Gracie & Kya - the road home

[Kya]

 

I'm glad you didn't get pierced. I'm not sure they get the "don't bite the momma's" talks. I know I've had a few with Dorian and he just sits there staring at me blankly.

 

The "don't bite the Momma" talks are Kya's own phrase. He will say it to himself over and over again, and it usually preceeds a good chomp. I say "no bite" to him, but never "don't bite the Momma". I asked his previous owner if he said it to her, and she said no. He evidently put it all together himself. He will also say a very boisterous "OUCH" after he tells himself NOT to bite me. Last night, it was "Give me a kiss, Boo Boos" - like I was going to put my lips near him - everything was plural yesterday for some reason. He kept saying "Wanna grapes, Kyas?" No clue where Boo Boo came from, either. It's nice to have contact with his previous owner so I can figure out where some things come from, but she had him all of his life, so some things have us really puzzled. For instance, he occasionally announces "I'm Frank McGrath". That was her father in law, he tried to get him to say if for years, but he wouldn't. He calls my daughter Alex - her name is Tia. She's very pretty and he makes a total fool out of himself every time she walks in the door.

 

We have several expos around here, spring and fall. We only go to buy toys, perches, play stands, that type thing. But of course, it's hard NOT to look at the birds, being bird people. I honestly think it was the crowd at this one, the others are smaller scale and I have never seen the birds looking so stressed. We won't go back to that one. It's a really cheap way to buy supplies, if you don't have time to make toys yourself, and there are a couple of vendors that I really like to do business with. I know a lot of breeders in our area, and none of the reputable ones go to any of the fairs. Although I don't condone breeding when so many are in rescue, I have to at least admire the fact that they educate and find suitable homes for their birds. We also have a lot of what I call "bird flippers" in this area, and they make me furious. They snatch up the big parrots cheap when someone is desperate and at their wits end - usually telling the owner that they are small scale rescue, then they take them to the expos and sell them for astronomical prices. I know who they are, and I won't even buy toys or supplies from them. We only buy from people who do not have birds there.

 

The little macaws broke my heart. I wonder how many will actually survive being hand fed by an inexperienced person who got a bargain on a macaw. When I saw them in the Rubbermaid containers with lids on them, I felt sick. I am experienced at hand feeding, but I would not take on a larger parrot to hand feed.

[kittykittykitty]

I still think this is animal cruelty. I feel sick when I think about it, and it makes me angry! There should be legislation with punishment for those who do this to these fragile creatures.

 

You do have a real character in Kya. :eek:

[Kya]

You know, I really wish I could talk to Gracie's previous owners, and find out what her life was like.

 

Before she was surrendered to the rescue back in the winter, she lived with a man for 4 years. We don't know anything about him, other than that he didn't want her anymore. She was in good physical shape when she came to the rescue, the plucking started AFTER she got there, and she had a very healthy diet, so I think he must have taken decent care of her. But I sure wish I knew about those other 15 years, how many homes she has been through, and were they good homes with good people who just underestimated life with a parrot.

 

In reality, I probably don't really want to know, but I think about it a lot.

[Kya]

Gracie Lou continues to do well. She is becoming more brave every day, adventuring and getting in trouble now and then because she firmly believes my owl collection belongs on the floor, so she is constantly trying to push them off the tables, shelves, etc. She understands when I tell her "No", but she is sneaky, and persistent. When we got her 3 months ago, she would have never approached an inanimate object. She was terrified of everything, so, as frustrating as it can be (my son says it is impossible to count the number of owl and chicken "trinkets" I have sitting around), it's progress.

 

She's also decided she's part termite, so we have to keep an eye on her constantly. She's determined to destroy an antique oak buffet that belonged to my grandmother. Kya has never done this, so Gracie is keeping me on my toes. (Kya chews on wooden toys, Gracie still remains suspicious of them, although she wants to tear up everything that doesn't belong to her.) She loves boxes, and I have to keep her in stock. Initially, she likes to go inside them and talk, but eventually she cannot resist shredding them. I am a nurse and bring home boxes that were originally holding gynecological speculums, those are her favorite for some reason, maybe because the box is white rather than brown. But, it's always nice to have people ask why you have speculum boxes all over the place, with a picture on the outside of the box for extra emphasis.

