Hello

[Kallaste]

Hi Everyone,

I am new to the forum, so I thought I would introduce myself. My name is Tatiana, and I love birds as well as all animals. I have had numerous smaller birds in the past, including budgies, finches, lovebirds, and cockatiels. However, I've had nothing larger than that, and my experience with larger birds is limited to spending time with and sometimes birdsitting parrots and macaws belonging to my friends. I have bred parrotlets, and rehabed wildlife such as songbirds when they were hurt or displaced from the nest.

Amazingly I don't have any animals at all right now, mostly because I have been very busy raising my young son, who has medical issues, and I didn't want to bring any new animals into my home when I didn't have the time to devote to them. However, finally my son is old enough that I am confident I can handle it, and we are in the process of adopting a Timneh African Grey! It is something I have wanted to do for years and I am very excited!

Anyway, I joined this forum because I was browsing around, and I saw several mentions of your philosophy of protecting our companion animals from harmful practices through education and site policies. I respect that tremendously. I cannot stand to see an animal endangered recklessly, or being treated like a novelty or a toy. Honestly, this tends to get me into quite a few arguments, for instance when I watch some of the questionable animal videos on youtube, and then feel compelled to comment. So when I saw a thread here condemning a video of a so-called "bird whisperer" on that site, with over 20 follow up comments over there from your site members here displaying their outrage, I thought maybe this was a place I might fit in. :)

Well, that's about it. I know I will have many questions as I continue down the path of TAG ownership, as after all this will be my first larger parrot! I hope to learn a great deal here.

[plax]

Welcome to our community, Tatiana! Thanks so much for joining us :)

It's so great that you've decided to adopt the TAG... I can easily understand your excitement :D. Greys are such fun and terrific birds. You're obviously someone who thinks carefully about things and it sounds like you've spent some time around a few larger parrots. As such, my guess is that you're reasonably well prepared to begin caring for this feathered addition to your family. Please share some photos with us of the little guy/gal when you can.

Concerning our views and efforts relating to pet bird safety, thanks kindly for your support! It means a great deal. Like you, I've also found myself engaged in a number of heated conversations relating to proper pet safety measures, since I'm one who tends to present pet safety logic if it's called for by a situation . Precisely Parrots was literally founded on my deep concern for the health and safety of pet birds. There are plenty of threads and posts within our archives documenting the various struggles.

So we'll be watching for posts from you, Tatiana. And we'll do our best to offer opinions and advice if and when you ask for them. We hope you'll feel at home here :)

[spiritbird]

Welcome Tatiana, We are very happy for your membership here. I wish the best for your young son to be healthy and happy. Your goal to have a TAG is a good one. They are wonderful birds.

[kendrafitz]

Hi Tatiana and welcome to the forum!

Congrats on your upcoming new addition! When does your new family member come home? You must be so excited!

How old is your son? I have two children, but they are a bit older - middle school age. They are busy with their own stuff so Rosie doesn't spend much time with them. I am excited to read about your son and his new feathered friend. :)

[Casper's 2nd best friend]

Hi Tatiana, I think you're going to fit in fine here. You are in the fortunate position of having looked after other birds and know what you are letting yourself in for.
I wish you happiness with your African Grey, and hope that your son takes an interest in its well-being also.

[Kallaste]

Thank you all very much for the warm welcome. Yes, I have been very excited. Unfortunately it has been a bit of a roller coaster ride and as of today things are uncertain again. At first I was attempting to adopt from a rescue, but had problems due to being outside the adoption radius or living stipulations (I am leaving the state soon) of those I wanted to work with.

Then I spoke with some breeders, but found that many in my home state have been having trouble with Timnehs over the past few years. I spent a week at one time with my fingers crossed only to find out eggs that had been laid were not fertile. When I finally found some chicks available from what I thought was a good source and was about to place a deposit, I learned something very disturbing about the breeder, and I could not in good conscience buy a bird from her. :(

Finally, I was all set to rescue a bird from a neglectful owner on craigslist, because even though I would prefer to stay away from craigslist altogether, I saw a some pictures of the bird while looking for rescues online and fell in love with her. The woman who owned the bird had gotten her as a pet, but in the nine months she'd had her she hadn't even given her a name. She was eating bird seed, left alone for a week at a time when the owner went on vacation, and only allowed out of her cage for 15 minute increments (the woman claimed if she were left out longer she would feel insecure and start plucking). She was under a year old.

Anyway, it was all arranged for her to come live with me, but today the owner backed out at the last minute, just as I was renting a car to make the 400 mile trip.

