katana600

Time for a Gilbert update. He is a fickle and unpredictable little fellow. He pleasantly came through the upheaval of having a houseful of people staying with us, up to 14 people at any given time for part of a week. He talked and made everyone laugh and you wouldn't have known life was any different with strangers in the house for him. Slowly he is becoming more interested in his environment. He moves a toy here and there on the cage top or I might find the tiny sliver that shows he chewed a wood toy, but I don't often see him actually play. Last night was another first for him. He has a triangular shaped acrylic toy that he will nudge and run from but last night he was twirling some little paddles on it and actually interacting with it for about three minutes. That is the longest sustained play I have seen. When I see videos of other African greys swinging, hanging upside down, flying and generally just being happy boisterous parrots, I know I am watching normal parrots. All three of our greys have been sick or traumatized and never reached that kind of outward enjoyement. I am slowly seeing signs that Gilbert is relaxing his shoulders, getting more at ease and have hope for him to get into the activities of the household. The best way I could describe our first year is that he seems coiled up, wings folded tightly to his body and just a raw frazzle of nerves and fear. When he gets really scared of something new or loud, he will barber off the feathers on his chest. His wings are missing so many feathers he can't fly. But he is making a turn for the best lately. This morning he launched off the cage and came to my feet again. He will always step up sweetly when he is on the floor. I put him on my shoulder and carefully walked to the bathroom so he could see himself in the mirror. He preened my hair and felt my face and ear with his beak without any offers to bite me. The entire interaction was less than two minutes. He can't handle much more than that at any one time. We still have the goal of ending every interaction on a positive note and he is obliging me. When he was on my shoulder or when he is on my hand, his balance is really shaky. At somewhere getting close to ten years old he has less ability to balance than a six week old chick. When I watched him play and twirl the little plastic paddles I was so filled with elation it was all I could do to sit breathlessly and watch transfixed by the sight of him getting brave enough to be curious. What an awesome and delightful couple of minutes. It is like watching the most beautiful flower open its petals to the sun for the first time.

Your pictures are beautiful of your daughter, DJ, the wild birds and the beach. It was a flash of nostalgia to see the Burj in the background. We lived just northeast of where you enjoying your outing. At night from my window I could relax and watch the colors change. Thanks for giving your family such a fun day and for sharing that with us.

That is a great introduction. Thanks for joining us and congrats on posting a photo right on the first post. I have been here three years and still work to get a photo posted. Lido is adorable and it is obvious he is the light of your life. You are going to have some wonderful times together. What are the names of your Utoo and macaw?

Gracie knows how to keep your heart wrapped around her little talon doesn't she? It is so touching how you interact with her and how she responds to you. You are right, you have barely scratched the surface of the complex little character who is Gracie. I am looking forward to hearing more as she matures and becomes even more involved in your life and conversations.

Now you've got me started Ray. I found an exerpt in a book "Andrew Jackson and early Tennessee history by Samuel Gordon Heiskell, John Sevier" No wonder the parrot was cussing, they did a military gun salute, probably scared the bird right out of his feathers. Another google search said it was an African grey parrot. I am still looking for more information on it.

Now I am more curious too. You come up with some interesting tidbits. Thanks Ray.

This has a familiar ring, not exactly the same story, but the unknown author could be Gilbert. Except, he never has promised to be good or sweet. As I recall, he looked me up and down, gave me the stink eye and said "I never promised you a rose garden baby". I do think there is a sweet little guy in that crusty ole shell and I am willing to take what I get and not hope for him to become "better" than he is. Thinking about the days that have gone before "us" are hard to think about. It's a long hard road for a parrot rejected by his first love.

Well look at that, we are in good company... and so were the folks in the white house. I am going to have to go for a tour and look for evidence. Another great informative topic Ray. Thanks.

Luna is a darling. I love the light grey and all her little red underfeathers. You are doing great with her already. Gotta love those early morning wake ups. She is probably just excited to meet her day and get to know you better.

I love the way Kallie is communicating with you while watching and learning. When she does start talking it will surely be prolific, she is just waiting until she knows she has it down pat. We have a smaller parrot who says few words but communicates with mimics of sounds. When she wants a drink of fresh water from the refrigerator filter, she makes the gurgling sound. When she wants an ice cube she makes the clink of ice in a glass. When she wants an almond she makes the sound of the tin being opened. She has the ability to speak and does so sparingly. It is a lot harder for her than for a grey though since she only has one muscle to form words where the greys have two from what I gather. I can't wait to hear the things that Kallie will tell you. If you think you are laughing out loud now, she will really send you into chortles and raucous uninhibited laughter when she gets her own voice.