 

She's pretty much fully feathered now, with no signs of plucking or barbering, and I watch her closely. She still does not fly, although you can tell that she is thinking about it at times. I am starting to wonder if she was clipped before fledging.

 

Gracie is allowing my husband to handle her more now, which is a pleasant surprise with Kya being such a one man bird. She loves being on my shoulder while I am doing anything, but I have to be really careful. She has some arthritis in her feet and her grip isn't what it should be. The other night she was on my shoulder while I was paying bills on line and writing out checks, and every time I leaned over the tiniest amount she would gently beak my ear to hang on, or pull me back. She will not get off of you and wander around the table like Kya will. I guess it is because of her fears and phobias. I am hoping that resolves eventually, as she seems to be doing so much better with everything in the room where her cage is. Her insecurity sets in when you take her out of that room. Baby steps...

[Acappella]

Gracie and you are doing great. Sorry about the buffet. They can be single minded little brats at times. Great to hear about her letting her feathers grow in. I've also got a bird that I suspect was never allowed to fledge. Sometimes I wish I had another bird around here that flew that could set an example for him, but I can't responsibly take on another bird right now. She'll grow comfortable outside of her comfort zone on her own time. It took Dorian almost 3 years before he would go outside of the room his cage was in. At the pace Gracie is moving at I'm sure it will be much faster for her. Dorian took the phrase baby steps very seriously lol.

[SRSeedBurners]

...she firmly believes my owl collection belongs on the floor, so she is constantly trying to push them off the tables, shelves, etc. She understands when I tell her "No", but she is sneaky, and persistent. ...

 

 

Sounds like a brat birdy I know too! Somebirdy here loves to go around the counter pushing stuff off then watching and listening to see how big the crash-n-smash will be.

[kittykittykitty]

It is so good to hear of the progress in spite of the owl collection peril. Maybe the owls and chickens can go behind closed glass doors (until Gracie figures out how to open them.) And the antique. Precious did a number on my dresser, also.

[Kya]

Sounds like a brat birdy I know too! Somebirdy here loves to go around the counter pushing stuff off then watching and listening to see how big the crash-n-smash will be.

 

Last night, I sat the two particular owls that she always targets up on top of her cage, which has a play top with a railing, so I knew she wouldn't be able to push them off. She tried to mate with her favorite blue one, but only after trying to push him to his imminent death for a good 10 minutes.

[Kya]

Gracie and you are doing great. Sorry about the buffet. They can be single minded little brats at times. Great to hear about her letting her feathers grow in. I've also got a bird that I suspect was never allowed to fledge. Sometimes I wish I had another bird around here that flew that could set an example for him, but I can't responsibly take on another bird right now. She'll grow comfortable outside of her comfort zone on her own time. It took Dorian almost 3 years before he would go outside of the room his cage was in. At the pace Gracie is moving at I'm sure it will be much faster for her. Dorian took the phrase baby steps very seriously lol.

 

Gracie will allow me to take her into other rooms, but you can tell that it makes her anxious. She is most comfortable near her cage. Kya doesn't fly a lot, just to get from point a to point b. I don't think he has the stamina. His previous owner exposed him to all sort of aerosols / cleaning supplies - she even set off flea bombs in her house once with him in it. When we first got him, he was completely out of breath if he flew 2 feet. Now, he can go from one room to the other without getting out of breath, but our house is not large.

[Acappella]

Whenever Dorian has a startled flight his little heart is beating out of his chest. He has no stamina at all. It's great that Gracie lets you take her out of sight of her cage. I predict that soon you'll be able to take her wherever you want to. Dorian only gets nervous now when I take him downstairs to the basement because we don't go there very often. He's even gotten ok with going outside, as long as I stick close to him. He steps into his outside cage without any hesitation now where before I had to really coax him off my hand. Maybe watching Kya fly will inspire Gracie to try out her wings. You never know. We've got all the (grey) time in the world.

