What to look for in meeting a rescue grey?

[Nostromo]

Hello,

I've posted elsewhere that I am in the process of finding a second parrot to adopt. I've been meeting with a goffin cockatoo but that bird may be too aggressive towards men (I have a husband & son). I am working with a wonderful rescue and am meeting some of the birds she has available there to see who might be the best fit for our family. One of the birds I will hopefully meet is a Grey, not sure how old, who comes very recently from a hoarding situation. The bird is gentle but extremely timid and afraid of hands, per the rescue owner. She's working to help him learn to step up but so far he flies away in terror if she approaches his cage with her hands. Interesting, he was happy to step up to her from the floor. No signs of aggression.

I'm going to be meeting this sweet bird hopefully in a week or so. Since the bird is afraid of hands, how should I approach? And what sorts of signs should I be looking for to assess if this bird will be a good fit for our family? For context, we have a 14 year old Blue Head Pionus who is very mellow and bonded to my husband. We also have a 2 year old child. I work from home and would have ample time to work with the new bird. The bird would not need to be handled by anybody but me, but would need to be able to live in a household with a young child (that being said, we're a pretty calm and quiet house). The main things I am looking for is a bird who does not fly at other family members in jealousy/aggression, whose noise is manageable (screams are expected, but hopefully not ceaseless), and who would not be overly stressed by living with a family. A bird who takes years to learn to trust and come out of their shell would be just fine and welcome to go at their own pace.

Any thoughts or advice would be appreciated!

 

[Toy]

CAG's (Congo African Grey) tend to be hands off birds. Meaning they are not fond of being petted or touched much. Mine will step up (on her own time) & allow a beak swipe, but that's about it & we've had her for 24 years. They are often defensive, especially around fast movements. They like their world to be a bit slow. We call it "Jengo Time". Jengo is our CAG. CAG's tend to like to hang out & watch their world go by. Unlike say a Macaw that wants to be in the middle of the action. SO this bird you are going to see may be taking off instead of stepping up just might be a defensive action. Jengo refuses to step up off her cage, cage door, etc., but she will from her seed skirt. So I tell her to come down. She crawls down to the seed skirt & walks over for me to have her step up. They can be stubborn.

As for sounds.....CAG's can make and or repeat any sound on the planet & they are good at whistling. They are good talkers, highly intelligent, can relate words/items/actions, etc. Ours imitates our U2 to a "T".

They require a diet higher in calcium. Along with a little seed mix & veggies/fruits I feed "Pretty Bird African Species Specific pellets", as it has more calcium. Ours will eat just about anything, as long as I show her it's OK to eat, by eating some myself or fake eating it.

Ours can fly, but chooses not to. She just hangs out on her cage. CAG's tend to fly straight & fast. She will go to the floor at times & go walk-about. Toys....Our likes foot toys, baby stacking cups, small toys she can pick up, toss or throw. She has a few hanging toys, but isn't overly fond of them. She prefers plastic toys to wood toys. She often sticks a stacking cup in either her food or water dish. We just tell her to remove it so we can feed her. She'll take it out & drop it. That's part of their intelligence at work. Jengo goes in her cage on command, both word or hand commanads (I flip my hand & she knows it's her cue to go in her cage), and in her crate, but on "Jengo Time". She takes a minute then does it. They don't like to be rushed.

Jengo jabbers, talks, whistles, calls to us, etc., daily. She does immitate my U2's screams some, but most of the time it's not bad. If you get this bird talk to it the same as you are your 2 year old child. Try to realte words with items & actions & be consistent with command words.

Keep in mind each bird is different. What works for one may not work for the other.

 

[Nostromo]

CAG's (Congo African Grey) tend to be hands off birds. Meaning they are not fond of being petted or touched much. Mine will step up (on her own time) & allow a beak swipe, but that's about it & we've had her for 24 years. They are often defensive, especially around fast movements. They like their world to be a bit slow. We call it "Jengo Time". Jengo is our CAG. CAG's tend to like to hang out & watch their world go by. Unlike say a Macaw that wants to be in the middle of the action. SO this bird you are going to see may be taking off instead of stepping up just might be a defensive action. Jengo refuses to step up off her cage, cage door, etc., but she will from her seed skirt. So I tell her to come down. She crawls down to the seed skirt & walks over for me to have her step up. They can be stubborn.

As for sounds.....CAG's can make and or repeat any sound on the planet & they are good at whistling. They are good talkers, highly intelligent, can relate words/items/actions, etc. Ours imitates our U2 to a "T".

They require a diet higher in calcium. Along with a little seed mix & veggies/fruits I feed "Pretty Bird African Species Specific pellets", as it has more calcium. Ours will eat just about anything, as long as I show her it's OK to eat, by eating some myself or fake eating it.

Ours can fly, but chooses not to. She just hangs out on her cage. CAG's tend to fly straight & fast. She will go to the floor at times & go walk-about. Toys....Our likes foot toys, baby stacking cups, small toys she can pick up, toss or throw. She has a few hanging toys, but isn't overly fond of them. She prefers plastic toys to wood toys. She often sticks a stacking cup in either her food or water dish. We just tell her to remove it so we can feed her. She'll take it out & drop it. That's part of their intelligence at work. Jengo goes in her cage on command, both word or hand commanads (I flip my hand & she knows it's her cue to go in her cage), and in her crate, but on "Jengo Time". She takes a minute then does it. They don't like to be rushed.

Jengo jabbers, talks, whistles, calls to us, etc., daily. She does immitate my U2's screams some, but most of the time it's not bad. If you get this bird talk to it the same as you are your 2 year old child. Try to realte words with items & actions & be consistent with command words.

Keep in mind each bird is different. What works for one may not work for the other.

Thank you for this! It all actually sounds amazingly similar to our Pionus. She is also pretty hands off - she will observe from her playstand or cage door but isn't a "jump into the action" kind of bird. The most she likes is a head scritch and only when she's in the mood. She's very calm and gentle but she definitely likes to do things her way. So if the Grey was like her, they'd certainly fit right in!