can anyone tell me a bit about African grey parrots as i have just got a 16 week old one any tips please?

Question

i would love it if u all could help thanks.

Answer 1

don't you think you did things the wrong way around? You are supposed to do all the reaearch BEFORE you get the poet, not get it first and then think about finding out how to care for it?
There are no 'tips' on caring for this delicate and exotic species of bird. You need to know what you are doing. They are not easy to care for. You cannot simply feed it on pet shop seedmix. You cannot be near it if you smoke, nor use plug in air fresheners, nor non stick pans. You need to know how to train it. The breeder should have given you a care sheet and some free insurance and you should have got yourself several books on how to take care of it properly for the next 70 years of it's life.
BTW, not all african greys talk. I have 5 and none of them talks. Meanwhile the amazons never shut up.

Answer 2

I know there is no standard for birds for diet. This works for me. A pelleted food is more nutritious and keeps malnutrition away. Fresh fruits and veggies 20% and no more than 10% seeds. Avoid avocados, chocolate, fruit pits, and there is a debate about onions,eggplant and grape seeds. So I just avoid them. These birds are one of the greatest talkers. Repetition and even association with things and activities help. It's not just mimicking as once thought. I taught my bird to enjoy a bath with two inches of water in a sink, splashing my fingers and talking really enthusiastically makes a big difference. Thinking and foraging toys prevent boredom. I have put treats in pieces of wax paper and twist the ends. Cholla wood is great for chewing and stuffing treats in it. Pine cones are great to hide treats. They also like to tear up adding machine paper rolls.A busy bird is a happy bird. Since they are flock birds, demonstrate how delicious a new fruit is and this will spark his interest. If biting is a problem, try to quietly push into the bite and give a firm "No!" Time outs in his cage should be brief. Good behaviour means more play time.Rotate toys. Lots of fresh air. Ambient room temperature and a covering of the cage at night discourages screaming very early in the morning. A T-perch for out of the cage fun helps. I use a power nozzle on my garden hose that really cleans the cage well and the ultraviolet rays of the sun sanitizes toys and the cage.Use natural cleaning products and avoid pesticides and harmful chemicals around the bird. This is all a comittment and there are a lot of sites that can help you. With time and patience, this bird and you will develop a wonderful relationship. Have fun and a tweet year.

Answer 3

Hi, I grew up with one ... not sure how old he was when he finally passed away, but he was at least 35, because he actually came from the wild. I know, frowned upon now, but back in the 60's it was acceptable. We were living in Ghana at the time & Dad bought him from someone who was coming around door to door selling them! No idea if he was a baby or an adult bird. I often wondered about the life that he missed out on - but I suppose Dad buying him helped give an African family a living.

It's great that these days, the birds that you get in the UK are all bred here.

(By the way, there were also people selling monkeys door to door - I never persuaded Dad to buy one of those)

Anyway, back to Rip. He liked company & fretted if left by himself - so I'd advise leaving the radio on for him when you have to go out (preferably not one with iritating jingles or he'll drive you mad repeating them). Also get him some parrot toys so he has plenty to do & doesn't get bored.

Keep him well back from any wall paper. Ours used to love tearing it off the wall.

Smooth him down & handle him daily (several times a day if you can). Ours loved being tickled on the back of the neck.

Ours also liked eating rich tea biscuits, chips & apples ... though I'm not sure that the first two were really very good for him.

They seem really intelligent. Ours never messed up & said anything at an inappropriate time (though swearing in the background when you're making an important call seemed to be his idea of fun ... special tip - don't teach yours to swear!). He always greeted you when you came in the room, said Goodbye when you left or Goodnight at bedtime. Often shrieking goodnight when he wanted to go to sleep & I was still in the room watching tv.

They are wonderful mimics - getting the voice of the person as well as the word ... so we always knew who it was that he'd picked up his latest rude word from!

Hope you have at least as many years of happiness with yours as we all had with ours. Ours is extremely, sadly missed.

Answer 4

What I would say is handle every day and talk to it alot! But make sure other members of family hold and friends as they can become quite attached to ine person and aggressive to others I dont have an African grey but I do have a parrott He is 11 yrs old I got him 2yrs ago Loves hates my husband ! Needs to be introduced to many people so this doesnt happen to much in future!

Answer 5

I have a 21 year old African Grey Parrot, with one eye, called Sammi and he is beautiful. He will be 22 on 25th January, and tonight he appeared on TV in a 10 second vid. How Cool.

