JeffNOK

As judygram said, Greys are not considered compatible with small children. Having said that, my grey also gets nippy when I hand her a toy. She is sweet otherwise, but will sometimes go for my fingers instead of the toy. I don't hand her toys directly anymore. Will TWIX take a treat from your little girl? I would just be sure to supervise any and all interactions.

She is surely beautiful. Can't wait to see and hear more about your baby.

Welcome! The pics were very nive. Your CAGs and hawks are beautiful. Where in the UK are you from? I live in the US but have spent a lot of time in Yorkshire. I won't be traveling for a while since I just brought home a baby CAG.

LOL--Thankfully Gracie pooped on the test before the student actually started writing on it, so I could get a clean test for him. The consensus of the class was that Gracie was just wishing him good luck.

I saw a documentary about the Kakapo with Stephen Fry. It's flightless, so I suppose it is easy prey.

Dave--Thank you for posting this video. I now have a new organization to make a contribution to. Sometimes I question our desire to have parrots as "pets". Maybe we should have left them well enough alone to live their lives in the wild. Having said that, I now share a home with a sweet grey and my only goal is to make her life the best possible. My heart just broke as I saw those wild caught birds shoved into crates for export.

I guess I feel like the whole name change thing is more about human cultural expectations than about the parrot. I'm not condemning name changes if the parrot adjusts well, but it seems it is only about us--people--and not the bird.

Gracie is a food whore too (excuse the expression). When I have a nice little morsel of semi sharp cheddar cheese Gracie flies to my arm like I'm the resident bird trainer at Busch Gardens. She appears so well trained--NOT! Aside from all that--it is great to see their flying improve as they become expert aviators. Gracie had so many crash landings when I first brought her home. Now she zips and zooms and zigs and zags. It's awesome to behold. I envy her sometimes.

Kins:I'm still a newbie, so I am learning things all the time. Every parront is different and every fid is different. Obvioulsy your approach with Sophie has worked well for you both. With creatures as complex as greys, I doubt there is one formula that fits every situation. Some people may criticize your approach, but at the end of the day your family is happy and Sophie is happy. So far, I have not found it necessary to be too strong with Gracie. Trust has been building mainly by me letting her be herself and only insisting on things when it regards her safety. However, she is not even seven months old and the terrible twos are still looming in the future. The whole point of this forum is for people to express their views and what works for them. I would hate to think you would be attacked for your style of parronting. I always read your posts and try to learn from them. I may incorporate some things and leave others out. The bottom line is that just like parenting children--individuality--grounded in love --rules the day.

Nilah is such a sweetie pie! Adorable doesn't even begin to describe her. I'm going to have to recite in the mirror"I won't get an Amazon yet...I won't get an Amazon yet...I won't get an Amazon yet" every morning or I am going to be in trouble.

Well, today I did in fact take Gracie to class with me for one hour. I came home for lunch and when I was ready to go back to teach my last class, I just decided to give it a try. I was giving a test today in the class, so it would be relatively quiet. What I have come to realize is that Gracie isn't stressed by people or places so much as the transport process. She didn't like her pak-o-bird because it was small and very enclosed. By taking her in a relatively large open travel cage instead, the journey was pretty uneventful. She went in and out without a fuss. She had no problem meeting "new friends"--my students. She accepted treats from them and stepped up on two of the students without incident (For those of you that don't know--I teach adults, not children. I won't let children handle her) . She played on top of her travel cage while they were taking the test and occassionally gave out a happy little chirp. Before long she was sitting on one leg fluffed and clicking contentedly. The only unfortunate event that happened was that while on her travel cage--she backed her hind end over the edge and pooped on one of the students tests! He had his desk up against my dest at the front of the room next to Gracie's cage. The class laughed and Gracie chirped like she had done something noteworthy! One thing I didn't mention is that the breeder I got Gracie from is a veteranarian. During the weeks she was being hand fed, she stayed in the back of the vet's office surrounded by constant activity. Workers milled in and out and lots of animals were around her as well-dogs, cats, numerous parrots, a chicken, and an 18 month old human toddler. I honestly think the trauma of her early travels was me stuffing her in a scary dark pak-o-bird, rather than meeting strangers or going new places. My plan is to start taking her places with me for short visits like suggested. Maybe I rushed it by going to class, but it seemed to turn out fine. I think she enjoyed it. At first I plan on taking her to class once or twice a week for 1-3 hours. I have a nice big permanent cage I will set up in my classroom. I think it will make her feel secure. If at any point she seems like she doesn't want to go or is stressed, I will back off. I hope none of you think I disregarded your advice by taking her to class with me. I must admit it was sort of an impulsive decision.

Wow Chickie is a little linguist! Six months and already talking. That seems common for a TAG but early for a CAG. Gracie says nothing in English yet (she is almost 7 months old), but she is quite chatty in Parrotese. Every day we go back and forth with whistles and clicks and rasberry noises. She seems to be teaching me! I am an ESL teacher, but after teaching international students all day, I don't subject Gracie to any formal lessons. I just try to talk to her in simplified English and comment on what I am doing and what she is doing. It isn't so different to how I have talked to pet dogs or cats. It's funny. When I decided to get a grey, I thought a lot about talking ability. "When will she talk?" "How well will she speak"? "Will she be the next Alex or Cosmo? Now after 2 months with Gracie, I have almost forgotten that human speech will likely be in her future. It just doesn't seem to matter anymore. Now, having said that, I am sure when she says her first word I will report it with unbridled pride and quickly post videos of her oratory skills!

