bigbird519

so i went to a bulbs plus store today. picked up a bulb that i am not going to open until i am sure it is good. it is a super UV coil compact fluorescent. full spectrum daylight. UVA-B rays the UVB rays are 290nm-320nm. the UVA wavelentghts are from 320nm-400nm. i am going to place this in a clamp lamp over mojo's cage. it is an energy saver bulb 13 watts = 50 watt incandescent lighting. will this be good?

thank God that he loves it! cause i just spent an hour in the kitchen with my wife making bird food that really didn't taste that bad. he is now eating his good stuff! also, went to the vet and Mojo is doing amazing! the vet owns a CAG and she was very impressed with the attitude of this laid back bird. i do have a question for all of you who make birdie mash..... i bagged it all individually in freezer bags. by the time i was done bagging it, i had made 30 daily portions. will it stay good in the freezer for one month at a time? or should i make a half batch and only go 2 weeks at a time

thanks for the link to daves thread! and thanks for the responses. i spoke with my vet, and we are going to install some lights above the cage a.s.a.p.

so i am aware that the sun is very important for the bird. my ? is this. in the winter months when the temp drops way to cold for the bird, what then? i am waiting on a harness for mojo and i am going to have quite a few outings in the spring and summer months. but what do we do in the winter? is sitting in the window enough? i can make the sun available in the living area, but is the rays that come through the glass door going to be enough for him? or should i use some kind of supplemental lights? Dave, your responses so far in all posts that i have read have been highley informative. that being said, i expect you to respond to this post lol. thanks in advance!

judygram wrote: That picture was actually taken 9 hours before we started to build the toys, before he went to school. He was just making a silly face for the sake of making a silly face.

The end result: One hella happy bird and a well bonded family! (Not to mention, we saved a lot of money!)

Tonight, we decided to start the training of Mojo with my 6 year old, Zakery. Zak has been extremely anxious to be able to socialize with and hold Mojo. For the last week, Zak has been instructed on the proper way to gain Mojo's trust. So, we decided to have a family fun night. Ingredients: One trip to Hobby Lobby/Wal-Mart One African Grey in the middle of the table One VERY excited 6 year old child The result was amazing. We all had so much fun! We even forgot to watch the clock and Zakery ended up going to bed 45 minutes late! Lucky kid! LOL This is what we came up with and there are TONS more to come! The funny thing is Mojo had more fun eating my shirt buttons than playing with the toys on the table!

lol now that is funny! are you in an apartment?

how long did it take you to put it on? i just ordered one from fosters and smith, should be here next week. i am going to start the training so that when the weather permits, i can go on outings. also in relation to outings, what is the lowest temp outside that one should not go out in?

i too would follow the advice of dave. btw.... YOU FOUND HER! I AM SO STOKED WE CAN ALL BLOW OUT OUR CANDLES NOW LOL!

mojo was not a fan of going back in the cage at all. i now put him in the cage once every 15 minutes or so. i put him in, shut the door, leave the room for a few, come back and let him out. sometimes i just do random step up practices. this is what i read from a trainer. when he is out, practice your step up commands (using positive reinforcment) pick him up, and put him down in the most unpredictable places (repeat this). then every once in awhile put him in the cage, and pick him back up and take him out. you will be surprised how quickly your little guy will adapt. hope this helps. b.t.w. my wife and i both smoke, so since we don't leave him in the house alone, he goes back in the cage everytime i want to smoke. lol i am sure that eventually mojo will be saying "daddy go smoke." lol

i cannot even imagine! I will be praying for a safe return home!

today was great! mojo sitting around makin all kinds of noise, some sound like dog calls, and alot of mimic sounds! i had a chance to stay home and watch the interactions of him and my wife. what an amazing progress he has made with her. until the last couple of days, mojo would try to bite her.... alot. she would not respond at all in a negative way. and now she is on a road with him that is full of trust. she has just continued to talk to him from outside of the cage, and today she got him out and was able to work with him for about an hour. he did bite her once (just to test her, i think). but she just put him down on his play stand and continued working with him. i am so excited to see the joy that she is able to experience with mojo! we are using alot of posotive reinforcment (he loves the crushed up almonds) and he would leave his play stand and fly to her even though i was in the room. i can not explain the joy and relief that we both felt! MOJO IS A GREYT KID!

I took him up to the shower. I showered while he sat on the towel bar and watched from the outside. (I left the curtain half open.) He begged for a step up. After that, he enjoyed playing in the water, getting his head wet. He was VERY inquisitive about the experience. He showered for 10 minutes without a problem at all! Now, I'm off to Home Depot to build a shower perch. He's such a spoiled brat! LOL

how well do the suction cups work? i am always afraid that they will lose there grip and the bird will take a nose dive.

i have now had my mojo for one week, he has settled in quite well. but i was wondering how you all shower your birds. do you have a perch in the shower? how wet do they get? what are some cheap and affective shower stands/perches? do they enjoy the shower right out the gate, or do they need to be trained to like it? any help and info would be great

thank you all for the responses. i am going to have a long desision on the brain. i enjoy the shoulder rides as much as he does. but you are right, it needs to be a priviledge not a right.

In "The African Grey Parrot Handbook" by Mattie Sue Athan, it states that shoulder riding is a bad idea. I've heard that this information is outdated. True or False? Is shoulder riding a major "no-no" or is it ok with a well-socialized grey? How many of you actually allow it and what are the resulting attitudes?

i cannot speak except for my own experience. i got mojo from a breeder last week and he was hand fed from the breeder. mojo is a TAG and has attached to me just fine. he is five months old and taking to our home great! i would not really be to terribley concerned about having hand fed the bird myself. i have seen many people who have adopted older birds that have had great results. is the bird a Timneh, or a Congo? i ask because i have read that Congos tend to be more of a one person bird and the Timnehs tend to do better as a family bird. again this is only from the research that i have read. as for me, i was not at all concerned about getting a five month old who had been hand fed by some one else. by the second day Mojo has taken to me, as for my wife..... that will take a bit more work lol. hope this helps.

yeah, i believe that his flight has alot to do with that. also, the breeder hand fed, and handled him alot as well! very good find.

Acappella wrote: thank you sooo much for the advice on biting! i have searched high and low for info on the subject. you got karma for the great advice!

sorry the quality is not the greatest. i am wanting to get a cam corder, but i spent all my cash on the here bird lol. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xWkJZEyTxqI

i am aware that tephlon is no good for the bird. the fumes that arise from it are poison to the little guy. i am curious though...... if i cook his omlette on tephlon is this a big no no. does the tephlon reslease some kind of toxin into the food that could kill a bird?

KdK wrote: i too am wondering where you got that. what a sweet looking congo!

i love me some karma, thanks and karma to you too lol