reggieroo

I think we're all the same when it comes to our greys. I sometimes still think to myself " I have my very own grey". I also go straight over to any greys in pet shops etc to give tickles & have chat with them. I notice that not many people will spent a lot of time talking to them in pet shops but me, they look at me as if to say "does he think that bird understands what he is saying?" but I know different as do we all.

We seem to be having a biting issue with Murphy (He's now 8 months old) which as developed. He's been biting Kate for a good few weeks now & last night she got one hell of a bite, I could see the bite mark in her flesh & it drew blood, now it's red & swollen. We also had a guest stay with us last week & although Murphy really seemed to like him he would do the same thing as he does to Kate. What he does is fly down for a tickle while they are sat on the sofa, puts his head down for tickles then halfway though he just bites really hard then puts his head back down for more tickles. Sometimes she goes to him on his stand & he looks all sweet, he solicits for a tickle then bites. Thing is he never does this to me, very rarely even flies down for tickles to me, only to get my toes sometimes :eek:

Will have to get Murphy one so he can call me when he misses me........LOL

We would all like a vid please.

I think just go about your daily business, talking to Tui, offering tickles, treats etc. Eventually when he is ready & has full trust in you he will teach you some games. I play a little game with Murphy, I duck & hide at one side of the cage while he is on top, I pop up & he comes running over all excited, I then run round the other side & do it again & again. It involves no physical contact or toys so is a great game if they are new to the home or a little timid. Murphy isn't timid or new to the home but he still enjoys the game to this day. They form a bond with you out of love, trust & friendship. Do the best by them & they will repay you with lots of fun years as a crazy companion.

It's something I thought about straight away. I thought that you might be able to get a GPS microchip inserted just like a standard microchip but not at the moment. Don't think it will be too long before this is something we can actually do with our greys & considering how long they live should be possible with are own greys in the future. So just watch this space.

That's great news, bet your loving having little chats with Calypso.

Lol ;)

I'll say it again, Emma is the sweetest little grey ever I love hearing about her little conversations & watching her videos. I think greys may be a lot like their owners & you must be a very sweet person for Emma to be such a sweetie in return.

Lot's of ninja training then Dan?

Hey Stephen, I'm going through some strange stages & changes with Murphy. I think it is most definitely down to their age as when you post about an issue it always seems to something I'm just starting to go through with Murphy or similar as he's only a few weeks younger than Issac. Murphy has been flying to my shoulder a lot lately while I'm sat on the PC & then nibbles my ear, mostly it tickles but sometimes it hurts a bit & makes me flinch. It doesn't feel like he's doing it in a mean way though, I wonder what he is trying to tell me. Just now he did it while making sweet baby noises, wings hanging down, so I think he is trying to say "Dad I love you, give me tickle" When I don't take notice he nibbles a bit harder to get my attention. I don't normally let him on my shoulder but Murphy has different ideas

I'll keep trying him with the almonds, didn't think he would ever be able to do the walnuts, I'll just keep cracking them open for him as I have been doing.

Great news Spock, glad your feeling better

I have given Murphy some almonds & hazelnuts in the shell but he is unable to crack them, he just ends up dropping them. I've also tried walnuts but they are just to big & hard for him, only thing has been able to get into is chestnuts as they are a little softer shelled. I thought they would make good boredom breakers. Right now he's having a good go with an almond but with no luck! I was wondering are they too hard for a greys beak or is it maybe he's still young at 8 months & hasn't mastered it? How do other peoples greys handle nuts in the shell?

Dan, do they go through the breeding season every year for the rest of their life or just a number of years? Oh & very good informative post by the way.

I'm sure he enjoyed his little adventure in the trees but I bet he was glad to be back home, especially after finding out the grass wasn't greener on the other side & no formula......lol

Alex & Me is a great book, not long read it & put a post on here about it.

Murphy is back to his old self, unfortunately so is the screaming issue It seemed while he was off with me, his screaming had reduced along with his interactions. Now he is comfortable with me & is once again my friend his screaming is back with a vengeance. It's never plain sailing with this boy!

That's brilliant that he came back, I knew that he would. He was just out on a little adventure, spreading his wings. He knew where his home was & that you were out looking for him, once he got his bearings & figured out how to get back to you he did. He loves you & you are his best friend, life is good with you Stephen & Issac knows this otherwise he wouldn't have came back. It happens to the best of us & doesn't reflect how we look after our birds, nobody's perfect & accidents happen, absent mindedness what ever you want to call it. What I'm trying to say is don't beat yourself up over this incident, you didn't give up that & that's what matters. A happy ending

Stephen, I've only just seen the bad news. I don't know what to say to make you feel better, I know how much you love little Issac I'm really shocked at the news. I always followed your posts about Issac & felt as though we were going through the same stages of baby development together as Murphy & Issac are both virtually the same age. Got a little tear filling up in my eye Just think about my story of how my Amazon came back to me when he went off on a little adventure, there is always hope my friend!

Just a quick update to the shrieking/screaming problem I had with Murphy, thought it would be good to let you know how it's going in case somebody looking for help & advise stumbles across this thread. The screaming has reduced 99% to the odd one here & there, I continued to ignore him as best I could following some very good advise on this thread from people trying to help. It should be noted that the times when I couldn't ignore him & I would react to it, it made it worse again & had to start all over again. It is very difficult at times to ignore this type of behavior especially if your having a rough day & are already stressed by something else, a screaming parrot is the last thing you need! But the only way to stop it, is to ignore it, try to stay calm & act as if it hasn't happend. Hope this thread will help someone else one day.

Well whatever it is, take heart that Spock loves you! After all you have done so much to help the little fella & I'm sure he knows this, he's just letting you know.

Yes, I was away for two weeks.

Well Murphy has finally let me take him out of the cage this last two mornings, he has stepped up for me. I had to be persistent though, keep trying & not give up asking him to step up. This morning he seems to back to his normal self, I gave him his usual tickles on top of the cage for the first time since I have been back. One thing worth mentioning is the shrieking/screaming issue has improved a lot since I've been back, my parents said he was screaming rather a lot when he was with them. I expected to have to deal with all that screaming again but he has been really good, two whole days & not one scream & just a few here & there the rest of the days. In one way the holiday may have done us all some good now he is over his little grump about me leaving him. It also gave me a well deserved break from the screaming & I feel more relaxed now back home. Maybe I should update my shrieking/screaming post.

Hi Stephen, Well here is how Murphy faired when I went on holiday. http://www.greyforums.net/forums/showthread.php?190442-Murphy-is-scared-of-me-after-holiday As Jayd has said though no two situations are ever the same. This is just how things went for us. I also recently read somewhere if you can help it, not to leave them for a year once you have a baby grey & I think Danmcq said in one of my posts that they stay with the parents for up to two years in the wild. If it had been up to me I wouldn't have booked up my holiday just yet but it was done by my Fiancees parents as they have a villa out in Turkey & was out of my hands. Don't get me wrong, I haven't been away for 7 years, I was very grateful & enjoyed our first family holiday together but I could have waited a few more months. I think it was just the fact that Murphy is still so young (7 months) & in his eyes I abandoned him, so if you can wait a while longer till Isaac has matured & is no longer super dependent on you he might be fine. Finding somebody he likes & trusts is also a big step towards leaving them while you go away so it might be a good idea to start grooming someone to be babysitter