particle77

spooky, one thing to keep in mind, is that birds get there queues about seasonal change from there environment, so they can get pretty out of wack with regard to actual seasons when living inside. You can try putting Echo to bed a bit earlier, to convince her that the days are getting shorter. I'm sure others with more experience with this particular problem will have more suggestions.

I would agree that if you won't have much time for Yoshi it doesn't sound like a good idea. However, if you will have close to the amount of time you normally have with yoshi, I'd consider it. Personally I don't take business trips, so my past travel experience with a parrot has always been for vacation. The area I'm a little concerned about, is that, although I never had too, I always had it in the back of my mind that if a problem arose I could end my vacation and go home... So theres some risk in your case, since once you start out, you are commited. That said, I actually think getting a parrot used to travel at a young age is not a bad idea. As long as it was getting proper attention it would make future trips much easier, and could be an enriching experience.

I'd be wary of leaving him out, when you aren't home. Houses, typically just aren't safe places for a parrot to explore without supervision. If you really wanted to look into that, you'd need to completely bird proof a room (which means nothing electrical to chew on), and close him in that room. That said, I don't cage Earl at night. I have a playstand in my bedroom, which he can't get off of without flying. He's a pretty noisy flyer, so I'm pretty sure if he ever took flight, I'd hear it and wake up, but he typically just goes to sleep when I do.

Did you pay with a credit card? If so, you can dispute the charge.

I'm happy with my IQAir HealthPro.

I agree with the others, you're best bet is to ignore those noises, and hope they go away, but realize that they may not. At the same time, if she has some sounds that don't annoy you, you can make an effort to give her additional attention when you hear her making those noises, in the hopes that she will develop a preference for those less annoying sounds.

JillyBeanz, You may already be doing this, but in case you aren't. The goal with teaching Stay, is to get Harvey to recognize that by staying he will get a reward. If he is consistently flying to you then he won't be getting rewarded frequently enough to make the connection. You'll want to train yourself to know how far you can go before Harvey will fly to you. Tell him to stay, and then go exactly that far. then come back and reward him(it can be praise or a treat). After doing that successfully several times you can start moving a bit further. If he flies to you, just put him back and try again. If he keeps flying to you, don't move quite so far away. another suggestions: Its good to use both a verbal and visual cue. I've found Earl actually learns to respond to hand signals MUCH faster than vocal commands, which he still confuses.<br><br>Post edited by: particle77, at: 2009/10/12 20:13

I thought I'd revive this thread, to see if any new info is available. I've been taking Earl for walks everyday, but ended up skipping yesterday as it never got above 60. Today was 64, and Earl seemed to be quite happy during our walk, so right now I'm considering it safe to walk him any time the temperature is between 64 and 98 (which is based mostly on what temperatures I can be comfortable in while wearing a t-shirt...). That said, I'd really like to get some input.

cooked chicken bones are brittle, and likely to splinter. I would not allow my parrot to eat one. I've read that raw chicken bones are safe for dogs. not sure about parrots. I'm phobic about raw chicken in general...

btw, I'm not claiming you have sweaty hands :laugh: even if your not sweating noticably the salt tends to build up.

How common is tail wagging? I've noticed that any time Earl successfully completes a task,(ie. turn around on command) he immediatly wags his tail back and forth very rapidly, in an excited fashion. Is that typical? or specific to Earl?

salt builds up on our skin as we sweat(if you lick your own finger you may taste it). I suspect this is why casper licks you, as many other animals will lick humans for this reason.

There are two parts to my system. First I choose a command, and always say it whenever I see Earl start to wiggle his butt. Then I praise him afterward. Second, when I'm about to take him out of his cage, I often stand outside, and say the command a few times. I'll usually wait up to 15 minutes, at which point I'll just take him out anyway, as its cutting into my time with him. However if he does go, then he gets praised some more. Now that he's starting to understand this system, he sometimes wiggles his butt, like he's going to poop, but doesn't. I take this as his way of assuring me he doesn't have to go, and take him out in response to that action as well.

Duplo blocks sound like an good idea to me. With Legos I'd be careful to avoid some of the smaller pieces that might get stuck in a grey sized throat.<br><br>Post edited by: particle77, at: 2009/10/06 19:41

drat, ok I'll do this later. can't be spending time shrinking pics when Earl needs play time! <br><br>Post edited by: particle77, at: 2009/10/03 02:27

Ok, here come the pics

I think at the very least someone should check on them every day. Otherwise they may decide to spend the first day emptying there food dish onto your carpet, only to discover nobody is coming to refill it, or worse manage to empty there water. It probably won't happen, but I wouldn't take the chance. If you can't ask or hire someone to look in on them, then bording them somewhere is probably the next best option.

Yay! I'm so excited! Earl finally gets to come home with me tomorrow. I hope he handles the adjustment well. I'm already his favorite person, as I've been walking him around and hand feeding him every day for the last 2 months, so at least I will be familiar to him.

I'm not sure how things are in the UK, but pet sitters in the US are pretty inexpensive. I'd suggest interviewing a few until you find one you trust. Have them meet your fids ahead of time, and go over exactly what you expect of them. That way you'll also have someone available in the future.

raleej337 wrote: I view it as similar to trying to figure out if your 1 month old child will be a star basketball player. Its better to let life surprise you. If talking is important to you, the best approach is to adopt an older grey that already talks.

ramsabi wrote: That's what I suspect.<br><br>Post edited by: particle77, at: 2009/09/30 05:29