kristan.marino@gmail.com Posted November 23, 2012 Share Posted November 23, 2012 Hello All! I am so excited to be joining your forum...I am happy to announce that we will have our first CAG joining us in a couple of weeks. As excited I am, I am also a bit nervous because he is a juvenile I believe, 4 years old, and I am afraid that I will not be able to bond with him the way I have heard everyone talking about with their babies they have brought home. He is said to be good mannered, is hand tamed, does not speak yet, but he mimics and makes some whistling sounds. I am concerned that bringing in an "older" bird will also bring in "baggage". But I am also not afraid to be patient and hope that he understands how much we love him <3 I am looking forward to meeting our new little love bug...Our names are narrowed down to Darwin...or Heisenburg I will gladly accept ANY advice that you have Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted November 23, 2012 Share Posted November 23, 2012 Hello Darwin and welcome to our family. Don't worry about bonding with your new grey, it may take some time and much patience on your part but it will happen, just let him settle into his new home and let him decide on when he wants to interact with you. Yes greys that come from previous homes usually do bring baggage with them but if you know the person he is coming from then get as much information about his likes and dislikes and vet records so you will be better prepared but most of all just relax and don't stress out about it or he will sense it and act accordingly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luvparrots Posted November 23, 2012 Share Posted November 23, 2012 Congrats on your new grey. Looking forward to hearing more about him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray P Posted November 23, 2012 Share Posted November 23, 2012 A four year old grey is still a very young grey. Just give him time to settle in to his new home. Before I forget welcome to the grey forum and we love pictures. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murfchck Posted November 23, 2012 Share Posted November 23, 2012 Welcome! 4 is not old at all as Ray said, and he will come around! Your life as you know it is about to change, for the better of course! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timbersmom Posted November 24, 2012 Share Posted November 24, 2012 Hello and welcome to you and Darwin. I rehomed a 4-5 year old TAG (they weren't sure of age) this past June. It took about six weeks for him to "settle in" and get used to us, but we do very well now, and I think he is happy. I know I am! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katana600 Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 Don't be afraid of bonding with a four year old CAG, all relationships with our greys change over time and go through cycles. We have an eleven year old TAG. He was rehomed several times and was a bit of a challenge but he is slowly coming around, making great progress and he laughs with us every day. There were a lot of days when I wondered if there was something I should be "doing" to help him and make him happy, but the real secret most our forum members have taught me is to move slowly, let him accept one thing at a time and wait. It is a beautiful rewarding journey of ups and downs, give and take and I wouldn't take a million dollars for him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kristan.marino@gmail.com Posted November 27, 2012 Author Share Posted November 27, 2012 Thanks to everyone for your words of encouragement! I am so excited I can barley stand it. I received the first of three packages to start assembling his cage. I am hoping I can get it put together okay, it looks do-able though...lol I put a large cage together for my Conure so I think I should be okay. I have been looking at toys for him, but I would like to buy supplies in bulk and make my own, what do you guys think? I made them for my Sun, and it was fun, she liked them. Do you think it is more cost effective to make them? It just looks to me like I could make the same toy that is priced at $10 for about $2...Im not sure which route I should take. Any suggestions? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chloe's mom Posted November 27, 2012 Share Posted November 27, 2012 hi Kristan and welcome, I think making your own toys are great and fun I have made several toys for mine and they love them when I bought toys for them I payed attention to which kind they liked and what colors they seemed to go for my congo likes red mostly and shreddable toys and my cockatoo likes toys with bells and seems to like any color so that is what I go by, hope that helps and enjoy your new bird. