Elvenking

Thank you for commenting Dave. Yes, I realize I am being quite OCD about my bird and his feeding. I am totally giving him his fill of formula and not trying to wean him off. I am just just being hyper sensitive about keeping him in check. I love him dearly and I never want to drop the ball on his health. Yep, lots of variety coming through as far as different fruits and veggies go. He certainly is still gleaming with beauty and happiness. On another note. I perched him on the shower curtain rod today to give him little splashes from the warm water. He seemed to enjoy being involved. Only a little today just to get him thinking about the idea of getting wet. It was cute, he was making some cooing noises. Thank you again Dave for having my back and responding. I can count on your experience.

So he did start picking at his seeds last night on his T-Stand. Which was somewhat reassuring....but I really want him to eat his veggies. I went to the store last night and bought broccoli, yellow squash, and carrots. I set them in his dish today and we will see what happens. Another question, do you chop, cut or leave the veggies whole? I just cut some pieces so far. I have read some stuff in the food forums, but I like people to see what I see and respond to that, so apologies if the subject is played out, i just like to connect to the community. Thank you.

So I have been going to the store and lookin for vegitables my lil Issac likes. Brought some carrots home, looks like he digs those. A quick question....he is good at perching, so I have been putting his food in the regular dishes. He picked at em for a few days last week...but this week he is totally just riding his formula...except for tonight...he is on the ground enjoying a carrot. My question is....should I try to put the food on a plate. Is it normal for them to start trying to eat food themselvs and stop for a little bit? Just trying to see what to expect...thanks. This wednesday, he will be around his 12th week. Come to look at the carrots....its hard to tell whether he just shreaded it up or ate any. I just want the little guy to get all his nutrition. I know the formula still covers that pretty good. One other thing I observed is that toward the end of feeding him formula. He will cock back and look like he is ready for more...then he will swipe his head out of the way and slap the syringe with his wing...what up with that? LOL. Its kind of funny...but wondering if anyone else has seen anything like that. Thanks. <br><br>Post edited by: Elvenking, at: 2010/02/09 05:32

danmcq wrote: I can say so far that letting the Grey pick you is a great idea. the breeder I went to had a bunch of Congos and I held most all of them. But one wanted to nestle in the crook of my arm while I was sitting down. At that moment I said, "Yes, this is the one." He was only 7 weeks then. It's all such a great experience.

Thank you all for the food advice. Yeah...today he only munched on his formula. He picked at some cabbage...and did eat a little kale. But he really loves his formula right now. No worries...I am not going to rush him off his formula, only try to get him to feed on other things during the day. I will try the softening of the pellets tomorrow, sounds like a good plan. I am going to get him more veggies too. Yeah...I will be asking questions. This guy is going to get the very best care if I can help it. Issac says hi to everyone and to thank you for helping me to decide not to clip him.

Thank you Judy for the thread link...reading up now.

I just think the lady at the local bird store was off when she suggested the coarse Harrison's. They seem just too hard for him. I am going to try another type of pellet and work on feeding him some veggies by hand maybe. All suggestions are appreciated. I will also look for the weaning bisuits too.

He loves to fly to the kitchen....probably because I prepare his formula there. I let him hang out in the bathroom when I shower too, and he had no problem flying to the towel hanger and landing perfectly there. What a little explorer. I am just glad he feels sae and happy.

My grey, Issac, is well into his 11th week of life. Currently I still feed him formula two times a day...morning and night. He has sort of gone back and forth on the veggies, fruit and seeds I give him. For example, a couple days ago he was backing off on his morning feeding and going through the fruit and veggies I gave him during the day. Yesterday, he ate more of his morning formula and did not touch his other food throughout the day, then chugged 50-60 cc's of formula that night. So I am just surious to se the weening behavior others have witnessed. Also, if you could tell me what your birds daily diet is...I would love to know that. I wanna make sure I give my baby options. I did get him some pellets, but I think the recommendation the lady gave me might be too aggressive. She gave me Harrisons Coarse pellets and they appear to just be too hard for him right now. I will love all the recommendations to keep my Issac well rounded and well nourished. He seems to be doing just great the way things are going....just looking for advice. Thanks all.

Yep...my lil boy honks like a goose when he gets playing. Little puffs of air out the nose like you say.

By the way...it is really a trip to now read my original post...lol. I feel so much better now, than then. Though that picture...gets me every time. It is the wallpaper on my phone. And any time in the day..that I want to feel good...I open my phone and look at that photo of my little birdie sleeping on my chest...and it raises me up...I glow. I swear...I must do that 10 - 15 times a day...at least.... ...yeah...I like my bird. <br><br>Post edited by: Elvenking, at: 2010/02/06 08:47

Thank you Dave..I understand that you are a valuable source of Grey info and I appreciate you giving my thread some time. Sincerely. I will be getting a harness for my grey most immediately and training him on it. Right now...it seems he is most malliable and accepting of everything. I have really never known a bird to be so loving and affectionate. After feeding him..i will take him on the couch and let him crawl up my chest by my head. Then i will talk to him with his head inches from my mouth..and he studies what I am saying. He looks on intently and it seems lately that he is trying to figure it out. i could swear today that he was trying to say 'Hello, Issac' like I alwasy say to him. the syllibles were there. I find it most re-enforcing to praise him even if I am not sure what he is trying to say..but i know he is trying to do something beyond his normal 'food call'...which is typically 'Beep'. Or a tweet if you will. Mommy call. Anyway..this is the most profound experience. I love caring for this bird. It even teaches me things things I can do to teach my 7 year old daughter. It really is like raising a child. Thank you all for the great welcome into these forums...and...I LOVE GREYS!!!!!!!!!!!

