GandalfGreybird

love the warm bottle idea. i have a quilted cover (interior made out of a waterproof boat cover) but wasn't sure what to do for continuous heat. I'm also looking at iGo or ZipCar anyway for groceries, trips to the hardwar/camera store etc.

My grey Gandalf is just over a year old. He's very cuddly, steps up well, etc. the problem is he's never been too confident on flat surfaces, the floor, or any perch that isn't at least chest high. What steps can I take to make him more confident not being on m 24/7 out of the cage and being comfortable on flat surfaces. I'm also interested in teaching him to come/fly to me as much as before his flight feathers come back in. If there are any threads already started on the topics that I've missed feel free to point me in that direction instead. I'm sure ther is one for the "come" command, stay, etc. Thanks all!

Hey all I just wanted to update you. I've since moved to the city. I live in northern Chicago, work in Skokie, and go to school down in the loop (downtown). I found a good clear, vertical carrier and had a friend make a cover for it. Like the last commenter sai people mostly keep to themselves on the CTA. I've seena few small carriers for small dogs and cats etc. I do still have my carand so far Ive just used that when I have to take Gandalf places. Now that he's used to and fine with that I may try the CTA this summer. The biggest thing over this winter was the weather. Chicago can get pretty cold (and windy of course). Even though this winter was extremely mild for the most part, and I have a "windbreaker" cover for his carrier I still didn't take him on CTA for a couple reasons: 1) the wait time between transferring busses or trains can commonly be between 10-20 minutes. Even with the mild weathe most days it was still well below 50 or 60 degrees. 2) less detrimentally the CTA rarely drops you off directly outside your destination. Not a problem for us, but means more time in the cold for our friends. Lastly CTA obviously takes quite a bit longer. What is a 15 min drive to work can be 45 min up to a 2 hour CTA trip on the weekends. Now that's a particularly extreme example, but something you definitely have to be aware of: time/day can drastically effect transit time, and your little guy has to be ok chilling in his carrier.

thanks for the tip. Though that's not really the problem I'm having. I can't really change his whole diet on him right now, or that quickly. I'm just trying to figure out how to get him to eat all of the food I have for him (what he's been on). Eventually I'll probably transition him over to something like Harrison's or Lafeber's for his pellet, and veggies and fruit etc with a few seeds mixed in.

Hey all, I know this subject has to have come up many times before but I'm not seeing it directly addressed, and sunflower is too common a word to search for effectively. My 4 mo old CAG weaned himself at the breeders. I brought him home and though he will eat most "treats" I give him (applesauce, juice, bread, squash,etc) it seems that when it comes to eating on his own in the cage he will only pick out the sunflower seeds. The food I have him on, which is the same that the breeder had him on, is a bag of Exact Rainbow and a seed mix. The problem is the seed mix has a decent percentage of sunflower seeds. I'm curious as to if I make food a regularly scheduled event, in limited quantities, and for limited time if he will start eating more of everything? The only reason I hesitate to try this is as some of you may have seen in the health forum he'd gotten into some detergent just before I brought him home (Monday) causing a slight topical infection/irritation. I don't want to put him at any more points of risk than necessary right now until he's properly settled in and get this cleared up. On a further note the vet tech and dr. Both said he was a little on the heavy side. Not overweight, just heavier than average. My Breeder says she typically likes to send them home that way in the event that they fluctuate weight in their new environment, they have some leeway. For now I'm going to try the limited time and quantity on a schedule approach and see how it goes.

thanks all! Irie: i was surprised too, but the vet said its not so uncommon to start so early. I've been playing Sesame Street off of their YouTube channel this week. I've got a thread i'm updating on my experience with this tech experiment over in Grey Lounge if you're interested in more or how to do it.

Update: This has actually been working pretty great! I was originally using my iPhone, but now have an iPad and its even better. I'll use LogMeIn to wake up the computer so Gandalf can see me on his display (sometimes make his view of me fullscreen). I've also been using LogMeIn to play videos periodically off of YouTube. This weeks selection is classic videos off of Sesame Street's channel. It's great because with the combination allows me to observe how he's reacting to the videos i play in my "absence." It's been an invaluable tool since he's not even been home a week in combination with the laundry detergent incident (and the resulting irritation, medication, and stress) I've been able to check in and see if he's playing with toys active as opposed to sleeping all day (indicating hhis health might be at risk).

