rbpittman

Dixie has quite an extensive vocabulary, albeit not the same as Dayo but a good one nonetheless. Beau has just started communicating verbally so this makes me very happy. For over a year now I've been doing the same goodnight routine with the birds, with the exception of adding Morgan to the mix a few months ago. Beau on one shoulder, Dixie on the other and we turn off the lights, put the conures back in their cage, loads of kisses between the bars and then it's Morgan's turn. He has quickly learned that "night night" means go back inside for the night. He is willing stepping up and giving kisses and then heading to his favorite perch. Then it's Beau's turn, he steps off my shoulder onto his porch and gives lots of kisses and then steps back up to be placed on his perch inside his cage. All the while Dixie is sitting on my shoulder. We make one more trip around the room, telling everyone good night and sleep tight. Then it's Dixie's turn. She get's lots of kisses, a swing upside down, a few seconds of rocking in my arms while being sung a lullabye, and then off she goes to her favorite perch. This routine starts at 8:30 pm every night and if for some reason I forget the time, I'm reminded of it immediately by Dixie. There is no clock that chimes the hour so I don't know how she does this. I know many will say that it's the "routine" of the thing, but I believe that they all understand "night night time" since I have absolutely no problem getting any of them to go to bed. The most amazing part of this is when I do forget the time, Dixie's announcement of "night night time" works the same - the conures start heading back to their cage - they usually play on the rope's and swings; Morgan goes to his porch for kisses - he's usually on top of his cage playing with his toys; and Beau starts looking/moving toward me from where ever he happens to be. To me it's cognitive, maybe I'm daydreaming...lol. Robin

I have two greys, two sun conures, a panama amazon and an umbrella cockatoo! All live in the same house and the same room (except the u2) in their own cages. When I am in my office, which is most of the day, they are all out of their cages. There is an obvious pecking order, Dixie rules the roost, but she was also the first. Everyone else could seem to careless as long as there is supervision. The conures share a cage, but once out are more than happy to play separately, and enjoy visiting with the other birds frequently, sharing toys and stands. The U2 is kept separated because he belongs to my son and is homed where he can spend the most time with him, however he does not stay in his cage awaiting his return home, he just sleeps in a different room. The return of what you get from multiple parrots is what you put into them.

The above statement you have made is the biggest reason you will not get information from people on this forum regarding the breeding of greys. They are not hobbiest. The breeders who give advice on this forum are dedicated to the birds that they breed, the quality of the breed and the health of the breed. They don't take their positions lightly when giving advice. Most offer advice that is decades in the making and is cherished by those of us who have companion birds. It seems to me that you are here to glean information without really doing the work, and 6 months of research is a drop in the bucket to what it really takes to learn about any subject.

Having had two who came to me still being hand fed I advise STRONGLY against taking that task on just to have one additional day home with your baby. If you've never hand fed one you can do much more damage to your bird and their health than you will gain with an additional couple of weeks with them at a younger age. Beau was still being hand fed one feeding per day because of illness. He needed the additional time and patience I could give him he couldn't get at the pet store. Morgan was given up because he was still being hand fed and the owner didn't have a clue on what to do. Twice a day feedings are easy in your mind, they are difficult if you have an aggressive feeder and a bird who doesn't know you. It can be worse, you have an aggressive hand feeder with an inexperienced parront! Unless you've been doing this for an extended period of time, leave the baby with the breeder; it can be 12 weeks, 14 weeks, 16 weeks before they are ready to be weaned and they are all different.

