neoow

Alfie likes walnuts (shelled) and pine nuts. I reserve pine nuts for training, as that's the only treat that motivates him. I do give him a couple of pistachios in his food bowl occasionally but I'm not 100% sure if he actually eats them or not. He doesn't seem to like any other kind of nut. Other than peanuts, but I don't give him those.

When picking up words/phrases, Alfie has always preferred male voices. He does mimic me sometimes but if I want him to learn something I'm better off asking a male to say it as he'll seemingly pick it up quicker. My dad has been helping out lots with all my house renovations so Alfie has picked up my dad yelling my name. And now he uses it with gusto. It actually caught me out once because my dad had been round and left, then I heard him yell my name from downstairs. I assumed he had forgotten something and had come back... but no, it was just Alfie. And he's spot on with it as well. He also yells my mum's name in my dad's voice. More recently, Alfie has taken to mimicking my dad's phone calls. He'll make a phone ringing noise, answer it with 'hello' in my dad's voice, he'll mumble a lot in my dad's voice then say "alright then... alright then.... bye!" and make the phone hanging up noise. That one always makes me smile. Even though he doesn't use many words, you can tell he's mimicking my dad's voice when he's mumbling.

Alfie is a nightmare for baths. The only place he will consistently bath is in his water bowl... which he obviously can't fit in. So he sticks a foot in and flaps around, sploshing water over everything except himself. He usually waits until I'm not around as well, so I come back to a nice big puddle of water on the floor around his cage. If I do happen to hear/catch him, I'll grab the mister and see if he wants a bath that way. He mostly hates it, but if I manage to catch him in the right mood then he'll get into it. I can only mist him in his cage though, as he'll fly away if he's out. Or just try and attack the mister/me. I've tried taking him to the sink, to the bathroom to see the bath/shower but nope, he's not having it. Only the water bowl will do. I even bought him a kids toy sink that was battery powered and had a little tap but he didn't like it at all, so I gave up on that idea. If I put a bigger tray with water in at the bottom of his cage then he ignores it and favours the water bowl. I did have a breakthrough more recently- I found some really big water bowls which are the same shape/material as his existing bowl and they clip on to the side of the cage. They hold 2L of water. At least he can fit both feet in that one and at least get a little bit of water on his body as well.

Oooh ouch, that sounds rough. I am so thankful that Alfie only leaves bruises. Does Sukei seek you out to attack you? What are you getting?

With the amount of mess he makes by dropping confetti everywhere (then flapping his wings to spread it across the whole room) I can be certain that he definitely is not eating it! 😂 It's no different to when he chews and shreds his toys. He doesn't eat the wood.

Thanks all, I appreciate all the kind comments. It's been a long road to get to this point with Alfie. He's always been boisterous and strong willed and I haven't always been his favourite person. In fact, I'm still not his favourite person- my mum is! 😂 But we've gone through a lot together to get to where we are these days and we have managed to work on and build on the trust, which has certainly helped with all the changes that are currently going on in the house. 👍 Talon - I'll try and get a video of him growling at the wrapping paper... I don't think I have any to hand at the moment but with mother's day and a couple of birthdays coming up, I'm bound to have some soon. Only issue is that he clams up as soon as he sees the camera pointing at him, so I might have to get creative. It's very cute though when he growls... I'm sure that's not his intention... to be 'cute'... but I can't help but laugh when he tries to act all big and scary... over some wrapping paper! 😁

Alfie has a new challenge this week - I stuffed a small box full of paper and he's been busy working on chewing the box and pulling every bit of paper out. I'm saving the second bathroom catalogue for another time... it's twice the thickness of the last one so might last a little longer! Alfie is the same in that he doesn't chew much wood but will go to town on cardboard and paper. He also likes the sea grass mats you can get for birds, so I sometimes hang one of those in his cage. He occasionally chews his wooden toys but not often. He also loves the pressed cardboard/paper bangles you can get and will spend ages peeling and chewing those.

Like most parrot owners, I spend a fair amount of money on new toys for Alfie- whether that's to swap out old ones which have been destroyed or to try something new to mix it up a bit for him. This week I found a couple of old bathroom catalogues I got given when I was picking out new stuff for my bathroom. I popped one in Alfie's cage and he's been busy working away at it all week, turning it into confetti. He has ignored every other toy in his cage all week - even the new ones- to shred his catalogue. He's been so busy shredding it that a couple of nights this week when I let him out to play he flew over to his java tree and fell asleep. 😄 He tuckered himself out with the catalogue! Sometimes the best toys are the free ones!

