African Grey Parrots

[Scrambled Egg]

Quote:
Huh?!!!

 

[Mom 2em All]

My African Grey is like another child for me. I cannot imagine not having him, and I love him like a child- its not the same, of course if someone had a gun to my head and said the bird or your kid, the kids would win....that said:

I was Dino's eighth home in eight years. he has no feet- parent birds bit them off when he hatched. He was abused and moved from home to home until I came along. His last home kept him in a cage for six months and never let him out. Poured water in through the top, fed him sunflower seeds and bologna.

It took the patience of a saint, and four months before I could handle him. He trusts me, loves me, but will only rarely let anyone else touch him. Sometimes he will let them scratch his head, sometimes he will pretend- then strike out at them. He drew blood on me more times than I can count when he first came here. I love him so much, and he does occasionally manage to hurt my feelings. A very undeserved bite now and then to keep me in line, lol.
His vocabulary is around 250-300 words. He talks all day, every day. He makes sentences and carries on conversations with himself, and people here. He sounds like my husband, and like me when he talks. Many times my husband has thought he was talking to me, but it was the bird answering.
He makes so many different sounds that I could never list them all. However, at 7 a.m. when he wont stop trying to imitate a grackle, over and over and over and over- it can try your patience. Or, another favorite is to ring exactly like a phone- repeatedly at the top of his lungs for like, 20 minutes straight. You can easily hear him four houses down.
He can be hilarious with things he says, and he can be affectionate, and his timing is beautiful. That said- there is nothing like having an argument with my husband,have my husband leave the house- for whatever reason- then have the bird repeat a sentence of my husbands cussing over and over and over for an hour. It is like listening to a recording.

It is very funny to hear him tell my kids to get up. He will say "Tiffany time to get up", in my voice- really sweet. Then he will move on down the line. "Ryan- time to get up. Ryan! Ryan! GET UP RYAN GET UP NOW!" bwahahahahahahahaha! Can you tell my son is hardest to wake up?

I wouldnt trade him for anything in the world, and can list hundreds of great things about the breed- but also, anyone interested in having a grey is welcome to call me on the phone and listen to how loud they can be. Automated messages love him, NOT! Just try calling a utility company that says "Say or Press 1 for...." My bird in the background will mess that up. "We did not understand you, did you say ONE for payment information? Press or say..." etc.

 

[flakey chick]

Quote:
You are joking, right?

LMAO..

-Kim

Nope, no joke. It knew when her owner was supposed to come home and let her out to play.

 

[DuckyBoys]

I haven't had an african gray but I did have an umbrella cockatoo. Although she was sweet and loving and rarely screamed, she was still very high maintenance. Grays are prone to severe feather pciking, as are cockatoos. You have to be very particular at what you feed them they require a lot of fresh veggies and should be trained to eat pellets and rarely if ever any seed.

These birds are a really big decision, one that can last decades. My bird passed away last March and I am hoping to adopt another cockatoo sometime this fall or winter. I don't mind the screaming all that much because when my baby got sick she stopped it completely and only said a few words, so to me her scremaing meant she was normal and happy and feeling good. It was the silence that killed me.

They are very rewarding though, and I imagine the vocabulary of the grays make them even more so.

 

[dixygirl]

I have African Grays and Macaws. The macaws can make your skin crawl when they yell. If they yell outside, you can hear it a mile or 2 away. The African Grays do not have the ability to yell that loud. They may be noisy some times but can't come close to the scream of the macaws at all.


The African Grays think they are human. They can converse almost like any child would if you spend time training them. Mine sings opera, does drum beats, counts to 4 so far. If you hold up 1 finger and say how many he will say one. If he wants food he will say " want some Food!" Same if he wants water he will say " Want some Water" He will say come here. and if the girl gray wants to threaten the dog she says Come here doggie in a threatening tone and then purposefully bit his nose. They say so many things and know exactly what they are talking about. I ask them what each animal says and they imitate it. For example I say "what does the doggie say?" And they will bark... They do that for all our animals. Now they are crowing like roosters and quacking like ducks too. They tell you good night when they are ready to go to bed. And before I put my feet on the floor in the mornings the little girl bird whose cage is beside my bed says " Good morning momie"

The boy Gray has a malicious sense of humor. He growls at you to taunt you and if he doesn't get his way he says " Whatever!!" with perfect valley girl intonation. If he plays a joke on you he will laugh and chuckle too. They also call you by name and ask you to come if they want attention. If i comb my hair or pick up my keys the girl tells me good bye as as if she knows i'm leaving.

The macaws have a more limited vocabulary but they also use language appropriately and with comprehension to a lesser degree. If i offer them something new to eat they will say "good huh?" then say "uuuum" like a yummy sound once tasting it. Then they may offer you some and say "want some?" They can be truly hilarious!

 

[WisconsinChick]

Before you go and buy an animal, you should check petfinder.com for rescued pets in your area.

 

[spatcher]

Kim something you have to understand is that there are two kinds of African Greys - the Congo and the Timneh. The Congo's are loud and can be obnoxious. The Timneh's are laid back and quieter. We have had our Timneh for about 20 years now. The Congo's have a much larger vocabulary and want more attention. Where a Congo will scream " I want food!" our Timneh will just say "nummynum" when she sees us eating. Congo - bright red tail, Timneh - purplish, duller tail.

 

[seriousbill]

dixygirl and spatcher, you guys are really making me want a Timneh, and I thought I had decided I didn't want a Grey... Well, maybe someday....

 

[Wolf-Kim]

This is all very interesting, I am enjoying the thread. The stories of a child-like pet are great..

I'm not a fan of the macaws, I only need to listen to Candy at The Bird Cage(family owned petshop). Now Candy is beautiful and has an amazing vocabulary, when he hears the door of the petshop open you immediately hear him say "Hello?" "Hello!" ra-ah and then he talks to you as you walk around the shop.. When you stop at the bird room, where she keeps the larger birds, he gets quiet and sizes you up. While your watching he shows off with his toys and what he can do in his cage...

Macaws are just too loud for me all the time.. I don't mind loud some of the time, but Candy doesn't seem ABLE to be quiet. LOL No volume control there..

Thanks everyone, I love this thread. Keep on..

And yes, I would try to adopt before buying, I know there are plenty of birds who need good homes..

-Kim