Gilbert is home

[MarcusCAG]

^^ Dastardly is right! What a beautiful boy you have, Dee, ever the charmer and now apparently the perfect companion for you on your various "adventures", on the road and in hospitals and such. I'm so glad to hear he's making everyone laugh and feel good while he's there and that he's being such a good boy for you in these strange, new situations.

[pearllyn]

This look, with his eye open, is the lure for a bite look. He will close his eyes when he is genuinely wanting to have a scratch on the head.

Oh my - i do recognise those little looks - he surely is a monkey! A very smart and clever one though - he's just turning into such a charmer, I'm so happy for you all I can't tell you. He's amazing to be coping so well with his travels too, remembering that the last time he took such a journey it was to go to a new home. It just shows how far you two have come together in this short time. xx

[MarcusCAG]

Thinking of you guys. Hope all is well...

[katana600]

Gilbert was staying in my friend's home during the day and I would be home with him in the evening. He started getting really upset with that arrangement and started plucking out a few of his chest feathers, so I made a change. Gilbert has been around the block a time or two. My friend first visited in my home, then I left for two weeks. Now he is at her house and I was gone for extended periods. He has seen that pattern before. I brought him to stay with me full time and he is pleased even though it means he is staying in the back pack. He likes the small secure area. He likes even better that he can see me 24 hours a day. Love the picture with his chicken bone. He was having a snack while he watched me cook some chicken chili.

[MarcusCAG]

Ooh, yummy chicken bone! That's a great shot of him, thanks for sharing!

 

Do you mind if I ask which backpack variety you are using for Gilbert?

[katana600]

This is the backpack we have for Gilbert. He seems to like it a lot. I did have to put vet wrap around the perch because it was too slippery and a little small for his feet. I have a small wire cage, plus a larger travel cage for him but he didn't seem to like being out in the open in a strange house. Today, he is back in the smaller travel cage and I wrapped his favorite red fleece blanket around one end and part of each side to give him a more secure spot to hang out. When I first brought him to the small apartment where we are staying, he seemed scared and wanted to be in a smaller space. Then he started shredding newspaper and I was concerned he was nesting. Also the back pack didn't give me much room to get around him to change his food and water and he bit me three times with wicked intent a couple of days ago. That is when I got the idea he was in there building me a love nest and it was not such a good idea to allow him to continue. The back pack is intended for a couple of hours out of the house, not for him to stay in there for long. I just keep watching him for signs of what he needs and rolling with the changes. We are in this hospice program for the long haul and will do whatever it takes to keep Gilbert settled as well as my family back home in touch.

[MarcusCAG]

Thank you, Dee. I would like to get Marcus a backpack in the not-too-distant future so I was curious what has been working out for you and Gilbert so well during your travels.

 

And I'm sorry for the bites, but if it was a "love nest"--I can understand that! Your boy must truly adore you, it's so wonderful. :)

[katana600]

We are staying in a six story apartment building in sort of a senior center. Gilbert is the talk of the town. We were having the windows cleaned last week. The man was sitting on the ledge reaching around to wash the outiside. Gilbert asked him what he was doing. To my surprise, he leaned in and said "I'm washing your windows". Here I thought I was the only one to answer that relentless question. From my vantage point where I was washing dishes, I could see Gilbert in his cage next to the window and the back of my friend Martha's head. Gilbert asked a second time in a different, more demanding tone "What are you DOING?" The man leaned back in, and said in a patient but firm tone, "I just told you, I am washing your windows." But he was looking straight at Martha and she piped up "Well don't look at me, I didn't ask you, it was him," with a finger pointing to Gilbert. The fellow looked at him and thought this woman was trying to get the best of him and with a shake of his head said "Noooo". To which Gilbert told him "Bye bye, see ya later" Now when we call for maintenance, someone is up here in fifteen minutes and the building manager brought me a card and some cookies to say how much everyone is enjoying Gilbert staying with us. It is so funny. I love knowing he is making someone smile when things are tough most days for our fellow tenants. We are meant to be here for this time.