Wow...I really have to thank everyone who responded to my thread. I really appreciate and love the community response. All I can say is that I am glad I came here for advice. i feel so happy that my baby can fly and that I am going to let him. Let me tell tonights story just for fun. So at first i went out tonight to have some fun with a friend..and all the while i worried about my baby at home. Came back with Rebecca, my friend, and we played with issac for a couple hours...he loved it! He loves people..he is not nice to just me..but everyone...loves cuddling. So we rolled wooden balls on the floor with him..he must have soaked up at least 50 kisses over the course...and...he poops on command pretty darned good now. Absolutely no poop on the floor tonight..just every 15 mins or so..I would hold him inside his cage and say..'poop'...and the little angel did it. I am so proud of him..and he certainly knows it! Ohh my god....fly baby fly. He has also taken to his T-stand....I don;t know what happened over the last few days...but it seems like all my patience with him pays off. I really let him do what he wants until he does something unwanted. Then I put him somewhere where he is free to play. Praise good...do nothing for bad behavior. They take to praise suprisingly. I swear...just when you think you should lose hope...they amaze the hell out of you. This little guy is becoming the bird of my dreams. Thank every wonderful person on this forum for helping me on how to take care of my baby!!<br><br>Post edited by: Elvenking, at: 2010/02/06 08:43

Yes...it would totally break my heart to see my little boy (well hardly little ) float helplessly to the ground where he used to effortlessly fly. I am glad I have so much support in my decision. It was right at 10 1/2 weeks when he first took flight. It was quite scary the first time...he just kept going up to my vaulted cieling with me running underneath him with my arms out waiting for the fateful plummet. But he was okay, just a bit amazed at himself seemingly. After that...he took a few more crooked flights. By the fourth one...he was purposefully landing on furniture...and last night....directly on top of my head. I was thinking....oh god....don;t poop now. Because they like to poop after flight sometimes. It's fun...I have waited all my life to have a real parrot like this, and I am enjoying it more than I ever thought.

As far as stepping up....when he is in the cage and I am going to let him out...he can all but resist jumping onto my hand befor I am even to the 'p' in 'Up!'. He is quite excited to come out and play. It will just be times where he is where he wants to be that gives me trouble. Then on those occasions I can keep saying 'Up'...sometimes tapping on his leading leg a couple times and he will come up. Other times...he is directly defiant after 10-15 calls for up, so I will just gently pick him up by his soft little bird body and put him on my hand. If there is another approach, I will try it...but keeping control over him at the moment doesn;t seem to be a problem. He has never had a problem with my hands or biting them....yet. Crossing fingers. He seems to know that I will never hurt him and that hands are 'good'. He loves petting and scratching behind the neck. He is just so incredibly cuddly at the moment. I heard you say that he may grow up a bit and be slightly more independant....that is good too. I am also having some luck with getting him to poop on command...even so...I must have spot cleaned about 6 places in my home last night due to the accidents. But I keep at attempting to bring him over to his cage on a regular basis and say 'poop', and he complied about 3-4 times last night. It is hopeful. For talking, I feel like he will try to catch onsoon enough. I read childrens books to him, I pretty much talk to him as if he can understand what I am saying. Like he is a little kid you know. In the coming months, I am sure I will let the forums how that is working out. I am more relaxed now that I have made the decision about his flying. I realized that i was actually dreading having him clipped this Saturday and finally thought, 'Geez...just don't do it unless he looks like he is going to hurt himself with his new found power'. There can be no doubt, I will be here with questions for my fellow Grey lovers. I want to do nothing short of what the most responsible Grey owner would ever do for my Issac. He is gonna be my friend for life

Thank you for reading my lengthy first message. I just had so much on my mind about my little bird at the time. His name is Issac....after Issac Newton....and I am gonna let him keep his wings so long as he is not hurting himself. So kind of ironic he should be named after a person who studied gravity...lol. I am headed into a meeting here in a second. But I think its cute that your bird makes some cool noises. I can see my lil guy trying to make other sounds...and when he does...I praise him or at least let him know that I can see he is trying. I will write more later...bye for now.

Pretty much when I read some post about how they prepare to fly by judging many different aspects about their ascent, push-off, and flapping....I was like....no friggin way I am gonna take that away from him. He is just getting used to it..and he is already good at it. Also, it is simply crazy how much I love this bird. And I have only had him a little over two weeks.

