Lots of questions to be answered...

[raddaughter]

With the possibility of getting a grey, I am trying to get my hands on every peace on inforomation I can. Echo, the CAG who is just under a year, sounds like a sweetheart and I am really looking forward to meeting him. However, we have a large household. For one, I have 3 younger brothers who aren't extreamly loud, but they are boys. Thank goodness they don't care for birds 8) We also have 4 dogs. Now, the bird room is a fairly quiet place. It has lots of windows and looks out to the backyard where no cars, large fences, or strange people can be seen (except for a neighbor every now and then).

With Echo being so young, will he be able to come into our household and adapt well? How can I make the ajustment easier for him? Is there anyhting I should be prepared for? Are there any items I should buy? What type of food do you reccommend? Pellets or seed? Are there any enrichment toys/ activities that would be helpful? How should I bring him home? How can I introduce him to Harley? Is there anything I shoudl expect from her and/or him? Is there any other advice you can give?

I know, a LOT of questions, but I want this to be a forever thing. I'm sorry, but I can't deal with re homing another bird, so I want to know it all

[Cindy215]

Is Harley a Macaw? You may want to read up on Macaws esp B&G and powder birds.

Every bird is an individual and you cant predict their reaction rehoming. Especially with 4 dogs.

I placed a Grey with a much busier family than the original one but he picked that woman out himself and we had alot of time to see how it was going.

If you're concerned I would make it an "open adoption" pending the happiness of the bird.

[raddaughter]

Yes, Harley is a Macaw. She is also a B&G. I do know that B&G are especially sensitive to dusty birds, and I am already prepared for that from when we were going to get another grey.

[Doyle'sMommy]

Originally Posted by {raddaughter}

Yes, Harley is a Macaw. She is also a B&G. I do know that B&G are especially sensitive to dusty birds, and I am already prepared for that from when we were going to get another grey.

I was told cockatiels are dusty birds so Prinny has a air purifier under her cage. I plan on getting a second one for when Scarlett comes home and doing the same thing.

[GreetingCardReligion]

Air purifiers are wonderful things and I haven't had too much of a dust issue running mine near Schroeder's cage.

I recenty added a dog to my family (sort of the other way around) and while Schroeder isn't really much of a fan, and he gets puffed up and clicky if she gets too close, he doesn't seem too stressed about a new furry sibling and seems to be adapting very well.

[raddaughter]

I have been keeping my eyes open for a HEPA air filter on CL, but have yet to find a good quality one for a good price. Are there any you recommend?

[Cindy215]

Please read this link. If your B&G comes down with pulmonary hypersensitivity syndrome, there's no cure. I'm just pointing this out because you said you didn't want to go through rehoming and with 4 dogs, it's likely both birds are going to be confined in the same room.

It's not exactly the "quantity" of dust or that it's even noticible but it's the composition of the dust, keratin, that causes problems when inhaled.

It's a very fine powder and probably you'd want to get the very best air purifier you can afford. Alot of them won't do anything with down (powder).

I recommend an IQ Healthmate. There's another thread here with alot of input of different models from about a month ago.

http://www.birdsnways.com/wisdom/ww47eiv.htm