DogsBirdsFish

Regarding the 5 minute visits; when she gets worried about getting back to her eggs, I take her over to the top of the cage, not directly to the eggs. I learned the hard way when the first couple times she attempted to fly back to the cage, and because she recently molted 5 flight feathers, she crashed into the cage. So for her own safety, I carry her over to the cage when she starts to panic and flap her wings. I had read other posts where I believed the Grey would just automatically give up on the eggs around 20 days after laying them. I didn't realize I had to actually remove them myself. In either case, I just removed the peanut shell/feather material from the bottom of the cage. She fluff up her feathers, and I can tell she was torn between being her sweet self and the instinct to defend her eggs. Fortunately I was able to get most all the nesting stuff out without getting bitten. I just couldn't bring myself to take one of her precious eggs from her; especially since she is being an overachiever when it comes to egg sitting. So when I put fresh paper in her cage, I slid it under three eggs and covered up one. She immediately pulled the three eggs under her; so for a minute I thought I had succeeded in separating her from an egg. But after a minute, she got off her eggs and went searching for the missing one. She found it, had a little trouble getting it out from under the paper, and then moved it over to the other three. So I'm back to square one. I really would prefer that she give up on them when she is ready rather than me taking them from her. We have such a good trusting relationship; I feel like I'm betraying her. I guess I'm just not cut out for this tough love situation.

Would you believe Emma is still sitting on the eggs!!! She laid the first one 40 days ago and the fourth one 30 days ago. The only indication that her commitment to the eggs is diminishing is that she is getting off them every 30 minutes or so and coming over to me. However, she still limits the visits to less than five minutes before she starts to panic a bit and then I have to immediately take her back to them. She is eating like a pig and finally starting to eat something other than just peanuts and salt free pretzels. She continues to poop over the side of the cage, so the bottom of the cage (where the eggs are) has been poop free for a month. The molting slowed up to a feather or two a day for a couple weeks. This past week she has shed none...thank goodness!!! BTW - Kitchen remodeling is about 90% complete. Just need the back splash tile, island and under-counter lights, and cabinet trim installed. Emma has to endure the noise of the electrician working next to her (while he installs the power in the basement below the kitchen) for just one more day.

Sorry for the lack of updates; things have been a little chaotic lately. The kitchen rebuild is in full swing. In the past two weeks the cabinets, hard wood floors in the kitchen, family room, and foyer/hall have been installed. In addition the new appliances (refrigerator, dishwasher, range and microwave that we didn’t need but my wife wanted to change the “look”), granite countertop, and additional electrical wiring have been installed. None of this was planned. We had no intention of remodeling the kitchen as the house is relatively new. This all started suddenly a couple days before our annual mega Easter egg hunt and party. So we have been without a kitchen for over three months. My wife and I are in a state of depression (especially my wife) since our son moved to Japan a little over a week ago (we are officially empty nesters and not doing well with the transition). That also was not entirely expected. He applied for the foreign teaching position months ago, but since less than 20% of the applicants are accepted, we figured he wasn’t going to get in especially since he has limited teaching experience. I am trying real hard to perform the general contractor role; coordinating all the sub-contractors for the demolition, kitchen design, electrical upgrades, sheetrock work, cabinets, floors, appliances, and countertop installations. Then dealing with all the things that were installed incorrectly, damaged, or just plan poor workmanship. I still have to get other contractors scheduled for the painting, light fixtures over the island and cabinets, tile backsplash, cabinet knobs, and window treatments. However, thing have come to a standstill since my wife is too depressed to pick out the tile, light fixtures, knobs, etc. I also have my usual pet chores, and like most people, a stressful job. So I am experiencing battle fatigue. I can’t even relax in my home as I have had a steady stream of contractors working around me. So at this time, Emma may be in better shape than anyone else in the house. She laid four eggs (finally stopped). She is eating well and has lots of energy. She is very attentive to her eggs and shows no signs that she will abandon them anytime soon. She has lots of feathers to grow back, as she had a major molt before the eggs were laid, and pulled a bunch of down feathers to make the initial nest when she laid the first egg. Regarding the large poops; I think I figured out the cause. She doesn’t want to poop anywhere near her nest at the bottom of the cage, so she holds it all night. When I let her out first thing in the morning, she climbs up the cage and has a massive poop off the edge (I have paper on the floor at the spot she always goes. Then throughout the day, she makes multiple trips to the top of the cage and poops normal amounts off the edge. BTW – I used to have her get on my shoulder first thing in the morning. After a few of the large poops landed on me, I now wait for her to do her business off the edge of the cage before I pick her up. Her eating habits have changed quite a bit. However, I think I understand some of the reason for the change. She used to eat a variety of fruits and nuts (largely a mix of gourmet foods from Bird Paradise). Now she eats peanuts, pretzels, baked Birdie Munchies, and the occasional apple slice. All the other food is there (including her pre-egg Nutri-Berries and Avi-Cakes treats), but she doesn’t touch them. I didn’t want to force her to eat the other food by withholding her current favorites at this time. I believe she is favoring the peanuts because the shells are the primary nest material. I was pulling the paper and cleaning the bottom of the cage everyday, but I think I was stressing her out. For the past week, I have left the paper and most of peanut shells around her nest. It doesn’t look too bad considering she has not been pooping inside the cage. I also think she is craving protein to fuel her feather re-growth (she has lots of pin feathers). I don’t know any of this for sure as this is all new to me. I read the three popular Grey books I purchased from Amazon, but there is nothing better than experience. Getting back to the unexpected kitchen project; Emma usually needs (demands) up to an hour of my time for one-on-one attention every day. However, I have had very little time lately. The timing of the egg laying has been a blessing. She is so focused on attending to her eggs, that she only has 5-10 minutes of “her” time to spend with me. So it is all working out. I’ll end this long response with a funny story. Monday the electrician walked by Emma’s cage carrying a small ladder. Emma said “What the heck is that”. The electrician stopped dead in his tracks and started to laugh. A few minutes later, she said “Michael” as he passed by her (BTW - that’s his name); so he had another laugh.

