katana600

We are making the most of this neighborhood drama to keep the laughter going. About once a day Gilbert knows he can make me laugh by saying "Jogging" and laughing and always ends with hooooooo. If that isn't enough, there have been neighborhood watch meetings and the local law enforcement officers came to ask questions from my husband more this time as a witness rather than a suspect. LOL. We are having some self protection and gun safety classes and starting a neighborhood watch. I grew up around firearms and have used them but when our kids were in the house, I didn't have any weapons so it has been a couple of decades. They moved out but my daughter told me it is still not a good idea. She said what if they come to visit, I said just announce yourself before you come in. She said "C'mon mom, I can tell you I am there and twenty minutes later you will forget." Hahaha, that may be true. As I take my protection in my own hands, I did suggest my husband not only announce himself but a bulletproof vest may be a good addition to his running attire. I am not the only one in the neighborhood who is a little more jumpy than usual. LOL. Many of our neighbors have been installing motion sensor spotlights. One neighbor was a little put off by the excitement and said "those lights aren't going to be a big deterent" and I told him I didn't install them as a deterrent, but to light up my target so at least I might recognize my husband out there. LOL. Jogging, hahahahah, whoooo.

Ah, we all have a sense of humor, mine happens to be as dark as a bruise on my fingernail. Who said I wasn't going to hold a grudge? hahahahaha LOL

Pretty pictures of Ellie, I was in awe that her eyes are silver now. She is such a beauty. Often when our guy Gilbert is being funny and engaging, my husband laughs at his antics and says "can you imagine what he would be like if he had been with us since he was a fledgling?" I think he would be a bit like Ellie. She is a joy. Good to get that harness accepted while she is willing to play with you. Some folks on the forum have said to be sure to keep using it indoors during winter once she accepts it because sometimes they will balk after a long winter. You have good instincts with Ellie, you are quite a pair.

The parts I have to offer today is one TAG beak, possibly only the top beak, mandible as the lower should not hurt quite so much without the mate. Toenails are not intimidating so I could keep those too. But the beak. Yes the beak. That is under consideration for a trade on a smaller, less pointed, less dangerous model. If someone has recommendations for a modification, I have already tried duct tape and super glue is not out of the question. hahahahahah You all know I am just kidding, but the idea of trading parts struck my funny bone this afternoon. Thanks. As I posted, I saw that innocent little face and had to come back. Yep, that is the beak in question. He has been a Tyrant with a capital T. He is also sweet and adorable and so far without flight he has not had opportunity to destroy my things because I think fingers are enough of a donation to his cause.

I am sorry you were going in all concerned for her safety and feelings and she put a chomp to you, especially on your face. But coming from the bruise of my finger and the new vocabulary Gilbert learned, my first quick thought was "did you teach her a new word?" The little shhh shhhh ah... snot. I am delighted that she is allowing you into her zone and you are making progress with her. I discovered progress stings a little at first too. I am with you on the shower, I don't want anything tender and vulnerable near Gilbert right about now... maybe ever. Maybe not even the toughest part of me, come to think about it, if I could wear armor, that might be indicated for the short term. Hope you continue to see her accept and love you, just not quite so painful.

Oh the joy. I laughed right out loud watching Louie the acrobat gardener pruning the wild bush. When I laughed, Java laughed, Gilbert laughed and we all laughed together. I thought I put you zon families on notice to stop pulling my chain to want one of these amusing, amazing characters? He is just beautiful inside and out. Like Judy said, I loved seeing those red spots when he was twirling and showing his his glorious little ole self. You made my day. Thanks.

