Yet the same question again . . .

[redkim]

Hi all,

 

New here and WHAT a great place!!

 

Well after many many years of wanting and waiting I am finally going to get my first Grey!! I am not new to birds and especially exotics and parrots but until now I have not felt my life was where it needed to be for one of these guys. Luckily that has changed!

 

Even armed with working knowledge I have been doing TONS of research. I may be irreparably confused now!

 

I will explain the household a little and then ask a couple basic questions.

 

My boyfriend and I work during the week however we have staggered schedules and so it would allow for a lot of out of cage time plus the fact that money is no object and I am looking to get a huge cage to allow for lots of toys and still be able to move around freely when he/she does need to be kept in. We have other animals - dogs, cats, and ferrets. It can get wild sometimes when all 3 groups start playing with one another! I have had birds before while owning ferrets and have always been very conscientious of keeping the 2 apart, the dogs and cats have been raised around birds and pay them no mind at all however interaction is still severely restricted if at all and always monitored. Life is pretty routine and once the routine is learned life is actually quite quiet and repetitive.

 

My questions are as follows and I am really just looking for others opinions and experiences as facts on a site don't allow for individuality as I have found.

 

Male or Female? I would be the primary caregiver and am female, but both of us are very hands on with our animals and we both enjoy play time. Have any of you noticed that either sex may be pickier as far as accepting male/female humans?

 

Congo or Timneh? I know others have asked this question and I personally am not hooked on a particular choice at this point. I have heard that the congos can be more nervous but how much is that? What are your preferences and why? I would especially like input on this given our diverse little household.

 

I have also heard that extending the handfeeding and weaning time with the Congos can help with making them less nervous and more confident. Thoughts?

 

Thank you everyone for your input on this!!

[Talon]

Congratulations and Welcome to our family! You sound so excited,and I am happy for you.

I have both, a timneh and a congo. But both of mine are girls. They are only 2 months apart. I have never heard that there is any difference as far as sexes go, but I personally see a huge difference in the speaking and personalities of my two. I don't recommend either one over the other, they are just different. B)<br><br>Post edited by: Talon, at: 2008/11/10 21:50

[Dave007]

"Male or Female? "

Rather than worrying about which is pickier ( which neither is), the most important #1 job is to make sure that the bird is completely socialized with all the human members of the family and the family lifestyle. Greys be they male or female will take to a certain member for certain things and pick the other member for other things. Building that relationship is important. Don't expect the bird to react or treat you both exactly the same way..

"Congo or Timneh"

They're 2 different birds with different types of traits and you're the one that has to get into detail about what appeals to you.

Unfortunately, there's only 2 types of greys so people try to figure out which is better. Neither one is better or worse.

"congos can be more nervous but how much is that?"

They're more leery of new things, don't easily accept new things as quickly as TAGs but that really has nothing to do with their over all personality. That aspect is rated low on the importance chain.

Now, if we were talking about Amazons the situation would be totally different since there's approx 15 to 20 species of amazons so, it would be extremely difficult to find out who has the better personality. That's why the question of different personality traits doesn't come up as much.

 

Any grey you purchase should be fully weaned at the time of purchase. Afterward, some will still accept formula simply because they like it or simply because they weren't fully weaned at the time of purchase. There's nothing wrong with giving extra formula IF the bird will accept it. They can't be force fed.

What will make a grey less prone to health problems is when the bird is fully weaned. Many people have nervous, high strung birds that were fully weaned and others have birds that weren't fully weaned and yet the birds are calm.

[nims]

Hi,

 

Welcome to the forum.

 

I have two congos(male and female)I keep them purely as pets.

 

I have had Indy since she was 3 months and she is now 8 months old.

 

I also have Ice who is a boy and is 4 years old. He is a rescue andwe are working on him.

 

You seem to be doing the right thing by doing the research. In terms of boy or girl it really depends on who the bird choses?! Indy has chosen my husband and Ice it seems has chosen ME!!

 

There is no guarantee that if you a male bird that he will bond to you and vice versa...........if that makes sense.

 

As I have two congos I really cant comment on timneh/congo as I am sure they are both different birds and have their on traits. I am sure others may be able to advise you.

 

Are you thinking of getting a baby grey?

[redkim]

Yes - I am going to get a baby after the first of the year. I live in So Cal and have access to 2 great breeders who I can go visit and will contact them once I have a clearer idea of what I am looking for. I will also be bugging the bejaysus out of them with all my questions!

 

Here are the 2 breeders I am looking at:

www.birdsandmore.com

www.parrotsnaturally.com

 

Both seem to be very good breeders and quite responsible as far as not allowing their birds to leave before they are ready.

 

As I have done dog and horse rescues, the idea of a rescue grey is appealing however I do know that I am not knowledgeable enough to bring one home and give it the proper care it needs.

 

So far I am leaning towards a male baby Congo but as I have read fairly frequently - I know my baby will pick me so I am not setting my choice as a hard and fast rule. I have been surprised and "picked" by animals in the past and so I know now how to just go with the flow! :laugh:

[nims]

Hi Redkim,

 

Not all parrots that are looking to be re-homed have "baggage" if you know what I mean.

 

There are birds out there who just need new homes because the owners dont have time for them, have allergies or change in circumstances (have a baby, move home, new job etc)

 

My only advice is to look into this as others who have rehomed will tell you how rewarding it is.

 

Thanks

 

Nims

[annmarie73]

Welcome Redkim ~

 

Wow you have really have some SUPER questions, and I appreciate that.

 

It seems like most people don't bother to investigate the essentials before taking on a new family member. Clearly you have A LOT of experience with animals and you seem to want to do the RIGHT thing, which would mean getting a bird (s) from a rescue.

 

I am hoping that with Obama as president the crackdown on indiscriminant bird breeding will begin. There are just way too many unhappy birds who have resorted to yanking out their feathers by the beakful to justify all the breeding that goes on. Not to mention the fact that bird rescues are full and are forced to turn away unwanted birds every day. I wonder what happens to the birds that don't get accepted into rescues?

 

My Sterling, who is a rescue bird, does not take too kindly to being told that rescue birds tend to have baggage. {Communicate-0002011A}

 

His motto is, "Everybody is somebody, and every bird is some bird." *** Clever little bird, I know. **

 

Anyway, welcome to our little forum where everybody is able to express themselves openly ~ it is a very accepting group.

 

May your journey be an enjoyable one.

 

Much Love,

Ann Marie

{Nature-0002009A}

 

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