She laid another egg today. That is four in 10 days. How do I stop her?

Thanks for all the information; it really helped me better understand what is happening. We have enough recent stress (water damaged kitchen and sending our son off to a foreign country for a multi-year job assignment) to deal with. BTW - When we came back from JFK airport (wife crying the whole time) Emma had laid a third egg. Poor girl has lost a lot of weight and is pooping massive amounts; she seems to wait until she gets on my shoulder to relieve herself.

Just got back from the fitness center; Emma has two eggs! Should I add something to the cage so she can build a proper nest?

Since Emma moved in ten weeks ago, life has been wonderful but crazy. During the first few days, she shed lots of white down feathers. That settled down for a couple weeks; then the grey/red feather molt began. I have a bag of at least 50 feathers of all shape and sizes. They include five large wing feathers, six red tail feathers, and the rest are of various sizes. I was fairly sure she wasn't plucking her feathers as they were not chewed up, and at times, some would fall out while I was petting her. The molting went on for over eight weeks. Then she started scratching in the bottom corner of her cage. I did an internet search and most every response was that was normal foraging behavior. About four weeks ago, work started on our kitchen remodeling project. She seemed to enjoy watching the plumber, electrician, and cabinet installers; even when they were working just a few feet from her. She didn't seem to be bothered by the occasional loud noises. Well she kept on molting and scratching in the corner. The day before I left her alone for my family reunion, she shed (pulled) at least 50 white down feathers. I had no idea she had that many, and afterwards, she didn't look any more rattier than she has been with all the pin feathers coming in. I was really worried about her, and almost didn't go to the reunion (I am the only family member who moved away from the family compound, so I am kind of the one everyone wants to see). Well I left the party early, and when I came home, she was sitting in the corner. I immediately suspected the worse and really regretted leaving her alone. However, when she got up to see me, there was an egg on the floor........ I don't know if the egg is fertilized. The only info I have is she was dropped off with a male Goffin. So now I am worried that she may be upset when the egg doesn't hatch. Every few hours she gets off the egg, leaves the cage, and comes over to me for petting and kissing. I try to keep our sessions short and get her back on the egg just in case. She laid the egg Sunday, so it has been three days. I need a vacation......

