FirstPenguin

With Greys you're picking between two very similar sub-species. Picking a macaw is like picking a dog, there are so many more different kinds and their personalities differ quite a bit from what I've read. You could end up with a newfoundland size Hyacinth or a terrier size Hahns. So when you say macaw, what kind are you thinking?

Just found this post. Enjoyed it immensely. I've taken Metra and CTA many times. I'm a product of the Chicago burbs and visit family and the city of Chicago at least once a year if not more. I also reside in Manhattan currently. We never take underground transportation that you have to wait underground for the sole reason of the air quality. Who knows what fumes are building up down there. It's funky down there, especially in New York. The air quality in cities is questionable for parrots as it is. We also never use our soft sided carrier in crowded areas. I've been shoved too many times to take the risk of our fids carrier being pressed between me and some inconsiderate idiot. During cold months we insulate a snapple bottle full of recently boiled water and strap it down in the carrier which has a quilted cover. Works like a charm. We generally spend about 1-2 hours before we reach our usual destinations via commuter train outside the city. It works great for that.

She must have gotten a bunch of treats. She looks very content in that picture.

Thanks for sharing this story. My girlfriend and I talked at length about a dog, but could never settle on a breed because we're in a city and I grew up with big 100+ pound newfoundlands and couldn't see myself with a yapper that fits in a duffel bag. My girlfriend knew nothing about parrots, she didn't even know they were social pets you could handle like dogs. Long story short we ended up with a our first parrot a senegal (almost got a TAG). Three years later she refers to herself as a "bird lady" and can't imagine a day with out her bird. We're also waiting for our first Grey to fully wean. Point is, if your significant other is open to it I think you'll have a good chance of converting him. EDIT: My girlfriend would like me to add that she is a "crazy bird lady" not just a bird lady, and that she is planning to get our Sennie tattooed on her.

Our flighted Senegal can land anywhere. She can hook herself to top of the door, while it's closed. Pretty much anything that sticks out more than 3 mm from the wall is fair game as a place to land. Point being, we use long rope perches with the wires in them to retrieve her. I imagine if you attached one to a pole it and taught her to step up on it you could get her down that way. The rope perches are especially good for this since they're super easy to grip. I can spin them around my head and our Sennie just holds on for the ride.

I'm getting a fledgling later this month from a breeder in the Dallas area who I've read good things about and is one of the few that I've contacted that has a positive attitude about selling birds un-clipped. She keeps all her companion birds flighted and has an aviary that she socializes greys with other species. Her current clutch is spoken for. http://www.wendysparrots.com/

I'm not sure if this is toy snuggling but, our Senegal loves rubbing her face on toys especially on her get a grip net which has a great consistency. Sometimes she rubs her face on the rope, stretches her body along it, and then will hold there for a while. She also will attack a bell from below and then let it graze her head as if it's petting her.

That's an impressive setup you have. Glad to see you going all in.

I've met Mark Hagen, he's really nice and was giving out whole bags of food or selling them really cheap at a lecture he did. I personally keep two kinds pellets mixed together as her staple.

I think she's referring to a 6 year old human, as in, a 6 year old human can't fend for it's self or fly but a grey in the wild could.

Found them online, the companies canadian do ship to the US or have a US distributor?

Did you make that climbing net? Get-A-Grip nets are hard to come by so I'd be interested in learning how to make one.

Thanks for the pics. How does your Senegal behave around your grey and visa versa? Which did you get first? We have a 3 year old senegal and are about to get a grey.

Thanks for the kind words. I started slowly with Evie when she was less than a year old. Since then she has bonded fully to my girlfriend. She is the only one capable of handling her like this. Luckily I can still handle her on some level and she still likes to be on my shoulder or knee when she's sleepy, or I'm the only one aroud. She's also fully flighted and fully aware of it, so it's safe to say she wants to be there. I liked that you were able to observer from the video her body language. When she's really relaxed she'll relax her feathers like she's ready for a nap.

I was only referring to Bird Toy Outlet because they appear to sell the brand, but thanks for the opinion. I mainly was looking for any user experience with the brand Liberty Cages.

Sorry, it was more a joke about the contrasting politics in Arizona. Backwards, doesn't imply less education, just different. I'm ready to move on to other forums some days. The politics on this forum make it hard to get what I hope to get out of a forum like this. People can be down right mean and offensive, including those who are moderators. I would expect better from them. You're not helping the animals these people have hostage by insulting the people who will go off and get bad advice elsewhere. Some will go where they hear what they want to hear. Those can't be helped. Others might listen if people are more patient and not be driven off by insulting language. I know I've been guilty of it but it's something I try manage. That's my pet peeve.

I worry about un-branded or retailer branded cages and would be curious to hear peoples opinions. Un-branded products can be sourced anywhere and the retailers have a less direct relationship with the factories which I think is much of the stuff you find on ebay. I would hope, that something branded like kings cage would have consistent quality and would quality control the products and factories they deal with and periodically test the products for trace chemicals that could be harmful to our fids.

I hope to eventually get to this point with the grey we're getting. This video isn't a grey, but I'm quite proud of this video becasue it took a long time to document what has been dubbed "flippies." Basically our senegal likes being on her back and will flip over and expect you to catch her when it suits her. We have plenty of video of her on her back but it's really hard to predict when she'll suddenly flop over.

It's interesting that many people here mention there CAGs starting to talk between 6-12 months when everything you read says they shouldn't start till 12-18 months old for CAGs.

Thanks, for the input. I think we're going to go with a more traditional kings cage, but this concept does interest me because longer rather than taller cages are supposedly better for greys.

Bueller?

Great pics. I like the rope netting on the playgym did ou make that or buy it? If so where?

Daves got a point, especially about how they vetted advertisers. I'm guessing a certain air filter company will loose all the business they've been getting through their full page adds. I do have some nostalgia for it since I got into birds at a very young age and would leaf through there magazines quite a bit back before the internet when there really wasn't a ton of easily accessible literature. Sometimes I'd just look at pictures. Let's just admit, we're all going to miss the centerfold. As weak as the writing was they had decent photography.

Has anyone heard of this liberty cage company? Their website looks 20 years old. Bird Toy Outlet has some very reasonable stainless steel cages for sale and their website has some powder coated as well. Something about it seems too good to be true. Thoughts? http://www.birdtoyoutlet.com/SearchResult.aspx?KeyWords=liberty http://libertycage.com/

Done. Shared it on Facebook.