[Kya]

Actually, I have made the most progress with Gracie by putting her in situations she has never been in before, i.e. taking her into different rooms of the house and interacting with her there. It throws her off and I can tell she gets anxious because she shifts from one foot to the other with her weight, but it does not seem to scare her. She will edge in as close to me as she can get while she checks out the current situation, then once she relaxes a bit, she stops the shifting from one foot to another. I believe at those times she sees me as her protector, and it helps with the bonding. I would never do anything that I felt was truly scaring her, but if she wants to ride around on my shoulder, she has to be prepared to find herself in a different room now and then!

 

I'm wondering if there is a way I can change the title of this thread to include Kya - it never occurred to me that although we've had him a little over a year, he's still adapting and is an integral part of Gracie finding her way.

 

I've spoken in the past of how Kya daily announces "I am Frank McGrath." This was the father in law of his previous owner, the poor man had tried for years to get him to say it and he never said it once until he came to live with us. Well, last week, the real Mr. McGrath passed away. We heard about it, and that night, when Kya announced "I am Frank McGrath" my well meaning husband decided to tell him that Frank was dead, he was a goner.

 

So, now, we have a constant daily reminder from a little grey bird - "I am Frank McGrath. Frank is dead. Frank's a goner." I so hope the previous owner doesn't ask to come visit.

[katana600]

I tested my ability to change the title of your thread to include Kya. It did allow me to edit. Let me know what you would like your title to read, and I will give it another try. I am enjoying the progress you are having with Gracie. It is funny what Kya picked up on, and when he decides to say things. Too funny.

[Timbersmom]

When I was in the vet's office yesterday one of the techs was saying her aunt has a grey. The vet had put him on atavan. She said when it is near time for his medication, he will start shouting "give me my nerve meds!" She thought that was amazing because while they talked about the birds meds, they didn't use that phrase, he had figured it out for himself.

[Kya]

I tested my ability to change the title of your thread to include Kya. It did allow me to edit. Let me know what you would like your title to read, and I will give it another try. I am enjoying the progress you are having with Gracie. It is funny what Kya picked up on, and when he decides to say things. Too funny.

 

Thank you so much, it is perfect just as it is!

 

All is well with both Gracie Lou and Kya. We've had a stressful summer so far - central heat and air unit went out AND we had to redo the drain field for our septic tank, so the aviary has been put on hold until fall. The greys seem unaffected by it all, but our savings account got hit hard.

 

I think I have waited long enough to upgrade Gracie's cage, she came with the cage she was surrendered with, and although it is large enough, it's old and not in the best shape. Ideally, I am trying to find a large corner cage with a divider, so I can put one of them in each side. I am starting to think we may have to make it ourselves, or at least make the divider. I'd love for it to be a "V" shape.

 

Gracie Lou is so vocal now, she has picked up on so many things from Kya, and starting to sound just like him, so when I hear her from the other room I really have to think about it to determine who I am calling back to. She amazes me daily with the amount of food she consumes. She's half the size of Kya and eats twice as much.

 

I've been putting off having her nails trimmed trying to keep the stress level down, but have decided it's time for a trip to the vet next weekend. He does a great job and I am scared to death to do it. I will probably take Kya along just for a security blanket for Gracie. (Plus he's in love with one of the vet techs - another blonde that he has named "Alex" - if you're pretty and blonde, your name is Alex. No one knows who Alex is or was to him.)

 

Hope everyone else is doing well!

[Kya]

When I was in the vet's office yesterday one of the techs was saying her aunt has a grey. The vet had put him on atavan. She said when it is near time for his medication, he will start shouting "give me my nerve meds!" She thought that was amazing because while they talked about the birds meds, they didn't use that phrase, he had figured it out for himself.

