Timneh or congo?

[littletiel]

I'm thinking of getting a grey in the near future, are there any real personality differences between the two? I always hear breeders saying timnehs are more outgoing And playful, And even cuddly, but I'm not sure if its true or just breeder propaganda. I just want to know from actual owners if timnehs are really more outgoing And playful than congos, thanks

 

[Sherry]

My CAG loves to cuddle. He is only 6 months old but very affectionate. The store where I got him has an employee with a timneh who is not so nice. Maybe it's just the individual bird?

 

[lotosha]

Well I have Congo AG and I can tell you that she is everything: she is outgoing, playful, cuddly. More than that I can tall you that she is tooooo much outgoing, playful and cuddly. She won't leave me for a moment, goes after me to kitchen, to bathroom, to living room, everywhere.... So I believe that it really depends on the individual and on the breeder. I know that all the parrots that come from my breeder are very social cause he does very good weaning job . So you should check the bird that you are going to buy and see how much she looks forward to play and so.
Good luck.

 

[antoinette]

It all depends on the bird, some will want to be playful and cuddly while others not.
Mishka my AG, male of 5 years old, is extremely playful, cuddly when he wants to be.
Mishka has the most awesome personality, view a few of his vid's, to see what a wonderful character he is.

 

[littletiel]

I guess its just the individual bird And how they were brought up! All of you guyses greys sound amazing. How well do your greys do with strangers And New things?

 

[OOwl]

I had the great fortune of having the breeder of my Grey living with me when they were hatched, so I got to apply everything I'd ever read about abundantly weaning and raising Greys to be loving, secure, and well adjusted, and not picky eaters. When the clutch were just starting to pick up food with their beaks, I used to clean out my local farmers' market and had the babies try EVERYTHING. To this day, the Grey I was given (as a surprise Christmas gift, when he became too attached to us to think about sending to a new home) will eat ANYTHING and EVERYTHING he is offered. I also made sure they learned to "touch it" with items that they were slightly afraid of. Again, to this day, my Grey isn't afraid of new toys or items in the house. If he does look at all concerned, I can say "touch it," he will, and then I praise him and he knows it's nothing to fear. From day one, we handled them every single day, all over their bodies, each and every day, and we'd pass them around our family and have them interact with the babies, too. My Grey turned out to be the most social of my birds. I can literally hand him to anyone at all. He's always steady as a rock. Sure, he has a certain affinity for select people, but he will go to anyone I hand him to, and he seems to enjoy it. We did so many things with the babies, including something I just made up, bite inhibition, sort of like you train a puppy not to use its teeth on your flesh. It kind of went against what you read in books about not creating drama (because when they were testing out their new beaks, they would often press down too hard, and we'd yelp and walk away), but I will say that my Grey has never in going on ten years now bit hard enough to draw blood. I'm not so naive to think he can't and won't someday, but it really did seem to teach him that we humans with our delicate pink skin must be some kind of handicapped parrot that didn't have feathers to protect it. He's definitely careful of our skin and makes a concerted effort not to bite down too hard, even in play. Before my godfather had this clutch of Greys, I never really thought about having one. I didn't have any clue how amazing they are, how over-the-top special, even when compared to other parrots. No matter which type Grey you choose, I think you're going to be happy, but, as the others have indicated, I think HOW they are raised is MUCH more important than subspecies. Pick a good breeder that puts the up-front time into the babies and I sincerely believe you'll be happy with your bird. Good luck!

 

[lotosha]

I guess its just the individual bird And how they were brought up! All of you guyses greys sound amazing. How well do your greys do with strangers And New things?

I don't know about strangers cause we didn't meet some yet, but she is ok with all the new things. She takes a moment to look at it, and than she makes her best to ruin it. LOL

 

[Karigan]

The differences between them are mostly physical. TAGs are known for maybe-possibely-probably-not being more stable mentally, but that's all speculation. TAGs are also a bit smaller and aren't as easy to come by since people tend to prefer the colours of CAGs.

 

[lotosha]

I'm thinking of getting a grey in the near future, are there any real personality differences between the two? I always hear breeders saying timnehs are more outgoing And playful, And even cuddly, but I'm not sure if its true or just breeder propaganda. I just want to know from actual owners if timnehs are really more outgoing And playful than congos, thanks

Congrats. Greys are the best. Mine made me happier.

 

[antoinette]

I guess its just the individual bird And how they were brought up! All of you guyses greys sound amazing. How well do your greys do with strangers And New things?

From an early age, I let a lot of people handle Mishka.
Mishks loves having people around him, he will step up onto anyone and kiss them.
NOW he just loves the attention.

Mishka is very wary of anything new, especially toys, give him a few hours, and you would swear the toy was made for him.

 

[Joeyx]

i'm starting to believe it's more about how the bird is raised and its own personality rather than its species. for me personally, i'd go with a timneh. i think they look prettier than congos. only downside with timnehs is if you want your bird to copy different peoples voices, since it only has its own voice. congos can do that though.

 

[DannyA93]

Interesting thread! i prefer the timneh because i like the darker grey and i like maroon more then red i would also prefer the bird have his own personal voice! just find a good breeder and enjoy your new baby!

 

[CoCo1]

I have a 20 year old CAG- rescued so my opinion is a bit different. Mine was never socialized with toys, food, people or anything really. So since I have had JJ I made sure from day 3 of owning her (I gave her a few days to figure out she had a new home). But I make sure I introduce at least 1 if not 2 new things to her everyday...which can be difficult since she does not let me handle her right now. She is so funny at times and I really would not trade her for anything but if I could change one thing it would be that I had her from birth and noone else. C'est la vie! But I would reccommend reading everything you can as they can be fickle and very fearful if not socialized and developed.