shirts there and they do custom work as well. We can get our shirts from them and offer them to the boys for a minimal costs (usually $10.00) for a quality t-shirt.

Jill Honey, You are MAD, as in CRAZY MAD! That's a nice mad, not a scary mad if you ask me....lol. Of course you are mad because Harvey made you that way. Now you have to start another group M.A.D. Made Absolutely Disfunctional. Of course those meetings will be followed by F.A.R.T. and S.P.E.W. Thus you will be the founder of M.A.D. F.A.R.T. S.P.E.W. Remember I love you!

That's a great one! We should have a hall of fame for those types of actions!

OMG that makes me think of the commercial for windex where the crows make the guy run into the glass!

Pat, thanks for the wonderful update. It gives me hope that Beau (when he gets here) will be just as inquisitive and progressive as Adaya is. Dixie's vocabulary grows every day, and with her help I'm sure Beau will be just as great at talking as she is. I love seeing Adaya in her harness. We've not mastered that yet with Dixie, Sterling is doing well with it, and Beau loves his, he gets to fly! Thanks again for the update and keep more coming!

Yes, my office is in my home - it is the converted garage actually - heated and cooled, two computers plus my laptop, 32" flat screen lcd, my literal home for school and in general life, only thing missing is my fridge and potty. It currently houses Dixie Bird Grey and Tequila Blue, two play areas and Paul's leather chair and ottoman. The only ones not allowed are the pugs. Sterling comes out of the family room with me every morning after taking LP to school and hangs out on the back of my chair or one of the playstands. Beau's cage is smaller than Dixie's but since it is being donated I can't complain. When funds are better we will purchase a bigger, better, matching cage for him and move the smaller one to the bedroom as a sleeping cage. I'm hopeful that the plucking will stop after the injury heals, but understand that it may not. When I visited yesterday there had been no additional plucking, but one night does not prove to be a complete stop. While I was there, a couple came in and purchased the baby Timnah, but looked at Beau and were completely mortified by his appearance. I was shocked at their response, apparently they have not done their research! I still think he is beautiful. Beau will not be clipped since he already has missing feathers on one of his wings due to plucking. My only real concerns are the possiblities of him plucking a blood feather while I'm gone to class or in general running around. Of course that fear runs deep with all of my fids. Am currently looking for a food dehydrator so I can keep them in veggies....Beau loves dehydrated green beans and peas - everything green. Dixie loves everything orange and red and Sterling eats everything purple. Go figure.

While Dixie has never been a biter, Sterling gets quite grumpy when it's bed time. You know it's 7:55 pm because Sterling starts his vocalizations and they are very loud. That literally means - lights out! and Sterling is in the family room. We turn off his light and lower the volume on the tv and by 8:00 he's quite content, by 9:00 the room better be empty however. In the morning he's his normal self - calling out the day at 7:30 a.m. without fail and telling the world it's time to get up and fix breakfast. If his lights are left on longer than they should be the night before however, he's a real bear the next day.

Coming soon to my office! A new and exciting delight! The true life story of General Beauregard Grey! Starring: General Beauregard Grey Co-Stars: Dixie Bird Grey, Tequila Blue and Sterling Guest Stars: Robin, Paul and LP Synopsis: General Beauregard Grey (Beau) is a 3 month old gentleman who has enjoyed the love and interaction with Robin when she visited the local bird shop. Robin convinced the shop owner to not clip Beau and let him fly until parronts were found for him, and let them determine if he should be clipped. Working with Beau, Robin has been able to harness train Beau and takes him into the back room (very large) to practice his flying. Of course in all good drama's there is tragedy. Beau has suffered a burn on his crop from a hand feeding. This has caused Beau to pluck his chest almost completely bare and to also go after several of his flight feathers on one wing. While the injury is dangerous, no surgery will be required. Robin has increased her visits to the shop to help attend to Beau's care and again has him eating pellets, fresh fruit and the owner reports he is down to one hand feeding per day due to this interaction. The sadness continues however since the shop owner is afraid Beau will never find a proper home since he is now known to pluck and is completely broken hearted. He asks Robin if she will consider taking Beau home to be with Dixie, a sultry southern belle who is somewhat sassy and very independent. After consulting with Paul and LP, it is determined that Beau will now live in Robin's office. A cage has been picked out and toys have been arranged and Beau is getting accustomed to his new quarters as Robin, Paul and LP rearrrange to make room for the General. The shop owner hopes that Beau will be completely weened by Friday and travel to his new on home on Monday, October 5, 2009.

Jay this is such an inspiring post! Only 8 weeks and you have brought this sweetie out of his shell. I look forward to more on Spock and Jim every day when I come on and delight in hearing about their progress. Glad he's coming around so nicely and know that you and Maggie are having more than a hoot of a time with him. Thanks for sharing.

I would personally prefer a bird safe tree Jay, but don't think they make those that are in the shape of a christmas tree. This year will be interesting for us, especially since Sterling is in the "tree" corner of the living room. Have been giving it some thought though and may consider using a potted tree to be put out in January - preferably a hardwood. Jill, send Harvey on - he would be more than welcome! Just remember, he may decide to stay.

Dixie and Sterling are both chipped and I wuoldn't have it any other way. They were chipped when I got them, so I didn't have a choice, but Blue has a band, and we will be visiting the vet soon to discuss removing the band and having him chipped. The possibility of finding a lost bird is slim, but to make a possibility have a more footing, I'll go with the chip. At least if someone did come in with a bird, that hasn't been to the vet before (we have only the one in this area), and he's aware of a lost pet, he can easily scan for the chip. Any chance is better than none. All three of my dogs are chipped. Pugs do not have much of a chance wearing a regular collar with tags, at least mine don't, and without their chips they would not be easily identifiable as who they are and who they belong to. Tags attach to their harnesses when we walk, but they don't wear them all the time and there have been times when they did get out of the back yard. Unfortunately, we've had to padlock the gate since the neighbor kids think it's funny to let dogs loose.<br><br>Post edited by: rbpittman, at: 2009/09/30 02:56

After purchasing my first cage and having the same problems, when it came time to purchase a cage for Sterling and Blue, I made sure the cage had the type of bowls that had little bumps on them and you put them in and turn them so the bowls cannot come out. I had the local shop owner order additional bowls of this type and the right diameter to put into Dixie's cage. It takes a bit to push them into the ring and then pop them back out, but no more food thrown around on the floor of the cage. Dixie would take her bowls out, dump whatever food was left and clink it along the sides of the cage. It reminded me of the old movies where the inmates would take their tin cups and run them along the cell bars...lol. It was usually always right before I was coming with fresh food at breakfast and dinner.

Welcome home cookie (in advance) and congratulations on your new baby. I know the empty place in your heart will be smaller as time goes on and Cookie will help to heal that, but there will always be a spot for Macey.

Extra prayers for you, your wife, and Rishi. Thank you for such awesome care and devotion to your Grey, your story is inspiring to all of us who love our birds and have access, that we take for granted. Your devotion is unequivicable.

How's this - tree up - secured to wall to prevent falling over from birds. (They naturally belong in trees!) Decorations should be edible items for..... who else?..... the birds! Hang avey (sp) cakes, pellets strung with dried cranberries, frozen peas and carrots. Also decorate with birdie kabobs. Realizing this tree will have to be redecorated daily, but what a wonderful way to spend christmas, especially with our fids!

Happy Birthday Jill! Don't let Harvey near your cake, I remember what he did to the willow ball!

Debandbella wrote: Yep - sounds perfectly logical to me! Leave Darius as he is!