[Cupid]

Well what can you say? Gilberts brightening up everyones day! most greys have that effect on people! Thanks for the update, hope all is well

[katana600]

Gilbert is continuing to be a daily source of enjoyment, comfort and company for my friend. When she went to bed last night she said "Night night Gilbert" and he said back "Night night sweet heart" He has not said that before and she was so pleased with his gift to her. He also has been making a new sound he keeps saying "Whee whee whee" and when I started about a week ago, I thought it was related to this little piggy cried whee whee whee all the way home. So, I say "All the way home" in response to him. My friend's daughter came yesterday and said it reminds her of the commercial, maybe for Geico where the mom car pooling has the little piglet in the back seat. When she mentioned it, I recalled last week when Martha had the tv turned to volume 38 when that commercial came on and I asked her to hit the mute button because we have a sixteen hour drive at the end of our stay here and I don't want to hear that allllll the way home. LOL. Well, when my friend and I were talking about the commercial, Gilbert started laughing loudly and then saying "Whee Whee Whee" over and over again. He has been absolutely possessed with it all day today too. I must admit, if he said it all the way home, I would still just love it. Hahahahaha. He is such a little cut up and has a great sense of humor too. I miss my husband and my kids, my dogs and Java and the things going on back home, but having him here with me just makes me smile every day in a situation that might otherwise be too stressful to bear. I know he and I were meant to come together in this lifetime and appreciate all the little connections that were made in order for us to find each other.

[katana600]

Wee wee wee are making our way back home. We are stopping off in Wilmington NC to help my daughter set up her first home away from our family home near Atlanta. She has a cat and Gilbert is not pleased with that development. We put him high on a bookcase and have been working to put barriers and distasteful distractions on the desk to keep the curious kitty from visiting him and we keep her behind closed doors for bedtime and if we need to leave the apartment. Gilbert has been my little partner during an extended stay away from home. He has adapted and is happy and well adjusted for the changes we have experienced.

[Malikah]

Thanks for the update Dee, I was just thinking of you and Gilbert today! I'n glad to hear you are finally on the way home, but I'm sorry if that means your friend's mom has passed away. Cyberhugs from Kito and me {{{{Dee & Gilbert}}}}

[pearllyn]

I hope you both have a good journey home - think of the welcome you are going to get when you arrive! x

[katana600]

Gilbert and I are making our way south. We stopped at my daughter's first apartment in Wilmington NC where she started a new job last week. She also has a new pet that appeared while we were traveling and Gilbert is NOT impressed with the Siamese cat. I put aluminum foil strips across the desk and perched him high atop a bookcase. The cat doesn't like the sound of the foil beneath her feet and it gives me a warning that she is approaching. Well, not that I need one, Gilbert does the smoke detector noise or a siren when she approaches. LOL He sure does know how to get my attention. He is talking and happy. My apartment settling is finished, my husband flew in for business yesterday and will drive home with me tonight. Home. It is a relative term. I have been gone such a long stretch I can't get a visual sense of being there. That being said, we have moved a lot with my husband's career so it doesn't lend well to putting down firm roots. LOL. Any small room with my friends, family and especially my little companion becomes home for the time I am in any one place. Our two little dogs and Java are going to be so wild with excitement I may not be able to go to bed tonight. LOL My mission "up north" is finished and I do have an angel on my shoulder and an inspiration for living my days to the fullest. It will take some time to process and find all the meaning that this was meant for me to learn. One thing I know for sure is that Gilbert was the joy of our days and the talk of the town. We laughed every day and he was a big part of that. He will have to go back with me every time I visit or I will have a list of folks who are giving me the dickens.

[MarcusCAG]

As you brought out, Dee, I'm sure everyone at home will be so glad to see you both. Thinking of you during your trip, please be safe...

[katana600]

Gilbert slept in his own cage last night! Wow. It is good to be home. He was getting so tired of all his traveling, he scared me a little on the final two hour leg of our journey. Hope the photo shows up. He was hanging upside down, tightly against the corner of his travel cage with his beak firmly wedged in the grate at the bottom. I touched his back and wings and he never made a peep, kept his eyes wide open. I also think he is in a molt. My car looked like the inside of a snow globe when we opened the door and stirred the air. He has been a plucker, but all the larger feathers looked hollow at the end and he has lots of pin feathers and his feathers just fly when I scratch his head. He has been happy, energetic and vocal today. Java was so happy to see me last night. We arrived after two am, and I went right to her cage and held her and she cooed and turned on her back and just was as loveable and welcoming as any creature could possibly be. I am so happy to be home again.

[Luvparrots]

This is marvelous news that you are finally back home, Dee. I can imagine the joy and relief in Gilbert to be back with his ole buddy Java and back in his own cage! Hooray!

[katana600]

I was a little worried how Gilbert would go from a travel cage where he was always cozy and snug to living in his larger than life big boy cage. Well, not to worry, he has been inside and outside, on top, hanging off the bottom and moving moving moving every minute. He is making up for lost time and acts like he found all his old friends. He has used more space in his cage than in the previous three months he lived in it before we set off on our travels. As a bonus, Java is so happy to see us, she has been out full time, flying to me, cooing, snuggling and being sweeter than she has ever been. And then she noticed Gilbert again. She flew to his cage and he was out on top on the playstand. I stood at a distance where I could shoo her off if needed, but allowed them to work through the confrontation. He still can not fly and she is smaller and faster. He defended his territory with honor and he then played with everything he has never wanted to touch. It is so good to be home, I feel the same way as Gilbert. I will have the opportunity to touch everything starting tomorrow, it will take me a week to put my stuff away and clean thoroughly. Just for today though, I am going to sit quietly and enjoy my family and companions.

