GandalfGreybird Posted December 21, 2010 Share Posted December 21, 2010 (edited) Hey all, I'm a 25 yo guy and I live in Rockford, IL. I currently have an appx. 5 yo Cockatiel named Marble. I got him from an aviary rescue in Madison, WI. Had him for about 3 years now. He's the most neurotic little feather ball but he's been getting better all the time. Don't know if he'll ever be cuddle-ready, but who knows. When I first got him he'd flip if expected to do anything more than step-up. Was real hard to get at pin-feathers or any type of hygiene. I'm eagerly awaiting the spring clutch at my local breeder. Unfortunately they probably won't be available till June or so. I'm intending on getting a male CAG, and his name will be Gandalf (hence my forum name). I was thinking Isaac, until my girl said if we ever have a son, thats top on her list of names. That night i shot upright in bed as i was falling asleep realizing i could name my Grey Gandalf. Struggled a bit cause i didn't want to end up with a "fido" type name. But after asking around, and asking my breeder, she'd only known a couple. Plus my girl is a LOTR nut, so it got me and the bird points there. I've always wanted a Grey and now seems like the perfect time. I may be getting married in the next few years, and I want to have Gandalf through puberty and the like before any dogs or furthermore kids come into the picture. The cool thing is my breeder has a rottweiler mix, a lab, and a mini-doxon. Considering I will always have a doberman in the house, and my girlfriend loves labs, this is great news. The birds grow up used to big dogs as well as all the other public and toy exposure the breeder gives the birds. I wanted to get on the forum to further the mad amounts of research i've been doing. I read through Barron's Guide to a Well Behaved Parrot as well as Barron's African Grey. Both excellent books that seem to have a very well balanced and informative approach. My history is in dogs, like most people. My mom was a vetrinarian technician for 25 years so i literally grew up in the clinic with all breeds. She's still very involved with dog behavior and training. I've picked up a lot if not most of the training she does. I just don't do it for a living. I was pleasantly surprised how much of the training concepts and even some techniques transfer to birds. The biggest difference being body language and different reward foods. My room-mate has a 3 yo Blue and Gold Macaw who's pretty funny. Edited December 21, 2010 by GandalfGreybird additional info Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Birdnut Posted December 21, 2010 Share Posted December 21, 2010 Greetings! Welcome to the forum. Gandalf is a cool name for a Grey. I also considered that one, being a LOTR fan myself, but ended up naming our boy Moussa after an African drummer we met (I'm into African drumming). Sounds like you have been doing a lot of preparation for getting your Grey. You can find lots of good, first-hand information here on the forum. Be sure and read through all the stickies. It's like a university education on African Greys! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GandalfGreybird Posted December 23, 2010 Author Share Posted December 23, 2010 Thanks! Plan on it. I wanted to get involved in a solid community for those nervous few weeks (and the odd things to follow) early on. I get along great with my to-be-breeder and she's been doing it quite a while. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luvparrots Posted December 23, 2010 Share Posted December 23, 2010 Nice to meet you!!! If you are in a household with a B & G you must be very familiar with big parrots. To me that in itself is a plus albeit greys and B & G are two very different birds. There are loads of threads about many different topics here at the forum so read, read, read. Welcome to the Grey family Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barbara2 Posted December 23, 2010 Share Posted December 23, 2010 The only caution I will give with the retrievers (I have a black lab) is that they are hard wired to "retrieve". My gentle giant goes nuts in bark mode whenever my grey flaps furiously. (He does that when he wants me, or food, or whatever.) I'm trying to retrain the lab but it's tough to knock out an inbread instinct. Interestingly, my grey will fly away if I bring him out when my 2 year old and 8 month old granddaughters are in the room and fly back to the room where the dogs are. He doesn't seem to see the dogs as a danger but these two little girls are a threat. Go figure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danmcq Posted December 23, 2010 Share Posted December 23, 2010 Welcome to the forum. If you haven't already, please browse through all the rooms for tons of information on proper care for a grey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted December 23, 2010 Share Posted December 23, 2010 Hello and welcome to the family, so great that you want to learn all you can since you have decided to add a grey to your life. I have a cockatiel that I "rescued" since she just dropped into my backyard one day this past summer and no one claimed her so I kept her, she is not a cuddly bird either but she loves to fly when she is out of her cage. I wish all other perspective grey owners would do the research you are doing before making that final plunge into owning one of these amazing creatures for they do