neoow

Here you go! I have a spotty boy called Widget and a marbled girl called Pixel. They're about 4 years old now. I've never been much of a cat fan- always preferred dogs. I can't have a dog because it would be alone 8+ hours a day so we got two bengals instead. They are like no other cat I have ever known. They are loyal, affectionate and totally bonkers! I keep them both indoors and they need lots of space to run and climb. They often get a case of "the zoomies" and run as fast as they can round the house for about 15 minutes at a time. Sounds like a herd of elephants stampeding up and down the stairs. They both love fuss and attention and will yowl the house down if they don't get it when they want it. Nothing is sacred with them about- so no plants, ornaments or anything that you don't want them to stick their faces/paws into! They are both total loons but so much fun. They definitely keep us on our toes!!

Thanks all, will have a chat with Alfie's vet about it and get it done ASAP.

Oops sorry, you must have posted whilst I was responding to Dave's post! Thanks for that, it's useful to know. It just suddenly dawned on me that I'd never had it done and it would be a very good idea to get it done if I can! Whilst I'm always super paranoid about doors and windows (I have two indoor cats as well so have to be careful about them getting out too) accidents can so easily happen and if Alfie got out I'd be devastated.

Thanks Dave. I'll have a chat with the vet about it. He's an avian vet and the only one that I trust to handle Alfie. I'm hoping he's had experience and has done it before but I'll definitely double check beforehand. There is another avian vet who is closer but I don't trust him at all. I wasn't very happy when he looked at Alfie's beak and gassed him before he'd even try to do anything. Poor Alfie was out of sorts for the rest of the day after that ordeal. The vet I have been taking him to ever since then is much better. He doesn't gas him when dealing with his beak and Alfie is always calm and collected when he comes back out. No gas used either. So I'd much rather take him to his regular vet rather than try the other one again. There's not many avian vets around my area unfortunately so I'm glad to have found such a good one!

When I bought my grey home he was 11 weeks old. He was fairly stable on a perch but I lined the base of his cage with old towels so that when he did fall/slip he had a soft landing. I just used the wooden perches that came with the cage. I then added different concrete/sanded perches at a later date when he was more confident about climbing round his cage (and less likely to fall)

Here are a few of my favourites. We no longer have him. We had to have him PTS in 2009. He had problems with his back legs but fortunately wasn't in pain with it as apparently the nerves were damaged. He'd struggle to get up and would sometimes just suddenly half sit/half fall down as his legs struggled. He'd turn round and look at them as if to say "what are you doing?" - probably because he couldn't really feel what was going on. Despite this he carried on and was otherwise fit and healthy. He wasn't ever in any pain and he would still have days where he acted like a puppy. Unfortunately it eventually caught up with him and got worse and worse and we think he had a stroke overnight. When that happened we had to have him PTS as he wasn't able to stand or walk and his head was tilted to one side and kept quivering. He was an awesome dog. VERY stubborn when he wanted to be but such a big character. We were all devastated when we lost him, even though he was 13 and we knew it would happen at some point.

Loved the photos, thanks! He's so cute!

I know that stare all too well! Alfie has grown up with a German Shepherd (long haired like yours- but black and yellow as opposed to tan and black) and a moggy cat. He now lives with two crazy bengal cats which both live indoors. I didn't really trust my german shepherd with him and definitely didn't trust our moggy cat as he used to go out and kill birds for fun. I REALLY don't trust the two bengals. They are so quick and agile I know they'd just pluck him out of the air. So when Alfie is out, they get locked out of the room. I had to turn some door handles upside down to facilitate this though because one of them can open doors!

I've had Alfie for coming up to 12 years now and I'm pretty sure that he's not microchipped. It's certainly not something I've had done at the vets and I doubt the breeder/pet store did it before I got him. (I got him at 11 weeks old) I need to book him in to the vets soon anyway as I need to get his beak looked at again so I was planning on asking the vet about getting him microchipped. Is this a fairly straight forward procedure? My cats are chipped and I know it didn't take long/wasn't at all complicated. Is it much and much the same for parrots?

Hello Madi and welcome to the forums! There is so much information available to you on this forum so hopefully you'll find everything you need. If not, everyone is always very helpful and eager to answer any questions you might have. Good luck in your hunt for a grey. Do keep us up to date!