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave007 Posted November 27, 2012 Share Posted November 27, 2012 Thanks to everyone for your words of encouragement! I am so excited I can barley stand it. I received the first of three packages to start assembling his cage. I am hoping I can get it put together okay, it looks do-able though...lol I put a large cage together for my Conure so I think I should be okay. I have been looking at toys for him, but I would like to buy supplies in bulk and make my own, what do you guys think? I made them for my Sun, and it was fun, she liked them. Do you think it is more cost effective to make them? It just looks to me like I could make the same toy that is priced at $10 for about $2...Im not sure which route I should take. Any suggestions? Visit our Toy room http://www.greyforums.net/forums/forumdisplay.php?22-Homemade-Toys-amp-Playstands Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kristan.marino@gmail.com Posted December 6, 2012 Author Share Posted December 6, 2012 He is here ...he is here!!!!! Darwin got here a few hours ago, and I am already in love with the little dude. Him with me?, not so much. LOL, not yet any way, he just doesn't know it yet but he just found his new best friend! He hopped right out of his carrier and climbed in his cage. He drank water for about 10 minutes, super thirsty, and then ate for quite a while. He was pretty quiet, and then showed us is "warning click" when we walked towards him... I still talked to him even though he would click at me. I kept my distance and his clicking calmed down a little, he even left out a couple of squeaks, and then what sounded like a smoke alarm when the batteries are running dead? I laughed so hard, and then he whispered something. He does not want to come any where near me which is just fine, because I understand he needs time to adjust. He stayed on his food perch almost the entire night, and then wondered out to the top of the door for a minute, then went back in. He did that a few times, and then fell I felt so bad, but I didn't want to run right over and scare him so I gave him the chance to get up and he did, and climbed right back to the top. He just now started exploring his cage, and seems to be okay:) He rubs his beak quite aggressively on the bars, but not for too long, really quick and then stops. My fiance reached in to "say hello" and he got bit. He didn't say "ow" or freak out, he pulled his hand back and Darwin decided he didnt want to let go...I told him that it was probably best to keep his fingers "outside the cage" lol He agreed. He started to fall asleep, and its getting late so I covered his cage, and as soon as I did I could hear him exploring all over his cage, all the toys, on the bars, up and down...I am assuming the cover gave him a sense of security? Maybe, I don't know. I am just so happy to have finally met him, and I am praying that he is happy with his new home. I will post the pics as soon as they finish uploading:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kristan.marino@gmail.com Posted December 6, 2012 Author Share Posted December 6, 2012 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katana600 Posted December 6, 2012 Share Posted December 6, 2012 He is just precious. I remember those exciting first days. Glad your family is enjoying him coming, it gets better once he has had time to know he can trust you. In that top picture, his eyes look black. I could be just because it is dark and his pupils are wide. In a few weeks he will be wondering why he was so cautious getting to know you. Good that you are being patient and giving him time, you can tell him "I told you so" later. He is going to be so much fun for you. Congratulations on bringing him home! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aerial.2000 Posted December 6, 2012 Share Posted December 6, 2012 welcome home darwin !!!!! woot woot! how exciting. i hope he doesnt take too long to adjust for you but definately patience on your part will win him over nice pics ... marco loves those twiney ball things HUGE so nice choice on toys! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greywings Posted December 6, 2012 Share Posted December 6, 2012 Appreciate the pictures a fine looking fellow. Just relax and hopefully he will too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray P Posted December 6, 2012 Share Posted December 6, 2012 Welcome home Darwin. You are a good looking grey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kristan.marino@gmail.com Posted December 6, 2012 Author Share Posted December 6, 2012 Yeah, his eyes are a very good indicator of his emotions thats for sure..lol What is it called when the are big then get really small? Pinning? He does that when he is not thrilled...This moring he was more open to communication with me. I said hello to me when I took off his cover, and whistled whil I was getting ready for school. And then when I put on my coat and grabbed my school bag, he hollerd "goodbye" at me....It was so stinkin cute I almost skipped school! My fiance left before I did this moring and said to me " your not even going to go to classes today are you..??" hahaha I assured him I would make it to class, but to be honest, Darwin is all I can think about right now...and during Finals week! I was thinking about leaving some music on for him during the day while I am gone...What do you guys think? