katana600

I am enjoying time to catch up on posts I have missed. The funny thing Miss Gilbert picked up recently is listening to me trying to learn Latin Spanish on Duolingo and with Rosetta Stone in order to chat with my daughter's lovely inlaws from Colombia. The programs will diss my pronunciation, and apparently when I'm wearing headphones I get a little exasperated. Miss Gilbert has a perfectly sarcastic "Por favor" shouted over and over. She also favors "nueve". On the funny but not funny is after David worked from home with his broken ankle she learned his "work tone" on the telephone. She cranked things up a notch now she screams "noooo no stop.... stop it... David!!! aaaaaaahhhhhh!" along with monkey hoots and sharp sarcastic "Be Quiet!" Next comes her extensive repertoire of cuss words in a loud wicked tone and finally maniacal laughter. We have to push her cage into the bedroom and close the door before he gets on a conference call. She knows exactly what she is doing too. My daughter works in Texas for a division of the same company. She has heard from her boss that they want her to check on her mom because they think David is making up stories about a parrot and they think it is really me!

For my part I am extraordinarily grateful for this forum and the experience and generous hearts that have gone into creating a place to get a hand up in learning how to be a better companion for the ultimate test of living with a grey with issues. Miss Gilbert found her way to me through Grey Forums. Everything I have learned was taught to me here. Its an incredible asset to anyone who passes through.

With the antibiotics and good advice for putting her in a heated small cage and offering her coconut milk, you are on a good path. You may never know what happened, so follow good care and hope for the best. Don't be hard on yourself. You have a good handle on things and its a rough time in your household right now. I wish I could send you a hug.

For my two cents, I have no facebook. My absence from the forum just recently is due to computer changes during a life phase change. Becoming a grandma from 1,000 miles a way with the rest of my family 1,000 miles in the opposite direction. Trying to learn to use a tablet instead of a laptop, new operating system, "weird" keyboard etc. when I haven't This forum has been with me through the first little redbellied hen we acquired, then through loving and losing two baby greys to rehoming my "parrot with issues". We all have a common bond in loving one or more unique characters with feathers. I trust the minds behind the scenes to guide and suggest changes because its not a quick snappy comeback, its like a family, but better..

I have very much enjoyed your approach to bringing Gracie into your life. She is fitting right in and learning her way around. We have a stress plucker from multiple rehomes. As time passes she is learning how to express herself and each incident is minor in comparison to the previous. Gracie is doing exceptionally well in your care and it is obvious you are smitten with her. What a great match!

It is stunning news I missed while I was offline. Dave was so helpful when our baby Juno was so sick. He described how to keep him warm and give him the best chance of survival while at the same time honestly assessing that it was a grave situation not likely to have a positive conclusion. After Juno died, while waiting for the necropsy report, Dave was reassuring that it was highly unlikely anything I had done was the cause of his illness and death. He was right. Just like he was right about everything else he posted. Thanksgiving will never be the same Dave. My sincere condolences to his family and flock, he will be a tough void to fill.

Your little wisp of a feathered friend sought you out personally. i have read many accounts and have known many people who have suffered the loss of a parrot escaping, never to be seen again. Until Gypsy found you, I had never known another soul who was gifted with the presence of a darling little lady whomcaptured your heart. For the rest of my life, I will think of you being the home each of those lost birds found. I am so sorry for the loss of your Gypsy, she has been your little angel and she is surely telling everyone in heaven about you.