Wow, such inspirational stories. Let's see we have: Sterling - Umbrella Cockatoo - came with the name, but we kept it since he was like sterling silver in our eyes. Dixie - CAG - My husband, being the red neck he is, commented that I had made the appropriate choice in birds as she is "grey" and we live in the south, she is a southern belle. She at once tranformed herself into Dixie Bird Grey (all southern women have at least three names). Hence the name Dixie. Beau - CAG - Given that I have a southern belle already we had a good foundation for that old "soul" of a gentleman, and Beau is every bit that. He is General Beauregard Grey. Blue - Sun Conure - My son named him, he had the smallest amount of blue under those beautiful green wings (he was only a few months old) and my son thought he would get more. He is officially Tequila Blue, since he mimics a tequila sunrise. Bean - Sun Conure - My son's favorite books when he was small were about a cat named Bean. Now Bean was only a few months old when he came to live with us, so of course he became Bean (because he was Green). Make sense? It did to my son. Morgan - Panama Amazon - Have to blame my daughter on this one. She looked at him and declared him a pirate's parrot, especially since he was wearing little "pants." (The ultra fluffy little legs.) Captain Morgan he became (and the rum was another reason - she is 21 - her uncle bought her a bottle for her birthday). The four parakeets - Eenie, Meeni, Miney & Moe I should have named the conures Phobos & Damos (Fear & Chaos) as that is more their personalities, but hindisght is always twenty/twenty. I'll include the dogs here since I have the chance - all three are Pugs and we picked names for them before they came along, but knowing they were on their way - while at a chinese restaurant - Chow Yun Fat, Sushi Bar & Mushoo Pork. Chow is very much as elegant and beautiful as his namesake, Sushi looks more like a sausage roll and Mushoo is a little pig. Thanks for the thread, it's great!

I'm gonna ask the dumb question - why would you handle the poop? It's not like cat poop which harbors deadly bacteria and has been proven to cause prenatal problems. (BTW - I had cat's while pregnant with my oldest, now 25, his father scooped the poop.) Precautions can be taken either way - wear rubber/latex disposable gloves while cleaning cage, wear a simple mask while cleaning cage, put husband in charge of cleaning up cages. Congrats on the pregnancy, and the baby grey, they will be life long friends. This link should prove helpful: http://www.americanpregnancy.org/pregnancyhealth/pets.html

If I could get to Florida I would take her in a heart beat. Already having 2 CAGs and the rest of the flock my husband would probably kill me. I'm definitely in tears reading this however, I know it's tearing you up inside to have to go through this once much less twice. We'll have you and your husband and Yoshi in our prayers for the right person to come along and take Yoshi for a life time.

I have a plucker who started as a relief from stress as well (I believe). Now going on 14 months and his plucking is only obvious when I am away (he keeps it to a minimum fortunately). When I say I'm away - there are several times a year that I am away from home for about a week at a time. Needless to say - he always has the same sitter who comes over daily and even this is becoming less of a problem plucking time. I have his cage directly opposite the door to my office. He can see me coming in whenever I'm on my way there, he knows when I leave which direction I go, and he's familiar with all things outside that door as we take him throughout the house. I've never heard the door thing before, but I do know they love to be where ever you are! Good luck.

I second this thought from those who have many more years of experience with their greys. I know what it was like with my children and the thought of them dressing in black, listening to metal and rebelling puts fear in my heart. Say it ain't so!

I have yet to find anything that Dixie is afraid of! That being said, my keyboard to the desk top is on a drawer that slides out for use and is closed when not in use. The laptop - NEVER - is left in the office for them to get at. I've learned by the mistakes of others (not always an easy task) and don't want the expense or problems of having to not have my laptop.

You just described my son and my daughter to a T - my son is the Grey and my daughter the Amazon of course. She has to be - how else would she be able to hang out with pirates!

Morgan is still learning to fly I think and was clipped long when I got him. He can take off and fly across the room and then "plunk" down to land. Dixie seems to be the more graceful of the two, she twists and turns in mid-air and can land cleanly on anything. She's learning to come to me on command, which is amazing when it happens, and her landings are like she's just gently touching her feet onto water. I've never though there was a difference in the way a bird fly's but apparently there is!

You can talk to the breeder about letting the bird fledge before clipping, then just a long clip for safety. My amazon was long clipped at the breeders instance and he can still fly across the room. My personal preference would have been no clipping, but I wasn't involved in this decision, I'm just the lucky recipient of this precious little guy. Dixie was clipped when I got her, but has since become fully flighted, as are all of the others. If shipping is not an option for you your choices may be very limited.

I replaced the sh** word with Sugar. It sounded so much nicer. My ex used to say the "f" word all the time, and when the kids came along I made him replace that with Fudge, so I have a habit of saying Fudge or Sugar now. It's all sweetness in my house...........lol.