Sammi loves peanuts in their sheels, which your will loves because it gives them something to do, ie: open the shell.

Also they loves to be out all of the time, not necessarily to fly, but just to sit and look cool on the top of the cage.

Never let your AGP get bored and show him a lot of love. When they get bored or stressed they tend to pull out their feathers, so make sure you say to him I love You everymorning.

They live till about 70 years.

If you would like to read about Sammi's adventures then please view my 360 pages -"googlekiss" where there are lots of pictures of Sammi and also my 12 other birdies.

Love
Wizzi

Answer 6

You have years of pure joy ahead of yo. I go one Mildred although not sure if a boy or girl. I brought lots of books on how to care for them b4 I got her. There is a magazine tht comes out monthly all about parrots. Web sites are helpful too. Talk lots to her lots and make sure it has an ample sizes cage. Take to vets for regular checks. Insurance is important as they can get sick quickly and treatment can be expensive. You should find a good avian vet. The insurance co. will advise of any in your area. There are certain foods that you must never give them. Avocado being one but the website will list all of them. I have mine out of her cage when I at home. But they must have 12 hours undisturbed rest at night in a quiet place. Not too much heat either and plenty of toys to amuse as they are very intelligent. Think about a 4 year old and that is probably the level of intelligence they have. Lots of company too. You really would be better off researching on web sites etc. During winer if you have central htg it is advisable to give them a light water mist spray 3 times a week. I lightly spay mine in the am so that by evening she is dry. Seeds should be a treat and not a diet, fresh fruit and veg. Mildred helps herself off my plate to mashed potato. Good luck and love him/her to bits

Answer 7

We have an Macaw and two greys, one is a grey, and one is gay. What ever you do, DON'T WHISTLE and make sure you stop any friends from doing it. We left our neighbour to care for our birds while we went to Singapore. When we got home our friend said I have tought your bird to wolf whistle, could he do it before. ############

Last June my partner fell in love with one about the same age as yours, Because although Smokie is a male, he hates women, and she was able to play with the new one. Trouble is each bird has tought the other all the stupid noises each other knows, and they spend their time taking it in turns, I stand there with a sprayer and both look so innocent with an "it wasn't me look" and I have a job to tell 'cause they both go silent.

By the way all three birds love frosties, they are like kids we can't have a meal without them trying to see whats going, and all three ring their bells for attention, or Smokie says thank you, or I love you! Whilst Bandit looks on them with contempt..

Handle your bird as often as possible, leave music or a radio on when you go out. We always tell our birds where we are going and that we won't be long. If Bandits mum goes to work and forgets to say good by to him, he's in a mood all day.

Good luck,!!! and you should get so much pleasure out of yours.

Answer 8

Give your bird a varied diet..pellets, fruits, veges, some meat. VERY little seeds..a diet too high in seeds can cause fatty liver disease and other illnesses and cause your bird to die young.
Give it lots of attention and toys. Make sure that it is a part of your family..that it isn't lonely and bored.
And as for the "how can you take a bird from its habitat" answer...most greys are raised in captivity...hence the band on their leg which can be traced back to the breeder. Don't let comments like that bother you!
I love my Grey. He is a great companion and addition to our family. :-)
Isn't he handsome?

Answer 9

They are beautiful birds, and also very loud, so be prepare to have a lot of noise at home. Looks like you got a baby, so that's great! You need to hold him every day, talk to him, they love to be touch and kiss.Make him use to you and you will have a very nice loving bird, but do it now, because the older they get the harder it is to domesticate them.
Good luck!
; o )
P.s Don't forget to teach him phrases and songs, so that he can learn to talk, they really can talk a lot!

Answer 10

i have 2 greys and they are soooo very smart and need a lot of time and attention with you and your family if you have people living with you. they need lots of different type of toys to play with or they can start to pull, shred or pluck their feathers, keeping them in a cage all the time is not good for them they will get aggressive and they do like to bond with 1 person so everyone in your house should spend time with your bird. my greys are very jealouse birds so becareful that you learn your greys signs when he is gonna bite or when he wants to be left alone. try not to spend every minute with him because i did and my youngest grey cries and whines everytime i leave the room and he can no longer see me. also have plenty of shreddable toys for him to play with it will keep him away from his own feathers. my greys have a bedtime every night and they are moody if they dont get the right amout of sleep...NOT FUN...