This is why I love the other bird room so much. Java is a very quiet, understated little parrot in color and in speaking ability, but she is so full of personality and intelligence that I am still in awe after six years. When she does talk, it is so quiet it almost sounds like a grumble. When she first started making tones and cadences that were repetitive, I couldn't understand what she was saying. I used a digital recorder then played it back at a slower speed and then could clearly understand her for the first time. She would sway back and forth and say something and get very excited when I came close to her cage. When I played that back she was saying "I wanna get out". When she did it the next time and I asked if she wanted to get out, the joy and excitement was enough to bring goosebumps. When she asks "what are you doing", I have always answered her and told her what I am doing. As she hung out on the top of the refrigerator watching me in the kitchen, she asked me and I asked in return what she was doing. She said "I'm working". Then she laughed and laughed. Another time with the same question returned she said "I'm busy". She is such a hands on little parrot. She will lie on her back in my hand with her head hanging way back to get a scratch on the soft little spot just below her lower beak and she makes a little breathy cooing sound. She was quite nippy the first year but as I got to know more about parrots, she was not a four month old baby that I thought we were getting and she had been neglected and mistreated. Looking back and realizing the time we have spent acclimating Gilbert even though we learned so much more from this forum, it is a miracle that she has such a sweet disposition.

Aha http://www.greyforums.net/forums/showthread.php?191386-Signatures-how-do-I-make-one-w-pics/page2 I was trying to make a banner and it kept hanging up and freezing the screen. Seems my security software is choking on the site. I will keep trying.

Those quiet moments are wonderful all right, it does make it worthwhile to get up early and to stay up late. Java is an early riser and goes to bed early. Gilbert likes to stay up late and that is his quiet special time. You are so right that I need a banner, especially now. We just added more critters to our house. Where do I get started?

I find myself drawn to this forum when I should be doing housework... when I should be doing lots of things. I love reading about all your parrot companions and keep looking at all those beautiful, spirited amazons. Now how am I going to resist sitting down to the computer when the other birds room gets expanded? Thanks to all you admins and moderators to keep this such a wonderful interesting place. I really do have a life away from my computer screen, but you folks are making it a little harder for me all the time. I keep thinking that living vicariously through all your parrots is the only thing keeping me from MBS. Is two parrots considered multiple bird syndrome, or have I just gotten into the gateway?

Without being there, it is hard to tell, but it seems as if Jaq'O got caught up in the excitement. It would be natural in a state of panic to go into fight or flight and he seems to have gotten his back up to fight. We have had our rescue Gilbert for a year now. On occasion he will still charge at me when I am changing out his food and water dishes. The cage has only two of the doors to put food and water through and I have to reach in to change out the pellets in the third bowl. I cut quite a few fleece squares about 20 inches square. I cover my hand with the fleece when I have to reach in and he is in the mood to give me a bite. The other thing I will do is put his pellets in a long handled measuring cup and transfer pellets into his dish that way. Sometimes it takes a long long time to establish trust a little at a time. Our vet told us that greys are very subtle, when their quiet resistance doesn't work, they resort to biting. However, once they establish that biting is effective, they will sometimes bite out of reflex. Your best bet is to avoid situations that push him to bite to get his point across. You will get to learn his good times and when he is approachable. In the beginning with Gilbert, I would get him out at night when the house was quiet and put the dogs in their crate. Then, if he was too wound up to relax and go back to his cage, I could turn off the lights, leaving on just a night light and he was much more willing to step up to go back to his cage where he felt more secure. Gilbert was referred to as "that mean bird" and a bird with issues from one of his former caretakers. He isn't mean, but he still has a hair trigger.

Don't worry Salsa, they will forgive all your transgressions because you are just so darn cute and entertaining. Someday Maggie will get busy and forget to take out her earrings and hair clips and you can remind her.

He really is chowing down. Your breeder did a great job introducing him to good food. He is a gorgeous little fellow. I love his name. Congratulations on bringing him home.

This morning, I was up way too early. I was making coffee and catching up on my email when I could hear Java grumbling about the early wake up call. She is a red bellied parrot and has spoken very little in six years. She has a few familiar phrases and her voice is not nearly as clear as the grey capability, but she makes herself understood. This morning she was asking over and over "what are you doing" and then she said "what are you doing bird" and she emphasized bird in a way that reminds me of Jerry Seinfield saying "Newman". She just kept talking and chatting away saying a lot of what Gilbert says. She calls herself "pretty girl" and says "come on over here bird". I can't recall that I call her bird, so maybe that is what Gilbert is calling her. It is just funny and so very endearing. It is also very interesting that Gilbert will say "Gilbert's a good boy" or "Gilbert's a pretty boy" but when he talks to Java he calls her a girl. He came in calling himself a boy, but I do know I call Java a girl when I talk with her often as I feed her or get her out for cuddles and play time.

