Kim65

ROTFL Yes, "defensive of his bells", that is exactly right!! He frequently knocks his favorite bell to the floor and expects me to pick it up for him but when I try and secure it he forgets I'm helping him and is overcome with the fear that I am now playing with HIS bell. Hey, I get a little testy about some of my favorite things too It's hard to stay logical when my son shows me how much my pet bantam chicken "loves" to play "dead chicken" by lying on her back in his hand. I actually feel like biting his hand too, so I get it, Axel

I leave Axel's cage open 24/7. It has a play top and is festooned with toys inside and out (including hanging from the ceiling). Originally he was the gentleman, NEVER bit me, he was gentle and trustworthy around my face and lips. Always raised his foot to step up. Then one day about two weeks in, he bit my lip a little bit hard. Then I leaned toward him on his perch (his open cage door is his favorite perch) and he bit my nose so hard it bled. I started reading immediately about biting parrots (while feeling SO disappointed, I was sure I didn't have a biter) and used a technique where I had him step up, "take the bite" (thus my second injury ) and then do a dominance thing with him where he had to step up over and over until he stopped biting. In this bit of advice I read, I also learned that parrots are sensitive to facial expressions and to give him a very dirty look when he bites. I have been VERY reluctant to handle him since. I force myself to. But I also respect that he seems quite happy to come to me when he wishes and interacts with me just fine otherwise.

Another member here. Axel buttered me up for the first two weeks after I brought him home and then decided he was staying after all and that it was time to show me how things were gonna operate. DON'T walk up to him on his perch and stick your face in his. He had the decency to bite the side of my nostril where it doesn't show too much. DO NOT touch his bells. No exceptions. They are his bells. If he drops on on the floor, distract him with a pecan and then replace the bell. Or else. We're gonna work on that one. He has also bitten my pet goose Petey Peters (who comes in the house at night). Petey weighs 20 pounds, and could make thirteen Axels, but Petey doesn't tangle with Axel any more. The small hole in Petey's bill is responding very nicely to Bacitracin Axel even has the dog on the defense. No, they have not tangled, it is a war of dirty looks at this point. The dog is fed up with dirty looks from Petey, and now Axel too? It's a lot for a dog to take.

Bran, that second website is fantastic! I have gone over and over the parrot body language lists, and can see that Axel was telling me to back off, I was invading his space. That he ALSO steps up and responds positively to me tells me he's not got terrible behavioral issues. It's more that I have them , by not reading him correctly.

I am new to greys, and bought a 16 year old fellow I named Axel the day after Christmas. He immediately came to me and stuck his beak in my mouth and nose and ears, and was very very sweet to me. A week ago, he started biting me (hard) and left a couple of nasty owies, one on my nose and one on my hand. My feelings were crushed. Thanks to the folks here I realized he is 16 and set in his ways. So I sat back and watched, and Axel prefers to come to ME when he wants to, and he does now and then. He's excited and happy to see me, but I let him call the shots when it comes to affection or handling. Within reason (on the handling). I bought a pair of cheap flesh colored leather gloves so he could chomp my finger and I wouldn't yank my hand away and could work with him by giving him a dirty look. Yelling in pain apparently pleases him . So we are still in the "getting to know you" phase, and at his age, he knows what he likes. I have my grey (a LONG time wish) and he is teaching me what he's all about. I don't worry if he likes me or not because he DID accept me right away. He just prefers me to not maul him or invade his space too much

Thank you Judy I was trying to pay a lot of attention to him (as I believed he would want, being a grey and all). I don't think he wants it. Now that I'm stepping back and analyzing, he seems independent. He acknowledges me, we "converse", but I think he wants me to leave him alone LOL. That's fine with me, he's right here in the living area (I have a very large studio) and his cage is near the day bed where I relax or sleep. Both times he bit me I was standing near his cage and was higher up than him. He didn't fluff his feathers but put his head down and looked at me intensely. It seemed like he was saying BACK OFF. Today he crawled down the cage and walked along the furniture until he was on the couch with me. So he can approach me if he wants to One thing I seriously doubt is coincidence . . . when I am undressed, he wolf whistles. No other time does he do that. It's doing WONDERS for my self esteem

