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He wasn't quite brave enough to pick her up, even when she lifted her foot to him and demanded up! Maybe next time. LOL!It was good to see he recovered from his last visit when he slept on the couch ( he snores), and when I came down to the kitchen , opened bird room like I always do, Kiki flew in and landed on his shoulder. He slept thru it and she was quiet as a mouse so I didn't get her. When he woke up it was to Kiki's smiling face! ( of coarse I could see them from the kitchen.) Nancy

Jellybean is stressed. They don't handle change well. The slightest.This is a big stressor for him. I wouldn't ignore any of his calls as hard as it is during the changes. For us, the stressors are ridiculous, but for them, they are real. When Sophie was stressed, even for the most unreasonable moments, I responded. This created the trust. Once she trusted me, I could tell her, " I will keep you safe!" She trusts me with her life now. She knows I will not let any harm come to her. Any new changes in our house, she will say " ROM?" I will tell her it is okay. This is what we are doing. Nancy

My sister and brother-in-law came to visit me for a week. My sister was too scared to bond with the birds. My brother-in-law was curious. " Is your bird okay?" she is farting, coughing, sneezing. I promised him, she was okay. She was trying to " regurg"... he recognized it. He asked... " Is she hungry"? Do you need me to help feed her? He was completely fascinated by her. It was interesting to see how a person that has no understanding of a grey, take an interest. Sophie liked my brother-in-law. She found him interesting! Nancy

TAGSugar find a great trimmer! Bird should still be able to fly, but more controlled. A controlled flyer, will take more time to listen. Nancy

Sophie is 12 now. Adopted at age two. We got her when she was going thru the terrible twos! YIKES! What worked best for us, since she wanted to be with anyone, showed no preferance until later in life, was being consistent as a family. We all agreed on " no shoulder status until she understood". We were consistent on her education. You have no idea how many phone calls I got from the kids on her behavior! LOL. It worked out... we were very consistent, and she learned what was acceptable behavior. Most parents have a problem being consistent with their expectations, so a bird can't learn what you expect. They soooooo desire to learn. You may be the " bad guy" at times, but it is so important to be consistent. Of course, the bird needs to trust and respect you before they will even consider listening to you.Sophie's education began after she trusted us and desired to be a part of our family. Without the trust, understanding we will keep her safe, there was no point for her to change her ways. Believe me.... Sophie is a manipulator. She knows exactly which buttons to push for each member in the house. Luckily, we all know it and get a kick out of her.What she doesn't know, is we communicate with each other, and know what she is doing! We all satisfy her needs, as her needs are different for all of us. She takes the lead.... we all follow. Nancy

Greys seem to especially love catchy phrases. Sophie is fascinated with the musical " The Sound of Music." She LOVES the songs. The song " Do, Re, Me" is especially fascinating to her. She dances to most of the songs. On the slow songs, she listens and say's " Ahhhhh". She also loves poems. Dr. Seuss has always been a favorite for her. I started reading these books to her when she was younger. She still enjoys them. Nancy

As everyone pointed out, whistling is just fine! It is Sophie's and my favorite game. Mistyparrot also has this game that we both enjoy. I can't imagine I would have the bond I have with Sophie without the whistling games we play.Sophie talks well, but it is the whistling games we play that makes for so much fun. Nancy

Sophie is a snuggler. More into head and chin scratches. HATES her feathers rubbed and God forbid I pet her stomache, I might as well commit the ultimate sin! Her feelings are actually hurt! LOL! There have been times that she got herself in a precarious situation, it was best for her to " let go"... she did, but ended on her back in my hands. She trusted me to " let go", but she had no plans to land on her back in my hands.OMG! I think she thinks I can control the universe, especially gravity. Sometimes I disappoint. Nancy

I tried again. I'm giving up. My computer stinks! Nancy

Get rid of the mirrors! 17 weeks is all about learning to fly, developing muscle strength. Practice flying between two adults. If just you... you can do it! If you clip a grey when too young as your bird is... it may take years... or never happen... for them to learn how to fly. I am a believer in trimming... but any young grey never taught correctly, may never fly again. Sophie adopted at age two, truly clipped, is now learning to fly at age 12. We have worked with her for years.... has recently decided to try to fly like our Amazon. Nancy

It will depend on the bird. Another grey.... very challenging! It was fun to have my family visit this week. They didn't understand my love for my birds. First off in the morning, Sophie was on my shoulder... loving me, trying to regurg. My brother-in-law, was curious. " why does this bird love you so much, and what is she trying to do?" I have forgotten that people around birds, with no experience, have no idea! It was great to have someone interested, that doesn't have birds. He found Sophie amazing! Nancy

aw64... It takes alot of work, to get birds to stepup and down. Sophie learned. She was good with the whole process, went to bed, etc. Oneday, she decided she didn't like the bedtime process... I never rewarded with treats... I probably should have. I had to make a decision on how to get her back to cage. As I didn't offer treats, didn't close their cages... I was very limited in my choices. I decided to " launch her", in front of her cage. Let her make her own decisions. She was surprised! She immediately climbed up on her cage. Lucky now, all birds put themselves to bed. Nancy

I'm glad this site could help you. I have an avian vet expert since Sophie was adopted. He is fantastic! ( once we got past the point of him laughing at me when I rushed Sophie in for a visit before her well bird visit!) She was sneezing and coughing. I thought she was sick. She was imitating my son who was sick. What did I know? I adopted her knowing nothing! Nancy

jla... do you ever close the cage door for bedtime or any other reason? Nancy

GREAT picture! Sophie now has her own keyboard on the floor. She can pluck off any key she wants. She just wants to imitate me... she does. Nancy

Tried Jayd. I'm sure it was awesome. When I did what you told me, I got a choice of ; Association of VLC media player, Real player, or search the web. I chose search the web, it got even more complicated! I'm sure the video was great. Nancy

aw64. Alfie is needing rules. He is doing great! Now... time to develop rules. Wrist status only. When he bites... say No! Return to cage, try again in five minutes. ( close and lock the cage!). Birds excel, once they understand what the expectations are. Nancy

Yes... after getting to know your baby... being on the bottom of a cage can suggest illness. Different from a baby liking to sleep on the bottom of a cage. Its hard to differentiate the difference for a new parent. Thats why we are here to help. Anytime a bird is listless, short of breath, is an emergency situation. When in doubt, it is an emergency situation. Nancy

I HATE peppers. I gave them to my guys. They didn't like them! I hope they didn't sense me cowering! LOL Nancy

We all have difference of opinion about the regurg. I have always excepted it with all my birds and have never had sexual aggression. Encouraged in my hand only. 12 years later, my birds regurg only after several hours of bonding. I thank them and give a gift back! A kiss with thanks makes them happy. As far as " mental health being", how does blowing off regurg help mentally? I just don't understand!n( not trying to be difficult!) Nancy

I have company coming tomorrow for a few days. Got the carpets cleaned ( amazing), scrubbed the house head to toe. It looks amazing! I told the birds... " don't move!". LOL Nancy

Welcome to the terrible two's! Nancy

Ummm actually, you CAN relate! As I can't hear well, Sophie does. She knows I cant hear well, it doesnt make a difference in my expectations of her. It doesn't change the fact that I expect her and other birds and dogs to get along. I have certain expectations of her, she has expectations of me and the family. Nancy

Awwww! That stinks! I learned the hardway to NEVER believe they wouldn't poop on me. I'd show up for work with bird poop on my shoulder. My coworkers covered for me all the time. Nancy

I LOVED Lunas trick! What I loved even more, was you being " tickled pink" I believe when parrents are amazed... they create an enviroment that is amazing for their birds. Nancy