So good to hear from you, shanlung. I've always admired your relationship and shared experiences with your birds.

Hello and welcome to the forums! I'd love to know more about your flock- what are their names? How is he/she settling in? And, of course, photos are always welcome! 😁

Something I've noticed recently- an influx of "breeders" (scammers) trying to sell eggs. I've seen a lot of people falling for this because they think raising a bird from an egg gives them a better experience/bond with the bird. When in actual fact raising a bird from an egg is incredibly time consuming and difficult and filled with risks. Any genuine breeder would never try and sell an egg, or an unweaned baby bird. A reputable breeder would only ever offer fully weaned birds and would only ever let the bird go when they were definitely ready to go.

Despite living with Alfie for 18 years, there are times when he still manages to surprise me. I'm having my kitchen, living room and dining room refurbished, which means we are living in a bit of chaos at the moment. Alfie has a second, smaller cage upstairs in my office, so he's living in that permanently for now as his downstairs cage is currently stashed in the garage. The cats are also shut out of the downstairs areas and I'm practically living upstairs all the time too. So we're all on top of each other and managing with less space than usual. Alfie still gets out of cage time, but he has a lot less space to play in upstairs, as I have to keep him in the office room instead of having the whole of the downstairs to play in. What's really surprised me is how well Alfie has adapted to all the changes that have been going on - as well as all the noise and commotion. I wasn't sure how well he would cope with the smaller cage, sleeping in a different cage/room and the space around him changing as well (we are surrounded by boxes and dining chairs!). I also worried about all the noise disturbing him but he hasn't seemed phased at all. He's settled into his space and routine without issues and none of the noises and moving stuff around seems to have upset him at all. We even ended up having the paths outside my house being dug up (unrelated to the above work - new fibre cabling is going in around the local area) and despite some of the work rattling the entire house, he hasn't been bothered by any of it at all. It's made me realise how lucky I am to have him. He's been taking all of this in his stride and thankfully none of my worries about how it might affect him have come to anything. I'm lucky to have such a boisterous and confident bird. 🙂 ...Although if I walk past with the washing basket he still lunges at it as if he thinks it's going to kill him... and don't get me started on how he still growls at wrapping paper.... 😂

I'm the wrong side of the pond so can't help too much I'm afraid. I would search for your local parrot recuse organisations, if you have any nearby. I know all my local rescues always have birds available. I would personally avoid anyone trying to sell birds on facebook or selling/listing websites- some of those can be scams. I'd always insist on seeing the bird(s) first before making any kind of commitment. Unfortunately there's a lot of shady people around who will happily just take the money and disappear.

Personally I don't agree with the phrase "beginner pet". Budgies and cockatiels and other similar sized birds are sold off cheaply as 'beginner pets' as if they don't matter and don't have similar needs to more expensive or bigger birds. Same with hamsters and other rodents and even rabbits. I feel like this just leads people to believe these animals have no value and therefore are easy to look after/don't have complex needs. It also sometimes leads to people ignoring when the animal is ill and avoiding taking them to a vet because they're 'beginner pets' and can be easily replaced. My first job was in a pet store that sold small birds, fish and rodents. We sold 'starter' cages and 'starter hutches' for the rodents and although the advise to customers was that they should upgrade to a bigger cage, many didn't bother. So scores of rabbits, guinea pigs, hamsters, gerbils, rats etc would have just been left in teeny tiny cages/hutches for children to ignore because they were "beginner pets" and didn't matter. I was interested in parrots after meeting an African Grey and an Eclectus that came through the store I was working at. I'd never had birds before that and had never considered birds as a pet until I met the birds in store. I was curious and started reading up about them and decided that an African Grey was for me. I've always liked the idea of having an eclectus as well- but they're more difficult to find over here and have a few diet and care considerations over a grey. Getting a parrot is no different to getting any other pet, be it a dog, cat, hamster, budgie, snake... you need to be absolutely sure you can provide that animal with everything it needs before you bring it home. So do what you're doing now- read, research, watch videos, ask questions. This forum has been an absolute godsend for me and Alfie as there is so much knowledge here and I've learned so much from this place as well as other resources.