Thanks for bringing this to my attention. I have read a couple books on Greys and when I read that apple seeds contained a trace amount of cyanide I didn't give it much thought as my Emma did not like apples. Then the other day she was really interested in the apple I was eating so I gave her the core (expecting her to drop it) and was surprised that she ate it.

Love the video. My Emma will not eat an apple slice but loves eating the core.

That's a good point. Did you get a hair cut, grow/shave facial hair, change shampoo, deodorant, or cologne? I know my Caiques are sensitive to the color shirts I wear. They are afraid of white but love yellow. Our rabbit is afraid of my hands after I eat an orange.

Is this a female only behavior?

So I shouldn't schedule a wedding date at the local aviary church...LOL. I wasn't sure if this was sexual. She wasn't rubbing any part on her body on me. When I do pet her, I have only been doing it on the head and neck. We did just finish a short petting session. Luckily she didn't serve me brunch. Thanks for the advice. I'll have to do my best to get through this hormonal period without damaging our relationship.

Yesterday, when I took her out of the cage after I was out of the house for about five hours, she did something strange (to me anyway). I was expecting to sit down and start our 30 minute petty session. Instead of lowering her head she keep stretching her neck to get up to my face. So I initially thought she wanted to give me a kiss. Instead she started regurgitating her food and was trying to feed me (I think). She was making all these strange sounds (cross of baby babbling and Pug dog snorts). She rocked back and forth and was spreading her wings. She was so cute but very serious and determined to get that yucky stuff in my mouth. I didn't know what to do, so I want along with it (bitter stuff; I hope I don't get sick). I didn't want to push her away for fear that I may hurt her feelings. I tried distracting her, but she would not stop. She reminded me of a doting, overbearing human mom. This went on for nearly 30 minutes. Well it happened again first thing this morning. As soon as she stepped up on my finger she started to stretch up to my mouth. This time it lasted about 20 minutes. So I didn't need to make breakfast this morning..... What is she doing, and more importantly, what should I do?

Wow that is exactly how it went (your experience is obvious). She started with imitating two phone rings, then she said hello followed by a long stretch of gibberish. Then she perfectly said the last few words as I said goodbye. I am also amazed that they can remember things a day or more later without practice (unless she was up all night rehearsing...LOL).

I haven't figured out how to teach Emma to say certain things. I have been repeating the same words and phrases over and over again and nothing; not even a bad pronunciation of any of the words. Yet she is clearly repeating words, phrases, and noises that I may say once or only a very few times. For example, today she repeated the last few words I said on a phone call yesterday. Is she purposely trying to drive me nuts or is there a secret to tricking a Grey into saying what you want them to say? I do like the randomness of the words she has learned to say; however, I would like her to learn a few cute words and phrases that my family, in particular, would be surprised to hear her say.

Yep. I'm currently sitting at my desk petting Emma who walked over to me and got up on my lap.

Update: My training program is going well. Emma has taught me how to prepare her food and to respond quickly to her request for affection. We have settled on about 30 minutes a day of serious head petting (she goes into a trance and would love me to keep it up for hours). Now she does let me think I am training her. I have been playing the full version of the old Andy Griffin theme song on my laptop and I have to laugh as she slowly is starting to get it. She has mastered all the noises I make (and don't particularly want her to learn) while ignoring most of the long complicated sentences I want her to repeat. She has learned some of my shorter word groupings and occasionally mixes them with words she learned from her previous home. It is interesting to hear the mix of my higher pitch voice and the deep voice of her previous owner. Often I have her on my shoulder when I'm on conference calls. She has embarrassed me a couple times when she said inappropriate things to my business colleagues. I think this is one area of great potential for Emma. Once she realizes that she can say things to embarrass me, she may become a major jokester. She is so funny and affectionate. A couple times when I went up stairs to get coffee, she walked up all the steps and was waiting for me at the top step when I opened the door. So far I have not seen any signs of aggression or even a bad mood. I couldn't have gotten any luckier finding her especially given the random nature of how we were brought together.