Whoa, where has the time gone? Miss Gilbert has been great, leveled out, in a bit of a rut. Between David's broken ankle and subsequent surgery to full recovery of motion, and our eye surgeries, we had about 25 doctor appointments in two months. It would seem that because of my 'youth' I have developed a protein layer on the membrane surrounding my 'bionic' lens implant. I return Monday and will soon have the first tweak with a laser surgery to break up the protein and adjust my distance vision. It's a process. In early December I started walking daily on a local trail and have clocked enough miles to get almost halfway to Pennsylvania. In my virtual travels to mark my progress I am in Wytheville VA and thats where a favorite quilt shop entices me in real life. Along the way, I have lost 30 pounds and in the best shape in 20 years. Of course that led me back to the garage to revitalize my user-namesake Suzuki! The ole girl is eleven now. Three dealerships, two racing teams and one private mechanic have been asked to please adjust my throttle for a higher idle speed. Nope, best you can get, its the carburetor, this bike wasn't made to run ethanol and it gums up the jets. I have tried to trade it or resign myself to a more refined lifestyle without her. It is not meant to be. I finally got my knickers in a knot and pulled out my service and repair manual. That is less than useless. I finally remembered how to get back to the bike forum and there was my answer! Yes I can adjust the idle throttle. Yes I can run ethanol gasoline with a fuel supplement. Yes I can get her to purr at exactly 1100 rpm idle. I am beyond free again! As an added bonus... my FitBit gave me credit for a half hour of manual bicycling because my heart rate was in cardio zone on my first ride!!! HA, I finally cheated FitBit after that wench has been vexing me for months! I am also having computer issues with figuring out a new tablet so for now I am pecking around with one finger. Will put that on my ToDo list. Thank you so much to Val for reminding me to get back to my friends!

We have two parrots with totally different outlooks on life. Java is a red-bellied cousin to the Senegal. She was an adult when we got her and she has been hands on for me only for ten years now. She will hang upside down from my finger, lie on her back in my hand and play like Sterling can play with Gracie Mae. But... I am the only one who can play or rub the soft underside of her lower beak. Others in our family can be trusted for a step up, a head scratch but there is always a standoffish way about her that makes them stop short of play. Miss Gilbert has been with us nearly six years and was "a bird with issues" when we brought her home after an unknown number of rehomes. She has seldom been able to be touched except from the safety of her cage. Even then, she may allow me to scratch her head for months then suddenly as if she just noticed for the first time that I am in the room, she will spin around and bite. It is never a warning bite, it is from sweet to extreme in a heartbeat. I am not so much afraid to be bitten, it is how it affects her that has me keep my distance until she comes to me. It is as if she has tolerated a lifetime of abuse and she is frozen and suddenly one day something snaps and she attacks like going after a fruit fly with a bulldozer. For weeks after she gets to that point, she will regress into a statue on one perch far in the corner of her cage and she will shake. She will barber off all the feathers of her chest and legs and it will take weeks or months before she will tentatively venture to the bars of the cage on her "scratching" perch to ask for a head rub. The only way I know her overture is real rather than an enticement to get me close so she can bite is when she grasps the bars of her cage with one foot and buries her face in her tummy while offering the back of her head. With that said, we have a different kind of bantering relationship with Miss Gilbert instead of a physically close cuddlebug. She has the most incredible sense of humor. She is spot on with comments followed by the most sarcastic little chuckle. If she is displeased, particularly with my husband or daughter, she will tell them "shut up" and "get outside". And that is her most pleasant vocabulary of expressing disdain. But for me, she calls me LuLu or Ma. Mostly she has a sassy little disposition. But first thing in the morning she will entice me out of bed before dawn with sweet kind words "good morning sweet heart", "c'mon, get up" and others . At night she will say "Night night" and when I acknowledge it is her bed time she will tell me "Sweet dreams" as I leave her in the dark. I'm just throwing this out there because I remember how loving Brutus was to you prior to your divorce. I don't recall his age at that time. If he was around two, that would have been the time many greys change from the cuddly and sweet baby birds to their "terrible twos" as they assert their adult preferences. If that was the time of great upheaval in your own life, you may have taken that as Brutus being upset at the change in your household and hoped that when your life settled into normalcy once again, that he would be his sweet little cuddly self again. He may naturally be an adult grey with a reserved nature that wants little physical contact. Age two is the prime time when parrot companions think they are not the right home for their "unhappy" grey. It is a phase that passes, but then there is a new "normal". I think most of the human companions to greys on this this forum long for those sweet trusting black eyes and that loving baby they once had, myself included.

