RegularCliche

Whew, so it sounds like I was just being paranoid. So relieved to hear it! I'll still keep an eye on the area to make sure it doesn't get bigger and catch any plucking early on, but I'll stop freaking out that I'm such a bad mom that I've driven her to plucking a month after bringing her home! Thanks so much for the insight - I really appreciate it.

Hi all, Thanks so much for the warm welcome! Thanks for the heads-up about Maggie possibly getting more wary of toys as she gets older... I'm keeping my fingers crossed that she'll stay mellow, but I'll keep that in mind. As for the vacation... luckily, I have a very sweet and understanding boyfriend who didn't complain too much when I asked to change our surfing trip to Costa Rica to a road trip a few hours down the coast so Maggie could come! I just couldn't leave her for that long a month after bringing her home, you know? Anyway, thanks again for the welcome, and I'll put some pictures up as soon as I get home!

Hi all, I just wanted to get input from you guys on this, if you don't mind... I'm hoping I'm just being a paranoid mom, but I'm a little freaked out that Maggie might be plucking. As I said in my introduction post, she really doesn't seem neurotic or anything at all. She isn't scared of new items, people, or situations. She gets lots of love and attention, and I try to give her mental stimulation (I've bought her several foraging toys, and am always trying to make up my own so she won't get bored. She also has plenty of other toys.). However - the other day, when she was wet, I turned her upside-down and was horrified to see a bare patch on her chest. I have pictures on my camera, but don't have the camera>computer cord with me, so I'll just describe it as best I can. When she's dry, there's no bare skin visible there. But it looks kind of like there's a crease or something down the middle of her feathers - the closest picture I can find online to what I'm talking about is at http://thefeatherbarn.com/cart/images/afican%20grey%20congo.jpg . When she's wet, or when I separate her dry feathers by hand, there's a bare strip visible right where the crease is. I've seen her preening, but never actually pulling out feathers... and I've seen the occasional downy feather in her cage when I clean it, but never a number that seemed excessive (they do just lose some feathers sometimes, yes?). We have a vet appointment for her wellness check next week, but I'm really kind of freaked out right now. I've tried searching the forum, but don't see anything quite the same as this. Any input much appreciated! Thanks so much in advance!

Hi all, Just wanted to introduce myself. I'm Morgan, and just brought home my baby CAG, Maggie, around a month ago. She's about 5 months old now. She's my first real bird (I'm not counting the chickens I had for years), but I've wanted an African Grey for almost a decade. I've done a lot of reading on them, since I know they're not necessarily the easiest choice for a first bird, but I'm sure I'll still have plenty of questions. As for Maggie, she's (fortunately!) not at all neurotic or paranoid as far as I've ever seen. She's taken almost every situation she's been in completely in stride, and I've never seen her afraid of a new toy or anything. She's kind of aloof and reserved though... she always wants to step up to come out of her cage, but other than that, doesn't really initiate contact. If my boyfriend and I are talking and she feels left out, she'll try to join in the conversation with baby babble, but she'd generally rather hang out on top of her cage or on her playstand (just hanging out though, not really playing) than with me. I don't mind if she's not the most playful of birds, but I just hope it's not something I'm doing that makes her not want to play. She's out of her cage most of the day, as I work from home most of the time (only 15 hours a week at my "real" job). Basically whenever I'm home, she's out of her cage. She also gets plenty of one-on-one attention - I absolutely don't just sit there ignoring her all day! Let's see, what else... she can say a few words ("Hello," "Hi," "No," "Pretty bird," "How are you?", "Cat," and "Muammar" (that's the name of one of our cats)). She loves seeing herself in the mirror - she actually regurgitated for herself yesterday! Should've named her Narcissus, I guess. She's clipped, but loves to practice flying short distances anyway - the only time she climbs off her cage by herself is to get onto the bookcase a few feet away and fly back to her cage. Anyway, that's quite long enough for an introduction! My boyfriend, Maggie, and I are actually on vacation right now (she loves looking out the hotel window!), so I don't have pictures at the moment, but will definitely post some when I get back. Morgan