Hello, Just introducing myself and gonna ask some questions.

[Rozy666]

Hi Guys. My name is Gary I'm from the philippines a tropical country where it rains pretty much the whole year. I don't have a parrot yet and planning on buying one, i have been researching for almost half a year now on what to do and what they need... my question is I'm planning on buying an african grey and i have a job with irregular hours sometimes it's only 7-12 or 1-5 and sometimes 8-5. I work as a flight instructor and i can't make up my mind if i should get a parrot as a companion... could anyone give me there opinion on the matter... thanks in advance.

[Kya]

Welcome!

 

My husband and I have a 10 year old grey and we both work full time and do just fine with ours, so I am sure you will have more than enough time to devote to yours. We work out of town, so we are gone an average of 9 1/2 hours a day. When we come home, we have other animals we have to deal with, it's kinda like a zoo around here, and we usually put everyone else to bed around 8:30 pm and let Kya out until around 10 - 10:30 pm. This works just great for us. He has a huge cage with lots of toys, including a cow bell - every grey must have a bell!

 

He is constant entertainment, has a huge vocabulary, including sound effects that will make you answer your phone frequently when no one is calling. I have had to change mine to music, because he can mimic any regular ringtone I use. He quacks like a duck, makes chicken noises (not a rooster, thank goodness) and makes fun of my smaller birds that cannot talk as well or as distinctly. He never screeches or squawks, he uses his words.

 

I don't think you will regret it. Have you decided on an adult or baby? Are you able to get them easily?

[judygram]

Hello Gary and welcome to our family.

 

If you really want to share your life with an African grey then yes you can make it work no matter what hours you work. The main thing is to make it quality time for a lot of grey owners have other schedules than the average 8 to 5 one. I commend you for doing the research before plunging in so you know what you are getting into and it is a lifetime commitment for these birds have long lives.

 

I look forward to hearing more and especially when you actually get your new companion.

[Inara]

Completely agree with both Judy and Kya. I have the luxury of being home most of the time with HRH Inara, my companion TAG. Both of her predecessors (RIP, wild caught Amazon and wild caught CAG) lived with me in the 1st half of my adult life when I was raising kids, working full time, and going to school and grad school. Times were busy, wild, and *everyone* adapted and adjusted well, oh, including the 2-legged kids.

 

I've known companion birds whose people are home all the time, and who were neglected, ignored, and have lived in filth and worse. So time is not everything! A good balance is.

 

It's all about the good care, and the love, Baby.