What you have learned emphasizes what we know intuitively, every parrot has had a life full of experience that shapes who they are when we meet. CC is beautiful and has a piece of your heart to carry with her, and you have a memory of the best of what you had with her as you helped her on her path to a home that "clicks" with her. Be kind to yourself and though you will have moments that are sad because it didn't work out, you also have the best interest of your flock at heart. The time is just not right for a match. You would never know had you not tried. In a different scenario, last year when I spent time with my daughter and new son-in-law while they went on a honeymoon, his large dog "snapped" without warning nor provocation. He attacked our small dog and two others brutally and seconds later he was calm. Since they had not seen the incident and the only evidence was a puncture in Baxter's ear and throat, my son-in-law rationalized that if he had wanted to hurt Baxter, he could have killed him. I stepped away knowing in my heart they would have to learn the hard way. They took Dante to obedience classes, but he did not need training. They put him on medications as the vet thought it was anxiety related. About two months ago his dog attacked my daughter's twelve year old Italian greyhound. She had eight teeth knocked out and head injuries to the tune of over $1500. You are right to follow your intuition and protect your flock regardless of how it hurt to make that choice to return CC. It would be far more painful if you forced yourself to hope for a better outcome and it ended less peacefully.

Miss Gilbert and I have been doing the one step forward, two steps back for almost six years now. Inara has a good idea about the "reboot". We do something like that. When Gil goes into withdrawal, I start all over again as if it were her first day. I make overtures and offers as I see her take an interest. I make it look like I am having a lot of fun with a shredding toy and sometimes she will take an interest to step onto the perch attached to her door so it seems like she is out of her cage but she has the ability to scuttle right back inside if she gets scared. The way Brutus is permitting you to touch him while he is behind bars is almost like he is protecting you from "overstimulation" bites. Take your time and you will rebuild that trust and he can be out with you again without getting so frustrated. I'm happy that you are making peace with the changes and giving him the room to find peace and balance with you again. You will both get there.

Miss Gilbert is opening her heart in grey time, a micrometer at a time. About a month ago she decided she wanted no more step ups or rides to survey her kingdom. When she backs away, I back down until she takes a step toward me again. She is doing something new, very heartwarming and very scary all at once. She has been watching while I ask Java for a step up, then rub her neck, kiss her on the head, then put her on my shoulder for time with me in another room. About a week ago, Gil started making a very quiet clicking as she bowed her head at the bars for me to rub her head. It took me a little while to understand what she was doing. When I kiss Java on the head, she makes a little "peck peck peck" kissy sound. Gil was asking for a kiss on the head! She presses her head against the bars, I lean in and kiss the top of her head. She pulls back, looks askance at me with one eye, then leans in for another. I am not going to press my luck to try a third time, but she will stand there and let me rub her head now for twenty minutes. You can just see it in her eyes and her body language that she really wants to step up and come out, she is just not going to come out of her comfort zone. When I think back at how long it took for her to accept her first treat from me, and then how much longer it took for her to allow me to touch her at all, we have come a long long way together. I have faith that she will someday join me in every room of our house and she will enjoy sitting on a warm lap occasionally. Ah yes, David got his "walking" papers on Friday, he will be weight-bearing in the air cast for another six weeks. The doctor said he is ahead of schedule since he has been doing range of motion exercises daily. We were given a list of instructions for physical therapy he can start now so when the cast comes off completely, he may not need formal PT. He steadfastly refuses to admit any pain or discomfort, but the swelling and slowing down at the end of the day are telling me different. I am going to start some hot wax therapy on him tonight. I suspect he won't admit it feels good, but as long as he can't run fast enough to escape me, he will have to grin and bear it.

David is... longsuffering. We have been married for 36 years eleven months and one day, but who's counting? Hahahaha. Friday he sees the doctor and is hoping for a green light to start putting weight on that foot for the first time in about nine weeks. Thank heavens he was able to escape back to work and our little world at home is back to a predictable smooth orbit. Well kinda. Miss Gilbert is having a feather barbering storm. There has not been any big trigger other than our routine being changed up. She has been really extra lovey to me for a couple of months. She wants a head rub more than she wants a treat. She will ask for a treat, I come to her and put it in her treat cup but she will stand with her head bowed offering me her head and neck to rub instead. It is especially touching to me when I know she is hungry first thing in the morning and last thing in the evening. She has not attempted to nip me in months. She is much more confident and outgoing when I don't get her out of her cage. For a long time she was offering to step up and come out every day. One day she decided that is enough. She will climb out of her cage and go to the top to play or roost but at the slightest sign of an offer for contact when she may be "taken" away, she will skitter inside and let me know she is reserving that privilege for a really good day. I have delayed my Christmas decorating and I think I will move her cage to my bedroom and move a chair in there as well where I can sit with her in the evenings and keep her from too much excitement of lights and the hubbub of company coming Christmas eve. It is only my daughter and son in law, but then Miss Gilbert will let us know when we can come to her and when she prefers to be all by herself. She has a clear view into the living room from her vantage point and the luxury of still having her quiet space. I can't get enough of her sweet head rubs. This has been the longest streak of acceptance from her in close to six years. She has passed a milestone of acceptance to eagerness for contact, so we are gaining on the trust front! I just love her even with her tattered little grey undergarments showing.