Good advice regarding opening a door with Emma on my shoulders. I often walk around with my Caiques on my shoulder; but since they cannot fly very well, I'm less concerned about open doors and windows. I did get concerned late yesterday evening when Emma climbed off her cage, walked over to where I was, climbed up onto my stomach and wanted to be pet on the head and back. I can see someday being able to hold her by her wings and possibly turn her over on her back. But yes I can tell she is emotionally needy at times (my male Goldendoodle is like this and he can be a PITA; especially when he is clawing/scratching my hand/arm to pet him). I will have to try to balance her emotional needs and my time commitments to other activity. Since I own a home, have children, big family (lots of parties), and other pets, I have lots of demands for my time. So far I can get her back into the cage without much trouble. I put her back in the evening when I go to the fitness center, let her out when I return, and then put her back in for the night. I have a few hanging toys and wood things to chew but so far she shows little interest in them. She loves to chew up paper and cardboard though.

Here is a solution for your wife from the Caique world: The shark hat works like a scarecrow.....LOL.

Now I can't take naps with Emma. Emma wants me to CONSTANTLY pet her head & neck. If I put my hand down for a few seconds, she lifts my finger to get me to start up again. The few times I fell asleep, and Emma wasn't able to get me going by lifting my finger, she gives me a big kiss on the lips. Once I was briefly sound asleep and she had to practically stick her head into my mouth to wake me. That was an interesting feeling to wake up too. And when we are up and about, she wants to be on my shoulder. So I walk around most of the day trying to get chores done with her "helping" me. Looks like I have a clingy fid on my hands; er I mean shoulder. BTW - The first official word I taught her was to cough. I've had a bit of a cough all week, and instead of repeating one of the many phrases I am trying to teach her, she comes out with a perfect imitation of my cough.

My Grey has a few random red feathers; however, your Grey has a nice pattern. It looks like breeders have been hard at work producing red Greys. http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=red+african+grey&mid=45B0B3162ABFF8F7BD2C45B0B3162ABFF8F7BD2C&view=detail&FORM=VIRE2

Good weekend with Emma. I noticed I can put her on top of her cage or play stand, leave the room for up to an hour and she is still there when I come back. With my caiques I cannot leave them alone out of the cage for a minute. Is this normal for a Grey to stay in place when you leave them alone for short periods; or does this end when the honeymoon is over?

Well I do have a good connection with most animals. My wife calls me Dr. Dolittle (maybe she means I do little around the house...LOL.). For example, we have wild Mallard ducks in our back yard (we have a creek). Over the years, when I have had time to spend with them, I was able to pick up a few and hold them while I was feeding them. Some were so trusting they would wait in the front yard for me to come home from work. I did let two follow me into the house; they walked down the hall into the kitchen. I called to my wife that I brought dinner home, when she saw the ducks she thought I was nuts. I fed them, took pictures, and walked them back out the house. The neighbor's cat sleeps on my pillow every night. When we are outside and the cat sees me and the neighbors, they call him, but he always runs to me. It is embarrassing and funny. They have him micro chipped and a big orange cat sticker on their mailbox to lay claim to him. The only time I physically carry him back home is when his collar is missing or I think he is sick. So yes I am a cat napper. One more story. On Thursday I was in the middle of posting on the forum when a different neighbor came over in a panic because they had a big snake next to the house. They were going to cut it in half with a shovel, but knew I would be upset. So I got out my net, put the snake (Corn Snake) in a bucket, drove him 10 miles to a large secluded state owned field and released him. So I am turning on the charm big-time with Emma.

Is this a requirement for anyone who purchases or adopts an adult Grey? Has anyone else checked to make sure their Grey was not stolen after they brought them home? I know if I was able to adopt the 20 year old Grey, he would probably be just as sweet as Emma considering he was well loved by a retired couple. Should I be suspicious of the foster home owner? The bird farm that had the two parrots is a family owned business for over 30 years. I did do some research on them (including a BB report) when I first stopped in to look at the place. Everything looked legit.

What! She's not going to stay like this????? We just woke up from an hour long nap. She slept on my chest. She did a little preening and her first words were "I love you". If you watched the movie Groundhog Day, I wouldn't mine reliving the past three days over a few more times. I hope this will be a long honeymoon; I'm spoiled. BTW - It's a good thing I didn't raise Emma. If I did, we would both be in therapy and on medication. LOL.