[pearllyn]

Java was so happy to see me last night. We arrived after two am, and I went right to her cage and held her and she cooed and turned on her back and just was as loveable and welcoming as any creature could possibly be. I am so happy to be home again.

Clever little Java - she knows you and Gil have been on a buddy trip and has completely put herself straight back into the centre again.So glad you are both home safe and sound. Enjoy the rest of your day xx

[katana600]

Funny how things work out sometimes. Gilbert is delighted to be home in his big cage. He is exploring and calling to the dogs and has more energy and curiousity about his cage and toys than I have seen in him since the beginning. He has crawled over every inch of his cage and just seems to the be the king of his castle. He welcomes me to scratch his head and to hand him treats but has a hands-off approach right now. Then he climbed to the top of the cage on the highest part of his play stand and politely refused to come down at bed time. I gave him a few minutes, put an almond inside the cage in his bowl and he still had no intention of stepping up to allow me to put him to bed. Then, Java flew to my shoulder and Gilbert scampered right down to get on my hand. I was a little afraid. I was a lot afraid. But, he just let me pick him up, move him to a perch inside the cage and he ate his almond and went to bed. Meanwhile, Java is my sweet little buddy and wants to be all over me and to stay with me wherever I go in the house. She had been a little more aloof, but apparently absence makes her heart grow fonder. For the first time in six months, now both cages are left open while I am in the room and neither of them seem to be intent on bothering the other. I am not sure what to make of this, but will keep reinforcing that they each have a special place with me and hopefully this is the beginning of the two of them calling a truce and perhaps even beginning to tolerate each other. I am just thrilled beyond words that it is working out this well.

[katana600]

Gilbert continues to be brave and assertive. He climbed down the bars of his cage and jumped into the box of toys I was getting put away. He seemed so happy down there in the box that I just let him play in there for about an hour. He has been more animated, hanging from the top bars of the "ceiling" of his cage and doing some wild gyrations with his head. Then, today he got his whole body involved and was hanging by one toenail while he thrashed and flapped his wings. He seems reallly happy and full of himself. He and Java have seemed to declare a mutual period of acceptance from a distance. When he goes into his cage, she does get him worked into a lather by landing on the playtop. Even though there is a metal "drawer" where he can not see her up there, he puts all the alarms on and scrambles out. I have been daydreaming about the day when he might be able to fly and then I am guessing he will get even with her.

[Cupid]

Gilbert and I are making our way south. My mission "up north" is finished and I do have an angel on my shoulder and an inspiration for living my days to the fullest. It will take some time to process and find all the meaning that this was meant for me to learn. One thing I know for sure is that Gilbert was the joy of our days and the talk of the town. We laughed every day and he was a big part of that. He will have to go back with me every time I visit or I will have a list of folks who are giving me the dickens.

 

Im happy that your safe from your travels and that your home. Give Gilbert a nice scritch when he lets you from Aristotle and I.

[birdhouse]

I have been daydreaming about the day when he might be able to fly and then I am guessing he will get even with her.

 

Careful what you wish for, Dee. lol Think things are going to take on a whole new definition of interesting after that.

 

Glad to hear you guys are happily settled back home.

[danmcq]

Hi Dee! Thanks for the update. It sounds like Gilbert has adjust well and is being his cantankerous self. I wonder where he gets that from?

 

Flighted? Just wait for that day and learn to bob, weave and duck quickly.

Edited September 17, 2011 by danmcq

[MarcusCAG]

Gilbert continues to be brave and assertive. He climbed down the bars of his cage and jumped into the box of toys I was getting put away. He seemed so happy down there in the box that I just let him play in there for about an hour. He has been more animated, hanging from the top bars of the "ceiling" of his cage and doing some wild gyrations with his head.

 

The box of toys sounds like it was a lot of fun for Gilbert! And Marcus will often do that 'head gyration' thing when he's hanging upside-down from his cage bars, too, if we blow air onto his belly. Then he'll make "blowing air" sounds back at us and start giggling his little self into oblivion as he whirls and snaps his head and body all around. It leaves me in absolute hysterics! It's kind of become a game for us now and I think it's interesting to read that other Greys do this sort of thing too. Birdie games.