Hi To All

[Congo]

Hi. I am a new member and a new Dad to an adopted older CAG. Have only had him for almost a month. My necessary visits to the adoption center went very well. He doesn't like females so I (male) had no problem handling him.

First 24 hours at home went well, but the second day he was stepping up to me and for no reason he chomped on my hand and drew blood. My unfortunate reaction was to pull away and this had him fall to the ground. Not sure if something spooked him?

So, now, we are in the process of building trust again. Have been doing target training and lots of treats. His diet from his previous owner was all seed so have been slowly trying to change him to a better diet. Will be a long process.

 

[SRSeedBurners]

Looks like you have a nice setup for him.  I would say he's asking to slow things down a little with his new situation.   They always settle down, it just may take a while.  It took our Huey about 6 months to come out of his shell.

Edited July 9, 2018 by SRSeedBurners

[Greytness]

Welcome! Your CAG is a very handsome guy! Greys need to progress along on 'grey time', which is difficult for us humans to always keep in mind. 

 

[Timbersmom]

What a beautiful CAG! As the others have said, they adjust slowly. Just take it easy and slow down. You are off to a great start!

[neoow]

Welcome to the forums and thank you for taking in a rescue bird. What is his name? He is a beautiful bird!

One thing you will learn quite quickly is a little thing called "grey time". This is the time it takes for a grey to adjust and accept changes. This can be changes in routine, toys, location, people etc etc. Your bird has just undertaken a very big change and at a month in everything is still very new. Your bird is trying to adjust to a new home, a new human, a new routine, new sounds, new toys... everything. This can be a bit overwhelming for a grey as they can be a little change adverse at times. It can take days, weeks or sometimes months for a grey to adapt to these kind of changes and come out of their shell. This is what we call 'grey time'. Some changes may be more readily accepted by the bird than others... so there's no telling how much 'grey time' is needed for different changes. The important thing to remember is that the grey will show you when they are ready to accept a change or a new offering. They will also show you when they are not ready. A lot of this is shown via their body language- so pay attention to what your grey is doing... especially if you receive a nip or a bite...e.g what were the eyes doing, how were the feathers being held? There may be some subtle signs that your bird gives you before he resorts to a bite. Given enough time, you will start to be able to read your birds body language and will be able to know when the bird has had enough or is happy to progress.

You will have many amazing years together and it sounds like you are already off to a fantastic start.

These forums are full of information so feel free to have a look around. Ask as many questions as you need to- there is always someone here who can help and advise!

[judygram]

Hello Congo and welcome to our family. The others have given you some excellent advice, as said grey time is slow so take it easy and be very patient with him as he settles into his new home. As you learn his body language you can avoid most bites but even the best of us will get one occasionally so don't let it bother you, most of the time its our fault.

[Greywings]

You have begun the journey as a person with a grey, enjoy the experience you may find your bird is a good teacher.