require more than just a cage and some food. Be sure to check out the book "For the Love of Greys" by Bobbi Brinker, I think it is the best book on the market for information about greys but be sure to read thru as many of the threads here for lots of useful info about all aspects of giving a grey what they need and want. We have an other birds room where you can share a picture or two of Marble if you like, I know I would like to see him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GandalfGreybird Posted December 23, 2010 Author Share Posted December 23, 2010 (edited) Thanks for all the welcomes! Thanks for the tip Judy. Oddly enough I almost ended up with the combo you've got. I was visiting the breeder's place to pick up some millet for Marble and she had a little 3mo Sun conure what was absolutely smitten with me the minute i walked in the door. It could have been that i was a guy, but either way I barely walked out of there without her(?). I just know i can't handle 3 birds right now. College student. I took video of her dancing etc. Missed the part where i went to have her step up and she rolled over for a belly rub instead. Edited December 23, 2010 by GandalfGreybird Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katana600 Posted December 23, 2010 Share Posted December 23, 2010 Congrats on taking the leap to become a parrot partner. I like that you are looking forward to the kids and dogs and thinking ahead on your family plans while considering this monumental journey with your little Gandalf. Great name. One of the books I read while we were a home-in-waiting for our little one to wean is The Parrot Problem Solver by Barbara Heidenreich. I found it a lot easier to set boundaries from the beginning than to go through the heartbreak of solving the problem after the fact. When you read about all the reasons people give for rehoming their birds, it will give you a good idea to balance your expectations and be ready for the commitment. As it gets closer if you are like me and countless others, you will be holding your breath and want to rush the weaning time to be over, be patient with your little fellow to wean when he is ready, it will pay off greatly to help him learn to be trusting and ready to come to you. I am so excited for you to join us and think of those happy times when you will be together with an amazing little spirit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray P Posted December 23, 2010 Share Posted December 23, 2010 Welcome to the forum and a grey will give you a different out look on life. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GandalfGreybird Posted December 25, 2010 Author Share Posted December 25, 2010 @Katana600: Thanks for the tip Katana, I've heard her on the podcast they (used to) do. Haven't released on in a while. Now i've got two books to track down. lol. I come from a heavy dog behavior background as i mentioned so i took an entire weekend calling around to find a breeder that understood the importance of developmental stages and exposure, socialization, etc to as much as possible at the right times. Like you said. simple things up front can save a lifetime of agonizing problems. @Ray P: Thanks Ray! me too I'm sure he will. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GandalfGreybird Posted January 8, 2011 Author Share Posted January 8, 2011 Thanks for the recommendation Katana. I picked up, or downloaded, The Parrot Problem Solve via the Kindle app and have been tearing through it. Great book. I've heard of Barbara from the podcast she is(was?) part of. They haven't put up any new episodes in quite a while last I checked. The interview with the Canadian research group was great though. I'm probably going to pick up The Alex Studies next. btw i have a twitter feed i sporadically tweet from from for my tiel Marble (@OrneryMarble) and have Gandalf's saved. Seems silly, but I'm going to use it for a 365 journal of sorts. I'll probably post that in the "others" forum with a couple requested photos of Marble. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted January 8, 2011 Share Posted January 8, 2011 I look forward to seeing some pictures of Marble but I have to laugh at the name of your twitter feed, OrneryMarble! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GandalfGreybird Posted January 8, 2011 Author Share Posted January 8, 2011 Lol. Sums him up quite nicely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GandalfGreybird Posted January 8, 2011 Author Share Posted January 8, 2011 I Posted those photos over in the Other Birds forums. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buffy Posted January 8, 2011 Share Posted January 8, 2011 Welcome and congratulations! It's going to be a long wait for your baby. I remember that wait well! Once I picked the bird breeder I was most impressed with, I had to wait 7 months for Echo, but it was worth it. I joined 3 forums in the beginning and have only followed this one for quite some time. In my opinion, it is by far the best! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GandalfGreybird Posted January 8, 2011 Author Share Posted January 8, 2011 Yeah i found my breeder a couple months ago. She breeds mid Jan. so i should have him sometime in June-July. Buh.. long wait! But gives me time to budget responsibly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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