So, here I am again. I suppose I sound like a great complainer, but really I don't mean to . . . it is just more difficult than I thought it would be to find a bird. With all the ups and downs, it's a bit like trying to adopt a child. :)

Well, the good news is that today I found a very promising breeder only 45 minutes away from me who I had no idea existed! I found his email on an old message board a month ago, and he only yesterday emailed me back. I sent a whole slew of emails to breeders asking around for Timnehs, but the vast majority went unanswered or else came from people saying they no longer bred them. When I spoke to this man on the phone and looked at the pictures he sent me, however (he doesn't have much of a web presence, which is why I didn't know about him), I just had a really good feeling. You can tell he loves the birds and does not do what he does just to make profit. We had a nice discussion, and he allows the birds to fledge, weans for as long as they want to, and socializes around other birds of varying ages. I have not been out to visit him yet, but I am very hopeful.

The only problem is that he doesn't have any TAGs available right now. He just had one chick hatch, but he is already sold. If I go with him, I will be waiting until the next cycle of eggs hatch, which will be in three months. Still, that's better than never. :)

[Mare]

Hi and Welcome to our forum, Tatiana! I'm just now catching up to you and your trials of trying to find a bird! I hope it works out the way you want. When are you moving to Alaska? Will you be where you're at long enough for this batch of eggs to hatch and fledge?

[Kallaste]

Thank you! Yes, I will be here for one more year, so I have enough time for that. I guess it seems like the move is closer than it is because there is so much to do. I've made a lot of cross country moves, but this one is a lot more work. I'm already trying to sell every piece of furniture I own to prepare. :)

I hope the bird has at least a few months to adjust to me before I take him on a wild ride across the hemisphere, though.

[spiritbird]

May I recommend a breeder that may or may not have TAGS. She is well known and I did get one of her birds from her hand feeder located in my state. Here is the link: Her name is Jean Patterson and she is well known in the Grey world. By the way have you checked out the bird Jardine? Jean has them also and they are so full of beauty.

[Users must be registered and logged in to view attached photos or hyperlinks]

[Kallaste]

Thank you for the recommendation. :) I have spoken to Jean at length and read all her articles. She is definitely well-known and has a great reputation. Unfortunately there are personal reasons why I couldn't buy a bird from her.

Actually, she has been having trouble with Timnehs as well. According to her she hadn't had Timnehs in years until this past December, and was surprised the pair she put together was sucessful. Another breeder in Florida (Tom, the one I am considering now), says the reason the breeders in the state aren't doing well lately is that the parent birds are aging and not producing much anymore.

I agree with you about the Jardines, they are wonderful! I would love to have one someday. At the moment though I am rather set on a grey. I just love their intelligence and personalilty. :)

[Lady]

Hi Tatiana :pp_welcome:!

How wonderful that you've joined us and are posting :th_biggrin:. It's going to be nice having you here as you find and adopt your TAG. It is almost as much fun for us as it is for you. Did anyone mention how much we love pics here??? Oh but we do, and as soon as you find your forever bird we will love to see him or her. Looking forward to getting to know you, your son and your baby. Have you a name for him/her picked out yet or are you going to wait and see?

[Kallaste]

Oh, I will post pictures! I wish I had some to post now! It cannot come too soon for me. Hopefully soon I will be able to thrill everyone with an exciting picture of an egg. :)

Names! Yes, we have those. Dori if it's a boy, and Evie if it's a girl. I liked the name Dori for a male (or as my son would say, a "him"), and then I suggested Eva or Ara for a "her" parrot. My son had a hard time being convinced this could happen at first, because he believed strongly that all parrots must be "hims," just as every kitty cat must clearly be a "her". He is five years old (I am sorry I forgot to answer you about that before, Kendra) and on the autism spectrum, so he is drawn to strict labels and tends to try to put things in neat little boxes like this.

Well, we have broadened his horizons, and now our evenings are spent in conversation of "him kitties" and "her parrots" and all sorts of other things!

Anyway, Evie instead of Eva was his idea. He came up with it himself and says he likes it better. So we will use it!

[kendrafitz]

I love the names! And I love the "him kitties" and "her parrots". So sweet.

Five is such a great age, I really miss the days when my kids were small. I know it is a lot of work, especially with a child on the spectrum, but it is such a joy. Those little faces beaming up at you....sigh. Now my 12 year old mostly glowers down at me. He is about 5'8" and I am 5'2".

I am sure that your son is going to love his new friend - whether it be a him or a her!

[Lady]

Your son sounds like a sweetie, Evie, does sound more girlish :th_smile:. When I hear the name Dori I somehow only can think of that fish in the cartoon movie Finding Nemo. Now that fish was a chatter box! I bet your son has all kinds of questions as all five year olds do. Five is a great age, still so innocent and imaginative.

[plax]

I'm glad to know you've found a breeder whom you feel comfortable with, Tatiana. I'm sorry to learn of your many disappointments while trying to find a bird. Hopefully this next time around will be the one! And I have no doubt that both you and your son will very much enjoy having a Grey in the house :)

[94lt1]

Welcome :)