Yes, thank you very much. He was so gentle for a while, but he was just being polite as he got to know me. He seems very independent. He does not demand attention from me at all, but when I leave and come back, he dances and lifts his wings and whistles in greeting. Well, he does ask to "share" food I am eating, and if it is appropriate I will share it with him. He makes a microwave sound *DINK!!* that tells me he's ready for the next bite . I am a complete newbie with parrots and just love him and want him to be happy as he is. I'll respect his well entrenched personality And keep my facial structures away from that beak, arg

As I was warned , Axel is now beginning to display his true self. I've had him since the day after Christmas, and he is about sixteen years old. His cage is in the living area with me, and when I am home, he is always with me. He sits on the open door of his cage and now that there are some interesting toys in the upper play area, he perches up there too. He will turn inside out for any kind of bell. His favorite toy cost 1.99 and is a simple metal bell, which he takes in his beak and rings. All the more expensive toys, foraging toys, foot play toys . . . ha. Anyway, from the moment I first picked him up, he stuck his beak in my mouth and nose and was very gentle. I was mildly apprehensive but got over that quickly. Then one day he bit down hard enough on my lip to create a sore spot and growled a little. He was pretty stimulated, I think, having his head scratched and sitting with me on the couch, he's not in his most comfy zone (prefers the open door of his cage). After that, I was quite apprehensive about him sticking his beak near my face. Then, he bit my finger pretty hard and barely broke the skin when I put him back in his cage. He was riding my finger and bit me. Last night, as I walked past him (up on his cage door) I leaned toward him and he bit my nose SO HARD it bled. I have a red nostril and it feels bruised (looks bruised too). I did not yell or react much but stood there trying not to howl and said "I'm gonna pretend that didn't happen." This morning, he'd gotten his favorite bell wrapped around the bars and I was unwrapping it for him. I'd read about parrot biting and from what I read, I perceived he was picking up on my apprehension perhaps, so when he bit me REAL HARD, breaking the skin and leaving a beak shaped indentation in the web of my thumb, I stuck my finger under him and said UP!! and made him do UP!! over and over again like a ladder until he just obeyed and stopped trying to bite. This was a technique I read about on line this morning. Axel is healthy, he does not pluck his feathers, he eats well, his poop looks normal. I am pretty inexperienced here and can only figure he is reacting to my anxiety. I have had him bite me good and jerked my hand away and shouted OW!! Which I understand a parrot LOVES, now. It is SO HARD to not pull my hand away from that beak, let me tell you. So I'm guessing he's biting due to domination type things? His previous owner had him for about a month, and said he was rehoming him because Axel "nipped" his ear and then seemed afraid of him afterward. He felt bad, and thought Axel didn't like him and wanted Axel to be "happy" with someone he did like. I have a funny feeling that Axel CHOMPED this guys ear and he did a little more than put Axel back in his cage gently. So like you all said, his true colors are coming out and I have a bitey Grey. I've done quite a bit of reading, and don't really know yet what kind of questions about his environment that could contribute to this I should be asking. I hope that makes sense. I thought the experienced folks here could ask the right questions and perhaps help me come up with a better picture and some more ideas on how to work with him.

