JDS5607

Sully does this a lot when he's been in his cage for longer than usual too

All carpet here. Honestly, keeping up with it is best, but you can't always, so I use hot water and OxyClean OR Woolite's oxygen cleaner. The warm water really loosens it up, but the cleaners get it out. We have also trained our birds that they are not allowed on the couches (without a person) or TV (which isn't that difficult).

Also, if your grey knows he's going to get a tastier treat at some point- he won't eat what isn't as good (if he's not hungry)... I mean, look at it from a human perspective. Would you eat beets if you knew that before bedtime you were going to get french fries? They are super smart. Perhaps just switching it up a bit will help? ooooor, maybe he's just bored and wants to drive you crazy!

Haha, I do love it. I laugh everytime he says it. Now, if only he would say "I love you too!" Ah well....

Had to share.... The other day, My husband, his cousin, and I were sitting outside on the back porch (right outside the back door- which is probably about 10 feet from Sully's cage). We were all talking, and I heard Sully chit chatting away to himself. I poked my head inside, and Sully is on the floor of his cage, calling the cat, (click click click sounds). Our youngest cat strolled over to him, and sat about, oh... 3 inches from his cage. Sully then said "Gizmo!". I was in shock that he identified her because we have three cats, and until now, he's just clicked at them. Anyway, I got my husband, came inside and said "Sully, call the kitty!" and He looked me dead in the face and said "I don't think so." WHAT?!!??! Sully has never said more than one or two words at a time, much less used them in context. I laughed so hard, that now he says it everytime I talk to him. Mr. Attitude.

**Unless of course that's the only food you give him for a large portion of his diet- then I would perhaps try a different brand?

Sully sometimes just gets tired of eating the pellets... kind of like a kid would get tired of eating broccoli, I suppose. Maybe skip giving it to him for a day or two? It won't hurt to miss the pellets for a couple of days, and he may start to miss them

Very impressed! Those look great! And I love the idea about the different colors!

How sad Getting her to the vet can probably wait until Monday, providing she doesn't have any more. Since she has had them in the past, it's important to let your vet know that this isn't a new thing. Hopefully he will be able to find a cause A little suggestion... until Monday, put something soft at the bottom of her cage so if she does have another one, and she falls, she won't hurt herself

Dougal is ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL! Those baby eyes get me every time Love the name as well!

I agree with everything Dave said!! Good job, Dave !

Hi Corey! We live in Baltimore! Glad to see someone else from MD here!

Bear that's adorable!!!!!!!! Sully doesn't like other birds My hubby really wants cockatoo as well, but the noise just isn't something we can have living in an apartment Hopefully when we move next year, we'll be able to get one. Rosebreasted's are beautiful! We're looking at U2's and Goffins

I've always quarentined my new birds for 30 days before allowing them to come in contact with any of my birds. Also, a vet check for the new bird is always a good idea anytime you bring a new bird in the house To introduce them, I usually put their cages within viewing distance of each other after the quarentine period, and just let them check each other out for a few days. At that point, I do one of two things. I either move their cages closer (but far enough that beaks and feet can't touch through the bars) and just let them chit chat, OR I'll open both cages and take one of the birds over to visit. Only you know your birds, so whichever you think would work best, try it. But make sure you are in arms reach of either bird just in case, and I would only introduce one bird at a time, so maybe your grey first, then the quaker. It's a long process, but well worth it to have a peaceful house Overall, make sure it's a smooth transition, and feel free to give your new bird lots of love and time out too! Just make sure to really wash your hands before going to your other birds until after that OK from the vet. Oh! And maybe hanging a picture of your grey and quaker near the Amazon's cage so they are familiar looking to him when they do meet? I don't know, just a suggestion :) And, if you can get the Amazon's current cage, it's best to bring him home in that old cage, and wait a little bit til he's comfortable to put him in his new cage. It must be a lot of stress to leave your person you've known so long, to go with another nice person to a house with new sounds and new birds... keeping his cage will give him some familiarity Can't wait to see pictures!