I love all of your additions- so many great points and observations. 🙂

I got Alfie when I was 17 and thought I had everything sussed. I had read every book available to me (the internet wasn't as easily accessible and full of information as it is now) and thought I'd never have any issues with owning a grey. I don't regret getting Alfie at all as I love having him in my life. But as I mentioned in my previous post, it hasn't always been plain sailing. My mum was the only person who took a real interest in Alfie when I was living at home with my family. My sister was terrified of him and my dad was largely indifferent. He used to sit and play guitar and sing to Alfie but they had a bit of a falling out when Alfie waddled across the sofa, sat on my dad's knee then bit him very hard on his finger for seemingly no reason. Dad wasn't keen after that. My mum got a bit more wary of him after receiving a few bites too- but she's always remained interested in him... just kept out of beak range for a while 😂. We also had a dog and a cat. So Alfie was largely confined to my room or I had to wait until everyone was out if I wanted to let him out in the wider house. Which meant he didn't get much socialisation from anyone other than me. When I moved out I originally lived with two guys- one who was scared of Alfie and one who was largely indifferent but not keen. Alfie's cage location wasn't great and socialisation wasn't great around that time either. I also took on more and more responsibility (and hours) at work, was trying to study for a degree in my spare time and I wasn't providing Alfie with the consistent time and attention he deserved and needed. And again, not much socialisation with anyone other than me. My two housemates moved out and I was able to shift things around so at least Alfie was in the living space instead of out in the hall. But my next housemate also was quite indifferent to him and didn't care to socialise with him for the longest time. He also despised the noise.. and Alfie isn't even THAT noisy compared to some parrots. He moved back home with his dad as we were renting at the time and he didn't like losing all the money each month. So I started looking to buy my own place. That housemate became my lodger but I made it extremely clear before he moved in- Alfie ALWAYS comes first and I WOULD be letting him out of the cage every day, so if he didn't like it, he'd have to avoid the living room when Alfie was out. Fortunately, my housemate did start to make a bit more effort with Alfie that time round and they actually started to get on. He moved out in 2020 so it's been me and Alfie ever since. My main point here for your friend's 13 year old (and sorry for the second essay!) is that it's much easier if family and even some friends are on board with getting a grey and are willing to make the effort and work with the bird too. It can be really tricky to manage if other members of the household are terrified of birds or aren't interested. And even when you think you have the whole world worked out as a teenager... life will ALWAYS throw you curveballs that you never dreamed of. My main questions when a 13 year old asks about getting a grey would be- what about when you move out or go to college/university or get a job/career. What if you have to move away from family for work/career/life? What if you want to start a family with someone who doesn't like birds? You can't plan for every eventuality of course, but you have to be prepared that there is a bird who will be with you for ALL of those changes and is depending on you to look after them regardless of what changes may happen. Is the family willing to take on the responsibility when the teenager can't/won't? And are THEY aware of what they are letting themselves in for?

I've seen birds of all ages up for adoption, younger birds as well as older birds. People rehome for many reasons - some people don't do their research and realise how much time birds need or how messy and noisy they can be. Some people start a family and can't cope with managing the pets as well as the new baby. Some people have a change of circumstances- they might have to move where they can't have pets, they lose their job and can't afford it etc etc. Maybe their jobs change and they are working so many hours they can't provide what the bird needs any more. Some people sadly pass away and their friends and relatives don't know the first thing about bird care and aren't interested to learn. Some people get ill and can no longer look after the birds. Personally, I would prefer someone rehomed an animal if they weren't able to provide the care it needed instead of holding on to it and making it's life a misery- like in Sydney's example above. I've been in the situation where I had to seriously think about rehoming Alfie. The idea crushed me but I wasn't giving him what he needed at the time. My work/life balance was non-existent (all work), I was trying to study in the free time I did have, I had some personal issues going on, I shared a house with people who had no interest in Alfie (and one was terrified of him) so it was difficult to manage his out of cage time. I decided to make a determined effort to make the changes needed to make it work for Alfie. And if I couldn't do it, then I would have rehomed him in the hopes that someone else could. It took me a while to turn it around but we're in a really good place now and I wouldn't be without him. I'm fortunate enough that I was able to make the changes needed at the time. Otherwise Alfie would have been yet another bird in a rescue centre and there was no guarantee that he would have found his forever home. Apologies for the essay and for derailing the conversation somewhat. 😕

After he throws it out, does he climb down and eat it later? Sometimes Alfie will throw stuff out of his bowl only to go retrieve it later. You can get some bowls which click into place and the bird can't pick it up and tip it out... doesn't stop them scooping it out, however. Does he like foraging toys? You could put the food into a foraging toy instead of a bowl. Might slow him down a bit! 😂 Like you say, he's not starving himself. He gets plenty of food elsewhere. It's obviously just a little quirk of his.