I steeled myself before coming to read this thread. But, I don't look at it so much as sadness as hope. My life has had many twists and turns in recent years and hospice work with loved ones has been prominent. Each person has something they are waiting for, someone to see, a fear to overcome, or permission to let go. This little fellow felt safe in Santa's arms. It was an amazing gift that Santa may come to realize he was asking Santa to help him might not have been to help him heal and live but to help him with a ride in his magic sleigh to a place with pure love, joy and no pain or scary stuff.

There is keeping busy and then there is "gettin' busy wid it". Dorian has been shredding for a long time but I haven't noticed if his amorous advances are only centered around the shredding. Being that this is your together time, I am more of the mind he is just getting your attention and showing you the love. I also agree that I think it is seasonal. Both Miss Gilbert and Java go through the lovey phases at the same time so I am more convinced it is seasonal. What usually works for me is keeping them in winter mode with more dark hours than daylight, or trying to keep them relatively equal. What is your usual routine? Think through your daily habits and the hours he spends resting in darkness. Even keeping a night light in another room has disrupted Miss Gilbert's sleep cycle but she is more sensitive than most.

Hi TeeMcF, don't put too much stock in what you are supposed to do, each home, family member and parrot are unique. You are doing all the right things to let Captain Jack come to you on his own terms. It is setting the stage for decades together and you won't regret giving him the space to blossom and to come out to join you soon. He is already showing such good signs of acceptance and interaction with you. You are so observant, watching him for signs and learning how to minimize his discomfort that might lead to nipping. Well done. Listening to him talk on your video is enchanting. I love his deep voice. Our little Miss Gilbert came from a different place, we are going into year six and she still prefers the comfort zone of being inside her cage. She is a prolific talker. But Sterling... be careful what you wish for, I still get weekly cuss sessions from my precious little pearl.

What an amazing addition to your home. Those lovely girls are going to be the best company you could wish to enjoy. It is amazing to see how beautiful they both are just in the cage as you get through the introductions. In coming months you may turn my head to the Amazon side of life. Congratulations on your adoption! So... Greywings... now I am relatively certain if I was a parrot in a former life, it was an Amazon. I have a fierce urge to bite, am colorful and a bit on the lazy side. Hahahaha.

Thank you Val, by going into your first post, copy and pasting into my browser, this is the first video I have been able to watch in months. It must have caught me at a vulnerable time because the beauty of these little creatures is so captivating it made my heart swell right up and brought me to tears. I know my issue is because I use an older version of Internet Explorer. I never upgraded my laptop to Windows 10, so I am running old software. That makes me smile... old is six months past its prime. Good thing that isn't human aging or I would be dust.

It is so hard to believe I have been on this forum for long enough to see you pass ten years with Dorian. It is a great celebration of the time he came into this world thirteen years ago. My best wishes for you both and blessings for many more happy years together.

Reading your thread has brought back memories from our first baby Juno more than seven years ago. If there is any consolation for your broken heart, please know you did everything humanly possible for your beautiful and bright little friend. We had a necropsy performed on Juno and it turned out he had an illness and there was nothing on earth anyone could have done to save him. It wasn't the cold in your home, you didn't fail him. He had a lifetime of love with you as his papa. Hold your sweet memories dear and the hardship of your loss will get easier to bear. Take your time to be kind to yourself. I am so sorry for your pain.

My greatest best wishes are with you to get Sukei home with you! I am so hoping that you are well served to retire with your friend in his rightful home at your side. You will have a story to tell, and Sukei will be on your shoulder emphasizing every word. I understand why there are rules, I generally follow them to the letter. But there is also a time and a place for exceptions and you and Sukei are exceptional. Good Luck!

