ozziebird

we (me n hubby or kids)play with what ever new item we are trying to introduce and laugh and carry on like total idiots making the new item look fun, this usually engages ozzie's attention but we do it from a comfortable distance and then leave it on show at the far side of the room, so its not immediately threatening to him if he is unsure of the item and depending on size/colour/interest it can be immediate and wanting the item or take several days or sometimes (rarely) not at all...eg parrot piniata and a puzzle chest ozzie wasnt having any of it, was scared, didnt want to know, we played with small donkey piniata and chest for weeks on end and he was still terrified if you went within 4 or 5 foot so we gave those up as a dead loss lol, just remember to make them fun, never force them on him andbe patient, he will sharp let you know if he is interested or not lol, good luck

do they ever really come out of the terrible two's lol

with ozzie I guess I am really fortunate, I always use a really rough thick cardboard thing emery board and we do a little every 2 weeks just to keep on top of things, he is that used to it now he angles his head just right so that when I file, the back of his head is given a rub with the other end of the file lol, he must have an almond when its done tho.... I too find the cement perches not awfully good for keeping nails trim on their own.

yep, sounds like your doing all the right things, just make sure you get all his gear sorted first so he can see familiar stuff around him and have a safe haven in his cage until he adjusts to his new surroundings, perhaps also place a few toys around the room/house too which he can see from his cage, and as usual talk like a psycho happy person as you enter/get set up and sorted so he knows its a fun place to be:) best of luck hope the move goes well for you too :cool:

ozzie is the same, especially if he is excited and/or in a lovey dovey mood sometimes he hangs his wings down real low too

I would have done the same as you, cant stand to see greys ill treated, sounds like they have found a wonderful home with you and some things will take time but you sound like your doing the right things, just cool the water down a bit lol. its great they are warming to fresh fruits and veggies esp having just been fed seed, the step up will take a little time as said above they are companions and need to accept you too, I used a dowling broom shank, cut down at first and offered a nut with the command of step up', if ozzie went to bite he bit the wood rather than me but fortunatley oz wasnt a big biter and he soon went from wood to hand with a nut, just read the forums they are a wealth of info and there is nothing quite like real life experiences over a book, there is always someone on here that has had similar problems and always several solutions which hopefully you will find one to work for you, if not your experiences help others until you do find a solution best of luck and fab different names too!

sorry your having problems, I echo everyone elses thoughts, telling him off just makes him think 'ooooh this is fun I get a reaction' so will do it more - also most birds shut up when they are noshing their food anyways definately reward the good behaviour, whistle a fun tune when he makes his alarm noise, divert his attention with something fun rather than shouting, little things like him eating at the same time as you etc (esp if you sit down for evening meal) make him feel like he belongs and is part of 'the flock' , and as said above explain what your doing, they are so blimmin intelligent and will soon associate certain words with actions! treat him like you would a 5 year old, ozzie sometimes does this but luckily its only been occassional for eg when we come back off holiday,or he is in a mood over something, I have always whistled some daft tune or sing a song he likes to join in with to divert his attention and within moments he forgets he was making such a din, when he has done it out of the cage I have sometimes put him quite 'uncerimoniously' (but gently) down onto the floor and turned my back on him, immediately he has quietened and climbed back up to his cage or java and stopped the noise, there are always times that the little monkeys are just darn right obnoxiously noisy and in a mood about something or nothing, just like we are at times, but this is part and parcel of owning a grey and the benefits believe you me far outway their noisy outbursts, dont get me wrong when they are in full flow, sometimes you want to yell 'for goodness sake shut up' but its all about being one step ahead of them and although it can be ear piercing its about being patient and thinking through your response and what will eventually settle your bird or create an ongoing problem, it IS something that can be sorted but it will take time and patience;)

blimey. the poor but lucky little soul, we had such a bitterly cold january too, the poor mite with those other birds too As for the lady who would not let anyone see the bird, i cannot understand why the police were not involved at any point as even looking after the little fella did not give her the right to refuse everyone, yes be cautious but not let one person see the bird....mighty worrying!

Ozzie did the same one day a few years ago, only we were in the garden having a bbq with the back door wide open, and he was tootling about the living room, i did wonder if i had not shut the cage properly but I always check so observed him over a few days, sure enough he had fathomed out how to open the cage and did it several times, i did think about a padlock but as I am ever the optimist i worried in case we had a fire and couldnt get him out, so he now has a shiney new lobster clip taken from a dog lead from the pound shop, it clips on and off easity and because it is outside and away from where his beak can reach it has worked brilliantly, i also have 2 clamps, 1 on each of his food bowls as it took him all of 3 days to learn how to twist and flip them out lol.

ozzie blows raspberrys everytime he has to go back into his cage or when he is not happy with something lol, and he has a terrible habbit of flying over and putting the kettle on (flicks the switchdownthen flies off) but his worst trait is that he defiantely knows when my hair has just been washed and styled as when I clean his cage each morning and it co incides with a hair wash day he tootles back and forward over the top of the cage trying to 'aim' at my head!

of course lol x

how cruel and sad!

8 years ago (uk) I paid £650 for oz (met him at 8 weeks and he came to usat 18 weeks) and an additional £200 for huge cage, parrot proof water bottle, 20kg bag of seed, 4 toys, a textured concrete perch and textured swing, bell, large ladder, vits, cacivet and some food he was already on, He was from a trusted friend and the extra deal was excellent for set up, to be honest £650 is a drop in the ocean for the sheer pleasure you get from these 'pets'!

you know your a Bird owner when...... the carpet is replaced by laminate/wood/tile flooring, the sofa changes from material to leather and you mainly wear cheap earings until you go out!

