Want to hear success stories of how you bonded :)

[Katelyn]

My Nicky is one of the best eaters I have ever seen. I eats the gloop all day, and eats any fresh anything I give him. He asked for them all by name, too, but when you give him what he asked for he will always ask for something different.

He has a bowl of pellets that he plays with more than eats. It’s Tropimix, and he sorts through it, maybe throwing some, but some, but doesn’t actually eat much.
He’s also the noisiest Grey that has ever existed. I’m actually worried that he’s going to be evicted!

Omgsh! Chloe is such a little pig too! She eats constantly . Thats adorable that Nicky ask for what he wants to eat! Thats just so cute! I havent tried the tropimix yet, were currently on harrisons. Chloe hasnt made much noise yet, but im kind of hoping she does. Its too quiet around here. She has her times of day where she lets out a whistle here and there, yet, shes just settling in too.

[Pajarita]

When this type of food came out, chop was just fresh veggies chopped up, mash was also fresh veggies but it was a finer chop than the chop [hence the name 'mash'] These dishes had no grains or pulses, only veggies and then only fresh veggies but fresh is not as nutritious as frozen [fresh is picked green -frozen ripens in the plant- and it loses a lot of nutrients in shipping -days and days in crates- while frozen is picked and frozen within hours so they retain almost all the nutrients] that's why I use only frozen veggies and keep them frozen until it's ready to be served.

Funny story, I have to make my husband "mash" to get him to eat his veggies too. No joke! I didnt even know you could order their food. I wouldnt do that, id rather make it myself. This morning Chloe got plain oats, broccoli, carrots, corn, and some oranges, along with her seed mix, and her harrisons. I will be making her chop on next grocery day! I have never heard of "pulses" but we do have lentils where I am at.

Pulses are the fruits of legumes so, basically, all beans and peas are pulses.

[Pajarita]

My Nicky is one of the best eaters I have ever seen. I eats the gloop all day, and eats any fresh anything I give him. He asked for them all by name, too, but when you give him what he asked for he will always ask for something different.

He has a bowl of pellets that he plays with more than eats. It’s Tropimix, and he sorts through it, maybe throwing some, but some, but doesn’t actually eat much.
He’s also the noisiest Grey that has ever existed. I’m actually worried that he’s going to be evicted!

Omgsh! Chloe is such a little pig too! She eats constantly . Thats adorable that Nicky ask for what he wants to eat! Thats just so cute! I havent tried the tropimix yet, were currently on harrisons. Chloe hasnt made much noise yet, but im kind of hoping she does. Its too quiet around here. She has her times of day where she lets out a whistle here and there, yet, shes just settling in too.

Actually, Nicky is quite the exception because grays are normally quiet birds - well, let me rephrase that: quiet as parrots go, that is!

[Katelyn]

My Nicky is one of the best eaters I have ever seen. I eats the gloop all day, and eats any fresh anything I give him. He asked for them all by name, too, but when you give him what he asked for he will always ask for something different.

He has a bowl of pellets that he plays with more than eats. It’s Tropimix, and he sorts through it, maybe throwing some, but some, but doesn’t actually eat much.
He’s also the noisiest Grey that has ever existed. I’m actually worried that he’s going to be evicted!

Omgsh! Chloe is such a little pig too! She eats constantly . Thats adorable that Nicky ask for what he wants to eat! Thats just so cute! I havent tried the tropimix yet, were currently on harrisons. Chloe hasnt made much noise yet, but im kind of hoping she does. Its too quiet around here. She has her times of day where she lets out a whistle here and there, yet, shes just settling in too.

Actually, Nicky is quite the exception because grays are normally quiet birds - well, let me rephrase that: quiet as parrots go, that is!

Gotcha! I love peas, I could give her some of mine and put to the side for her at dinner. we eat them often. Yes, as quiet as parrots will go! I actually enjoy the noise, keeps things interesting!

[liz]

I think Myrtle and I started to bond because she felt sorry for me being so stupid.
When I got near she would put a foot up to tell me to back up. With my lack of knowledge it looked like she wanted a tickle. My first touch on her was to say "tickle tickle" and tickle the foot that was up.
I have had her for 7 years and she is 8 years old. She still asks for "tickle tickle".

