Desperately need advice

[Patty Rabbitt]

I really need some advice and or help. My husband and I got an African Gray Parrot and named him Sydney. He came to us at 10 days old, and we loved and nurtured him for almost 5 solid years. On July 28th of 2009, Syd was on my finger, and I was carrying him to his outside enclosure, and the unthinkable happened. I tripped, and when I was falling, I instinctively stuck my hands out to break my fall, and Syd flew off my finger. The wind happened to be blowing about 40 miles an hour that day, and even try as he did to come back down, the wind was too strong, and Sydney got carried away over some 60 foot tall pine trees in our back yard.
That was two months ago. Now, here is where it gets interesting. We literally hiked 10 miles every week end, and approximately 2-3 miles during the week looking for our baby. After consulting with some very knowledgeable people, we found that grays will trend to stay 1-2 miles from their homes if they get out. We are in an incredibly wooded area, as we love the country, so this made our search very difficult. I had flyers (laminated to protect them from weather) and about 3000 post cards printed up with pictures and contact information on them and distributed them all over our area. We received several calls, and went immediately to each and every one, all to no avail.
One couple called us about 4 weeks after Sydney’s disappearance and told us they keep hearing a “crying” noise in their back yard that they had never heard before. We went and checked it out, and heard the noise they were talking about, but when we tried to call to our son Syd, we got no response except this crying. We assumed it was not our baby, because we figured Syd would have communicated to us if he heard mine and my husbands’ voices. (Husband Tom is Syd’s favorite) Finally, we got a call on Labor Day weekend saying someone had spotted Sydney. The lady that called, I came to find out is an incredibly reliable source. She gave us the address to the home she had spotted our beloved son at, and it happened to be the same people that kept hearing the “crying” noises. So, we took Syd’s “outside” cage and his carrying cage to the home of these very nice people, and set it up in their back yard. I put fresh food and water in it every day, in the hopes that Syd would see his cage, and go in it. We also started making nightly trips to their home, because they only heard him at night about 10pm and it was sporadic. He wasn’t there every night, but more like every other evening.
Now, we are there every night calling to our baby, and he cries back to us, but he won’t let us get too close. We have gotten about 20 feet from him, but he flies away when we come too close. Syd has actually “swooped” down on our neighbors as they sat out on their deck in their Jacuzzi one night, and came within 10 feet of the couple, but did not land. They also go out every night and call to our baby, and as soon as they hear him, they call us and we go over and call too. I now have taken his expensive indoor cage to this nice couple’s home, and have it in their back yard as well as the other two. It is PAINFULLY obvious to us that our baby is in sever distress, and has reverted to only using the crying noise he made as a baby, and does not use any “human” noises, but he does respond to me and my husband when we speak to him with his favorite noises. We ask if he is hungry, he cries. We ask if he is cold, he cries. I say, “Yea…its Daddy…we love him” and he cries. (I use to say that when Tom pulled his truck in the driveway and Syd would get very excited.)
I truly don’t know what else to do. We can’t get close enough to him to try and coax him down from a tree he has been sitting in. We can’t get him to land on either one of us.
The temperature has dropped down to the mid 40’s in the recent evenings, and I am afraid we are going to lose him to the cold. This is a bird that had a heated perch in his cage for goodness sake. What else can we do? What am I missing? Listening to him cry like that breaks my heart in a thousand pieces. I am sick about this. Tom and I have been so sad we find it hard to breathe. PLEASE help us. If you have any ideas on how to get him down and in our hands please….please help us. I don’t know how much more any of us can take. Sydney is not going to make it though a winter in Erie Pennsylvania, and I am not going to ever forgive myself if he dies. He has been out in this weather for 2 whole months. In the last 2-3 weeks, it has gotten progressively colder at night. It has been rainy and cold and windy for the last 2 nights.
I am terrified and need help. Please…
Tom and Patty Rabbitt

[Greycloud]

Patti, I'm not sure if I saw this or not but did you put his own cage outside for him with food. I would roll the whole thing out and fill it with goodies.
I suggested once to someone to you your hose on high power and soak him do he can't fly. This method has been used by others told directly to me. I have never done it. It may sond cruel but it gets the bird. Did you contact 911/birdalert? They may have suggestions!

