Ronald Byrd

I agree with Ray "A lot of flight time and exercise builds muscles and stamina." But I want to add to it. A lot of flight time also builds experience and allows them to be more efficient with each wing flap therefor using less energy. This is apparent in the wild flapping from an inexperienced bird while trying to land.

Your concerns are dander and mess correct? I'm sure everyone here will agree with these solutions. Dander - Humidifier and Purifier. Your bird evolved in a climate with around 75% humidity. That is like your bathroom after an hour long shower. Your house is probably around 15% humidity and this is why your bird produces so much dander. A humidifier next to his cage will reduce the amount of dander produced and cause some of the dander that is produced to clump and be too heavy to go airborne. The dander that does make it airborne will be caught in the purifier. This will work just a well as your death trap idea. Mess - Build a skirt that extends 6-8" from the sides of his cage. Make it 12" if you have to. Or you can put newspaper down and change it everyday. P.S. tell your mom that this means she will have a humidifier and purifier in the living room. I noticed my house smells clean and I don't need air fresheners anymore. Look up on the internet all the benefits of a humidifier and purifier and present that information to your mother.

luvparrots.... Don't expect any heat, I'm sure everyone else was thinking the same thing.

I'm not sure how happy your grey would be in a plexiglass cage. He/She probably won't feel to secure being that exposed. Not to mention introducing a new cage is hard enough. Also, six air vents on top won't be enough if you put filters on them. I would suggest making a skirt out of plexiglass to catch the seeds and buy an air purifier. If you absolutely must do it then at least enclose his current cage with plexiglass and put a lot more filters on all sides. Then YOU get in the cage and spend a hour inside it to make sure you have plenty of ventilation and that there is no sunlight to turn his cage into a greenhouse, sunlight that your bird needs by the way. Find a different solution IMO.

I don't feed Papito anything red or purple because I end up in the same position as you are right now. Someone else said in another post that the kids called freaking out after their grey was eating raspberries. Avoid the hassle IMO.

Throw modesty out the window. Stop closing the door. The bathroom is probably the only room you go into and close the door, am I right? Or, he may not like the toilet noise, or shower.

Our CAG (Papito) is doing great! He will come out of his cage to the couch and have his head scratched and eat off of our plate. He will let us hold him on our arm but doesn’t seem comfortable with standing on our chest. He still seems to be nervous like something is going to get him unless he is in his cage, on our arm, or on the perch in the kitchen. Last weekend We took in a Quaker parrot. Her name is Puffers. Her and I had almost an instant bond which in my opinion is because she was kept in a very small cage with one perch inside and one perch on the top. She had 2 toys… EVER! Well the day after we got her I cleaned all of the pin feathers off of her neck for her, this was an hour or so of neck rubbing and she enjoyed every minute. Monday Puffers spent an hour getting her pin feathers cleaned. Tuesday she sat on my chest while I watched TV. Wednesday same thing she sat and talked to me for about an hour. Thursday she actually went through the motions of regurgitating. Mouth open and head bobbing while on my shoulder. This whole week I have been spending time with Papito as well but he usually prefers my girlfriend Lisa’s attention over mine. Here’s the shocking moment. Later Thurday evening she was sitting on my chest again while watching TV, I notice Papito fluttering his wings at me from his cage, looked like he was thinking about flying to me. I said “what cha doin papito?” he stood up and started chewing his nails. Hmmm, so I put Puffers on her cage and walked over to Papito, his foot was in the air pointing at me before I got to the cage. He stepped up and said “thank you” as he always does, then gave me a kiss which means he wants something. He took a sunflower seed (treat) from me and threw it. I sat on the couch and put my arm with him on it on my belly and started talking to him. He stepped off of my arm on my chest and laid his head down for scratches. He has NEVER been comfortable with this before, he has always stayed on my arm or on the arm of the couch. So, what I can’t figure out is, is this jealousy of Puffers, or is this him thinking “it must be safe if Puffers is doing it”. I always greet Papito first when I come in the room because I’m afraid of him getting jealous, as well as I offer him to step up more often than puffers. The other thing I noticed is Papito will only step up if he wants to, if he doesn’t then he will push my hand away and I don’t try again for a little bit. Puffers will step up almost every time I ask her to. In the last couple days I’ve noticed Papito stepping up more often. So, the same question applies here. Is he competing for attention or just seeing another bird do it and be rewarded teaching him that it’s ok? I only reason I don’t think it’s jealousy or competing for attention is because I have put the two just out of beak range and talked in a soothing voice to them. Papito slowly tries to move away after a minute or two of just looking at her. Puffers seems curious but doesn’t try to get closer or farther away.

So I have a few of these in storage from the ferrets' cage. They don't use them. I mounted it in the corner about the same height as Papito's favorite perch. He hasn't used it yet but I'm hoping he will because it must be frustrating for him to try to fit his big behind in his water dish. My thinking is that the bowl on the bottom of his cage doesn't work because he doesn't like going to the bottom of his cage. This litter box is shallow, has one low side, and can be mounted higher up in his cage. Worth a shot. http://www.petco.com/product/5300/Petco-Small-Animal-High-Corner-Litter-Pans.aspx?CoreCat=MM_Ferret_BeddingLitter

Try eating with him. I'm going through the same thing now with my 9 year old. Snap peas, I had to open one and show him the peas inside, then cut a few for him, now he get whole ones. I tried romaine as well but he would only try it after eating it myself in front of him. Cooked carrots instead of raw. Papito picked them out of my chicken and rice soup a couple nights ago, I wanted to stop him but hey he was eating veggies.

Find a vet and an emergency vet. Put the numbers where you won't loose them. If something happens at night or on a Sunday you don't want to waste time finding an emergency vet. Get some clotting powder or gel, use it next time your 15 year old has a small cut and tell him to thrash around like a two year old while you do it, practice makes perfect. Start saving newspapers.

I tried your toilet paper roll wrapped in paper idea last night except I put two peanuts in it as a treat. Papito threw the peanuts to the side and kept going on the paper and paper roll. Thank you for the idea. He seamed to really enjoy it.

I adopted a 9 year old last month. He hasn't plucked or chewed his feathers but... When he starts to act nervous or aggravated we give him a new toy, which for our grey is anything he can destroy including paper and tongue depressors. Remember when you was a kid and you made the snowflakes by folding a piece of paper in half twice and then cut the edges? Our grey loves it. We hold it for him and turn it as he bites chunks off, when he's torn up the edges we unfold it and show it to him, he almost looks amazed by what he's created, then he wants it back to finish the job.

Since Papito came to live with Lisa and I its been difficult to get him to eat veggies. His previous parronts fed him a seed mix of 90% sunflower seeds for the last 9 years, as well as fruit that he didn't eat much of because of the bowl full of seeds. Anyways.... He wanted nothing to do with snap peas last week. last night I tried again but this time I took the peas out of the pods and he loved them. The next one i just split the pod to show him that the peas are inside. Then I gave him a whole pod which he opens and eats the peas out of. Twenty or so snap pea pods later I figured he had enough. So I found a veggie that he likes. The only other veggie he cared for is celery and carrots but he just tears those apart and doesn't really eats them. So my question here is What is your grey's favorite veggie and favorite fruit? Papito Veggie: Snap Peas Fruit: Kiwi

IMO, once your vet is sure and you have proof.... Report the breeder.... then post about it on your local craigslist or petfinder. However they are advertising their birds is how you should be advertising the disregard for the health of their birds. Does this breeder have a website?

I figured that's what it was, I've read so much in the last month about greys but somethings you can't learn from reading. I'm glad I found this forum, thank you all.