Actually I think I am reaching the phase with Gilbert that others have reached with a rehomed bird that turns them into a second rehomed bird. I am not going to give up because I believe this is just a necessary ritual of trial by fire. My deepest wish is that he is reaching near his potential for flight and this is the internal conflict he is having and dishing out to me. Now he is not only going in two seconds from "awww, sweet boy, scratch my head" to "SNAP, don't touch me!" but he is also pushing the envelope for some "new" repetitive sounds that are very very unpleasant. He has a whole repertoire now. One is for when I am talking to my husband. He starts with a hoot for attention and if I don't turn from his "competitor" he makes a sound somewhat like David blowing his nose when he gets out of the shower in the morning. That was a laugh at first, but he is really loud and does it without breathing in between. The other one is a vacuum cleaner with a bearing going out of the motor that screeches. He used to only do that one when he was scared, now he uses it for wickedness. My reaction so far is to leave the room. He can still see David and I talking on the sunporch through the glass doors but he can't intrude with his noise. I believe our little dogs were bleeding from the ears after being left inside with the little darling. LOL. Gilbert has been hanging out on the top of his cage door and flapping wildly. Two days ago when I looked at his back he had a two inch heart shape of space where no feathers grew in the inside of where his wings come together. I put a bungee cord on his door so it can't get knocked shut while he is standing on it for fear he would get a toe pinched. What I have noticed more lately is when he is flapping, the bungee is stretching more. When he stops it pulls the door back and he seems to get it to stretch almost six inches. I know he is practicing. I may just be dreaming and wishful thinking, but I believe he might be filling in the lost feathers that were plucked out almost a year ago. I would like to say that the surprise bite would be worth it, but while the bruise on my fingernail is still painful to touch, I am not in a sweet rose-colored-glasses kindly forgiving mood. I promise I am not holding it against him or thinking of retribution, but it is not forgotten either. LOL. I firmly believe in positive reinforcement and couldn't really be ugly to him, even in my words, but I have found the depth of my well for sweet talk and soothing for just a few moments. LOL. The little snot.

I appreciate the insights of all of you, and especially the good humored sharing. The bottle with almonds in it is not far from Gilbert's cage. I pick it up, give him the lid, then shake out and almond so he will associate that with his bedtime routine. Maybe at some point he will initiate contact with the bottle and we will go from there. I certainly don't want another of those meltdown moments. The little s--t! LOL When he bit my finger, I had the presence of mind to get right in his cage and snatch back that beloved almond and he didn't get one that night. But, we are back on friendly terms the next day. I do put the almond in his dish at night rather than give him the chance to do that to me again. I will do that for a while because he has been unpredictable and a bit obnoxious lately. I do think he has been curled into the provberbial fetal position and coiled up scared for this first year together. I do see this new obnoxious side coming out for a reason, I believe he is beginning to feel safe to express himself and now we just have to set some ground rules. I also have seen my children when they were young, would go through an anxious acting out period right when they were on the cusp of a new developmental stage. I think Gilbert and I are moving to a new level and we are going to have some growing pain in the transition.

My first thought was to show my husband the picture, "Look honey, the bird has been trained to run the vacuum". Then in my current bruised finger and ego stinging position, I thought she should add to whack yourself on the fingernail with a hammer and that might come close to a little nip. Then laughed some more when I read on and she said "you hit the nail on the head". It wasn't in the same context but spot on with me nonetheless.

The last straw for me would be to go to the armoire filled with toys from almost three years ago. I keep adding to it hoping against hope, Gilbert will suddenly want to play, it is too full to close the doors tight, more stuff under my bed, in my closet, in plastic tubs under both big cages in the living room. If you hear me say... "I think I will just take these toys to the parrot rescue", you will know I have gone over the edge, have already spied an Amazon there and it is only a matter of time. I went to the quarterly bird fair, but I still had the strength to go straight in to my favorite supplier and "step away from the occupied cages!", I kept my blinders on and was in and out for my red palm oil, more stainless steel food cups and of course a few toys. Hey, I have a lot of extra food and dishes, maybe I should check into that rescue place after all. Not yet, but I better wait until I am a little stronger before watching Nilah's pink dog video again.

That is captivating, I don't know what gave you the idea to do this, but I am glad you did. I was going to say "way cool" until I realized 103 degrees isn't. LOL. It is just an awesome image and we can learn some interesting things from you. Thanks.

Thanks Talon, I got him the reflective vest and he put id in his jacket pocket. I have discovered that he will listen to a police officer better than his wife. I will keep that in mind the next time I want to have influence with him. LOL.

He wasn't late for work and he definitely changed his habits and running attire. I have always had heartburn about him leaving the garage wide open while I am sleeping so I am happy to say that is a habit he changed too. We were lucky this time, but the K9 bloodhound unit came right through our driveway so that is definitely where the man ran on his escape route. Three houses were hit that night, all unlocked, or they gained access through an unlocked car and used the garage opener. They were brazen and raised our quiet little county to a new heightened security. I loved Gilbert's sense of humor over the whole thing, lightened things up while we make changes to protect ourselves. He does understand so much. Also while we were driving home from our daughters, I took the wheel so David could make a conference call. He got a cough drop and Gilbert piped up from the back seat "is that a cracker?" David muted his phone and told Gilbert it was not a cracker and he wouldn't want a cough drop. When he unmuted to go back to the conference, Gilbert laughed and the attorney on the other end asked "What's so funny?" The topic on the phone wasn't funny at all. It was funny in the car though.