[Patty Rabbitt]

Yes, I actually have three cages in their yard. I have his outside cage, his in home cage and his carrying cage all in their yard and I fill it daily with all Syd's favorites. If I could get close enough with a hose, I would certainly do whatever I have to do to get him in my arms again, but unfortunately, he is landing in a tree about 1 football field away from their home, so walking to him is an issue let alone dragging (or even finding a hose long enough) a hose to him is not an option. I wish it were. I would do ANYTHING to get him back and to his vet immediately. I am SO desperate! Listening to him cry is shattering my heart on a nightly basis.

[Rubytoo]

Patty I feel so sorry for you all.
If he can't or won't come to you.

I don't know who or what groups you can contact over there.
But see if you can find people who trap wild birds..
Scientists/ornithologists etc who track migratory birds .
Though it may sound awful they may be able to set up mist nets/trapping equipment.
Also try pest exterminators, they may have something to help catch him.
If the tree is impossibly high then also try tree surgeons they are used to going up high trees and have safety equipment.
If a small cage/trap could be placed up in the tree with food.
I really don't know if this could help but...

Also sounds like the cages are all at the couples home?
Set one up near the tree he is roosting in, he may go to it first thing when he is hungry/thirsty.
But you have to be there at dawn, first light.

He has survived this long so has been finding food and water. I know it is hard. They are tougher than we give them credit for sometimes.
What lovely people they are to be so helpful.
Some birds will come down finally when they are cold or very hungry. Some cannot or don't know how to come down, but obviously he can do it.
Have you tried offering the most naughty food he is not allowed?
And a really favourite toy, especially if it makes a noise, or article that maybe he likes but can't have at home.

I hope today is the day for you.
Very best of Luck XX

[Lori~D]

Try to find someone with another Grey that might be willing to help. The calls from another bird can be of great help.

[menafu23]

Recently I helped a couple that lost their African Grey. We could hear him, but he was so scared and confused he would not come down. I went home and got my conure. He is a noisy bird when he is outside.

When I sat him out nearby with his cage, the African Grey responded immediatly with calls, after about an hour the AG flew down and landed on the cage. We let him stay there for around 30 minutes before approaching him.

Now comes the traumatizing part, we knew that he would probably fly off, so while his owners stood about 20 feet in front of him holding his attention, along with Rumor, I snuck behind with a net. The net was attached to a 20 foot pole. When the net came down over him he freaked, but did not get injured.

Hope this helps, your story is very sad to read. I wish you the best of luck. You might also consider animal control, worst case scenario a tranquilizer might be an option. Don't know for sure but might be a possibility.

[Angelsmum]

I can add nothing to what has already been said but to let you know I am thinking of you in this horrible situation.

[MonteDucklo]

The only thing that hasn't been mentioned yet that I can think of that has worked for me. If you had a reasonably warm day and you can lure him into the yard or even a just nearby branch, you might be able to very gently spray a mist of water from a hose over him (I mean tiny droplets, practically fog, so as not to scare him away before he gets wet) and when he's saturated, he won't be able to fly away and you can grab him (and dry him off and warm him up!). I know getting him wet when he's so stressed out there seems risky, but it beats leaving him out there if you think you might be able to make it work!

[Reznik]

Just over a year ago Jerry my Nanday Conure got out the back door and flew off. He spent the night up in my neighbours tree, long story short, he flew all over the neighborhood and after handing out flyers I got a call 3 days later. I spent about 7 hours straight sitting about 30 feet from the tree he was in. I brought his stainless steel food dishes full of seed and pellets including his favorite fruit. He eventually flew down and landed on my shoulder. I think it was all the food I brought that eventually made him break and fly down to me. It sounds like his cages are setup a ways from the tree he has been sitting in. I would get close to where he is with plenty of food, toys, blankets or whatever he likes and would want to come down to. Good luck getting your little buddy home.

[LovelySydney]

I know its been awhile, Patty, have you found your Sydney??? Any sign of him?