No advice on TAG's here, I know absolutely nothing about them other than they are not quite as large as CAG's, have a different color tail and different color beak. Wow, what great help I am. I have 2 CAG's however, and I've found that they are individual's just like people are. There may be disadvantages to one breed over another, but there are also disadvantages to people, some are needy, neurotic, intelligent, demanding, aloof, etc., etc., etc. Wait, I just described my human children. Visit with several different birds, let them choose you and don't get wrapped up in the "breed." Be the best parront you can be and love them like there's no tomorrow.

Sorry Jill, I'm still stuck on why you would want to kiss Harvey's feet! Dixie and Beau are great at giving me kisses and I love the kiss the tops of their heads (which I get to do regularly) but I have never, ever, ever thought about kissing their feet. I've seen what they walk in without thinking about it as I'm trying to wipe up their poo's when they are on my desk! Guess you have to have a foot fetish to begin with. Hmmmm, you telling us something Jill?

Jill, Harvey is just like his human ..... STRANGE! Not exactly, Dixie loves to hang upside down and swing, and when I get tired of swinging her upside down I flop her on my arm like a baby and we rock (and sing of course). She will lay there until i stop rocking. She loves to lay on her back on LP's chest and watch tv, it's funny. I don't use an ironing board any more (steam dryer) so we settle for the ottoman.

Feel bad for a few minutes and pour on lots of love and beg for forgiveness, Morgan is letting you know he wanted to go to! Dixie does this to me when we leave her for more than one night - and unfortunately I do have to leave her on occasion (a week of camping with the boy scouts every year, two weeks on the geriatric tour with my parents, a week with my in-laws at Thanksgiving, etc.) - but she always forgives me because I feel so bad for leaving her, and I'm not her favorite person. It will be interesting to see how she reacts to my husband when he gets home this time (he's been gone since July), he's her favorite! I think it's their way of letting you know you forgot to pack something in your suitcase and carry-on luggage! That's what makes Grey's (and other birds) so wonderful, they let you know how they feel, as opposed to the dogs/cats (I have 3 dogs) they just want to love you.

I'm one of those with multiple birds. Two african greys, an umbrella 'too, two sun conures, a panama amazon and four parakeets. Quite a load. They each have very distinct and individual personalities. Dixie's true love is my husband, she tolerates me but she is the ring leader of the flock and is respected as such, especially since she was the first. She is very jealous of the other birds and demands special time just for herself. That said - so do the rest of them. I am very fortunate that I work from home and can spend almost all day with them, letting them out at different times and giving each undivided attention. That's what makes it work in my house. I also have a house full of people who delight in sharing their day with each of the birds once they get home from work/school so it is not a burden on any one of us, but even if I were the only one who lived here, I could easily keep up with their needs, it's a matter of "want to" as opposed to "have to." You make your decisions and then be the responsible person and accept your responsibilities and all should be fine, but only after weighing carefully how much time you will be taking away from the first to give to the second.

That is one of Dixie's favorite things to do - we discovered this by accident as well - a piece of rope was hanging down her swing and she would climb down and then twirl like there was no tomorrow - there is now a swivel hook in the ceiling with a larger piece of rope specifically designed for her to swirl with.....and it is hysterical. Get the video I would love to see it.

I'm so glad I found this thread. Morgan has taken to flying and so far his aim is improving daily. He goes from his cage to the rope door and iis now actually landing it rather than runnning into it to stop. He doesn't seem as graceful as Dixie, but he's just as strong. He may be flying for me since he's seen the others fly to the rope door to play. He has also flown to the play stand and once to his cage but these were more like running into them rather than landings. Thanks again for the info.

I usually don't get this much interference while studying, but today they were at their best!

