Hello all, its been a long while, but I figure I would provide an update.

Ollie has grown 2 primary feathers, one per wing but he managed to brake one off so now he ony has one. His feathers just won't grow! He has not even had his first molt yet!

He says only one word. "good boy" but even that is rare. He only seems to cluck and wistle with a few other sounds. He hates to be pet so I don't force it on him. I just look at him and talk.

So that's about it. He eats, clucks, and whistles and struggles to regrow his hacked wings. The breeder cut to many to short. I recommend never clipping a baby bird for development reasons. I think the clipped wings has prevented him from developing a healthy personality.

I read so may cool experiances from other members and only wish Ollie was more like that. I don't know where I wet wrong. I give him lots of attention and treats but he seems stuck mentally and does not seem to learn new things.

One good thing is he never ever bites me

I have been off the boards a long time, due to being very busy here at work. How old is Ollie? Riley will be 2 yrs. old on Feb. 17th and just the last few months she has really started talking alot more. She mostly just made sounds, but little buy little she is really starting to turn into a chatter box. As for her flights, she was clipped by the breeder when I got her as well at about 5 months old. They would slowly grow one or two at a time, but then they would either get broken or straggly looking, so I had them trimmed up. Over the last year I haven't trimmed hers at all, and they finally all grew in and then she started zooming through the house and with a 9 year old daughter and a very forgetful husband I didn't want to take the chance of one of them leaving a door or window open, so about two weeks ago, she got a small clipping. Good luck with Ollie, just be patient and I'm sure one of these days he will surprise you.

We've been talking a lot about the effects of clipping - on their personalities. I hope that when Ollie molts completely that he regains his 'spunk'.

I'm glad to hear he has not been aggressive. Do you take him out or introduce him to new things much? I've been really fascinated by Greys for a long time & have read they need tons of stimulation in the beginning because they can be reclusive or shy if left to themselves in a quite home.

Sounds like you have the mid winter blues. Have you tried some training? I found that once we started training our bird our own fun level went way up.

Lots of birds aren't cuddly. Please check out the new thread on the Black Palm Vet check. <Video> Physical exam of a Black Palm Cockatoo
It is pretty long - but realty worth the time. The main thing that happens there is how the bird is handled & calmed & gently but purposely held. The overall assessment of what to look for in a healthy bird is also very interesting.

I forget how old your Ollie is....? My Ollie didn't say her first word until a week before her 1st birthday. It was "hello", and it wasn't very clear. I would say she started really picking things up around 17-20 months. Now she talks all the time. She doesn't learn new words extremely quickly- with a few exceptions- but it seems like every couple of weeks she's saying something new.

Ollie also had her wings hacked by her breeder, 5 inside flights. It was funny though- it never really seemed to slow her down. Her skills weren't quite up to par, but she could get from point a to point b easily enough. Her wings were clipped at 8 weeks, and she didn't molt out her last pair of clipped flights until around the age of 2. It took f-o-r-e-v-e-r! I bet you'll see a personality change in Ollie once he starts flying and developing his skills. They gain so much confidence.

A lot of birds prefer to be more 'hands off.' Especially greys from what I've heard. Be glad he doesn't bite you, a lot of people would kill for a bird that didn't bite!

I like Jac's suggestion of training. Using a clicker is a fun way to go about it. I've taught Ollie how to wave, shakeshake, whistle to a few different commands, hang upside down, recall, etc. It's a great relationship builder. Ollie loves to do her tricks because she gets an almond.

Does he play well with toys?

I am sure you have done nothing "wrong." If I remember right, Ollie is just a bit older than my Cookie......she is 10 months old. Still very young! Cookie isn't talking yet, but whistles alot and makes lots of sound effects. Cracker Jack is nearly 3 and talks quite well.....I hope she learns from him.

Anyway......keep talking to Ollie and expose him to lots of new things.......hopefully he will start talking soon. He is gonna surprize your some day!

dawn

Thanks for all the input. Ill try to answer everyones question in one shot.

Ollie's hatch date: 1-25-2007

He loves to play on his own, and goes to town with his cow bell, and loves shreading his woven basket like toy, not sure what they're called.

He is out of the cage every day from 5pm to 9 or 10pm and I talk to him constantly. Weekends he is out of the cage for about 6 to 8 hours total.

He lets me hold him by perching on my finger and will let me stroke his back once or twice before throwing a fit, and he never bites. I usually let him beak my fingers, but as soon as he starts getting a bit carried away, I stop. I usually stop when he has my entire finger in his beak and I sense he could clamp down harder than I would want. I even let him wrap his beak around my nose but only for a few seconds.

I have him on my shoulders and he likes to preen my hair which I find relaxing except when he starts plucking me. Ouch!

when I am with him, he is always making owl like sounds under his breadth that sounds like "hooow" what is that?

This may be your problem. Back stroking is a form of sexual stimulation for them. I never touch Ollie's back unless I'm restraining her. Scritches only happen on the face/head, neck, and sometimes belly tickles although she usually moves my finger away from those. She doesn't like having her back touched, although she tolerates my hand being placed there to restain her from flying.

Ollie is especially cuddly when she's sleepy. Tonight try scritching Ollie around his beak- cheeks and behind his lower mandible...my Ollie loves that.

It sounds like you love him very much & he's getting lots of TLC.
be careful with the beak on the nose part!

It also sounds like he is changing from a baby. I've seen lots of adorable Grey babies. Heck my Rio [Budgie] is adorable. But his attitude & body is still immature compared to our older Budgie.

Stroking our birds is what humans want to do. I have this link to a great article I was pointed to - all about not petting your bird: Sexual behavior

I had no idea I was "doing it" with Ollie. I am guilty of petting him full body like the article says. Down the back and around the tail. Yikes! I won't do that any more!

Hey Greymiester...

The vet did a terrible job with clipping Harrison's wings too. So bad that Harrison was chewing on them because they were bothering her. It took about a year for them to grow back to normal and she was able to learn to fly. We haven't had them clipped again and not sure if we will. Harrison was a very early talker...she was talking when we brought her home at age 3 months. Her siblings were not talking...I don't know what makes a bird talk or doesn't make a bird talk. Harrison's personality didn't seem to be affected by the 'mutilation' done by the vet, unless she just didn't show it. I think Ollie will be fine, just give him time...there are so many things I wish I had done with Harrison when she was a baby...I regret, now, not doing it then...like toweling her and making it an enjoyable game/activity...I also wish I had put a flight harness on her from day one so she'd be used to it now and be able to fly around with one on...oh well...live and learn. Think about those things you might regret not doing in the future...you'll be gratefull you did.

Heather