When we got Sully, he used to lay on his back and my husband used to freak out because he thought it was a hole... I guess he never noticed it on the smaller birds, lol

I used to breed lovebirds and because of that, I would never consider even thinking about breeding Sully... You either get a pet or breeder, not both. What I meant by when, is what time of year? I know lovebirds usually breed in the very early spring, and was wondering if the same was for greys? Just to know for future reference when Sully starts acting a little crazy I love reading the Memo to Parker & Pepper myself! It's one of the things I read to Sully. Parker and Pepper and Sully have a lot of the same quirks, and I often find myself comparing

Thanks Dave. I noticed that about Bird Talk too... it is a lot of advertising but I do enjoy the few articles and random contests and such. Plus, Sully likes looking at the "centerfold" bird of the month, lol. I thought that the warm foods part was going a bit far, but I agree with the certain cuddling. Our Nanday is downright NASTY right now, even biting my husband (who is his favorite) yesterday twice on the neck. It was a MESS. Anyway, when is mating season for Greys? Does it vary bird to bird?

Does anyone have a subscription to Bird Talk? They had an article this month about hormonal changes around this time of year. I read some things in the article that I hadn't heard before, and I wanted to see what everyone thought. The first thing that jumped out at me in the article is that simply petting or cuddling your bird during their mating season can trigger extra hormones that make the bird want to mate. None of my birds seem to be affected by extra cuddling, but I'm wondering is anyone elses? Another thing the article touched on is the fact that feeding warm foods to your bird during mating season could trigger hormonal changes in your bird, that could result in your bird being less pleasant. I've never thought of that and I'm wondering if it could be true. The article doesn't seem to suggest owners stop feeding warm foods during this time, but I'm wondering if it would be beneficial to use it in the opposite direction. Our Nanday is NASTY right now because of his mating season. He'll probably be like this the next few weeks, and go back to being, well... less nasty. Anyway, I'm wondering if anyone has to take some kind of measure to avoid a hormonal bird. Sully hasn't reached sexual maturity, but it's going to happen sooner or later, and I'm just trying to figure out if around mating season I should cool down the warm foods, allow him to play more on his own, and cuddle less during the few weeks or month he will eventually be feeling "the change" of the year. I certainly don't want to cause any extra aggressiveness during mating season. Any thoughts?

K9nurse- Kids have a GREAT imagination! Zoom, so glad Simon likes his tough toy Those wiffles usually don't last Sully very long either! I usually give him two or three, and they seem to last longer than three given to him individually because he spends more time trying to keep them together than chewing on them!

Sully changes favorite toys almost weekly. I made this for JBS Bird Toys a couple of weeks ago, and he didn't really want much to do with it... until I gave one to Joe, our Nanday. Then, Sully wanted it! lol Anyway, just wanted to share it ... well, this is what it looked like before he got to it... Oh! And before it got sanded down to get those marks off it I get so excited when I make a cool toy I take pictures before it's done! lol

Ever since I wrote this, I've been trying different types of music... He LOVES Reggae, Country music... no waaaay. Lol, he doesn't seem to like the guitar noise. However, our new little parakeet Fred does!

I play music pretty continuously throughout the day while I work. Everything from R&B to Disney Songs. I've found that Sully has a preference for some music and FREEZES when other music comes on. This morning, he was jamming out to Lil' Wayne.. bobbing his head and beatboxing, and then The Little Mermaid song came on, and he LOVED it... woo'ed over and over and danced! But then Poor Taylor Swift came on-- he poked his head up as high as it would go, and froze! lol He stayed like that through the entire song, and when Hakuna Matata came on, he started dancing and "wooo!"ing again! lol too funny Does anyone else's grey prefer some music over another?

Wiffle balls, chunks of wood, and bottle caps are great toys! Just make sure anything you Get from a yardsale or thrift store is a newer toy, as some older toys have lead and other dangerous things in them Oh- and greys live to chew-- get him some chunks of pine and drill a hole in them and put them on a string!

This was absolutely adorable!!!!!! I love when they get in their rare forms like this! It's amazing! Hope this happens again for you!

Sully will not preen-- and his feathers are starting to look really rough- they are ratty at the edges and a lot of his wing feathers are stringy... He gets a bath nearly everyday- and he will just let himself dry- without moving a feather or preening. I have never had a bird who wouldnt preen. Any ideas on how to get him to do it?