Wingy

DS took some phone video of Isabelle's first dish bath. She never liked or wanted a bath until the weather started warming up and DS discovered she likes cold water for her bath instead of warm. There is very little sound in the video. Just some splashing sounds and DS laughing when she does a face plant in the dish. I've got to find her something bigger for her bath. I think I've got some planter bottoms in the garage that are probably about the same depth but just a bit bigger in circumference. Click on the picture to play

Whether its this year or next I'll be sticking around. Nancy when does Sophie and the crew have their next spa day? I promised DS I would take Isabelle for a trim. If you can swing a Saturday maybe we can schedule for close to the same time and meet up. May 12th, June 9th and 30th are out but it looks like I have the other Saturdays open so far.

The Tidy Seed Feeding System might work and I can't see any reason why it couldn't be filled with water instead of food. Its poop proof and doesn't look like it can be tipped though with an adventurous grey I would reinforce it with a zip tie. Here is the website http://www.tidyseed.com/

I did a quick cut and paste from another post The baby will go from the breeder to the parrot shop where it will stay until it is weaned, then to my home where shortly after that, I"m guessing 6 months, maybe a year after the baby has weaned and made the journey to my home that the kid should be moving out again. I was just wondering everyones opinion on if I should wait until the kid has moved out start building our flock so a baby grey won't be stressed by yet another caregiver leaving in such a short time. My partner thinks that my use of the word kid is throwing everyone off. The "kid" will be graduating from college soon and the roommate situation became unstable.

Your travel cages should have identification on it. Include your pets name, your name, and a contact person outside of the area including phone number. This should be waterproof and either in a noticeable place or write a note on the cage directing a person to the emergency information taped on the bottom.

I am so sorry I may have caused you grief. Children and birds do go together. My situation and question was not because there is a kid (ok young adult) in the house but out of fear that a baby grey would be stressed and traumatized by losing to many caregivers in a relatively short period of time. My reasons for wanting to wait until the kids had all left home are many but the biggest reason is because I wanted to see what my kidless life would be like. **Edited to add. Now that one has flown back to the nest yes I do miss parts of being kidless. I have to always be dressed, have to share the bathroom and get "the look" if I eat dessert before dinner. On the flip side I am cooking more and enjoy the activity of having a young adult around like phones ringing and people stopping by.

You sound an awful lot like some of my family.

The kid that returned home isn't the problem. She loves all things and is excited. My only concern is the baby grey. Will this kid moving out say within 6 to 12 months of bringing a baby grey home cause undo stress on the bird? My immediate wants are secondary to having a happy well adjusted bird and being a responsible parront.

The cost of this one returning home is minimal. A couple of meals, a few extra hours of a light on and 2 additional loads of laundry.

I have waited until all the kids had left the nest before bringing any bird home. All the kids had left and I was ready. Now for the dilemma. I had planned on putting a deposit down on a grey this spring so that he/she should be ready to come home before November. The bird store is 65 miles away and in the lake effect snow belt so I have a small window of opportunity. One of the kids has recently moved back home and there is no telling for how long. Now I don't know what to do. Should I wait until this kid moves out again or not? I am so torn here. Part of me says to just do it, everything will be fine and that I'm over thinking the whole situation. The other part of me says that its unfair to bring any creature into the home when I know one of the humans will be leaving, that I am aiding in a situation that could cause a baby stress, bring about stress related behaviors, and to just wait until next spring to try again. Please give me your opinions. I'm flip flopping more than a politician.

http://www.mybirdstore.com/GOLDENFEAST-Goldenfeast_Dehydrated_Chamomile_Flower_1_oz.html

Parrots aren't able to actually burp or fart.

I'm not quite sure what to make of this. Isabelle is my DS's Quaker. Her hatch date was right around July 7th of 2011. My DS called me in a panic because she now has a pencil eraser sized bare spot around her ear. He first noticed a small bare spot last night and it was bigger today after he came home from work. He also says that he can see and feel the pin feathers coming through right there. Could this just be a heavy molt? There are no new toys or bags of food and nothing new was brought into his place since Christmas so I don't think its a reaction to anything. She's eating well, poops are normal, behaving fine and was having a good old time when he was on the phone with me. He did rearrange her cage about 3 days ago, moving perches and toys but he says she doesn't seemed stressed about it. What do you think?

The paper and ink of a regular phone book is fine. The ones to watch out for are the ultra glossy covers that feel almost like a from film picture. The trick to tell is by using a regular marker, not a permanent marker, on the cover. If the marker ink doesn't soak in after 5 minutes or so and wipes right off tear off the cover.

Everyone needs to have detailed emergency plans. I suggest thinking it through and coming up with a what to do binder with tabbed sections on how to handle various emergencies, by season if necessary. Look at your location and determine what types of emergencies are most likely fire, flood, wind, snow, power outage, tornado, earthquake. Now make your lists.... what do you need, what needs to be done, who's going to do it, when and any not to do's in case your not home and someone else is following your list. Your final list for each section should read like a check list with the most important on top.

The shiny colored stuff in newspapers is fine. Its that ultra shiny heavy cover of a magazine that is bad.

The colors in the ink are plant based. What you do want to avoid are those ultra shiny slippery magazine covers that are coated in varnish or uv coating. I can't tell you for sure that its toxic but I can tell you that the slivers from it when the paper bends and it flakes off it burns like heck when it gets imbedded in your skin.

Do you think she would accept some type of brace, boot or shoe to cover the leg and foot? http://orthopets.com/index.html

She is telling you that she doesn't want to stop chewing. The same way a young child would cry if you took away something they were playing with. It sounds like you changed the rules of the game and either she didn't understand or doesn't want to play the game like that. You have to remember that your both still learning each others language and how to communicate. What you don't want her to do is come to the conclusion that biting is the best way to communicate.

When I had fids they weren't fans of Nutriberries. I didn't feed them seeds so I used it as a treat. I would take a small piece of banana, peach or a slice of peeled grape and roll it in the seed. They really enjoyed that treat and it was much less expensive.

Its on youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RRTDnEAsun8&feature=related

I'm not a fan of water bottles. In my experience they were difficult to clean, dripped and I had a fid who got its toes stuck when it was playing acrobird. I used to put food on one side of the cage and water as far and high as I could get it on the other. Moving the water up and away helped me.

Slaps palm against forehead. How about dried bread? I know there are recipes for birdie bread here on the forum or you could use almost any healthy whole grain bread. You can make rounds, hearts, stars, wrap strips around something oven safe to make cork screws or circles. Ultra thin slices dry the fastest and your oven should be set very low. Something I have done in the past is use uncooked tube pasta and stuff the ends with a mixture of peanut butter, crushed pellets, oat groats and millet. I made that mix with just enough peanut butter to hold it together and let it stick in the ends of the pasta. You can make your own peanut or nut butter by just grinding the heck out of a handful of nuts in a food processor or blender with good blades or with a mortar and pestle if you have really strong arms.

Long strips of coconut or carrot can be baked on an oven sheet or right on the grate to get the moisture out or offered as they are. Google oven baked fruit leather. Its pureed fruit or vegies that is poured thin in a baking pan and dehydrated in your oven. It won't be crispy, more like damp cardboard. If your bird is going to chew and swallow be sneaky and offer food that has some of the same textures.

Morana how about coconut? Its edible, can be cut thin into cardboard type strips and its hard, peeled strips of carrot might work for you too. Fruit or vegie leather is another possibility. It is possible to make it yourself in the oven on a baking sheet. I'll think on this some more. Its been a while since I've made toys and destructibles for "big" birds.