That is a great photo! "Whachoo lookin' at?" Your post brought back a memory from nearly ten years ago. I was not home, my husband and daughters were in the family room with Java. When I came home they had a story to tell. They were in the family room with Java and suddenly realized she was quiet. "Hey, where is the parrot?" They were frantic looking for her when she popped her head up from an open jar of peanutbutter! The jar was nearly empty and she had climbed completely inside and was covered with it. In just a few short seconds of panic, she managed to teach my husband what decades with his mother and with me had failed. Now he closes the peanut butter and puts it back in the cupboard when he is finished. Hahahaha. I love the solution you came up with to give Alfie the satisfaction of his new discovery and protects your shelf at the same time. Way to go!

Hi, welcome to the forum. You have quite a flock. How long has Joey been with you? Is he a Congo or a Timneh African grey? Even full grown, I don't believe there is a way to discern sex by looking from the outside. Some breeders, through years of experience with their own birds develop insight and make accurate guesses, and vets as well. Everything I have read, and I am really still a newbie with only a few years with one particular Timneh African grey, but I thought DNA or a scope inside is the benchmark. What I did was wait until we needed some blood work and had our vet send some in for DNA testing. It certainly wasn't repetition to me to read the interesting theory regarding their ability to discern human gender. I understand their vision is in the ultraviolet range and they can see things we can not. Now I want to know more. What a great research project. Also, I am not familiar with Ornithology qualification and would enjoy reading more about that. Thank you again for joining us, I look forward to learning from your experiences.

Oh my goodness. The nose blowing, the cough, the sighs. That is so funny. Captain Jack is so active and engaged that I would not for a second think he hadn't been with you all his life. He is really relaxed. This match is meant to be for your family and for him. My guess is eventually he will accept your husband and daughter as well. As others have said, trust building is really important. Captain Jack was quick to get the lay of the land in his new home and though he may be more tuned in to you, if they wait him out and gain his approval, you are all going to be one be happy flock. Congrats on discovering the impressionist within, his comedian side will keep you guessing what he is going to say about you when you have company.

David is stoic and long suffering, LOL. After thirty six years married to me the man is headed for sainthood. This is a guy who hobbled up hill across about a half acre with a horribly shattered ankle and foot, then was determined to take a shower as not to go to the ER muddy and wet. Then he climbed a set a stairs on his knees. He has taken a total of two pain pills and never complains. This injury has a much greater impact considering his wings were clipped before he fledged. He was injured by forceps during a difficult birth. A neck injury with severe nerve damage left him with no use of his left arm and limited use of the right. You would never guess by looking because he is never still for a moment, like a hybrid cross between a Tasmanian devil and a honey badger. His main complaint with this "inconvenience" is that it keeps him from properly doing his job which is best done in person, not over the phone. I have offered to drive him, but have to agree a drive from Georgia to California and Oregon might be a bit much. My bedroom takeover was a success! I still lay there wondering and shifting the room in my head like a tetris game long after the lights were out, "is this really my spot?" Logically, I know it is. I put a coaster on my desired spot before I used my 2X4 lever system to lift the bed to put sliders under the bed posts. When he turned on the bathroom lights in the morning with the doors wide open, the lights did not shine in my face. Goodness, why did I have to break his leg to figure this out? Bhahaha... slow learner? Just kidding, he slipped on wet grass, I promise. Miss Gilbert was highly agitated with the furniture moving. It is still one of her triggers. I did what I could to minimize the impact, closing the door and only needed to move a couple of nightstands where she could see them. Lucky for me, I did not get close enough for her to have a real chance at biting me when she inevitably took a swipe. This morning all is well with her, she was singing "Good morning sweetheart, good morning sweet bird". The theory about parrots driving a sick or injured flock member away is holding true. Both Java and Gil have been pretty harsh to David. At first I thought it was the trike or peg leg knee walker that was upsetting them. But Java went to great lengths to travel across the room without flying as if she was on an enemy reconnaissance mission. She climbed up over the side of his chair only to nail him and fly back to her cage. No wonder the poor guy is in such a hurry to go back to the office.