Massive massive thanks everyone who voted, ozzie won and we get a flip min hd camera and £800 of top toys, huge thanks againxx:)

cheers dave and everyone, ozzie has been absolutely fine all day thank the lordy, the reason I said seizure was only that a friend of mines grey had mild ones periodically but her cag woud go very still and just one leg twitch, but yes was very disorientated afterwards, fortunately I have never had to deal with a seizure myself and never wish to do so, I think what really scared me is how still he was (how often are greys still except when sleeping lol), he so hates being on his back and only he himself puts himself there when he is into mischief and gets in a pickle, I have never put him on his back although when he was a baby he did used to like to be cradled like a baby when we were towling him and playing peeka boo- but after a few months if he ended up on his back he always fliped back straight away , this time he just over reached and it was the stillness , his eyes and the way his head was laying that was so scary and also not flipping himself back, I wonder if he twisted funny and nipped a nerve or something, little blimmin monkey playing dead , I hope he doesnt do it again, but so pleased he is ok! not the lottery unfortunately luvparrots but it was a win, from a tv quiz show for £3000, all gone now lol

I was sitting at the breakfast bar this morning, filing ozzies nails, he loves this done and always balances his beak down at an angle in a way that the nail file goes back and forth across the back of his neck for a good old scratch as I file his claws smooth, I've don this for 8 years with no problems . Ozzie was in a fab mood today too and was being really good till I got to the last claw when he decided he also wanted his neck scratched and to nibble my engagement ring all at the same time, he flipped over onto his back accidently over reaching , and lay flat on the table as he lost balance trying to get my ring, now normally he will flip himself right back over ASAP as he hates that position but he didnt, infact he didnt move at all, he seemed stiff as a board, feet straight up and his neck was tilted/twisted? to the side with his eyes staring, he was completely lifeless. never had so many emotions go through me in one go, mere seconds passed but seemed like for ever as I touched his tummy gently, then stroked his head to get any sort of reaction, then turned him gently over, as I turned him over he flicked back into life and tootled off to get the nail file and blew a raspberry before flying back off into the sitting room as if nothing had happened. He has been absolutely fine ever since. so crikey knows what happened, I am now wondering if, as he flipped over he landed funny on a nerve or similar and just couldnt move, or has even had a mild seizure (there was no twitching or any movement tho) its completely baffled me as he is ormally in good health and so far had no health problems and has a fab diet and sups etc but one thing I did notice/ think was OMG he's dead and even when I realised he was ok, I have been so upset since it happened sort of now knowing that that is what he will look like one day:(, he really has me scared so much so I was shaking, cant comprehend what life would be like without him but my goodness I got such a shock, does anyone have any ideas please?

hi zzzelama, final day for the voting is now june 14th monday , ozzie is doing well and the promoters have removed the cheats votes from the other entries which is good:cool:

I have never tried the cd's either, some I know have and said they saw no difference and have had better joy from other members of the family teaching their birds -the only word ozzie says that I have said is the sh word for poop and step up, 8 years and thats all he says of mine and I didnt even teach him the first as such (he heard me saying it when it took my over a week to remove glossed woodchip from our new homes walls and I had skinned all my knuckles:D) Ozzie copies everyone in the house except me, I have 4 kids and he even copies the cats and much stuff from the tv, luckily he does not use the F word or similar yet its in loads of films these days:eek: As I am his main care giver, My Hubby alan, is is his biggest 'threat' as such, as he is my partner and ozzie understands this so its Alan's voice he does the most, Alan just has to say a new word or phrase song etc to him a few times over 3/4 days and ozzie copies straight away, as I type he is whistling away to the theme tune from 'In the night garden' a toddler tv show in uk and this is just what he has picked up from listening, I cant see any harm in trying the cd's but I think you will have more fun trying to teach him yourself and getting friends and family to join in then you get added bonuses of accents and mixed up words and phrases lol.

I give ozzie almond milk, not tried rice milk, might be nice for a change for him, occassionaly whan i have cereal i will have almond milk on it too lol, so at least when he falls head long into the bowl and shares he's ok.

phewww, thought you may have been an out of town maccam there for a mo mysteriousness deepend and deepens:p

great post, i've helped many in my area either rehome or re assess how they look after them sometimes its just minor changes needed, there are so many genuine keepers that can no longer keep birds for very valid reasons but it breaks my heart week in week out when you see, 'had him 3 years and allergic' 'work commitments forces sale' then you see them and they are in tiny cages and owners have no idea how to keep them or what they have let themselves in for, if I ever won the lottery I'd have the biggest grey home going !

he loves them to the point of rediculous but only give him tiny bits and wipe the salt off, he usualy gets salt n shake crisps without the salt as its not good for their lil kidneys he often wooshes down and flies of with the whole bag, which you then have to retrieve quickly as he can arf stuff them down lol

aww cheers all it really is much appreciated:cool: I cant believe all the nastiness thats been involved, it should be fun , lol and no worries jilly i'm in for the longhaul, it was cheeky to ask straight off I know but it will be the last one that I do that I do know and I'm from newcastle;) a pure geordie, now am I on the right side of the Tyne lol;) yep spock its 1 entry per person to make it fair,