JeffNOK

I think your skype idea is a good one. I understand your feelings and fears. I haven't left Gracie yet, but the day will come. I have no doubt that Brutus will miss you, but I think he will be fine. Once you are home he might be moody for a bit. But you will find your stride.

I think I may have created a monster. A few weeks ago when I was housesitting for my parents, Gracie would bark and call over their Toy Fox Terrier and throw her food bowl on the floor to feed him. I admit I thought it was cute and Gracie picked up on that. Now Gracie is throwing food and toys with abandon! For breakfast I usually give her mixed veggies and a little bit of egg white-not the yolks. She loves the egg. Well one morning I gave her just veggies. Well diva Gracie searched around for the egg and finding none--she tossed her food bowl on the floor. I collected the veggies, put them back in the bowl and returned it to her. She eyed me, and then with defiance threw the bowl three times farther with a big Sqwawk! Now whenever she is finished with her food, she eyes me and throws her bowl. In addition, she now has figured out how to unscrew the fasteners on her hanging toys, She twists the clasp until it unlocks. Then she she lifts the toys off the hooks and drops the toys--sometimes flinging them like her food. What should I do? I mean, I can't leave food and toys strewn across the floor, but I suspect Gracie gets a kick out of me coming to put things back in place. She even does this more if I leave the room. In the morning during breakfast if I dare to leave the room, I immediately hear--"Crash--clang clang". I return to find a mess I have to clean up. I know I am reinforcing the behavior, but I can't just leave food and toys littering the floor. What adds insult to injury is that after she throws things she keeps saying.."Step up Step up!" It's like I am her servant. I am frustrated but also impressed. I mean she knows how to work me. She is almost one year old and behaves almost idenitically to a one year old human child throwing food from the high-chair. Ugh...

engaging--daring--comical--attention seeking--problem solver--adorable--reserved

If your bird allows neck rubs from hubby--things can't be that bad.

Lol--quite an argument!

Ru is a cutie pie!

Today Gracie gave me the biggest laugh, and I just wanted to share. Gracie's "bird room" is the dining room in my condo just feet away from my living room. Hanging in the middle of the dining room is an ornamental light fixture that Gracie has recently wanted to perch on. I don't want her to perch there because it hangs from three metal bars that she likes to chew and I'm not sure what kind of metal it is. Since I worry about toxins I won't allow Gracie up there. Anyway, I can always tell when she wants to fly up to the light fixture. She stares at it and lifts her wings and kind of wiggles her little red butt feathers. Whenever I see her do that, I say "No...no Gracie. No". Well she obviously understands "no" and doesn't like it. Well tonight she looked up at the light fixture and did her wings up and tail wiggle routine and I said..."NO...no no no". She looked at me...and then she kind of threw a little temper tantrum. She squawked and muttered and stomped around the top of her cage, but she didn't fly to the light fixture. She just sort of vented her displeasure. She obeyed me, although reluctanly. I left the room for a second, and when I returned, Gracie was perched on the light fixture. I offered my hand and said, "No...step up"--and she did! She stepped up and I returned her to her cage top. Once back on her cage top--she squawked again and stomped around showing her displeasure--but she didn't try to fly back to the light fixture. I just had to laugh. She readily obeyed me--but also got the last word in. I just love her so much.

I call my CAG Gracie--"Gracie Boo". I have no idea why. The funny thing is that she is 11 months old and only says a few words but she kows and often says "Barkley Doggie"--the name of my parents toy fox terrier--but she never says her own name. Every day I try to teach her "I love you"--but no--she won't say that. She has a mind of her own.

Life is so often full of pain. It's a reality we try to deny but are confronted with in those "rough weeks" like you have recently experienced. I pray that in spite of the sadness you will find comfort in your relationships and find joy in all that this world offers== both bitter and sweet.

