scooter4n Posted January 11, 2012 Share Posted January 11, 2012 Hi im new to the forum and doing research on African Gray. Always wanted one. I have Quaker and he is great bird but I want to get something bigger, more intelligent I did allot of reading and online search and what I came up so far is that AG's are messy, trow food around, have that feather dust, and stuff like that. now I would like to hear from you owners. How bad is it? How often you clean up? How you handling this? Is it really that bad, or I just came across few bad posts... Let me know please. thank you 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pikachu Posted January 11, 2012 Share Posted January 11, 2012 Our grey isn't very messy. However, she is under a year old still. I think she is less messy than the cockatiel. They poop a LOT more. She does toss food sometimes. The dogs like it though! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scooter4n Posted January 11, 2012 Author Share Posted January 11, 2012 That's kind of expected from bird twice as size to poop little more, but the question is: is poop stays inside the cage, or your AG trying to shoot it outside? and how about trowing food around or out of the cage? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CLB Posted January 11, 2012 Share Posted January 11, 2012 I've had Shadow for 4 months now and I hadn't noticed much mess. I know folks talk about sweeping up and such but I was fairly please with her low maintenance status....UNTIL I had to relocate her cage into my family room while I did a mini makeover on my kitchen. OMG.....there was mess everywhere! Apparently my little chihuahuas do more cleaning than I knew, without their help in the family room there was a ton of mess. lol Luckily the poo always goes down! All said and done...I got a new dyson slim vac and I wouldn't trade Shadow or her mess for all the tea in China! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scooter4n Posted January 11, 2012 Author Share Posted January 11, 2012 Thank you for input. changing location, hmmm, interesting. well so far I got two good news. anyone else? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeffNOK Posted January 11, 2012 Share Posted January 11, 2012 My CAG is still young--only 5 months old. I have been pleasantly surprised at how little mess there is, so far. She seems to prefer pooping only in certain places, and she rarely misser her mark. She doesn't throw food, although when she eats, some bits and crumbs get on the floor around her cage. I just put a few newspapers on the floor and it catches most of it. As far as dust--I really haven't had any issues yet. I bathe her regularly and just do normal cleaning. I don't know if it gets worse as they get older, but mess has been no issue so far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray P Posted January 11, 2012 Share Posted January 11, 2012 I think out of all my birds my cockatiels make the biggest mess, they poop in the water and food dish. My grey is number two she does not poop in her food or water but you will find food out side of the cage. Our grey Corky will call the dogs by name and tell them to speek and toss pellets at them. The dogs keep the floor around the cage clean. Our amazon is the neatest, but you will still will find food outside the cage if you see it before the dogs do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kins2321@yahoo.com Posted January 11, 2012 Share Posted January 11, 2012 All birds are messy. Depends on how smart you are, with being " one step ahead!" I am always a step ahead. If I wasn't.... I buy painters plastic at Walmart. I plan on 12 by 12 area. We have all hardwood floors, which makes it easier. I would recommend NOT having cage " flush" with a wall. They will " paint" the walls with fruits and veggies, as they will fling it. They will need to be introduced to fruits and veggies, over and over. They will continue to fling healthy foods, over and over. Nancy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scooter4n Posted January 11, 2012 Author Share Posted January 11, 2012 good stuff. well some mess is coming sense, my quaker have stuff on the floor here and there, and i dont mind spot vacuuming once a week or so, not a big deal. SO all that makes perfect sense. Now, how about this major feather dust that I was reading about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawL Posted January 11, 2012 Share Posted January 11, 2012 IMO, birds are messy. I have to vacuum my living room, and dining room once in the afternoon, and again at night before bed every day, you have to change the cage OFTEN, wash food and water dishes, do a total scrub down on the cage at least once a month, and my birds have sheets under their cages...they poop on these, it catches food, toy pieces, and whatever else. Every night I take them all outside, shake them out really well, and they get washed and dried every single day. All of these things qualify as cleaning up a mess. They will throw food, chew wood into splinters and fling it around, and if they are out of the cage they obviously poop on the floor, ect. Yes, certain birds are very dusty...especially African Greys and Cockatoos. This dust can be problematic for people with allergies, and asthma. As long as you give a shower every other day it can be kept to a MINIMUM. A healthy bird is a dusty bird...in fact, if your bird stopped producing this natural dust, it can be a sign of illness. I am not going to tell you they are not messy at all. Every bird is different, but I wouldn't want you to read here that they are not messy, get a grey, and be surprised by the mess. You just have to kind of expect it....if you have birds, expect to clean up quite a bit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray P Posted January 11, 2012 Share Posted January 11, 2012 You dust more often. No big deal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mistyparrot Posted January 11, 2012 Share Posted January 11, 2012 (edited) Misty is messy. He dislikes pooping in his cage but he is generally only in there to sleep. I take him to the bathroom regularly but his morning dump shows that he has been saving it! He has a couple of perches that he poops from as well so there are papers underneath. He also puts out a lot of fine dust so I have an air filter for that. Even with that a fine layer of feather dust accumulates on every flat surface so regular vacuuming is a must. He is also a messy eater and will chuck food about. He particularly likes to bring grapes or other soft fruit and sit on my knee so I will hold it for him. If I don't hold it he will push it against my knee to keep it in place with predictable results! There is a price to pay for the incredible honour of having a Grey share your home but I would not have it any other way. Nor would I want to restrict him in a cage or clip him just to make my life easier. He did not force himself on me. I made the choice to have him live with me and I am prepared to take the consequences and put up with the mess. It is more than worth it for the friendship and the love Steve n Misty Edited January 11, 2012 by Mistyparrot Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