 

They amaze me every day. Both love when we have pizza, I always give them a small piece of just the crust. The other night, I got the stuffed crust and thought that might be a bit too much pepperoni and bacon for them, so I threw a towel over the box before I brought it in the house. Kya immediately started saying "Is that pizza? Ky Ky needs pizza. Ummmmm, pizza." My husband and I just stared at each other. I don't know if it was the smell or the shape of the box through the towel. I really thought for a minute I could outwit him. What in the world was I thinking???

[SRSeedBurners]

Haahaa...trying to sneak pizza in the house. I gave up long ago trying to sneak food. They have Xray vision and can see through walls, especially if there is cheese involved.

[kittykittykitty]

They really do outsmart us! How wonderful Gracie Lou is talking!

Here's hoping your plumbing problems are behind you. I know about A/Cs not working though. Mine stopped working last Wednesday but is repaired now.

[Greywings]

Congrats you have a Pizza Psychic.

[Acappella]

They amaze me every day. Both love when we have pizza, I always give them a small piece of just the crust. The other night, I got the stuffed crust and thought that might be a bit too much pepperoni and bacon for them, so I threw a towel over the box before I brought it in the house. Kya immediately started saying "Is that pizza? Ky Ky needs pizza. Ummmmm, pizza." My husband and I just stared at each other. I don't know if it was the smell or the shape of the box through the towel. I really thought for a minute I could outwit him. What in the world was I thinking???

 

It's lucky you found this group because we believe stories like this one. Others might not. I love him talking about himself in the first person. Shame on you for trying to fool your boy. It takes more than a towel to hide a potential source of cheese from a grey!

[Kya]

It's lucky you found this group because we believe stories like this one. Others might not. I love him talking about himself in the first person. Shame on you for trying to fool your boy. It takes more than a towel to hide a potential source of cheese from a grey!

 

I know! Some of the things he says and does, I just kind of keep quiet about with my friends who are non bird people. I know half of them think I am hallucinating. And even then, greys are so different. They both clam up when extra people are in the room, so much of the time it is just my husband and myself. I usually take visitors into the other room, away from the birds for a demonstration, and to prove I am not insane. Kya can't stand for me to take people away from him, so the second we are out of sight he starts in jabbering 100 miles an hour. It's funny to see the look of surprise on their faces when they realize that he really does have a lot of questions that he fully expects answers to!

 

And I have given up on pizza smuggling, after that little escapade. Just no more stuffed crust for me!

 

We are Game of Thrones fans here, and have been binge watching a bit of the first seasons in preparation of the new season starting next weekend. Gracie and Kya both seem to be mesmerized by Tyrion Lannister - for those who do not watch, he is a little person. He has a very distinctive voice and accent in this character, and speaks very clearly. We have noticed both greys practicing his accent. We're afraid of what might come out of their beaks once they perfect it, but it's really cute.

 

My wake up call yesterday morning was hysterical, Kya, of course. They actually let me sleep until almost 9 am. But, all of a sudden he yells "Why don't you just shut up and go away?" as loudly as he possibly can. Gracie Lou is in the room with him, quietly minding her own business, but my sun conure is doing her morning screeching in the dining room. My husband was outside, so we have to assume the sun conure was (once again) getting on his last nerve. (He normally makes fun of her by saying, in a sing song voice "All the little birdies just chirp, chirp, chirp".

 

Now, the odd thing is, he's never heard this statement from either of us, so it had to be something he heard on tv. We never say "shut up" - we say "Whisper, birdie", at which point they will all whisper "Whisper birdie" a few times and go right back to rattling the pictures on the wall. Gracie does say "shut up", but I've never heard her say "go away". Bless her, the only words she used when we first got her was "Nooooo", "bad bird" and "shut up". Funny...She only uses "Nooooo" in perfect context, like when Kya asks for a kiss, or I ask her to step up to go back in her cage - 4 months ago she would say it all day long. I have not heard her say "bad bird" in months, and she may be telling Kya to "shut up" while we are at work, but I haven't heard her use that one in awhile, either.

 

Maybe I need to set up a camera so I can keep an eye on them from work!