Kins--Very funny story. Leave it up to our fids to be appropropriately inappropriate! As far as the 8 hours. When the time comes to take Gracie to work--be it weeks or months from now--I will either take her just in the morning (9-12) or afternoon (1-2 or 3 depending) and use my lunch break as a transport time. I work only five minutes from home. I know she will need nap time during the day. I don't want her over stimulated. Thanks again for your thoughts.

birdhouse: Rather than getting her used to her pak o bird carrier--I brought out a more open travel cage. It has been sitting next to her main cage since New Year. She eats her veggies and plays on it. I have placed her inside it a couple of times without incident. I may try short experiences outside like you suggested. Today will be 75 degrees outside, so we may do that this afternoon after class.

kins2231--I'm not in a rush. I want to begin taking her to work when it is the right time. It is hard to know when that will be. I don't know if a "Never Bite" bird is realistic, however. She very rarely nips. It does seem like most people here in this forum get bitten from time to time. She does pretty much step up without fail (although she may complain at first if I am putting her to bed). I'm glad that you and Sophie are so close. I aspire to have a relationship with Gracie like that. I know it will take much time--years in fact. I appreciate the advice. If six months is a rough estimate, that means in another four months I may be ready to give it a try. That will be summertime, so the weather will definately be warmer than it is now-- which is a plus when taking birds around. By the way, did you get Sophie as a baby? Gracie doesn't talk yet (she is almost 7 months old). My heart will really break if she said "Daddy don't go!". LOL The road ahead will be interesting.

This is a great post. I love the updates. I used to visit Gracie almost everyday the weeks before i brought her home. I think this was mostly for me. I mean, I think she got to know me, but the real bonding didn't start until we got home, and the process is still ongoing after about 9 week together. She came home at 18 weeks of age, but I would have taken her earlier had I not have to travel out of the country when she was 16 weeks.

I have had Gracie a little over two months. We have a pretty predictable daily rouitine. We get up at 6:45 and do the feeding, watering, and cage cleaning. Gracie is out of her cage until about 8:30 when I have to put her back and leave for work. I got my class schedule rearranged so that I am home by 2 PM. I am with her the rest of the afternoon and evening in general except when I go to the gym for an hour or need to shop. If I do anything social, it is on the weekend when I am with her the whole day prior to going out. Well over the last couple of weeks whenever Gracie sees me get my coat and grab my keys, she stops whatever she is doing and cries out to me. I tell her I have to go and I will be back,but her cries get louder and more frequent as I climb down my staircase to the door. I can hear her continue to cry once I am outside and the door is locked. It is heartbreaking! I am beginning to think it is time to start taking her to work with me. I originally planned to take her right after I brought her home, but our few outings seemed to be too much too soon, and it set us back a bit. The trust wasn't built yet. Do you think maybe it is time to try again? Our bond is much much stronger and my employer has given me permission to have Gracie with me in my classroom. Any advice?

Oh No!! Katana600's post could have been written by me! Be strong my friend!

Loved the video. If you need to make some extra cash maybe Louie can audition for Cirque de Soleil! It also reminded me of Tom Cruise in the first Mission Impossible where he dangles from the ceiling from wires to steal some top secret something or other! Louie is quite a guy.

That sounds just fine. It is rare that a cage can be too big. The thing to watch is the bar spacing. 1 to 1.5 inches is appropriate, but wider than that can cause some issues. My cage for Gracie is about the size you describe and she is fine. I may go bigger in the future when I can afford it.

Gracie is very playful, but not with me. I mean she is active and loves her toys and to do acrobatic feats around her cage, but she doesn't really want to rough and tumble with me. I've only had her a couple of months and she is not quite 7 months old--so who knows what will be in the future. I used to play with her using a ball--but she ended up getting aggressive with me and grabbing at my fingers rather than the ball--so that stopped.

I'm so happy for you! I have had my CAG (Gracie) for only two months, but inexplicably I often think..."Hmm ....how would an Amazon add to our lives?" I find myself casually looking online for information about Lilac Crowned Amazons---but all amazons have a great appeal. I have promised Gracie that no new fids will be coming for at least 2 or 3 years, but I keep getting a niggling at the back of my mind that a CAG and an Amazon complete a sort of Yin and Yang --a balance of sorts. I don't think Gracie is sold on the idea, so I am going to focus all of my love and attention on her and only secretly search info on Amazons online after she has gone to sleep. So, I completely understand your decision to bring home your Yellow Nape baby. As was stated above--you are certainly not alone in the desire to have both. I wish you the very best and please update us often. The pictuire is beautiful!

Congratulation! I know how excited you are feeling. It was just 2 months ago that I brought Gracie home. Don't worry too much about Archimedes choosing a favorite person yet. I am the only one at home with Gracie and sometimes I'm not even sure she has chosen ME as her favorite--she keeps looking at the door for other options-LOL. I want to echo what luvparrots said about his set up. You have certainly provided a wonderful home for your new fid. Before I got Gracie I asked how many toys I shoud have in her cage when I brought her home. The consensus was just one or two. More than that can be overwhelming at first. You might consider just rotating toys in and out every week. That way he will have something new to look forward to and still have lots of "wing room". Keep us posted.

LOL--Yes I tape the picture down almost every day becuase she pulls off the tape. It is secured to the wall with bolts at the top--but he bottom is more vulnerable.

I wasn't suggesting cage covering was necessarily bad at bedtime--I meant that covering a cage as a deterrent to behaviour aka punishment was not recommended.