3 questions on Smokey any help is great!

[geo]

1) His beak is chipping, from what i see in photos of CAG's it seems normal, is this right?

 

2) I cant seem to get him to play with anything. I've bought many different kind of toys and even tried some home items....nothing

 

3) The older gentleman must have had a truckers mouth. Day by day smokey is starting to talk more, and this morning we heard probably every word except the F-bomb, is there a way to correct that??

 

Thanks everyone. Also just a fyi, im starting his outside aviary next weekend, will make a post under cages with stage photos

[judygram]

It is entirely normal for their beak to chip and flake as it is constantly growing, they rub it on their perches or whatever else they like and that tends to keep it in good shape so no worries there.

If he hasn't had much chance to play with toys before it may be possible he doesn't know how so here is your chance to play with them in front of him to show him what a good time you are having with them to entice him to want to join in, some have to be taught how to play.

We do have a few other members here who have greys who came from previous homes and they had a potty mouth but the only thing you can do is not to react to it when he uses that language, if you give a reaction he might take that as encouragement to keep using them, if those words are not spoken then he will gradually use them less and less.

[katana600]

The objectionable language will come and go and gradually disappear as he doesn't get any reinforcement. When Miss Gilbert came, she would call the dogs idiots and tell them shut up. Over time, that became "Quiet, stop that". When she would shout "idiot", we would pretend to be dumb and say "Elliot!"and she never said that, but stopped for the most part calling us idiots. We have a cabinet full of toys we have tried over three years and for the first two years, she rejected everything. Slowly she has started to accept and play with things that may have been rejected forty times or more. It all depends on Smokey. Some things, it has helped to place down low in the cage and leave them until they weren't so intimidating. Birdhouse recommended to me not to hang anything higher than her line of vision on her perch and that did help. You will find an ebb and flow with Smokey and he will open up in time and you will find opportunities to draw him in. I have to say the hardest thing of all was for me to "do nothing" and let her come to me.

[BaileysPapa]

All good advice above. As for toys for birds who don't know how to play, keep it simple to start. Things like paper cups, plastic drinking straws, wadded up paper balls, those cat balls with bells in them. Show him by rolling these things to & away from him. Crunch the paper wads, the sound will be interesting to him. All our babies love bells. Later add more intricate toys. Just like food, what they do not like today, they may like tomorrow, and what they do like today, might be left alone tomorrow. Everyday there should be different things, even if they are not really new, but were not enjoyed yesterday. These are very intelligent, curious, sensitive creatures. And as guardian & flock leader, you are responsible for their stimulation and enrichment.

[Timbersmom]

It takes Timber a long time to take interest in a new toy in his cage, sometimes months. I don't know if he is timid or just change averse, but I just let it hang there (and hang and hang) and out of the blue one day he will start messing with it. As Baileyspapa said, keep it simple at first. Timber's favorite "toy" is a plastic straw. He chases it, chews on it, scratches himself with it, etc.

[Inara]

My first CAG, Lestat, (abused, neglected, and self destructive rescue) never played with toys ever except for one with a bell on it. HRH Inara, on the other hand was slow to warm up to toys and now just loves them. She gets excited with new ones, now. This has been over six months. The first toy I purchased for her was a block and preening toy. It was too big for her (she is a TAG and a bit small at that even). She now likes it, but as a cage decoration --sort of like a hanging vine . I have discovered that Inara enjoys acrylic toys better than most wooden ones, she enjoys toys with cotton ropes on them the most, and she does love anything that makes a good clattering sound. Her favorite toy is a group of cardboard "bagels" strung upon natural leather with knots in it. She also recently fell in love with a new toy that has little wooden shoes and colored wooden rings on it. I put little hidden goodies into the shoes, which she enjoys.

 

Initially, I used to just put a new toy within eyesight of Inara for a couple of days before moving it into her cage. Now, she's so cavalier about them, I think because she recognizes the phrase "wow, a new toy!" that I can just put a new toy directly into her cage. Smokey's mileage is likely to vary. Each bird is different, and what works for one may be the complete opposite of what works for another. For that matter, what works for one on one day/hour/minute, may not work the next as they can be pretty capricious.

 

The moral of the story? As others have suggested, keep introducing new toys, start with smaller ones, see if Smokey prefers certain textures over others etc. and as has been suggested by others, play with the toy yourself and make a bit of an --ooohh ahhhh cool toy-- fuss over it.

[kins2321@yahoo.com]

I can't add a thing... our fantastic members covered it all. Sophie has NEVER adopted to toys. Anything she can shred. Try a pinata. Sophie gets them frequently. Some birds never adjust to toys. Sophie thinks we are her toys. She is more into playing games with us. We adjusted to her interests. Nancy