Since this thread is also about food, I will tell you how I feed my cockatiels. I use a big thermal cup and boiling water to let my grain soften over night. In the morning I drain it and rinse it. While it is still warm I add frozen mixed veggies. That and a stalk of celery is breakfast for them.
I only give seed in the evening.
Store bought celery has very little nutrition. I choose the greenest ones and ad a whole one to their breakfast. My cockatiels do not play with toys but have a great time with the celery. Some times I have to actually search for it to remove it.

[Katelyn]

I think Myrtle and I started to bond because she felt sorry for me being so stupid.
When I got near she would put a foot up to tell me to back up. With my lack of knowledge it looked like she wanted a tickle. My first touch on her was to say "tickle tickle" and tickle the foot that was up.
I have had her for 7 years and she is 8 years old. She still asks for "tickle tickle".

Since this thread is also about food, I will tell you how I feed my cockatiels. I use a big thermal cup and boiling water to let my grain soften over night. In the morning I drain it and rinse it. While it is still warm I add frozen mixed veggies. That and a stalk of celery is breakfast for them.
I only give seed in the evening.
Store bought celery has very little nutrition. I choose the greenest ones and ad a whole one to their breakfast. My cockatiels do not play with toys but have a great time with the celery. Some times I have to actually search for it to remove it.

Aww, tickle tickle! So cute! Thats an AWESOME idea on the thermal cup! I tried giving chloe some rolled oats yesterday but she wasnt interested at all. I may try brown rice. I havent tried the celery yet. As for toys, she just shred paper and she has one toy she prefers thats a giant peanut with holes in it for foraging. I never know what to put in it because everything just falls out, and we ditched peanuts from her diet. Her other toys pretty much just stay. She likes these little foot toys she sometimes will go pick it up, they are like plastic screws for babys.

[Pajarita]

Well, the thermal cup is Liz's method but it doesn't really do anything but wet the grains so I would not recommend it. I also would not use rolled oats or brown rice. The rolled oats [oatmeal] has been found to have unsafe levels of a herbicide [see this: http://www.theparrotforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=18606] but, if you only use organic, it's OK.
As to brown rice, it has too much arsenic - even the organic one because it's not in anything that is sprayed or added to the soil, it's already in the soil and has been there for years and years and will continue to be there for years and years as it doesn't disappear naturally. Use brown Basmati grown in India or Pakistan, or Jasmine from Thailand - OR, use what I use: Lunderg black or red rice [they are both whole grain, more nutritious than any other rice and grown in an area of California that has the lowest levels of arsenic in the entire USA].

[GreenWing]

Hey all! Katelyn here I would love to hear your stories from those who have bonded with an adopted or re homed bird, perhaps African Greys! Chloe has been home with me for about a week and is still being a stinker. She doesnt like hands near her, ( other than taking a treat from the hand) other than that shes great! How long did it take your bird to settle in to the point you could touch them? Did they just come to you one day and offer their foot to step up? Would love to hear the little details!

Great topic! Well, I initially discovered Chance online, in a post, as her owners were wanting to sell her. Then I visited her in her previous home, which was her 2nd home apparently, and she was quite shy. Her then-owners wanted me to buy her because there was an issue with allergy and her dust. After sending me some texts asking if I would buy her, I thought about it and maybe about a week later asked them if they still had her, and they didn't reply. I ended up visiting Portland's Bird Hut and to my happy surprise, found her there! Chance still was looking me up and down, but started to talk to me, and then stepped up when I asked her to. She decided I was alright and I started to bring her cranberry juice, and spent a lot of time with her. After maybe two weeks of this, she "chose" me, and so I bought her and we continued to bond at home.

Bonding with Chance took some time. I'm not sure if this is the usual with Greys, as I've met Greys that chose me right away (usually males, interestingly). Chance is just more cautious. I'm glad she is with me now, though.

[liz]

Putting grain in a thermal cup with boiling water cooks the grain. The faro pops open making it easier for them to eat. The brown rice pops open from its shell.

I limit the rice but it is fully cooked the next morning.

I wash the seed like I would do for us then put it in the thermal pot. The next morning I rinse it in cold water.