Jayd Posted April 17, 2011 Share Posted April 17, 2011 (edited) Joey’s update….It has been a long time coming…. Flying: This is a miracle in itself…here was a bird that was clipped before he had a chance to fly, was clipped for over two years and kept in a cage, not counting the mental abuse during this time. Joey is a small Grey and is stunted somewhat due to an improper diet. His wings are a little short due to stunting from his previous diet. Muscle development in the back and wing area has improved tenfold since he has joined our household. Joey was with us approximately a year and a half before he tried to fly. We had put a small pillow on the kitchen counter for him. That length was about 20 feet from his cage and when he began to fly, he would crash-land in that area. His first flights were disastrous and he would crash as he flew full speed to that area. During the time before he began to fly, he would only raise his wings to stretch them but never flapped. When he would get on Jay’s hand, Jay would raise and lower him so he would learn to flap his wings and get some exercise. His flight altitude would be 4-5 feet and one flight was all he could handle. He would be extremely exhausted after one flight. He would only attempt to fly once or twice a week. This went on for an extremely long time until he mastered his cage to kitchen flights. Eventually, once a day, he would attempt to fly from his kitchen perch to the bedroom which was about 60 feet at his 4-5 foot altitude height. When he reached the bedroom, he would make a sharp left turn and crash-land by grabbing an Indian blanket that we have on the wall. At this point, he would wait for me to come in and get him. I would have to climb on the bed and he would be dangling by one foot with the other scouting around, trying to find my finger so he could get down. Joey’s update….It has been a long time coming…. A few weeks back, Joe flew into the bedroom and Jay decided to try to get him. When Jay got to the bedroom, he sat down at the computer desk because he was tired and called to Joey to come to him. Joey flew down and landed on Jay’s arm. The next day, Jay was sitting on the chair in the bedroom and Joey flew into the bedroom. Instead of flying to the blanket, he flew over and landed on Jay’s shoulder. As a side-note: whenever Joey flies, we always praise him and give him a treat. Less than two weeks back, Joey found out that he could fly from the kitchen and land on the side of his cage. He also has learned to do short controlled hops and flies over to Jay’s shoulder when Jay is sitting on the couch (about 5 feet). He has learned how to hover and do some zigzag maneuvers. This is not up to par for a fully flight-fledged Grey but the success for him to be able to fly, let alone overcome the fear is a major accomplishment for any Grey. After he lands, he stands tall and struts; showing the entire world how proud he is…he even says “Good Joey!” TRUST: This has been the hardest thing for Joe…we believe there is fear involved but we don’t know what caused it or what happened in his previous home. We know that he begged to be fed. With me, Joey will let me feed him by spoon for breakfast and lunch. If I try to give him a treat or a reward, he will turn his back to me. He will step up for me every time I ask. He will give me a kiss on the nose, tell me he loves me and calls me Babe. He basically ignores all the other birds in the house, except Spock. He will let Spock get within 6 inches and that is it. They will carry on conversations with each other; they will sit together in the kitchen and if Spock lowers his head and wants Joey to preen him, he will let him get to the 6 inch barrier and will warn him in Congolese that that is far enough. He will let Spock and Salsa play and eat in his cage but his outside perch is off-limits to anyone but him when he is in the area. Jay is Joey’s choice but I could not ask for a better relationship than I have with Joey. When he hears Jay awake in the morning, he will fly into the bedroom. If Jay is not up, he will ask if “Poppa okay?” and when he hears Jay moving around, he will climb over to the side of the cage that faces the bedroom and wait impatiently for the door to open. If Jay comes out when he is eating his meal, he will stop and go over to Jay and Jay will have to feed him. He loves to sit on Jay’s shoulder and if he wants something or a treat, he will make a kissee sound and bop Jay on the nose or the cheek. He will let Jay touch him anywhere but Jay has to be careful because Joey will get lovey-dovey and want to regurgitate. If Jay gets tired and has to move, Jay will tell him “Joey, go to momma” and Joey will step up, give me a kiss and go back to his perch. Joey is a mellow, calm bird and it brings tears to our eyes when we think of the bird we first brought home and how he has blossomed. He has not mentioned his previous owner’s name for some time now and has not asked for food or made rude comments on his previous owners. His vocabulary is extensive and he comes up with new words and phrases daily. His favorite game is “mimic me”. Joe will make a sound; say a word or a phrase. Joe wants us to repeat it the same way that he said it and if we don’t, he will repeat it again. As an ending note: If Salsa gets noisy and rambunctious, Joey will say clearly in Jay’s voice…Salsa!! Shut up!! P.S, This was written by Maggie, my better half..... Edited April 18, 2011 by Jayd added P.S. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jingles Posted April 17, 2011 Share Posted April 17, 2011 (edited) Great update!!!! That's awesome that he's flying so good and it's so cute that he says Good Joey! You guys are great with birds and all of them have made so many leaps and bounds! Thank you for the update! i'm still chuckling over salsa shut up!!! to funny! Edited April 17, 2011 by Jingles Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray P Posted April 17, 2011 Share Posted April 17, 2011 The return you get when you spend quality time with a bird in need can not be measured. That lesson came from Cricket and I will never forget it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Birdnut Posted April 17, 2011 Share Posted April 17, 2011 Great update. Thanks for taking the time to write it. What an amazing turnaround for Joey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Talon Posted April 17, 2011 Share Posted April 17, 2011 What a wonderful update, thank you for sharing it with us in such detail. I feel like I was there watching every step of the way! I am so proud of Joey's progress! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luvparrots Posted April 17, 2011 Share Posted April 17, 2011 What a lovely update on Joey and his involvement with the family. It's nice to have you all back in the fold! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katana600 Posted April 19, 2011 Share Posted April 19, 2011 Thanks for the Joey report. Great news for the little guy. He may have gotten off to a rough start, but he seems to know how lucky he is to have found you as fast as he could. We learned a lot from you and Maggie over the past two years. Then, we were really blessed for Gilbert to find us. I am happy to say that he is talking from his previous homes and it has all been kind and sweet. It would be hard to take to think anyone had been rough with him. I don't know if he will ever fly but I know you will be right there celebrating with us when he does. Congratulations on your success with Joey. He may have a history, but he doesn't have a sad story. He has an uplifting and inspiring story of rising above his raising. Thanks so much for the update. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarcusCAG Posted April 25, 2011 Share Posted April 25, 2011 Your Joey sounds like a doll. I'm glad to hear he's come so far with you... my head is still reeling from the "I'm Joey, NOT Jim," that you shared in your other post about him. He sounds like an amazing little boy who's literally spreading his wings now and leaving so much of the sadness of his past behind him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morana Posted April 26, 2011 Share Posted April 26, 2011 ... my head is still reeling from the "I'm Joey, NOT Jim," that you shared in your other post about him. I'd like to read that post but I can't find it. Can somebody tell me what is the thread called? Tnx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarcusCAG Posted April 26, 2011 Share Posted April 26, 2011 I'd like to read that post but I can't find it. Can somebody tell me what is the thread called? Tnx Morana: It's tucked away in this thread someone started when they were inquiring after adopting an older Grey. I can't tell you how many people I've told about that "I'm Joey, NOT Jim!" comment of Joey's, after I blather on to them about our Marcus for a while! http://www.greyforums.net/forums/showthread.php?192543-adopting-an-elder-w-attitude (Jayd, I hope it's okay for me to tack this link on in your new thread here! Sorry if I'm "hijacking" somehow!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now