Stop it right now! I didn't want a parrot to begin with, but Java was alone at Christmas, with no toys, no food, no water and her wings brutally cut to her little bones. Okay, she wasn't so bad. But gee, parrots are really smart, and entertaining, and good company. So, I always thought an African grey was in the cards. No, one bird is enough, I don't want to be the crazy ole bird lady. Okay, so I gave in and have had my ups and downs with the grey sagas. Gilbert is a handful most days. He needs a lot of attention. Java is okay with him, but NO MORE PARROTS. This is a lifetime commitment. For ever. Til the end of my days. Why oh why then, do I keep coming into this Amazon room and reading and reading and laughing with you as you tell of the antics of your beautiful companions? Why am I googling parrot rescues in my area? Stop it right now. Don't give me any encouragement. Two huge cages in my living room are enough. I love things just the way they are. Of course you all know I am joking with you.... and you were probably telling yourself much of the same things before bringing home your zons. The truth is, I must only be thinking about it because Gilbert was a grouch for a week. That HAS to be it. This too shall pass.

Thanks for the video. I found myself grinning and eagerly leaning close to the computer screen to catch every sweet little thing she was telling you. She is charming.

We had some unwelcome excitement in our quiet little cul de sac. Our dogs sounded the alarm and roused me from my sleep and I noticed my husband was not quieting them. It was before five am and he is the early riser with a long commute. When I got up, the garage door was open so I knew he was out for his morning run. When I saw a couple patrol cars on the cul de sac my heart was racing. I was afraid he had been struck by a car. Long story short, it was an intruder found in the middle of a burglary four doors away. A kind policeman sent me back inside in my pajamas with the assurance he had seen my husband but what I didn't know was they were holding him as a suspect. He was dressed all in black, no identification.... just like the culprit found crouching in the neighbor's bedroom. OMG. They brought Will under cover in the back of another patrol car and he laughed and laughed when he saw David. He said, "No, that's my neighbor, the perp was young and athletic". So, when David came back in it was still dark outside and inside, we were looking out the window trying to figure out what just happened. David was a little "animated" telling me that he told the policeman "I was just jogging". In the dark, Gilbert piped up "Jogging" with a decidedly derisive snort, followed by maniacal laughter, punctuated with a whooooooo. All is well, the criminal was caught within hours, but Gilbert has been making a big joke about the jogging.

At the exact moment when I was on the phone telling my husband how wonderful Gilbert has been lately, how many weeks had passed since he took a swipe at me and how he seemed so calm and content, the little darling bowed his head sweetly and asked for a treat. It was bedtime so I obliged with an almond and he took it gently and the immediate pain in my finger took a moment of denial to understand he had bitten me hard. He flung that almond to the bottom of the cage, his beloved almond. Shocking. He didn't get me with the tip of his beak thankfully, but bruised the nail bed and that was enough. My hand was outside the cage, as our usual routine. He touched the almond with the curve of his beak, his usual. It was quick and it was with malice and forethought. Since then, he bit me two more times right when I would least expect it. As my husband returned from a business trip, Gilbert made google eyes at him, bowed his head, softly called for scratches. He seldom tolerates David close to his cage, much less to solicit his touch. While I am thrilled with that, my first thought was "the honeymoon is over". Honestly for the first time, on that unexpected treacherous bite, I was thinking I might be able to hold a grudge because I was still mad at him in the morning. He spent about four days in this funk. I went to the bird fair and got him a couple new toys and he ejected them immediately. I was telling David that Gilbert has been refusing to come out of his cage as usual, he won't sleep on his favorite perch. Any time I come near the cage he bites the bars, flings his food, pulls all his dishes out and tosses them and just seems to go beserk. As I was telling David my concerns, it sunk in, his behavior has lasted about as long as my attempt to get him to play. I reached up and took away that limeade bottle with the almonds inside. Instant magic. Since the first day he was rolling it around and investigating it, I thought he was okay with it. It is just not his time to accept something new. Strange that he didn't show any fear of it, barely seemed to notice it. When they say these guys are subtle, good golly miss molly. He didn't have to bite my finger off about it! My best attempt at a silver lining right now is the fact that he didn't resort to any plucking in his tantrum saga. He turned all of his anxiety outward onto me this time. I am a bit chagrined to admit it but he learned a mild expletive. He repeated it twice and my husband chided me when he heard it, to which I replied "he has been in other homes you know, maybe he already knew that word." David laughed and said "really, were you living with him in his other homes? That was clearly your voice, I have heard you say 's__t" before". I admit it. It was me. It hurt a lot you know. He surprised me. LOL. All is well, we are back in good spirits and Gilbert immediately turned to his sweet stubborn little old self again. It might take a while for me this time though. LOL.