So I had this quiet, polite and timid grey for about a week. I've had Axel now for a week and a half, and he's decided to show me some of his stuff. Some is exciting and exactly why I wanted a grey for so many years. The rest of it is what I expected . Axel hates to go back in his cage. He prefers to sit on the open cage door, or to crawl all over his cage like Spider Man (it's one of those california cages). He has toys on top and inside, some are new but all the familiar stuff is still in there. He plays happily in his cage, but putting him in there indicates that I am going to work. That means I get bitten pretty sharply, almost enough to break the skin. Am I going in the right direction to save a special treat or toy for going inside his cage willingly? I verbally cue him (lol) by saying OWW!!! (no problem getting that out). He is eating pellets just fine, which surprised me, but of course prefers his fruit, corn on the cob, salt free crackers, hates broccolli. So today he dumped his food dish and threw the empty corn cob at me. He puts his head down for a scritch but then he gets a funny look on his face, and bites me, not very hard but like he's showing frustration, like, DO SOMETHING!!!! No panting, but I'm wondering if he's getting too aroused? I don't have his body language down yet, it's just a sense I get from him, and knowing that this is something that happens. He's not snuggly, and I'm not petting him along, just the back of his neck for a few pets at a time. He's teaching me much more than I'm teaching him, which I figure is about right for these first few weeks. Also, it seems important to begin setting limits with him, letting him now how I expect him to behave. Which is not much right now, except for the chomps.

I played the trumpet in highschool and it made it so I cannot whistle very well. Nor am I a fount of interesting noises. Axel and I go back and forth and he must think I am a bit retarded, or at least very untalented. I ordered him some toys from Amazon and one of them is an electronic toy he should be able to push buttons on to make various sounds and words. I've downloaded some interesting free soundbytes for him to listen to as well. He rivets on them, unlike my own pathetic attempts. Anyone ever feel inadequate around their grey ??

Not yet Chezron. He had wings and nails clipped a couple of weeks ago, but I need to take him in for a physical/well bird check. My avian vet, who I've used for a duck and a goose will be back in the office next week. I should make that appointment right now while I'm thinking of it.

YAYYYY!!! THank you every one I am like the next person, I don't want TROUBLE. I just want him to be happy and healthy and for him to feel good. I am very comforted by your words, even the ones that tell me to be careful what I wish for and hold onto my butt That's fine, I'm ready, my favorite pets are my pet geese and they are deeply annoying and demanding (and painful). It's good to hear you say he seems to be adjusting well to a new owner. In a way, he can drive me crazy all he wants (I'll be back to eat my words I'm sure), I just want him to be OK.

I've had Axel now for three days. He seems to be awfully mellow, compared to what I was expecting. He sits on the open door of his cage, and whistles and makes electronic noises (and says his old name), but mostly he sits quietly. Four out of five times, when I reach up for him, he steps up and sits on the couch with me. He'll chew my shirt or cautiously check around but in a bit wants to go back up to his perch on his cage door. He taught me how to scratch his head yesterday, and is very alert and interactive when I talk to him, or bring him over to me. I live in a large studio with a loft, so he is always with me while I'm here, he can even see me in the bathroom . He eats well, his poop looks normal, his feathers are good. He's just . . . quiet LOL. He sits there by himself not acting as crazy and demanding as I expected. Is he just reserved for now, being in a new environment? Maybe I just got myself all ready for a tasmanian devil for nothing If anything, I wonder if he just wasn't stimulated a whole lot. Maybe I'm just worrying for nothing. Does he just sound like the new kid on the block or are there some very undemanding and mellow greys? Should I take him to a vet if he's too quiet lol?

I will get my camera from the daughters and get some pictures. Thanks for the warm welcome He has been pretty quiet and sweet. Very interactive, but I gueses I expected much worse. He's teaching me how to pet his head, and of the power of his beak. I hope to be a very attentive student.

So far, he loves blueberries (enough to figure out how to grip them without them squirting out of his hand while eating them), and really loves macaroni and cheese. I only gave him four or five noodles, but he started dinging like a microwave between the second and third one to indicate he was ready for the next one. He has never had his wings clipped until three weeks ago, and is very unsure of himself. Also had his nails clipped and I can feel his lack of confidence. He's also jumpy, I picked up a small stick and he panicked and tumbled off the couch. We'll just have to keep things low key for a while, though around this place, low key doesn't last long. So far he is very mellow, very very gentle with his beak. I'm sure this is in part because he is unsure. Axel is making it easy on me