Rainbow Lorikeets are absolutely gorgeous and have wonderful comical personalities. I have read, however, that they don't do well with other birds. Anyone here have a lorikeet? I would love to hear first hand experience/

Sometimes parrots are more compliant when they are nervous and a little unsure. Now that your TAG is feeling at home, she may be testing out her independence. I don't think anything bad is going on. She may not want to step up as readily, but she wants to be near you, and that's good. My CAG is almost one year old and she went through a stage where she didn't want to step up. Now she always readily complies. Just relax and respect her wishes. I would not push the issue unless she really needs to step up for safety and well-being. My guess is that this is a stage. For my CAG that stage lasted about 2 months. I don't think there is any connection to talking except that both things may stem from her feeling comfortable and at home. I believe things are moving in the right direction.

I can't find any good insurance for parrots. The only one I found was VPI. It has horrible reviews. Everyone says it promises the world and then denies coverage. I'd love to hear from others who can suggest another choice.

I'm glad this is normal. I knew they would do it to some degree. I was just concerned Gracie was doing it more than usual. One other thing I've noticed, is that Gracie flies to a forbidden place and calls me--knowing I will come right away to remove her.

She whistles a tune I taught her, wolf whistles, and blows kisses mainly.

Congrats on your little girl. I have a female CAG, too. She has cute little red leggings.

Great Job! I'm not very handy, so to make a playstand would be quite and endeavor for me. You have inspired me to try to make one though. I'm glad DJ likes it. Thanks for sharing.

Over the last few months Gracie and I have been getting closer and closer. I do worry sometimes,however, that she may feel insecure. I know that Greys use contact calls to keep in touch with their flock, but sometimes I fear Gracie hates to be left alone for even a minute. Gracie will be sitting quietly--preening or playing with her toys when I leave the room for just a short while. The second I walk out of the room she starts contact calling. She uses vocalizations that she has learned from me--not natural bird sounds. She persists until I return and then she gets quiet again or starts to use her bird language again. I try to whistle or call back while I am out of the room, but she just keeps vocalizing until she sees me back in her line of sight. I leave for work daily for about 6 hours. When I get home, she is fine--usually stretching as if waking from a nap, so I know she doesn't persist her contact call ad infinitum. I just wondered if this is normal and what all of your experiences are.

Every two or three days I use a hand held mister to bathe Gracie. It gets her pretty soaked and she doesn't hate it--depending on her mood she sometimes seems to enjoy it. She gets really chatty after a bath.

Casper is a handsome guy. Welcome to the forum.

Very heartbreaking. I hope you find some support and comfort here.

I do cover Gracie's cage at night. I think she prefers that, and it keeps her from waking me at 5:45 with the sunrise. I use newspaper to line her cage and surrounding areas. Cleaning is not a problem. I just change the papers daily and do brush and sponge scrubs when she is out. I live alone, so Gracie is bonded to me. She is hesitant and shy with others, but not what I would call anti-social. She will step up for treats from new people, but doesn't really seek to be handled by them. She isn't fearful or aggressive with anyone, but likes her space. Gracie is almost 11 months old and talks a little bit. She says "step up" and Barkley doggie". Otherwise she makes all sorts of fun noises from wolf whistles, to kisses, to bomb drops and more. She mumbles a lot of "pre-language" which will hopefully become words soon.

Lol--yes large, but both your grey and macaw are precious. Welcome to the forum.

Welcome to the forum. I am new in the bird world myself and this forum has been a great resource. I got my CAG Gracie (yes, I guess it is a common name although I didn't know that when I chose it) about six months ago. There does seem to be a lot to learn at first, but I have found the whole experience easier than I feared. There is an answer for almost every question you have here. Most of the basics have already been addressed, so you will find much treasure as you read through the various posts. Don't worry about your baby being nippy. You will have a chance to build a bond with Paradise once she is home. I visited my Gracie almost every day for two months before I brought her home, but the trust didn't start until we came home. Gracie used to nip some at first, but she never does anymore (she is 11 months old this week). The thing I want to stress is that life with a grey will be different from that of other "pets" you may have had. With dogs or cats you sort of find your relationship quickly and it tends to remain basically the same once the potty training and chewing phase is over. What I have seen with Gracie is that we make steady progress day by day, week by week, month by month. We haven't started on the years yet, but my guess is that things will always be changing and evolving. That is an exciting prospect, and it has taught me patience and also a sense of anticipation for what lies ahead.

He looks like a great little guy. Best wishes.

Hope you have a great birthday and enjoy many more to come, Jayd