Oh goodness, I don't know how I let time slip by and didn't get to this thread sooner. Be still my heart, Scarlet is a beauty. I am looking forward to watching your experience of integrating a bird of her "maturity", I won't say old age since I am older than she, LOL. Bless her heart for all the changes she has endured until she found you. It will take no time at all for all of you to fall in love... my guess is, it has already happened.

I love the pictures you posted. Oliver looks like he is smiling in the first one as he rubs the back of his head. My guess is he is thinking how lucky he is to have found your home. Then he is smiling because he is happy with you. He is in a rough place medically and progress may be a long series of slow fits and starts, but you are one the right track to look for a place that will work with you for his sake. When the going gets tough, sit quietly in your room, just breathe. It got me through the worst of times. We want to be doing something and what you are doing with him, letting him know you are safe and trustworthy and working for his health is powerful good medicine.

Gracie is such a charmer, I had to go through all the videos and photos. That made me smile all the while. On the second video when she was flapping her wings, I was wondering what the plastic stuff on the wall was all about. Then, I watched her traverse the picture frame and saw that you have taped it down so she doesn't have a surprise crash landing. You are a considerate daddy. Gracie is adorable. Thanks.

I don't know where I have been, I have done scores of internet searches and read as much as I could find about parrots in our home, but somehow this organization had escaped my notice. Thanks Dave. At the end of the video they had a link but I wasn't quick enough to click it so I scrolled it back http://www.parrots.org/ Now I am reading the many articles and very interested in the conservation efforts. To see some of the captured greys released back to the wild was awe inspiring and profound. The first article I read about Biscuit was very well done. I love this quote that Biscuit's gratitude was about as not existent as a "disturbed scorpion". I believe that any of us with an older "rescue" parrot can relate to that at some point! LOL Thanks again.

I have heard a saying something about when the student is ready, the teacher will appear. I believe you are ready for your grey and a grey will appear. You have been so diligent about learning and creating a home for you and your parrots and there is a grey out there looking for you at the same time. I didn't know I was looking when I was found by Gilbert and it is the perfect arrangement that we each needed the other at the same time. How close are you to Talon's favorite bird store in New Jersey? I have heard from other sources as well that they socialize their birds well.

Your progress with Spencer is encouraging. I am so happy that he is better about your approach and before you know it he will surprise you with a step up. Thanks for the tips on the type bottle to try. He really loves the occasional sip of limeade, so that is the best bottle for us to try since it is associated with something good. I got one of the smaller, single serving size to try first. I rinsed it out and held it to him to examine. His little chest was quivering and he tentatively touched the bottle. I left the lid off to give him something to hold onto. He wasn't embracing the idea, he seemed more like he was touching it to push it out of his zone. I showed it to him and put it on the cage playtop. He hasn't wanted anything to do with it, but at least he doesn't seem paralyzed with fear towards it. He climbed upside down on his "ceiling" and poked at it and hissed at it a few times, but he at least is approaching it and moving it around from below. It will be interesting to see if he will get on his cagetop sometime today and explore. This is probably as close as I have seen him come to "play" just hanging upside down and pushing it around a little bit. Thanks so much for the suggestion.

My two parrots don't seem to have any issue with interfering with each other or the dogs. They don't seem to mind if I give attention to any of the other pets in the household. It seems more like they are nicer and clamor for their piece of my attention in a sweet way after I spend close up time with any one, they all are sweet to take their turn. Where they do show jealousy is toward my husband. If either of the parrots are out they will let him give them a scratch or change their food or water dishes out. But, if he sits next to me on the sofa, even when they are in the cage, especially Java the red bellied parrot, will wait for her next chance to fly to him and try to bite him. Gilbert, the TAG is not as likely to strike out at David as he is to bite me if he sees David getting my attention. Yesterday I got a hard bite just from talking to David on the phone. The bite was totally unexpected. The worst part was I was telling David how long it has been since my little darling had tried to nip me. As long as I was up, I handed each of the birds their night time almond and Gilbert took the almond sweet and gentle as usual and in a heartbeat he flung the almond to the floor and bit my finger. So much for all that praise at his behavior of late.

Spencer seems a lot more involved and active with that bottle than we have had the pleasure with Gilbert. He is just now beginning to play with shredded paper and foraging toys. Thanks for the video. We will have to try a water bottle to see if it will entice him. You have come a long way with Spencer. He is a beautiful boy.