Coughing or mimicking African Grey??please help!

[Rrose]

Hey! I am new here. I recently got an African Grey from a family member that could no longer care for him. He’s been making this weird coughing sound and I’m not sure if it’s a legitimate respiratory issue or he’s just mimicking something he heard. We only have one avian vet in our area and she only sees patients one day a week so it’s going to be some time before they can see him. I’ve recorded him making the noise a couple of times and have uploaded it to YouTube. I am including the links in this post. If you could please watch it and let me know your thoughts I would greatly appreciate it. If it’s something serious, we are willing to travel to have him seen but we don’t want to do that if he’s just mimicking something he’s heard. Thanks so much for the assistance!!!

https://youtube.com/shorts/0MlI3tvuH8s?feature=share

https://youtube.com/shorts/5VaOPCLorzo?feature=share

[Dragonlady2]

Welcome to the forum! Have you contacted the family member to see if this is a new behaviour or one that it has always done? To me, it sounds like it is repeating a sound. If you are concerned, you could set up an appointment with the vet. Does it come out of its cage? Does it do it all the time or just at certain times of the day?

[Rrose]

Welcome to the forum! Have you contacted the family member to see if this is a new behaviour or one that it has always done? To me, it sounds like it is repeating a sound. If you are concerned, you could set up an appointment with the vet. Does it come out of its cage? Does it do it all the time or just at certain times of the day?

Thank you so much for your reply! I have talked with the previous owner. They never really noticed him doing it but they also kept him in a separate room and didn’t interact with him very much. I also know that they smoked inside their home so that was a worry I had We have him in our living room with us so we hear him do it throughout the day when we are home. I haven’t really noticed him doing it at a specific time, it’s just random and sometimes he will do it several times within a short period of time. It just seemed like the last few days he’s been doing it more frequently. Within the last 10 minutes he’s probably done it 4 or 5 times.

[Dragonlady2]

Do you look at him or speak to him when he does it? If he has been alone, any attention that you may be giving him could reinforce him making the sound. That’s a good thing. The more interaction with him, the more sounds he may make. Do you let him out of his cage? He may also benefit from having some toys in his cage that you could change out daily. African Greys are very intelligent birds and can be trained very easily. Because they are so intelligent, they benefit from having foraging activities and colourful toys. They are known for making and mimicking noises. Try saying “Hi” a few times daily to see if he learns it.

I listened to your videos again and I wonder if he is imitating the previous owners cough. Some smokers have coughs.

[Rrose]

Yes, I’m sure I have a few times but not every time he does it. He interacts with us a lot, has actually started talking soft and sweet like me instead of the gruff mantle voice of his previous owner The last couple of weeks I’ve been letting him out of his cage every couple of days. He still won’t get onto my arm if I stick it in the cage but if I open the door, he gets on top of the cage and will fly to me. Is that ok? I thought he might be territorial of his cage since that’s his safe place. I know I’m getting off topic but I actually have another question for you. I’m so eager to learn more about bird behavior but google can be overwhelming. I’m so grateful I found this forum. So my question pertains to me letting him out of his cage, so a couple of times when I’ve let him out he’s flown to our couch and landed and any time I tried to get him to step onto my arm he’s snapped at me. I let him hang out there for a while but eventually I had to grab him with a towel to keep him from biting me to get him back in his cage. Any suggestions? I know he’s still learning to trust me and I don’t want to do anything to lose the progress we’ve already made! I’ll also mention that we have an 18 month old little boy so that’s why we are limited on when we can let him out

[Rrose]

Also, I definitely need to look through one of the forums discussing toys. The ones I’ve bought him were like $20 and only lasted a couple of days lol so I definitely some more resources there!

[Dragonlady2]

He probably hasn’t been hand trained in a while. Birds will revert back to not wanting to step up on your hand or arm. I am a believer in treat training. Most of my birds will return to their cage after I put a treat in their food cup. The treat can be a piece of walnut, nutriberry or dried papaya. I don’t let them have these treats any other time except when I want them to go back to their cage.
Another way to let your bird out of the cage more regularly is to set up a play area. I have stands with perches and wheels that I can move around.
You can make what is called a t-perch to train him with. It’s basically a stick that can be round or square that is about a foot and a half long and another round stick or perch about a foot long drilled onto the end of the longer stick. It should look like a “T”. Use a small treat to lure him on and to step off. As he gets more comfortable, you will be able to move him from place to place and return him to his cage when necessary.
I am sure I don’t have to say this, but make sure he is not near your baby. He hasn’t been with you long enough and birds are still considered wild. He may respond with biting if he gets inadvertently spooked. Keep him away from your shoulder and face for the same reasons. It may take a little time to establish a good and trusting relationship, but you are off to a great start!