katana600

Thanks for the tip Dave. While we have been traveling extensively, Miss Gilbert has become a Nutriberry hound. She will go through a bucket in two weeks and 95 percent of that is the fun of crumbling them onto the bottom of the cage. Also, to her, every food is called a cracker. This may be the first time ever I can actually hand her a cracker when she asks for one.

How sweet, its hard to believe that seven years have passed since I was awaiting the homecoming of the sweetest little chick. This is a time of wonder and amazement for you. It will not be long before you understand what unbelieveable joy is coming into your life. Congrats on choosing Poppy and preparing for her homecoming.

I say to take advantage of the respect Nonsense has for mum. Maybe Mum can pick Nonsense up from her cage, then you offer to allow her to step onto your hand. Since we adopted Miss Gilbert, she has gone through many new people in her life. They all started as strangers. It is amazing how she will make a snap decision about someone and they will be her favorite and it seems like they have known her all her life. I always was cheering and happy for Gil girl to take an interest and respond to anyone. Of course, deep inside there was that "hey, what about me?" I have been dedicated to her for five years now, and there are few of those "wow" moments of trust, they are fleeting. But, I have also watched her have a shocking "love fest" with someone new, like when our daughter moved back in after college. Every day Gil would step up, request head rubs on the outside of her cage etc. Then.... recently my daughter had a baby and I took Gil to Texas. She was wicked to our grandson and even worse to his mother. Our little grey is fickle. I love her just the way she is but I don't mind saying that just last night she shocked me by offering me her foot to come out of her cage. Then she resisted being put back in. This morning her "regular" order has been restored and she let me know last night she was having a moment and today the moment is over. Keep working with Nonsense. Use anyone who comes along and give you a chance to have a positive, hands on experience. ... and vent here any time you like, we share your awe and your disappointment.

I am online after a long series of family visits and this thread just made my day. Is the hint the name of the book? I'm pretty sure that used to say "Living with hoomans is an uphill battle". Did Dorian catch you in the act of destroying his bathroom reading material again? Hahahahaha... Miss Gilbert passes along to Dorian "You've come a long way baby".

Welcome to our forum MuffleMix. Living with a parrot is like no other companion in the world.

It is hard to believe your little Inara is five years old already. Congratulations on finding this little jewel and for joining us to keep us entertained with her antics. Happy Birthday little Inara, wishing you many more in your enchanted kingdom.

You have been dearly missed Ray. Since October, I have traveled to Pennsylvania once and four trips to Texas surrounding a wedding and birth of our first grandchild. I have not had my computer turned on until this morning. So, I could read on a tiny little screen but it was hard to type. It is so good to come online today and actually catch up and find your post. Miss Gilbert may not be an Amazon, but I learned so much from you and Corky. Love, gentle encouragement and patience are the key to relationships whether feathered or not. Glad to see you are reaching a point to be able to share the love.

Miss Gilbert's quirk is to only permit touching her with the bars of her cage as a barrier. She is really coming around and asks me to scratch her head twenty times a day or more. Two years ago, I placed her perch strategically near a door so I can open the door, scratch her through the bars, and sometimes sneak in a really good neck rub through the open door. She caught on to me, so then, I made sure to keep one finger on her head from my left hand, then pick up with my right once I moved it through the open door. Now she is on to me again. She doesn't mind if the door is open now, but looks every fifteen seconds to be absolutely sure I am abiding by her "through the bars only" rule.

Wow, what a beautiful parrot. I had never heard of a white-fronted Amazon. Thanks!

Great find! That was the first "play" Miss Gilbert enjoyed and she still tears up the roll that is constantly in her cage. That's awesome that you found it close to home too.

I came in late to the conversation, really pleased with the outcome. There really is no such thing as time healing our wounds when it comes to losing our companion parrots. The intensity of grief does tone down a bit but there is still a raw core of shocking loss and helplessness that rears its head now and again. The work you have done with Phenix and Kura has been a blessing to their lives. It doesn't make our losses go away, just helps us to cope during hard times. So glad you could be of help and comfort to the other folks as they went through their worst of times and then best of times with the successful recovery.

I hadn't even realized this was a revived thread. Great game going on there. I agree about the forum being a journal of our lives with our greys. While I can't imagine Gil Girl playing with another parrot, at least I can see progress which would seem slo-mo in grey time, it might only be a day or two of reading to bring this little darling up to speed.

Even though I knew the ending, it made me tear up to think of any of us losing our beloved companions. I'm sure Sterling is right and Corky has a different story to tell from Ray. Kudos for quick thinking and bringing her home Ray!

Wow, thanks for those links Val. I paid more like $30 for a quart of "Poop-Off", but as you said, mine has lasted over 5 years because a little goes a ling way and we don't get stains often.

I love your videos too Sterling. Your voices remind me a little of Dr. Doolittle meets Ernest P Whorl. Gracie Mae has the best daddy ever. Alex, thank you for starting this thread. It's a great idea and gives us a fresh look at how we can make life more interesting for our companions.

We are just a traveling roadshow. We are back in Houston. I did discover Gil was having a molt. I found pinfeathers on her head, offering to pinch them to break the sheath and she bowed down and let me! Believe me, I was incredulous and a tad bit on the skittish side. But in the past couple of weeks at home and now while we are traveling, she wants me to rub her head twenty times a day. I am so delighted that I got a gold star for finally doing something right that I would gladly oblige every time she asks. She is still just obsessed with the nutriberries as a treat. She is eating more veggies and trying other new foods. When I get her a nutriberry treat she will hang out on the open door of her cage and stretch trying to get to me just a second sooner. Her poker face is beginning to have a "tell". I just love it.