munch Posted January 11, 2012 Share Posted January 11, 2012 Biggest problem: DUST. Even with weeky showers that she still hates. (can't do more than that bc we work and only shower her when in the morning and she is not locked up after) Food doesn't go everywhere, that isn't bad. Yes, loves to destroy whatever she can. Hates popping in her cage but training her to poop on her perch instead everywhere else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Talon Posted January 11, 2012 Share Posted January 11, 2012 Mistyparrot said it best. Parrots are very messy, no question about it, but it is something we don't usually care about in exchange for their love. In the big picture of owning a parrot, it is a small issue compared to the happiness and love they bring to us. You did forget to mention, the food that gets thrown onto the walls from fruits and veggies when they are eating in their cage...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mistyparrot Posted January 11, 2012 Share Posted January 11, 2012 (edited) ....You did forget to mention, the food that gets thrown onto the walls from fruits and veggies when they are eating in their cage...... Hi Talon. Assuming you were referring to my post I should point out that Misty is not often required to feed in his cage. So our walls are not subjected to Misty's interior decoration talents. He has a feeding table under his "tree". We usually dine together. As you may realise Greys are social diners by preference. When we eat I come in with my dinner and a plate for Misty. He flies to his dining table in anticipation. True enough his food does not always stay close to his plate! Neither is he above selecting a morsel and bringing it to eat while sitting on my knee:eek: Steve n Misty Edited January 12, 2012 by Mistyparrot Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pikachu Posted January 11, 2012 Share Posted January 11, 2012 good stuff.well some mess is coming sense, my quaker have stuff on the floor here and there, and i dont mind spot vacuuming once a week or so, not a big deal. SO all that makes perfect sense. Now, how about this major feather dust that I was reading about. Our Tiel is FAR dustier than the other birds. In our house, the Quaker is the least, the Grey, then the Tiel. We find feathers, etc. under the cage, no big deal to vacuum them up. There is a lot of food on the bottom of the cage, no big deal bc we just change the paper. Sometimes, food is flung out - the dogs get it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Talon Posted January 11, 2012 Share Posted January 11, 2012 Steve, You are so right. All 3 of my birds share breakfast, and dinner with me. But when I put them in their cages for a bit in the afternoon, I always give them some fruit, pasta, or veggies to munch on, thus the occassional mess on the walls.....itry to stay away from raspberries, that leaves a mess like someone was murdered! Lol! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luvparrots Posted January 11, 2012 Share Posted January 11, 2012 I find that my parrots are not any messier than my children when they were little. I had three of them too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawL Posted January 11, 2012 Share Posted January 11, 2012 (edited) You dust more often. No big deal. Agreed Ray, you definitely do dust more often... I just wanted to clarify that they are dusty. Just didn't want to mislead the OP in saying that they weren't dusty, ect. Every bird is definitely different, I just didn't want to say not to expect a mess...I would rather allow them to be prepared for the mess, and if there isn't much of one, do a happy dance Also, everyone is right about it being a very small price to pay for the love you recieve in return. Honestly, cleaning up after my kids, and fids is second nature to me now. I just add it to the checklist for the day. I get through the day easily cleaning up after them, BUT I wouldn't be able to get through my days if I didn't have them in my life Edited January 11, 2012 by DawL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeffNOK Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 (edited) The dust and mess are small price to pay. Edited January 12, 2012 by JeffNOK The dust and mess are a small price to pay Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scooter4n Posted January 12, 2012 Author Share Posted January 12, 2012 Thank you all, very good reply's. I heard what I expected to head. perfect, ill be doing some CAG shopping now. thanks all. and keep it coming if you want, it's all tips and tricks we all learn from each other, right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Talon Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 I love it when you leave your house, and their is ALWAYS bird potty dried on your shoulder, down your back or on your pants somewhere... Also, don't forget the down feathers, or dander everywhere they preen, which is always when they are on you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Life is Greyt Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 The down feathers somehow even have the ability to teleport-Chickie has never been in the basement, but YET there they are-those little white downy feathers. LOL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scooter4n Posted January 13, 2012 Author Share Posted January 13, 2012 (edited) All good points. well, IM shopping for my gray, will be doing some buying this weekend I hope. Started this blog here, hoping to capture my parrot life from beginning, keep it updated with pictures and all. http://www.myafricangrey.com Edited February 10, 2012 by scooter4n Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kins2321@yahoo.com Posted January 13, 2012 Share Posted January 13, 2012 Many know, I can't shower Sophie, my grey. She is 12 years old now. My groomer showers her. She is okay with it. As long as it is not me. We have a deal. I was off last week, had no plans. I had more time than usual to do nothing. I spent alot of time with Sophie. Watched her groom herself. It is ALOT of work. I never knew how much time Sophie spent on grooming. I have a new respect. I actually can see why birds over " groom", and it gets out of control. Nancy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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