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timbersmom Posted December 6, 2012 Share Posted December 6, 2012 How exciting! And what a pretty boy Darwin is. Timber, my TAG, clicks when he wants attention, wants to communicate etc. I think of that as his "here I am" sound. I leave the TV on animal planet for him when I am gone during the day. Not sure he appreciates it, but there it is Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birdhouse Posted December 6, 2012 Share Posted December 6, 2012 Congratulations! Both on Darwin & making it out the door this morning! You look like you're off to a greyt start. Music is a fine idea. Nothing really rockin & at a lowish volume. It will keep Darwin insulated a little from all the new sounds around him, too. So that might be a little extra comfort. Eye pinning happens whenever a parrot gets any kind of emotional... not just upset. So it is a very good thing to learn to watch. But you're going to need the body language & vocals to help decode the actual emotion. Hate to say this because Darwin has obvious taken to the quick links. But if they're not stainless or Nickel plated, you can't know if they contain any toxic metals like zinc or lead. And they may have an unhealthy clear coat epoxy as well. So maybe you could replace the pretty chain w/a safer one because they do tend to be greyt fun. They really seem to love to rattle & unscrew them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kristan.marino@gmail.com Posted December 7, 2012 Author Share Posted December 7, 2012 (edited) I will absolutely change the chain..and Here is a video so you can see him in action If you click on the last 2 pictures the video should load on a diff page... Edited December 7, 2012 by kristan.marino@gmail.com link Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birdhouse Posted December 7, 2012 Share Posted December 7, 2012 Darwin actually looks like he's doing incredibly, especially considering how new all this is! So please remember that when I say that he looks scared & excited in the vid. By rights he should be way more at this point. Right now, he's willing to work w/you (huge bonus!). The drooped wings & dropped head are body language that shows he's being submissive for the moment. He's not actually ready to have his head scritched apparently. So might be better to ask to rub his beak &/or toes, always accepting "No" for an answer. You can give him a minute & ask again once or twice. But he'll need to feel like he has control to be able to learn to trust his new flock members. The tasting thing is part of the process too. Greys need to mouth you to help judge you. Such a very good job with that btw! So many people don't distinguish between biting, nipping, mouthing etc which all have very different intentions & so, should get very different reactions. As incredibly well as Darwin is adjusting, things may still change radically, though. This is the honeymoon period & he's being a pretty wonderful. But he could stop any or all the good stuff & start bad stuff any time over the next few weeks or even days. So try not to be upset or even surprised if he starts to actually bite & hard enough to draw blood for example. You seem so at ease w/him which is awesome. It's such an important part of building a solid relationship. So you don't want to change that. Maybe just take precautions like safeguarding your face & child until you actually get to know the "real" Darwin. But everything so far certainly suggests this fid is going to turn out to be a certifiable sweetheart. Couldn't be happier for all of you!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kristan.marino@gmail.com Posted December 7, 2012 Author Share Posted December 7, 2012 I will definitely take my time with him. I waited until the kids went to bed last night to approach him again last night, he was pseudo-flapping and wiggling his wings, and kind of like, "bowing" to me so I figured I would give it a go, and he got up on my hand and then went right to my shoulder...I sat down on the couch and he hopped off and sat on the back of the couch, He dipped his head down again to me so I slowly brought my hand over to pet him, I stroked his forehead with my one finger, and he rested his chin on the couch and almost fell asleep! It was the cutest thing in the whole entire world, I put him back up to his cage to get ready for bedtime and he started talking away after I walked out of his sight, telling me he was a pretty bird, and calling out ""hey baybee" ..lol He also mimics my yawn, he coughs, snorts like a pig, and barks like a puppy...hahah I seriously have laughed so hard in the past couple of days. He is putting on quite the show right now as I am typing actually, making explosion noises Super adorable Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Acappella Posted December 9, 2012 Share Posted December 9, 2012 I echo what the others said about his age, at 4 he's still a baby. I am going to caution you about letting him on your shoulder. You need to be able to see him to read his body language. Read the thread in the training room titled 'body language most frequently seen'. It will save you some involuntary blood donations. Lol. I noticed in the chat room you were having trouble getting him back into his cage. If it's at night, ask for a step up. If he declines, turn off all the lights but a night light and leave the room for a moment. Tell him you'll be right back. Then go back and quietly ask him again. This usually makes Dorian more compliant when he's fighting bed time. Glad you're enjoying your new flock member. Hope your finals are going well and that you're not too distracted lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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