Dixie is fully flighted and usually just fly's around my office with no problems. Today however, she decided that while I was eyebrow deep in a book she would fly off the back of my chair and onto the rope that makes my office door. No big deal, she plays there all the time. After several scoldings about the door trim she got quiet - you know that quiet that is really strange. So I look up to see what she's doing and she's gone. Immediately the book goes down, I remove Beau from my shoulder and slide on my shoes to look for her. No Dixie. I'm now crawling on the floor of my office - did she go behind the chair? No Dixie. Out to the mud room (adjoins to my office) - NO DIXIE. I'm calling - no sound. I'm looking - no bird. I'm beginning to panic. Into the living room I go - looking up and looking down. She's not visiting Sterling, she's not hanging from the drapes, she's not clinging to a ceiling fan (all off thank God). Through the kitchen, down the hall way, into my bedroom, checking the bathroom (even looked behind the toilet). NO DIXIE. I went through the house three times. I'm the only person home, there's no way she could have gotten outside. Now the dogs are starting to bark, where is Dixie. I'm back tracking, looking behind the sofa, the entertainment center, on top of the entertainment center (I had to get a chair!). I really am losing my mind, how did this happen, she couldn't have gone outside. I've spent 30 minutes going through this house looking for Dixie. Now I call my daughter - come home quick, I can't find Dixie. She and I start looking through the house, each taking a room. Under the beds are checked, behind the drapes, behind the furniture, in the closets (which were closed to begin with!) and in the shower's. How does this bird do this? I'm finally in the kitchen and about to lose it. I've opened and closed cabinets, looked on shelves and in the trashcan. No clothes hamper has been left untossed. Where on earth did she go. As I sit in the chair to gather my wits I look up on top of the refrigerator (there is a large bowl there) and low and behold there pops up the head of Dixie. She has found my stash of almonds and banana chips! She wasn't lost, she was in Vegas and hit the jackpot! All the calling and looking and frantic movement drowned out the sound of Dixie enjoying a very healthy snack (even if it was a bit much). I imagine the dogs barking kept her head low (or maybe it was the almonds). I said "There you are, you had me scared to death!" her only reply "Yes" and quickly stepped up. She is now happily sitting on her perch, being unusually quiet again, but I know exactly where she is.

Well we've decided to change Morgan's name from Captain Morgan to Bottomless Pit! We are still handfeeding twice a day but the amount of formula taken has decreased dramatically. Seems I'm not up and ready to feed him at 6:30 when the sun just starts peeking into my office and he's found a ready supply of pellets available to eat. I know this because I was getting worried so I hooked up the webcam to watch. That little bugger has decided that Harrison's is pretty good stuff (especially since there's a mix of dried fruit, veggies and seed in there!). This morning his bowl was over half empty and he barely touched his formula. He's up 3 grams since I brought him home so I know he's doing well on the weight, now to maintain. Activity wise - Morgan is flying across the room with good skills. Very active on his cage and the playstands and interacting well with Beau. They preen each other on occassion. He's discovered shreddable paper (aka index cards - we all do our own paperwork around here) and cardboard bagels. Leather is still the most interesting toy for him though. Morgan is not especially fond of the conures, but then again, none of the "larger" birds are. Seems those little daredevils like to fly and make a lot of noise. Morgan and Dixie haven't interacted much at all, I don't expect that to happen. Dixie keeps everyone in line so we have no problems with her - she squawks at them and they all straighten up...lol. Sarah (my daughter) is desperately trying to find a pirate outfit for herself for Halloween, she claims that Morgan is a pirates parrot and wants him to be her "accessory" - of course I putting a resounding NO on this decision, but for in the house she can be a pirate all she wants. She especially loves his little "pants" (feathers) around his legs. She keeps trying to teach him pirate talk. He's probably going to be fluent. In the 3 weeks that Morgan has been with us he's gone from saying "hello" and "out" with imagination used to understand them to "hello" and "out" very clearly. Hint to Beau - take lessons. I will say - Morgan is a joy. I didn't think I would have fallen in love with another bird the way I did Dixie and Beau, but Morgan has captured my heart as well!

Ditto to what Dan said!!! Dixie is my bird in every sense of the word except for who she loves - and that seems to be everyone but me! No matter how much I love her she loves me differently than everyone else. Her true love is my husband Paul, and with him gone working on a submarine she has decided to substitute my daughter Sarah and my son LP. You would think it would be me, but heavens to Betsy, NO WAY! I get the occassional head scratches and kisses, but nothing like she will do with everyone else. I've done nothing to provoke her, I feed her, clean her cage, bring her treats, take her outside, give her a bath, and get no respect. Does that change my love - again - NO WAY! I accepted early on that Dixie had chosen Paul, who cares, I still get to enjoy her every day. We talk, we sing, we dance, just at a distance. When the rare moment occurs that she wants to be on my shoulder or allow me to scratch her head I'm over joyed. Tell Mike to put his big boy pants on and man up and realize he can't be the center of attention for both you and Yoshi. It's the nature of the Grey and one of the reasons they are so amazing!