Okay...by the way...My Bird is going to fly...period. I can't imagine defying what I feel in my heart. What can I say I have a weak spot for this. When I saw him flying around tonight..and kind of giving me a work out really. He just looked like he was having fun. No friggin way...I am not clipping him. Post edited by: Elvenking, at: 2010/02/05 09:21<br><br>Post edited by: Elvenking, at: 2010/02/05 09:25

BTW...can anyone tell me how well the birds handle harnesses, direct me toward a recommended method to do this...and tell me if the birds mind this treatment. I would like to take him around at times...and should I leave him flighted...I would like to know my options.

Man...what a tough decision. I love my bird dearly...and it's only going to grow. I love to see him fly. I just really pray he doesn't hurt himself somehow. Paramount to me is that this bird is safe and happy. I will try to let him fly for a while. He is super beautiful in flight.

Yeah...this is a touchy area of concern. All the books I read say to clip him...and that includes my breeders recommendation. Just due to the fact that they can tend to misjudge walls and such...although he seems to be improving his landing greatly. Also, I like to have him out of the cage and worry about him just wanting to fly all the time. Most of the time its not a problem.I really do not want him to get hurt in anyway though. My intuition tells me not to clip him...just because if I had the ability to fly, I'd want to keep something like that. Will he develop this, "I am the king of this domain" complex if I let him keep his flight? I really, REALLY don't want him to get hurt too. He started at 10 WEEKS....I was amazed. ONe day he stopped going down and began going up. I will query other threads though....sorry...I am new. <br><br>Post edited by: Elvenking, at: 2010/02/05 00:33

I have read that I should discourage floor walking and clip my Grey's wings once he learns how to fly. What is the community thought on this? I hear it's dangerous to let them fly because they can get hurt...and\or get away if you ever go outside with them. And floor walking can lead to chewing on the wrong things or getting into wires and such. Penny for your thoughts. Thanks.

My Congo is the sweetest most gentle bird I have ever known. I have had him since he was 9 weeks and he is a little over 11 weeks now...and he has just taken to me like I am his daddy. He behaves just like a little kid. I picked Congo because of the size factor and beauty. But as you know the Timneh's are quite similar in the beauty area. I love my big boy though, he is amazing and majestic. Disposition wise, I have heard of no differences between the species. I think as far as personality goes...you;d be hard pressed to recognize a signifiacant difference.

I am currently the daddy of a now 11 week old Grey. Let me start off by saying that I love this bird sooooo much. It's been a dream of mine to make one of these little guys my friend...and it's finally happening. But I would like some reassurance from other Grey owners to be sure I am doing the very best by my new best friend. So now with some information....BTW...if you take time to read my questions and answer...special thank you to you I still feed the lil (well hardly little now..this guy is huge) guy once in the morning and once at night. He seems to eat more at night now. I give him fruits and veggies to much on during the day and he seems to be doing well in the nutrition department. Okay...so he learned to fly over the weekend...lol. Its truly amazing, but I gotta get him clipped this weekend. One of my questions is, once he is clipped...will he tend to not try to fly as much. Right now he will just up and fly to where ever he wants given the chance. And I like to let him have as much out of cage time as possible. But if he flies around, I just can;t have that. So far I have been picking him up and putting him back where he was when he flies. And he tends to settle down and stay after a while. One other question is what trends should I look for in his weening. Looks like I can stop the morning feeding soon, but the evening one is still going strong, in fact I ahve to cut him off after 50-60 cc's. I read books to him too. Childrens books...he seems to love this. When I am home, I love to spend time with him. In the morning, we get up, do a feeding and i sit on the couch with him for about 15 minutes after that. Then let him play on the top of the cage while I get ready. I will take him in the bathroom to watch me groom after shower. After about an hour or so of out time, it's time for me to go to work. I will come home after that and let him have out time up until about 10PM when he wants to sleep. We sit on the couch, I read to him, talk to him constantly, pet him, love him...let him sleep on me if he wants. Show him new toys...you know. so, about 3-5 hours of out of cage time at night.....Simple question...do I spend enough time with my bird. I can tell you that he seems to be a very happy bird...but I want to know other peoples routines to see how they compare. He still tries to get away with stuff...sometimes he doesn't come up when I say up...in those cases...I will just gently grab him and put him on my hand...is this as good as the towel technique? He has never ever bit me at all. This is one gentle bird who knows that there is nothing to worry about when I am around. And finally, talking. I hear it can take 3 months to over a year to ehar these lil guys make some words. What is this community's experience with that. When I get up...or come home...right now he just makes this semi loud little chirp to let me know that food and or attention is requested. Is that pretty normal and does that change to other noises? Really want to see peoples experience with that...especially with people who live alone with their bird. I live with my Grey and a Green Cheek Conure too. I am a nut in the fact that i consitantly talk to myself anyway...seriously...my neighbord probably thing two or three people live next door. LOL. Does any one think that living alone with a bird makes them any less likely to talk. This guy is going to be loved more than anything regardless, but I would love to hear him chatter as well. I know its way too soon at this point. So there you have it....my latest inquiries....if you read this far...I thank you dearly for listening to my story and questions. And for any who respond....mega thank you! Post edited by: Elvenking, at: 2010/02/04 22:36<br><br>Post edited by: Elvenking, at: 2010/02/04 22:37