Goin to wait on the wash. Got him in at the vet for this afternoon before work! *Whew*

perfect. thanks for the info. Good thing i brought my car

any suggestions for what kinds to use? anything at walgreens/cvs? would the aloe juice bath be derived from the gel? or something different?

Other reason I'm nervous is I'm not sure how soon I'll be able to get a vet appointment.

So I finally got to bring my baby grey home. Unfortunatley just before I came to pick him up he had managed to get Ito some laundry detergent. The breeder washed him off with some bird spray (on a towl and wiped). Though it seems she missed a spot in his armpit and he's plucked a few feathers. I've since washed him best I can. I'm just nervous because the spot is red and irritated. He doesn't seem to be messing with it anymore (that Ive noticed) and is as relaxed and comfortable as can be. Any suggestions? Should I be as worried as I am? I still need to take him in for his new-bird-I-just-brought-home exam anyway. I'm just paranoid it'll turn into something habitual.

No need to sell me on flighted, I can't wait till the clipped feathers are replaced. The concern at the store is it's a busy place and the playgym being by the oft open door, we didn't want him to go make friends with all the Midwest raptors outside. I guess I just want to make the transition back to flighted as smooth and quality as possible.

Hey all, Bring my grey home sunday. He(she)'s about 4 months old. I asked the breeder to leave him flighted with the caveat of safety. After the third time he tried to fly into the closed glass door, she clipped him. Now I'd rather have him safe than flighted, and being in a pet store can cause some issues with flight. At least he got a week or two of being fully flighted before he was clipped the first time. Now that I'll have him at home it'll be a more easily controlled environment to accommodate a flighted bird. In the mean time I'm looking for advice from those of you with flighted birds. Specifically, are there any habits/behaviours for myself or my grey I should be watching out for that might not be an issue when clipped but are when flighted? I'd like to develop good habits for the long haul. Any advice will be much appreciated! Thanks!

Hey all, Just thought I'd share a couple cool little things I recently set up in preparation of bringing home my CAG. 1) LogMeIn LogMeIn is a service that lets you log into your computer remotely from another computer or many mobile devices (iPhone, iPad, and many Android devices). I'm planning on utilizing this to play media content for my guys when I'm gone at school or work. The advantage here is I can maintain a wide variety of selection, and I don't have to have it just playing all day or not at all. LogMeIn is a paid service for many features, but they do have a free version which is perfectly suited for this situation, which is what i'll be using. No audio from the remote computer, but thats ok. The iPhone/iPad app is a little pricey at $29, but it works great and is definitely one of the best ones out there for this type of thing. Works on both PC and Mac. 2) Private Skype account My previous room-mate used to chat with his fiancé via Skype the nights of the week she was away at school. Their B&G understood that it was momma, but never quite got why she was so small or disappeared when she turned sideways. This one wasn't as straight forward and took a little knowledge of features Skype has but aren't necessarily on the surface. I'll walk you through it for those interested 1- Created a new Skype account for your birds 2- In your Skype preferences, • Under general make sure "automatically accept incoming files" is unchecked. • Under privacy set all options to "contacts." Ex: Allow calls from = Contacts. - This keeps it private. Only those you've added can call this account. Important for the next step. • Under Calls set "Incoming Calls" to "Answer Automatically." Make sure "Start video automatically at the beginning of a call" is checked. - This lets Skype answer a video call without anyone having to be at the computer. This is why it was important to set everything to "contacts only" in the previous step. You don't want strangers or spam-bots calling you automatically. 3- Under your Profile (click on the little blue mystery man or the profile picture you chose, alternatively it should also be found under File>Edit Profile) • This section is optional, but there are a few more options able to be set for privacy - I have "show i have X contacts" unchecked, and no information filled out. - Underneath the picture I also have "Visible to my contacts" chosen. 4- Add your main Skype account, or any skype accounts you wish to be able to call your birds. • Keep in mind these accounts will be able to essentially turn on your webcam whenever they want (provided your computer is awake). *Disclaimer* Be careful who you're adding to this. I do not claim to be an expert in all the ins and outs of Skype. I've listed here everything I can find in it that regards to privacy and making it as hidden as possible. The goal being to make a "private number" to call home. If you're ever unsure or in doubt, simply log out of this account or close Skype. I thought there was an option somewhere to set who can even search for you in the Skype directory, but couldn't find it again. I anyone has any further suggestions please feel free to add them. By using LogMeIn to wake up/unlock my computer I can now video call my little guys at home whenever I want from another computer, or more commonly my iPhone.