[Luvparrots]

Great Title to your thread. I am looking forward to following Gracie and Kya's journey.

[Kya]

And, Acappella, Kya always talks about himself in first person. It's all about Kya!

 

He pulled a good one this week. He really makes me rethink how repetitive I can be.

 

I have a little terrier mix rescue that has issues (for lack of a better word) with his feet. He's my problem child, always has been and always will be. I plucked him off death row at the shelter 2 days before he was scheduled to be euthanized due to fear aggression from 3 years of abuse. I am the only person in this whole world that he loves and trusts, and I am the only person allowed to touch his feet. My husband was bitten by him daily the first 6 months we had him. The vets cannot find a thing in the world wrong with his feet, he doesn't like them touched and he doesn't like wet grass. Needless to say, in our humidity, when we get up at 5 am the grass is soaked with dew, so we have daily discussions about going out in the grass to potty. (If it's downright raining, you can just forget it.) Apparently, we talk about it TOO much.

 

Wednesday am - 6:45 and almost time to leave for work. I am finishing up my make up and yell into the den for my husband to take Pedro outside again and give it another try. That is ALL I said. Husband says okay, and goes to the door and calls Pedro, who has already tucked himself into his crate and isn't coming.

 

Kya, being so helpful as always, yells (in my voice) from the den "Pedro, you better go outside and poop or it's going to be a LONG DAY!!!"

 

Pedro still declined but it was hysterically funny.

 

Both Kya and Gracie are making their breakfast demands, so I guess I better get to work. It's going to be an unusual breakfast if I mix in everything they are ordering. They take turns yelling out foods until I get it done, adding some other demands as I am trying to get it all cut up. Kya is also repeating, over and over "No bite. No bite the momma", which means I will get bitten within the hour. He tries so hard. I don't know why in the world I thought I could plan my own Saturday morning with a bit of computer time and some coffee.

[SRSeedBurners]

Stories like this is why I hang out here: "Pedro, you better go outside and poop or it's going to be a LONG DAY!!!" BWAAHAAHAAAHAAHAA. I can only imagine. Seeing and hearing about everybody's Greys that talk always makes me jealous. Not sure I want a talker so bad, I think it's just another window into their little soul that I don't have. Some of this is hardly believable except I hang out on two FB Grey groups and I see this type of talking all the time. I was watching one this morning of a Grey explaining to her hooman how a dog barks and what noise a duck or something makes...then it busted out in song and dance and that's when I melted. They are so dang cute.

[Acappella]

Kya is also repeating, over and over "No bite. No bite the momma", which means I will get bitten within the hour. He tries so hard.

I know we always say they telegraph their bites, but this is extreme. I'd love to meet Kya someday. He's quite the character.

[Kya]

Stories like this is why I hang out here: "Pedro, you better go outside and poop or it's going to be a LONG DAY!!!" BWAAHAAHAAAHAAHAA. I can only imagine. Seeing and hearing about everybody's Greys that talk always makes me jealous. Not sure I want a talker so bad, I think it's just another window into their little soul that I don't have. Some of this is hardly believable except I hang out on two FB Grey groups and I see this type of talking all the time. I was watching one this morning of a Grey explaining to her hooman how a dog barks and what noise a duck or something makes...then it busted out in song and dance and that's when I melted. They are so dang cute.

 

Gracie does not talk as much as Kya, but no one can squeeze in a word edge wise with his beak going. (Right now he's saying "Good job!" to my husband over and over while he's cleaning cages.) Gracie has picked up a lot from Kya, and they seem to have these little conversations that don't include us. It's funny how their personalities come out with the things they say. When we got Gracie, the rescue did not believe she talked at all, but with numerous birds, how could you tell? She immediately started saying "Noooooo" and "bad bird", which broke my heart into, because we knew she had heard that a lot. Her voice sounds like an old woman - a younger male had her for 4 years before she was surrendered, while Kya's voice sounds very young and mischievious. You can almost hear the laughter in everything he says. He knows he's funny.