I have no idea if there's much difference between males/females temperament wise. I call Alfie a male but actually have no idea if he's male or female. I was told he was a male but I've never had him DNA tested to confirm either way. Some people suggest males will bond better with female humans and females will bond better with male humans but I don't know how true that is. Alfie previously bonded to my male lodger and he also goes absolutely gooey for my mum. I've only ever had Alfie, so I have no other birds to compare him to on that point I'm afraid! I got Alfie as a baby (approx 11 weeks old) and finished off his weaning process. If I was going to get a second bird, I'd check rescues first I think. There are lots of birds in need of homes. Several members here have rescued birds and have amazing relationships with them.

They seem to like a routine and will fall in line with yours. They do benefit from getting a lot of sleep overnight in a dark/quiet space so you may have to consider this if you're getting a bird up early. With Alfie I work 8-9 hours a day and whilst most of that is working from home these days previously I had to be on site all day, 5 days a week. So Alfie would come out of his cage to play in the evenings for 2-3 hours and longer at the weekends where possible. When I'm working from home I have a second cage upstairs in my office so he can come and join me and we keep each other company. On quieter days I'll let him out in the office so he can play on his tree and around the room. When I let him out of his bigger cage downstairs he has the whole downstairs of the house to play in. I also have two cats so he doesn't get the full run of the house, I have to keep them separated when Alfie is out and about. When I'm on site for work and Alfie is left in his cage he has plenty of toys to play with and foraging opportunities and I leave the radio on for him.

I saw and responded to a thread from a new member asking about parrot ownership and just thought it might be useful to have a thread on the best parts of parrot/grey ownership as well as some of the worst. A lot of videos and social media sites always seem to promote the best things about parrots and maybe sugar coat some of the 'bad' or undesirable parts of parrot ownership. So... what would be on your good, bad and ugly lists in relation to living with parrots? Good Greys make great companions. It's a very rewarding experience. I've been learning about training the last few years and getting a successful recall or when Alfie asks to play our little colour game is very rewarding. Bad The mess from dust, dropped food and shredded toys is never ending. You can't be too house proud with a parrot around 😂 Poop. Everywhere. Ugly The occasional 'unpredictable' bite which can really hurt your feelings! And of course, some parrots WILL draw blood. (I'm very thankful Alfie is not one of them) What would you add to these lists?

I'm in the middle of some house renovations in the house (having the kitchen replaced and some other bits of work in the living room/dining room). So I've had lots of contractors coming round and measuring up. Alfie likes when they use the laser pointers to measure, as they make a little beep noise that he can mimic. He managed to confuse one contractor a couple of times because Alfie was making the beep noise before he'd pressed the button to get the measurement. 😂

Hi A.K, welcome to the forums! There is a wealth of information here so it's worth taking some time to read back through the archives. I'm afraid I can't point you in the direction of any any vets/breeders/rescues etc in your area as I'm across the pond in the UK. In terms of criteria for living with parrots and greys in particular I'd probably go with the following: - You need to have lots of time. Parrots need lots of time and attention. They aren't just going to sit in the corner looking pretty. They want to be involved in the family (their flock) as much as possible. Someone once described parrots as being like toddlers with a can opener attached to their face. I can't agree with this more! - You need to be patient. This is so important with greys. They do everything in their own time. You can't rush them. They can be extremely change adverse at times... new toys are scary! New perches will eat them! Sometimes even new hairstyles/clothes on their human's are worrisome too. You have to work at their pace, not yours. - You need to be tolerant. Parrots are not domesticated animals like dogs and cats. They are smart, intelligent beings with a lot of their wild instincts left. They will quickly learn how to push your buttons. They can be noisy, they are messy, they can be destructive. They can be trained but positive reinforcement is key. Parrots will never react well to shouting or punishments. Greys make for wonderful pets and companions. They will quickly take over your life and you'll never remember what it was like before you had one. And yes, they are a massive commitment - basically similar to having a child. But they are incredibly rewarding in their own very unique way.

Alfie does exactly the same- he'll throw or push something off his shelves and make the 'oop!' noise that I make when I drop something. 😂

Alfie is terrible with toes/feet too. I have to keep them well out of his way. He doesn't really spend much time on the floor so when he does go on it he doesn't run around, he takes slow deliberate steps and takes everything in. Only time I see him running is when he's on his shelf and he's attacking his foot toys.