Will do. I'm writing a post on how i set up the remote computer access right now. Just taking a minute so i can make sure i have -all- the important steps. I do it second nature and don't have to think about half of it.

cool I've set up my computer so i can play videos, music etc remotely when i'm out of the house. I also set up a skype account that will auto answer so i can video chat with him on lunch etc. I'm curious to see if i can teach him to use the voice command features of OS X (Mac operating system) to play from selection of media on his own too. Technology and birds: two of my favorite things

so cool! definitely a good one there. Be proud that he's becoming comfortable enough to venture down to the floor and encouraging you to let him explore the house.

thanks Judy. I'm so glad I waited for this one regardless of what sex he turns out to be (though I'll be a little bummed I can't name him Gandalf if it's a girl). Incredibly friendly and seems to be smart for his age too. Talking sooner and weaned earlier and faster than most of the other birds she's ever had. Four months is early for talking right? She told me today on the phone that her daughter loves him and usually can't stand the birds once they get a little order. Sunday can't come soon enough!

just for my grey (not cages etc) I paid $1000 with tax. Pretty great deal if i say so. I know there's a chain pet store that sold my old room-mate his B&G for just over $2000 "on sale" yet my grey breeder only sells her for 1400-1600. Just make sure to do your homework on how they're raised and where they're coming from. I found some breeders that were a couple hundred less than the one I decided on, but passed them over because they could hardly tell me anything about baby development, what they did for socialization, etc. Sometimes a little extra money is worth the better upbringing. That said, $1800 for a breeder that refuses to leave the wings sounds a little steep and would throw up a few flags for me personally. I'm always wary of breeders of anything that are hardline "my way or the highway." You may be in a more expensive market though, can't say. I asked my breeder to leave my baby's wings for as long as possible with the caviate that if he was getting into too much trouble to go ahead and clip. Which of course he did. I don't mind so much though because at least he got a couple weeks of flight, which i've been told/read will make him a little less clumsy overall. Adoption can be fantastic, just make sure you pair yourself with a bird that you know what your'e getting into with. The higher your training competency, the more challenging bird you'll be able to "rehabilitate." Adopting a bird with bad habits that are way beyond your ability to handle and correct isn't doing either of you any favors.

I'll be bringing him(we think its a him, just waiting on test results) this sunday. Heres a video from when my parents dropped off the carrier for him to get acclimated. Hes only about 4 months old and since this video a week ago he's started saying "Are you a good boy?" "Hello," and one other three word phrase the breeder couldn't remember. I think it sounds like he's trying to say "Pretty bird" (right after my mom says "good boy," work in progress) in this video. Last I was there, a week or two ago, the breeder said he used to solicit food from older birds, and had currently given that up but started feeding the baby cockatiels (which he loves). I'm really hoping that he continues to love food, thus making him super food motivated. That would be great for training!

Barbara: I'm still considering one of those down the road (get it?! Down the road! Bwahahaha) for biking/hiking. We'll see how this one does first. I chose this one because it can serve as an afternoon/overnight roost if need be.

Oh no! Ignorant people. I miss rats. Maybe I'll get my GF acclimated to them someday and I can have more. Yeah he'll have to get used to the carrier period at home first.

Thanks for the input Eshana. I've called the CTA Office and they said essentially the same thing for carrier animals. Thigh I don't think we have the luxury of dogs even muzzled, unless they're service. As for the blanket the carrier jackets I had made are made out of an old boat cover. Will that do? I also don't want to be responsible for little fingers poking at beaks.

Ah, yeah Chicago's train system is only subway for a short section downtown on certain lines. It's mostly El(evated). If I did take him on the train it would only be on the open air above ground sections anyway. There's no real reason for me to bring him downtown. Not often anyway. That's a big reason I had cage jackets made: to wrap him up and obstruct his view of all the business if need be. I can also take the bus anywhere as well, though it'll mean longer transit rides with a lot more people and starts and stops. Of course I'll take all this very gradually and start with walks, short trips just down the block, etc.