New CAG

[Chelsea304]

Hey everyone! :22:

I am sort of inheriting a CAG named Echo since my dad doesn't have very much time to devote to her anymore. I lived with her years ago but it's been about 6-7 years since I was last living with her in my home when I was a teenager. (I've also had cockatiels in the past)

She is pretty bonded to my father so my husband and I are worried about bonding with her. We are expecting it to take a year or longer to really bond with her. My dad also insists she only likes men and I am a woman. That's not a huge issue since my husband doesn't mind being her primary caregiver. She is pretty aggressive in general now and I believe that is due to her being mostly isolated and to be honest because of a serious lack of time my father has. (he of course takes care of her basic needs but doesn't really take her out much anymore)

Do you guys have any tips for moving her into the home and helping her adjust? She's about a 2 hour drive away from me. I really want to give her a nice home where we can (in time) give her the love she needs. I've read up on some techniques for bonding...but if anyone else has any tips, I'm all ears! I know Grey's can be sensitive so I want to do everything correctly.

As a side note: We have no other pets and own our own home.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Flboy]

Welcome, go slow and give her space!

 

[Chelsea304]

Will do!! I'm excited to give her a good home! I'm in central florida as well Flboy...where do you go for an avian vet in the area? I found a vet named Dr. Parrott (funny I know haha) Thanks!

 

[Chelsea304]

I did find some tips and trainings on these forums in another section...but if anyone has CAG specific information, etc please let me know! Thanks for being so welcoming!

 

[MonicaMc]

For CAG specific info, Pamela Clark appears to be great with information in that regard!

Articles


I would definitely give her time to settle in and don't force her out of her cage if she doesn't want to come out. Any time you walk by, drop in a special treat that she enjoys. Put a perch on the cage door with a treat cup. If she enjoys treats, you can try leaving the cage door open and dropping a treat in.



I have a conure that lived with a man for about 10 years of his life, therefore was a "mans bird". I'm female. He (Charlie, the conure) has been with me for 9 years now and has never shown any preference for men over me. In fact, my SO (a man) tried interacting with Charlie tonight, and Charlie avoided him.

Jayde, another one of my conures, has a (so far), clear preference for women, particularly older women. (I'm younger....) As much as she *loves* me and being with me, I'm bird crap if she sees "Auntie K"! And before Jayde came to me, she couldn't be handled by her foster mom of 6 months! (an older woman) After Jayde was with me for a couple of weeks she was already climbing onto my shoulder to interact with me! I don't trust Jayde right now to *NOT* go out of her way to attack a guy, but only because I haven't really had anyone that could work with her to help her get over that issue.

 

[critters4me]

Dr Parrot is great!

 

[Chelsea304]

Thank you so much Monica. I will definitely put a perch on the door. it's good to hear that Charlie didn't mind women...there's hope for me!

Critters- I actually made an appointment with Dr. Parrott! I'm glad somebody here recommends her as well!

So a little update! I will be getting Echo next Saturday! I've already bought a carrier (I'm customizing a 24 inch cat carrier now with perches etc) and many perches/toys for her cage.

I am actally wishing it had done it this weekend but unfortunately did not. The problem is the photo of her cage shows just how deplorable of a condition she's in. I'm grateful she's not plucking at least. I'll attach a photo. She's gorgeous but...I feel horrible leaving her theresponse another week.

 

[KevH]

How is his diet sort that out first is he on a seed diet or pellets

 

[Chelsea304]

She's on a seed diet. She used to be on pellets but my dad switched her to seeds for some reason. I am going to try to start her on roudybush small...I plan on mixing it in. She eats some fruits but no veggies. So I want to make a nice mash for her as well.

I'm just glad my father realized he can't care for her anymore and is letting her go to a new home. I'm attempting to upload a photo now of her cage (and her in it) you'll probably be horrified by the cage as well.

 

[Chelsea304]

Photo of Echo and her cage (It's so dirty, rusty, and the perches need to go)

I got the name of the food she'd been fed...it's call forti-diet? It looks to be mainly seed.