Lambert58

Since Leo and Willow were about 8 weeks old, I've taken them in the shower with me. I'll pick them off the curtain rod and we do a parrot car wash. They're not loving it, but they put up with it. I use the guest shower on those days cuz it's tiny and they have nowhere to run! HAHAHAHA! /cough /ahem.

Finally! Got an e-mail today from bird paradise announcing they have palm nuts here in the U.S.! About freaking time. I've been looking everywhere for palm nuts. Get in now, paid $7/lb. These are only going to be for my greys lol. Those little gremlin conures better step off http://www.mybirdstore.com/ search for palm nuts.

The best advice I can give you is what's worked for me: whenever something unexpected happens.. PAUSE. Think it through, and only then react. All my mistakes with my fids have come when I disengaged my brain.

That is the sweetest thing! Probably good for a sunflower seed or two, too

He's a cutie! I love those little baby eyes. Looks like a very happy boy you have there Keep up the good work.

I'd be surprised if their hearing is better than ours, since both our greys seem hell bent on making me deaf every morning with piercing calls that would melt the skin off your face.

Our fids (not just our greys...our sun conures and GCCs) came in low on calcium. We feed a 2-3 times a day schedule of harrison's fine + baby food cereal mix, so I'm now inclined to think just harrisons isn't enough to supply the needed calcium. Our fids are moulting and growing new feathers, so we need all the Ca we can get. We are going to grind up oyster shell calcium tablets and add as many calcium-rich veggies as we can find (kale is great). From what we've seen, and our fids get a balanced diet of harrisons and fresh fruits veggies + mash and are STILL low on CA... we need to add something to their diet, including ensuring they get exposed to full spectrum lighting or sunshine daily.

We just got back from our 1 year check-up of all our fids, and 3 of the 6 came back on the blood work low on the calcium end. We've done a couple things. We purchased oyster shell calcium tablets which will be crushed and added to the morning cereal for everyone, and we bought a $100 full spectrum lamp which we'll rotate between the 3 cages. Anyone else been down this road?

we buy it by the roll: http://greyttimes.com/?p=368 cheap cheap.

If you e-mailed her and are asking questions... yer done! LOL MBS positive Good luck

They go after the 1 thing in the room that will do the most harm to them, don't they? It's an uncanny ability, and bears CONSTANT watching lol.

tell them the bird flew away and call it done. Just my two cents.

I thought you'd found a new home for Riamfada??? If you've kept him I'm so happy!

OMG! I love baby pictures! I so miss Leo's baby days and his little dinosaur stuffed animal... /sigh Enjoy those baby days... they're irreplaceable

Um. Not sure what "ok I was wondering to start with what and what = a Timneh Grey just curious , hubby says a timeneh and a Congo = a Timneh huhhhhhhhhhh doesn't make sense to me lol" I'm not trying to be mean, but what you wrote doesn't make any sense whatsoever. Been drinking a bit maybe? If you already have 2 fids, adding a third will be problematic and I'd recommend against it. But I can't tell from your post.<br><br>Post edited by: Talon, at: 2010/03/29 02:10

LOL that's funny. Ours F R E A K out if they see a moth go by, though.

The results are in! (DEEP BREATH) 5 Males, 1 Female LOL! We figured as much, and it really came as no surprise: Willow is our only girl! "Cleo" is now "Leo"

It's a rodeo here, getting everyone into the pet carriers for the annual vet trip. Only 2 killed and 4 wounded (no fids) so I call it a win! Was a $1100 trip though!. sheesh... 6 fids all at once... DNA's on everyone back by Friday! I'm so eggcited! lol

I went to VPI's website and their first form asked "DOG or CAT" um. no? lol. Couldn't continue.

Oh... you've got a handful! He's definitely in Monster Mode. Be patient, do your best not to reinforce any of his little fits, and remember: you'll get through this. My GCCs are currently behaving like this... and the smaller they are, they more terrorifical they are (I made that word up! ) I just tell them I love them, take the occasional bite (my hand looks like I'm a meth addict) and rack it up to love lol

This is a really good topic. What is a fundamental reality that all us parronts sometimes forget is that we're not raising human children. What I mean is: we tend, as humans, to try and -teach- behaviors. I'm not sure how to put it, but when it comes to getting our fids to behave the way we want, we can often make the mistake of treating them in a manner that would make a human child do what we want. That's usually a bad plan when it comes to our fids... they don't think/operate that way. I could write a dissertation on human/avian interaction having only been owned by my parrots for a year, but the one lesson I've learned is they don't think like we do, and to be an effective parront you have to learn to think like them. I'm sure that made no sense lol.

Our greys are approaching their 1 year hatch day, and I thought I'd drop in and provide a couple lessons learned. 1) They kinda get overzealous on the feathers. Willow has exactly zero tail feathers left. She doesn't pluck anywhere else, just loves ripping those red ones off. I tried to explain to her the physics and aerodynamics that would be effected, she looked at me and squeeked. 2) I don't think there's a wrong time to stop with baby food. Every morning our whole flock gets a mix of 50/50 kaytee baby formula + harrison's fine with enough hot water to make it all the consistency of oatmeal. And we add oatmeal occasionally and a bit of red palm oil. or peanut butter (oh, lord, they love that mix). or cinnamon. 3) They're just like children: they have good days and bad. Sometimes they're grumpy, sometimes they're cuddly. Don't take the grumpy days personally. I can't emphasize this enough. Too many people get upset with their fids just because they have one bad experience... then THEY react negatively toward their fid... and things escalate. Go with the flow. Love them unconditionally and they'll be your best friend. 4)When in doubt, hit the vet. You should know your fid's behaviors, and when the deviate from normal, something is likely up. It's always better to be a paranoid parront than an ex parront. There's tons more, but those are the things that have made an impression on me over the last year. Can't wait for the next 60 years with my girls (I think they're girls! DNA next week!)

recently, Willow has become the needy/snuggly/wannabewithyou loverbear. Can I call this the "wonderful ones"? Her hatch day is 15 Apr... I think I should enjoy her snuggly cuddlerificness while I can.<br><br>Post edited by: Lambert58, at: 2010/03/13 17:19

Well, it IS springtime, and it is also moulting season... so they can get pretty cheeky. Having said that, Cleo is the same way (11 months old) about going into her cage in the morning. We just bribe her! We reserve her very favorite morning treat (oatmeal with raisins) for getting her in the cage. One thing you don't want to do is make it a battle. No one will win if it comes to biting. Sneak him in, trick him, use magic if you have to lol, but make it as fun as possible. I know it's not easy, but you'll be surprised at how resourceful you can be

Our Timgo (timneh/congo cross) and our Congo aren't much different in temperment... or.... wait... they're COMPLETELY different! lol And I owe it to nothing but their individual personalities. Not their species. Become a caregiver to the one that you think you should. Congo... Timneh... it's really silly to differentiate. It's like asking if you'll love the tall child or the small one more. really.