Dustin Posted September 4, 2008 Share Posted September 4, 2008 Hi my name is Dustin and I am trying to get some video of African Greys doing things like preening and playing and just about anything else that is normal behavior for them. The reason I am doing this is because I have recently adopted a African Grey from a home that did not take care of her very well. And she did not grow up around other parrots so she does not know how to do things like preen bathe or even play she is terrified of everything except me. So i am hoping that in watching video of other african Greys she will learn how to do things. Because in my experience parrots learn a lot from watching other parrots from there flock. So if you have a video camera and some spare time please video you parrot doing things like playing, preening, bathing, interacting with people or other parrots, and eating things like fruit, vegetables, and anything else you can think of. Any type of video format would be great but preferably uncompressed video like .avi and if you can sen me the raw footage from the camera that would be great to. I can convert videos to different compressions my self. Thank you for your time. Post edited by: Dustin, at: 2008/09/03 21:34 [file] Post edited by: Dustin, at: 2008/09/03 21:36<br><br>Post edited by: Dustin, at: 2008/09/03 21:50 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted September 4, 2008 Share Posted September 4, 2008 Hello Dustin, welcome to the forum It is great to have you here. I never heard of a Grey that didn't naturally do all those things before :blush: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lovemyGreys Posted September 4, 2008 Share Posted September 4, 2008 Hi Dustin & Welcome to the forum. As her new owner you are her flock & she will watch you & learn,far more than watching a video. Preening should be a natural behaviour for a grey & bathing will encourage that. If she has never bathed you could fill a bowl with water,add a few toys & basically splash around yourself,let her see what great fun your having.Get a water spray bottle & gently spray her with a fine mist. Here is a link for encouraging her to play ... http://www.greyforums.net/forums/the-nursery/73105-teaching-your-baby-to-play.html This link is for introducing new foods... http://www.greyforums.net/forums/bird-food/53831-tips-for-getting-your-grey-to-eattry-new-foods.html Im sure given time & patience you will be able to teach her Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danmcq Posted September 4, 2008 Share Posted September 4, 2008 Welcome Dustin!! It's wonderful that you have rescued a Grey!!! You can find a ton of videos on youtube. just do a search for African grey in the video section. There are also many very experienced Grey owners here and a ton of information contained in topic on this forum that are also search by keywords. Looking forward to hearing more from you. :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Abernathy Posted September 4, 2008 Share Posted September 4, 2008 Welcome Dustin! Can't wait to hear more about your grey and her progress Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted September 4, 2008 Share Posted September 4, 2008 Hello Dustin and welcome to the family, so glad you could join us and we look forward to hearing more about you and your grey. A bird usually doesn't have to watch another bird to learn how to preen itself, that is something that should come naturally. As far as bathing, we have some threads that go into detail about giving baths and showering, give them a read thru for ideas and suggestions. I'm glad you could take in this grey and give her a forever home, she needs the love and attention she deserves and I am sure you will provide that for her. For lots of useful information please read thru the many threads and do not hesitate to ask any and all questions you may have and we will help you in any way we can. If you have some pictures of your grey you would like to share with us we would love to see them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dustin Posted September 5, 2008 Author Share Posted September 5, 2008 Thank you for the information everyone. and to answer the reason for her not doing some of these things naturally is because her last owner kept her in the basement by her self so she did not have any interaction with people that often so all she could do is sit there and try to preen or nothing at all. And for the preening she can preen but not properly she preens to hard and by her watching a video of another African Grey preening she can see how to preen properly. So if anyone can please send me a video of there African Grey preening that would be very helpful. and i have let her see how much fun bathing can be i let her sit on a perch out side of the shower and watch me and i even bought a large bathing dish for her to do it her self but she is terrified of water except for what is in her drinking water dish. and in the wild parrots watch for another parrot to go first to see if its safe so if i have a video of a parrot bathing she will see it is safe for her to do it as well. also i would just use the ones from you tube but i don't have the internet at home I'm using it at school so i would have to take the video home to show her. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BaxtersMom Posted September 9, 2008 Share Posted September 9, 2008 Hi and welcome here. Just wondering how old she is? Does she have a name? How long have you had her. If she was locked up in a basement without much interaction maybe she is still shy and nervous and taking everything in. This is a whole new world for her and she will come along as time goes by. Also, maybe a vet/wellness check is in order to see if there is an underlying problem. It doesn't sound like she was properly taken care of before she came to you. Perhaps she has a vitamin deficeny. What is her diet? If she is not getting the proper nutrition then she may be a little tired, too and not do all these things greys naturally do. The reason I ask all these things is I brought home a 12 year old grey a few months back and really didn't know anything. There is so much to learn about the diets and their activities to keep them healthy and happy. Mine was locked up also and only fed a seed diet and never handled. He didn't play with toys and he didn't know how to fly although his wings were not clipped. We have come a long way together and the journey has been wonderful! He is really blossoming now. This is a great place to be if you have questions. I know I had a ton. There was another post the other day saying you can see bird videos on bird-tube.com. It only shows birds doing things and might be helpful. I don't know if she can learn what you want her to learn from watching videos but I seen 2 big macaws playing in the bath tub and it was fun to watch. You will have to guide her and show her yourself because she will learn from you. You will have to introduce her to all this new stuff. Baxter didn't know how to play with toys and I had to teach him and we are now practicing flying;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bbrew5 Posted September 10, 2008 Share Posted September 10, 2008 Hi and Welcome Sorry I can't help as I am fairly new here myself. Been here long enough to know that there is alot of nice knowledgeable people here willing to help. I just wanted to say welcome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lyric Posted September 10, 2008 Share Posted September 10, 2008 Hi Dustin and welcome here. Sounds like you have some work to do with your grey but with patience and love you can accomplish a lot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kittykittykitty Posted September 15, 2008 Share Posted September 15, 2008 Thank you for giving Shelly a home. I believe that with your patience she will learn the things you want her to know. It will such a joy for you when she returns your love. Then you will know all the hard work and time was worth every minute. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dustin Posted September 15, 2008 Author Share Posted September 15, 2008 I have had Shelly now for about 5 months now. Ive had a wellness check up for here about two months ago. She is perfectly healthy also. Shelly is very loving of people that take it slow with her because she is scared of course. And if she could she would never leave my side she hates it when i go somewhere with out her. She is 3 and a half years old.And thank you for suggesting bird tube.com i will have to check that out. And she is on a very good diet she eats all kinds of fruits and vegetables and she also eats pellets with some oats. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suzzique Posted September 16, 2008 Share Posted September 16, 2008 Welcome Dustin and Shelly! Dustin if you don't mind her company let her be with you. Alex will help me do everything. He just rides around on my sholder and watches everything I do. You can teach Shelly to play with toys buy having her with you and you playing with them. When she see you playing it will perk her interest. I make most of my toys and Alex loves to "help". Also Alex can be pretty ruff when preening as well. Not always but sometimes. Give her time she will come around. It just takes work on your end but it will pay off, and one day you will have the bird that you know she can be! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now