Hello, I'm Jenn. Vannah's mom

[JennS]

I am a new member and just introducing myself and our newest addition. 

I have had little birds, a cockatiel and a greencheek, for 19 years. We resently had the opportunity to adopt a 28 year old African Grey named Vannah. She has lived with same companion humans for the past 22 years and seems very well socialized. They offered her to us because they are in their late 70's and wanted to have a choice in where she goes instead of waiting until something happened to them. She was the only bird in the house, but she did have a dog for a while some years ago.

We brought her home July 5th, and since then she has warmed up to playing with new toys, having us clean her cage and perches, and is eating well andtalks more every day. She won't step up regularly yet, and ignores requests to go inside her cage or to leave the baseboards alone. We just entice her with something better tasting and she kind of goes where we need her to.

Does anyone have a suggestion about how long we should wait on really reinforcing the stepping up? We are trying let her settle in and relax in her own way, but I don't want this to become the 'new normal' for her.

 

[Greytness]

Hi Jenn, and Welcome to both you and Vannah!

Greys are by nature very cautious. The key to winning over a grey is to allow her to let you know what she's comfortable doing. Once we inject what we want onto them, you've taken a few steps back.

Having just recently lost her home, it'll take time for her to go through her mourning stage followed by accepting her new home and flock members. Exercise patience and proceed based upon her queues.

Congrats to you!

[Timbersmom]

Hello and welcome to you and Vannah! As Greytness said, I would give her plenty of time to adjust before pushing anything. Most greys adapt very slowly to change, and trying to rush can end up creating trust issues and make the process take even longer over time.

[JennS]

Are we going about this the 'right' way? We are taking a bit of a risk every time we let her out of the cage, but she really likes to be out and doesn't stray to the floor too much. I hope bribing her back in is ok. I try to make sure I don't leave the room right away after doing that though. She's not in the same room as the others yet and don't want to associate being in her cage with being alone. Any suggestions about how to go about this would be great. Especially since we have the flock separated at the moment (quarentine...although she was in a single bird house). I am hoping the vet will tell us we can put our three girls in the same room sooner rather than later. It's harder on all three.

[Greytness]

She has to come out sooner than later, but you should always have a gentle plan as to how you can return her to the cage. Most birds will step up for you away from their cage if they were already accustomed to doing so. Quarantine should last at least 30 days whether she's a single bird or not.

What other birds do you have? With her having always been alone, she may  not ever warm up to another bird. Of my flock of 13, only a few get along great out of their cages. One will bite to harm if given the chance.

 

[JennS]

1 hour ago, Greytness said:

She has to come out sooner than later, but you should always have a gentle plan as to how you can return her to the cage. Most birds will step up for you away from their cage if they were already accustomed to doing so. Quarantine should last at least 30 days whether she's a single bird or not.

What other birds do you have? With her having always been alone, she may  not ever warm up to another bird. Of my flock of 13, only a few get along great out of their cages. One will bite to harm if given the chance.

 

I don't anticipate them getting along, and probably won't allow them to be out all at the same time unless my sole job at the moment is watching them. My other two are a cockatiel and a green cheek conure. The size difference scares me too much. They are also both 19 years old, so not the spring hens they once were. I think my biggest worry is that they hear each other and my littles seem to be getting jealous. Vannah of course wants to know all about the rest of the house. She tries to look out the door when we come and go.

[Timbersmom]

If it weren't for bribery, I would have made no progress at all with Timber, ha. With him at least, positive reinforcement is always necessary when I'm trying to encourage a behavior. Hope the vet give you the OK to get them in the same room tomorrow. Even if they aren't out at the same time, I can see where jealousy on all sides would happen. They'd rather know what's going on and what the competition looks like I imagine.

 

[JennS]

5 hours ago, Timbersmom said:

If it weren't for bribery, I would have made no progress at all with Timber, ha. With him at least, positive reinforcement is always necessary when I'm trying to encourage a behavior. Hope the vet give you the OK to get them in the same room tomorrow. Even if they aren't out at the same time, I can see where jealousy on all sides would happen. They'd rather know what's going on and what the competition looks like I imagine.

 

I did get the ok from the vet. I am trying to be careful to give equal attention in they way each likes it. It will be a little harder when Vannah finally decides to allow me to hold or pet her. Right now she just talks with me and wants me around. Dusty (my green cheek) is very feet on. She always wants to be held, get head scratches, and to run around on me. They are accepting of each others role... at least today. Piper, my cockatiel, just wants my husband, so we are good there.