Nice videos, thanks for sharing. Rohan is adorable, just look at those beautiful red tail feathers. It looks like the two of you have a great relationship, lucky you... and lucky birdy.

What a life! I love Greycie videos. Watching you together always gives me ideas for Miss Gilbert. Maybe someday she will become a swinger too.

Thank you for joining our forum and for taking an interest in Nonsense. The work you do with her will bring great rewards for both of you. The first thing I would recommend is to start offering her a few bits of healthy foods while you eat your meals. Just drop almonds (in the shell, or cracked), pine nuts (unshelled), a bit of scrambled egg, steamed green vegetables, cut up fresh uncooked carrots, broccoli etc. in her dish and then go to your meal. She may ignore your offerings. Just remove them after a while without making a fuss and keep trying. Make some oatmeal, you can use almond milk to thin it a bit and try offering that on a spoon if she will tolerate it. Cook some small beans and add a few drops of red palm oil, offer her some warm food to see if she will respond to that. Don't use salt on her food, don't feed her any avocado or chocolate. Read the threads in "Bird Food" for more ideas. Fresh corn on the cob can be cut into rounds, then quartered and offered to her. If you can get fresh red palm nuts, that is a food she would get in the wild. Talking to her, gaining her trust are the most important things you are doing for her. She has a reason not to trust humans and it will take some time. Showing her kindness and respect will help tremendously. Give her choices of things to play with. She may like tearing up paper, small wooden toys, drinking straws, lightweight "cardboard" like cereal boxes, paper towels and things like that. You can thread them through the bars of her cage. If you can get her a stainless steel bell from a bird store or online, that might interest her. It may take a long time for her to show interest. Just because she rejects something initially doesn't mean she doesn't like it, she may not know what to do with it. Show her by playing with it a little bit away from her cage. Biting is a learned behavior and the best thing you can do initially is avoid giving her an opportunity to "communicate" her displeasure in that manner. Work to find positive reinforcement for the times she tolerates you in her presence. My best times with Miss Gilbert initially were after dark when I could open her cage, let her come out on her own and just allow her to get a feel for her freedom. If you set up a routine where you do the same things at the same time, it will help her to learn you are predictable. If you have short sessions with her near bed time, then dim the lights gradually and tell her it is time to go night night, or time to go in her house, she will learn to go back inside to go to bed. She probably will naturally go back inside her cage when you approach because it is her safety zone. If she doesn't you can turn off the lights and give her some time to go back inside. Luckily for me, I never had to resort to forcing Miss Gilbert to go back to her cage. By working with her in the evening, she wanted to go back inside her cage as darkness approached. If your girlfriend is tolerated for changing food and water, cleaning her cage and such, let her do those things and try not to force new changes until Nonsense has had time to see you are her friend. One thing about offering her your hand, do it with a closed fist at first so she has less skin to damage if she does go in for a bite and learn her body language so you don't push her too far too fast. You do have an advantage that Nonsense has known you for a long time and you have been a consistent, friendly face. Now that you are housemates, she may learn that you are her friend. Others will have more ideas. I have limited experience with greys in general, just one long term tough girl who is just beginning to show me her sparkling personality after five long years of offering her the best of myself. It is worth the time and you won't regret it. Thanks again for joining us to give Nonsense a better way of life.

Thanks Sterling, I can't figure out why this video link doesn't show up, will look into it further. I haven't changed any settings, but I subscribed to your YouTube channel so I can get updates through that. I wouldn't want to miss a moment of the fun with Gracie Mae. The whole time I was laughing and both my parrots were mocking me and laughing too. You have a great relationship with all three of your parrots. This time Gracie was just up to no good. Glad you have these fun moments and went back in for that camera.

For some reason I don't get a link to your videos any more. It could be something to do with my computer. Is anyone else having the same issue? I have a pretty good idea what Miss Gracie Mae is up to but love seeing your aviary. I'm sure she is just trying to keep you fit and healthy by putting you through her exercise regimen, all in your best interest of course.

Where there is a will there is a way. If your patio has room, you might be able to screen it in as a second chamber in case the sliding door gets opened. The second door could be on a hinge to shut itself. Just a thought. I also have the idea Gil never fledged. It would be the best thing to get your baby started and once his flight and neural pathways develop a light clip might help keep him partially flighted long enough to give him a good start. It's a tough subject and what is right for one home may not work for another.

I think he has the look of "What are you looking at Sparky? How would you like me to post photos of you in your underwear?" He really is looking good Stephen. He certainly has his daddy wrapped around a gnarly little talon.

Oh you poor little baby. Someone needs to do something about this ogre who is holding you captive. Miss Gilbert wants photos and dating details. Not for the ogre, for Pepper.

You have such a beautiful flock Maddy. Thanks for the update on Grey Bird. You have worked hard to understand him and have won his heart! This was my dream five years ago with Miss Gilbert and even though you are grey years ahead of us, I know the rush of emotion when these complex and wonderful creatures turns a corner and comes to you with trust. It is so good to hear of an older rehomed grey falling in love in his new home. Kudos to you for being a bird whisperer.