When my wife bought Graybeard, a Congo African Grey, from an excellent bird store, two years ago, he was already a year old, and never had a home, so we got a deal. We paid for sexing, and report came back: the unfriendly parrot they called "Grumpy Girl" is a male. Two weeks later, we launched on what turned out to be a 5,000 mile monthlong trip, where we really got to know him. He's the perfect passenger, and began talking to us about mid way in the trip.
About half the time we declared him at hotels as "parrot in a cage." Actually, his waking hours were on top of the cage.. We had a hand vac, and cleaned up before checking out, the only evidence left was the newspapers in the trash. Hotels had up to a $150 charge for unregistered pet.
We took him through Yellowstone on a portable perch, (more about that later) where he was as big a hit as Old Faithful. He loved women and children, but not men. Can they smell testosterone? Since that time, he has bonded with my wife, and I am the competitor. He talks in my voice.
The Rose-breasted Cockatoo my wife bought a year later has earned the name Chewbaca, because she CHEWS everything. Well, she chews everything expensive. The second tv remote is now suspended with a spring from the ceiling.
GB
