Adopting an African Grey?

[Ryiah]

Sorry, Long post!

Hi,
I am considering adopting an African Grey that is advertised near me, as I have always really loved one and I adore birds.
I am currently researching them thoroughly, however I have a few questions, that I hope some people may answer:

Do African Greys and cockatiels get along together? Can they be let out at the same time (under supervision)?

I work 8hrs 5 days a week, I am home evenings and weekends - would that be enough time to socialise with the Parrot? I currently spend 4 hours per night with my cockatiel (he is out as soon as I get home from work and goes to bed when we got to bed) and all weekend.

Since this bird is adopted, I currently have a list of questions I would like to ask the owner, which I have listed below:

"How long have you had the bird (if less than the birds age, then I will ask where he was before that)?

where did you purchase him?

Why are you rehoming him?

Is he friendly with people? Does he bite?

Does he have any behavioural problems?

Is he in good health - Does he have any illnesses, or has he had illnesses in the past?"


Should I ask the above questions in any particular order? Are there any other questions that I should ask?

If there is any other advice, tips, suggestions, words of warning you can give me, that would be much appreciated.

Oh, the African Grey is approx 3 years old and if we did consider adopting him, we would go to visit him at his home first and see how the owners interact with him, what his living conditions are like etc.

Thank You for your time!

[Lisa B]

hi...I'm short on time to go into details on yoru questions, but I will try my best to help ya out, short verson...
But know I have adopted several older birds thoughout my years and dont regret one.....
Do African Greys and cockatiels get along together? Can they be let out at the same time (under supervision)?
yes, they can, but if the tiel has the power(or vice versa) to get near the grey, it wont be pretty.Very Opposite sides of the room, with you present and wings clipped,,,it could be done.

I work 8hrs 5 days a week, I am home evenings and weekends - would that be enough time to socialise with the Parrot? I currently spend 4 hours per night with my cockatiel (he is out as soon as I get home from work and goes to bed when we got to bed) and all weekend.
yes, most unfortuately dont even get that much attention.


Should I ask the above questions in any particular order? Are there any other questions that I should ask?
your questions are good..order of them really doesnt matter.....include:
ask if you can have the medical records if he has them
His vet info
What his diet consists of
Is he frightened of anything(colors/toys/kids/dogs ETC)

words of warning you can give me
nope...just make sure to quarenteen him from your tiel for 90 days

advice, tips, suggestions
I'm gunna let the other memebers jump in, as they all will have somthing to share

we would go to visit him at his home first and see how the owners interact with him, what his living conditions are like etc.
Excellent. and good luck...keep us posted!

[bb100]

Originally Posted by Ryiah

Sorry, Long post!

Is he friendly with people? Does he bite?

Does he have any behavioural problems?

I think Lisa basically covered it all. However, I will only add to be prepared that they may not answer honestly. This little guy maybe the sweetest parrot on earth or within a few days he may exhibit the same behaviors that gave him the boot from his first home.

On the subject of biting.. some parrots bite some not at all. Maybe fear, hormones, not enough handling etc. the list goes on & on.

Can all of this be worked out if you have the patience YES! I have a beautiful Amazon Male who I have been working with on biting issues. He has made strides 10 fold and no it has not been easy to get to that point. I am 100% sure this is why he found himself homeless & at my door.

[GreetingCardReligion]

Well gosh this seems pretty well covered but hello there anyway!

I definantly would not let both those birds out together where they could "get at" eachother for safetys sake. They could both be the nicest birds in the world, but the size difference makes things really dangerous and one accident or slip up could cause serious injury if not death.

I would ask about the diet as well as how much sleep he get's a night and how much interaction out of cage time he gets as well. Definantly meet the bird too, see if you hit it off at all and how well he accepts a stranger. Watch how they handle him, take note of where his cage is located (hidden away some where or in a busy part of the house).

Good luck meeting the grey, I can't wait to hear how it goes!

[greyburd]

It might take more than one meeting with this guy. I know my Greys tend to just sit and watch when there's someone new around. Don't take offense if he doesn't take to you right away. Greys are very cautious of new situations. You're questions are good. You can never ask too many questions. If you feel they're giving you the run around, just move on!! Definitely examine it's surroundings (cage, playstand and any other area the bird spends time).

Good luck!!

[Ryiah]

Thanks for all your replies - all so helpful!
We're waiting on the owner to give us a call to see if he's been rehomed or not and to ask the appropriate questions.

I'm really not sure if it's right to get an African Grey with Piper (cockatiel). Piper gets so much attention just now and is always with us, so if it's not really safe to have them out at the same time, then it wouldn't be fair on either bird. Our attention will need to be divided between both and their 'out time' would be about 2hrs per night, then jealousy would probably occur!

How do you all manage when you have several birds - do you have a routine you stick to?

Anyway, we'll see what the owner says and decide from there. I'd really really love an African Grey, but maybe now is not the right time - I want to be sure i'm making the right decision for us all. If only we had a friend nearby who had a grey - I'd be visiting all the time! lol

[bb100]

Keep us updated whatever you decide..

I'm basically routine-less but nobody here with feathers seems to mind. We have Max my CAG out all day & night so I'm not the best person to comment (work from home).

Now as I write this Max just buzzed over my head to his other window perch (he's flighted) and my other Parrotlets basically are flying all over too. The Parrotlets pick a territory & stay clear of Max but they are all never out unsupervised. If my husband or myself can't watch them all we lock the Parrotlets up since Max is not to be trusted alone with them.

[featherduster]

Eventually, all of my birds have accepted the "routine"..:)
It's amazing!

The new CAG (maybe) and the 'Tiel will work around their differences to be with you, believe me..:)

[ViolinGirl]

I have a Cockatiel(Kirbi) and a Timneh African Grey(Klara). I had some of the same worries you have. I had my Cockatiel 4 years before I brought home my African Grey. Honestly, it hasn't been a problem at all. They are both out at the same time most of the day and evening. Klara stays on her cage and Kirbi stays on hers. These two just do their own thing. I can't tell that either one of them gets jealous, but they both get a lot of attention so it just hasn't been an issue, but maybe I've just been fortunate. Both of them have their wings trimmed so I think that helps too.

I say go for it if that's really what you want to do and think you have enough time. I do a lot more cleaning up bird food off the floor and now I have another huge cage to clean since getting my African Grey, so that's something to think about too. Clean up seems to have tripled. I'm a clean freak anyway so it doesn't bother me.

Hope this helps some.

Karen

[Ryiah]

I'd just like to Thank everyone for their replies and for answering my questions. Sadly the African Grey was given to a Rescue Centre whom they have kept as a permanent resident (well sadly for me and not for the bird! lol)

If anyone knows of any African Greys in Scotland that are up for adoption, please let me know - any age considered, but I don't have the experience of taking on an 'untame' bird - although I'd love to have!

I've done various google searches but I never see anything, then I hear of people say 'oh my friend has just given his up for adoption etc' It's quite annoying!

In the meantime I'm considering another cockatiel to keep Piper company!