Hello and welcome to the forums! I can't give you much advice I'm afraid but I'm sure someone else will come along soon who can help. I just wanted to say welcome! Photos of your baby grey are always extremely welcome! (hint hint!)

Hello and welcome to the forum! Beautiful photos of your pets. How does Echo get on with your dog and cat? Do they have to be separated or can they be in the same room?

I am getting a baby parrot fix from all your photos. They are amazing., Thanks for sharing!

There are far more experienced people on here who will be along very soon to offer much better advice than I ever could however I have a couple of thoughts. Normally a change of behaviour in any animal would ring alarm bells for me and I'd look to pull that vet visit closer if possible. Or if not, I'd be watching the animal like a hawk because I'm a worry guts haha. However as you've only had her for two weeks (and that's practically nothing in 'Grey Time') then it may be that she's taking some time to soak all the recent changes in. Have you made any other changes in those two weeks? Changed something in her cage? Changed something in her surroundings? She may be checking everything out. Grey's are very observant. I know when I change something in Alfie's cage he will go very silent and will sit and watch it for a while before finally perking back up again. If she's still active, curious, playing and eating then I wouldn't dash her off to the vets right this instant. If the change in behaviour was greater- e.g she was much more reserved, reluctant to move, hunkered up in a corner and not eating/drinking/responding etc etc then I'd take her to the vet ASAP. I'm also wondering that as she was in a pet store previously- were there other birds/animals making noises? It may be that she had lots of noise to contend with, so was more vocal herself to make sure she got attention. Now she's in a quieter environment without so many other distracting animals/noises/people etc- maybe she might not feel the need to make so many noises? Also, Grey's like to 'contact call'. This is where they call out to flock members to find out their location and check in on them. If you're in the room with her a lot of the time, then you might not get so many noises out of her. Alfie is usually silent for the majority of the time I'm sitting next to his cage other than the odd squeak, whistle or hello. He makes most noises when I move away from his cage into another room. Then we have a little game of making various contact calls to each other so he knows I'm still around and listening in. It may be that the noises she may in the store were contact calls to the other people/animals in the store. She may have been making them when she first came home with you because she was contact calling to the other animals/people from the store? Honestly, I'm just speculating and throwing some ideas into the pot. I'm certainly no expert whatsoever and some other members will probably come along with some better advice than I can offer.

Gorgeous photos! He's a lovely looking boy!

Amazing! LOVE that cage! Glad he seems to be settling in ok. I second Acapella's suggestion of lining the bottom of the cage with towels. They'll get a little messy, but will prevent him from hurting himself if he has a fall. I had to do this with Alfie as he was very clumsy! (Still is, at times!)

I'm getting excited for you!!! Haha

Just take it nice and slowly. Alfie always takes a little while to adapt to new things. Especially big scary play stands. It takes time and patience before he'll go anywhere near it, let alone put a foot on it. Don't try and force her on there, as it'll make it even scarier and the process will take even longer. If it's in view of her cage as soon as you get her home, it will be a bit easier, as she'll be able to observe it from a distance before trying it out.

Welcome to the forums! I bet you're super excited about bringing Onyeka home! Love the photos!

Amazing video! Greys always make me grin when they fly. They're not overly graceful in flight, like some birds. There's a heck of a lot of flapping going on all the time, like they're late for work and in a rush to get there! Alfie has to sit and look for a while before he takes off across the room. He seems to have to work out his route and the distance before he launches himself. I can always tell when he's on his way!

Woohoo more photos!

Oooh that looks amazing! Well done you!

Thank you for the update! I got Alfie around 11-12 weeks old so this was a blast of nostalgia for me as to what he was like at that age! Alfie was mostly weaned when I got him but still had some formula alongside his food. So I remember those screams very well! It's great to see that Clara is adapting well to her new surroundings and looks happy and confident too!

Apologies, I was half asleep and didn't even think to go back to the start of the thread!! That makes it a lot clearer though. Thanks!

What is the difference between thanks and reputation please? I've been a member for a while and just realised I don't think I've ever used the reputation button. I've always used the thanks button. Is one better than the other? Or for use in different situations?