Ray, your dedicated efforts and interesting threads are a joy to my soul. Thanks so much. Dee

When I am fervently praying for Gilbert to regain his flight ability, I think of the neck pinch and somehow I always see it being your neck, not mine. LOL. Our daughter moved in with us last week after her graduation and mentioned she has not heard the s-bomb. I told her not to remind Gilbert about it and we would rather not hear it any more either. This morning in the wee hours in the quiet and in the dark, I was taking one of the dogs out. I heard Gilbert start his shhhh and then he changed the ending to his daily call for his beloved Jim. He said shhhhim. LOL. We are making progress. Another place he is undergoing a small transformation is to play inside his cage some. He has all the toys he came with, at least one is from his very first home. He touches them sometimes and they seem to give him a bit of comfort, but he doesn't actually play with them much. Lately though, he has been standing on his water dish, dipping one talon in and then trying to dip his wings in. Then he shakes that leather toy and rings his bells excitedly. He is also pulling on the wooden toys and I have seen tiny bits of evidence that he is starting to chew the wood on occasion. This rehomed parrot business offers no immediate gratification but success shows itself in slow subtle progress. I have to admit when I see the babies and some of the wild antics of juvenile greys, I wonder what we would be doing with Gilbert right now if he started here from the beginning. Then, I realize just how much I would miss of the wonder that is the awakening of a bit of his former self coming back as he overcomes the tremendous fears he is beginning to conquer. I can only hope for an annoyed neck pinch somewhere in our future. LOL.

Somehow in the course of life, I missed this thread. I love it. From what I gather about his past, Gilbert lived five to seven years on the Gulf coast in or around Biloxi MS. He has been through a hurricane or two and also lived on an air force base. When storms roll in he has filled us in with hurricane or tornado sirens as well as the low drone of a foghorn. Our other little parrot Java learned the sound of the smoke detector and will warn everyone I am cooking as soon as the oven kicks on she will sound off the smoke detector. Once when she just got to our home, we went on a road trip and started sounding the smoke alarm. We have traveled with young children before and once they get something on their mind you might be hearing it for the next 20 hours of driving. My husband and I said nothing but it was clear this might be a long first trip with our parrot. Then, we passed some cars and just ahead was an old Pontiac Bonneville and it was smoking like crazy. We had not smelled the smoke, but Java obviously had. No sooner than we passed the alarm stopped, she was warning us of smoke. It was awesome. She also does flock calls and when I answer her she plays a game by changing up the whistles. If I don't respond right away she does the game show buzzer. If I miss a note, I get the buzzer. When she is finished playing her game with me she will do a long series of tones and whistles and then laugh because she knows I can't keep up.

Our TAG Gilbert has been rehomed at least a couple of times. For a while he started having flapping and being disturbed in the night. One of our members suggested a night light and I put a small one in the room with him. It stopped the issue. If Lucy previously was left uncovered, it could be part of her issue. If you are putting her in a sleep cage in another room at night to make sure she gets quiet rest, maybe just being in the other room with a night light and not covering her would give her quiet time she needs. Six weeks is still pretty new, you will learn a lot more of her preferences in time to come. It is very sensitive and caring of you to be thinking about her emotional adjustment. You will sort through and find a solution that keeps both of you rested and confident. Thanks for taking Lucy in and for finding us to share your experience.

As a follow up, we did make an appointment for our little Pumpkin kitty to be spayed next week. The vet gave us an estimate, ouch. My other daughter is a cat lover, and an accountant. She said we should take Pumpkin to the SPCA, they will provide a lower cost for spaying, about a fourth of the private vet... then we could adopt her back again. LOL. We found this little girl last October in her apartment parking lot in Wilmington NC. I offered to pay for her spaying and to put ads out to find her a home and after a seven and a half hour drive one way, her home was found right here on our doorstep. She is missing her tail and the vet who checked her in Wilmington couldn't tell if she was born that way or if it was an accident. We keep her inside all the time but your story helped give me the nudge that if we think we are busy with our little zoo right now, it could get worse. Thanks for posting and for taking such good care of your little Jaime and friends.

Merlin is gorgeous, I am so glad that your trial period grew into a keeper. Our little Java is a cousin of the senegal, she is a red bellied parrot. Merlin may be a small size parrot but he will have a great big personality.

It is the greatest tribute to Willow for you to need to fill the void and bring the love and laughter back to your home. You are never replacing Willow, just honoring the best of your journey by taking a deep breath and trying again. Congratulations of finding a baby and preparing for the joy in your life to go on.