I originally posted the message under the topic, Two African Greys, but thought it might be more appropriate as a new topic.
I am owned by two Congo African Greys and together, they share a large macaw sized cage. Their names are Annabelle and Dylan and they are one year old, DNA sexed male and female hatchmates. So far, they get along very well the majority of the time. They do have some minor squables, usually over a toy, a favorite food or me. They can be extremely jealous of any affection or attention the other receives, So I have to be careful to dispense my love and kisses abundantly, evenly and fairly! They remind me of two jealous, somewhat spoiled rotten children!
I had wanted a CAG since the very first time I saw one in the early 70's! Last year, I decided the time was right and purchased a handfed, weaned grey baby from a very reputable breeder in Sommerville, in Georgia. Originally, I did not intend on having two CAGS, but that is a long, sad story that thankfully, had a happy ending, much more worthy of a journal entry!
Annabelle and Dylan preen and feed each other a lot. They are very loving toward each other and are also very loving to me. They have totally different personalities. Annabelle is more refined and deliberate in any decision she makes. She is also, my sweet baby girl. She loves me best, never even thinking about giving her mom a nip! She will lovingly and carefully preen each individual long hair on my red-head. Annabelle will allow a gentle touch, a hug and a kiss on her head. Dylan, on the other hand, is a "devil may care" kinda soul! He's always leaping before he looks and will snatch out hunks of my hair at a time when he preens me and if he should discover an ear in the process, hidden under all my hair, he will take hold of it in his beak and attempt to pull it off my head and claim it as his own, no matter how much I beg of him to set my ear free! As much as I want to, Dylan will not allow me to hug and kiss his sweet, little grey head. Sometimes, it hurts my feelings, but I try to respect his wishes and understand there may be a reason for his "untouchable" trait. Annabelle truly rules the roost and Dylan respects her position in the flock. If Dylan has a toy in his beak or foot, Annabelle may decide that it is the exact toy she was looking for and stomp over to Dylan and without any hesitation, snatch it from his grasp. Sometimes, Dylan will protest, but more often than not, he will defer to her and allow her to have her way. When he does protest and attempt to chase her down to retrieve the stolen toy, she will run to the side of the cage and deliberately toss it ouside the cage to the floor, as if to say, "now, since you had to act like a selfish moron, neither of us have a toy to play with!" Dylan is truly hen pecked!
Annabelle and Dylan both have large vocabularies, and at times, they talk in context and are great mimics. They sometimes put a new spin on phrases and create their own new phrase in the process. Dylan talks to Annabelle in "human" more than she does him.
I noticed the topic on "digging" and Dylan has done that since day one at our house. He digs in the corner of his cage when he wants attention or to be let out. They are both used to being uncovered and fed at 6:00 am in the mornings and if I am late by as much as 15 minutes, Dylan will begin to scratch and dig in the corner of his cage. If I don't come within a decent amount of time, which he determines, he will scream, "let me outa here!"
They are beautiful, intelligent birds and I am so glad they have each other for companionship when I am not here at the house. They also have 4 other birds and two dogs in the house to amuse them in my absence. Even though, it was not in my plans to be a owned by two grey babies, it is a wonderful experience, and for me, a grey flock of two is twice the fun!
Kathy
I am owned by two Congo African Greys and together, they share a large macaw sized cage. Their names are Annabelle and Dylan and they are one year old, DNA sexed male and female hatchmates. So far, they get along very well the majority of the time. They do have some minor squables, usually over a toy, a favorite food or me. They can be extremely jealous of any affection or attention the other receives, So I have to be careful to dispense my love and kisses abundantly, evenly and fairly! They remind me of two jealous, somewhat spoiled rotten children!
I had wanted a CAG since the very first time I saw one in the early 70's! Last year, I decided the time was right and purchased a handfed, weaned grey baby from a very reputable breeder in Sommerville, in Georgia. Originally, I did not intend on having two CAGS, but that is a long, sad story that thankfully, had a happy ending, much more worthy of a journal entry!
Annabelle and Dylan preen and feed each other a lot. They are very loving toward each other and are also very loving to me. They have totally different personalities. Annabelle is more refined and deliberate in any decision she makes. She is also, my sweet baby girl. She loves me best, never even thinking about giving her mom a nip! She will lovingly and carefully preen each individual long hair on my red-head. Annabelle will allow a gentle touch, a hug and a kiss on her head. Dylan, on the other hand, is a "devil may care" kinda soul! He's always leaping before he looks and will snatch out hunks of my hair at a time when he preens me and if he should discover an ear in the process, hidden under all my hair, he will take hold of it in his beak and attempt to pull it off my head and claim it as his own, no matter how much I beg of him to set my ear free! As much as I want to, Dylan will not allow me to hug and kiss his sweet, little grey head. Sometimes, it hurts my feelings, but I try to respect his wishes and understand there may be a reason for his "untouchable" trait. Annabelle truly rules the roost and Dylan respects her position in the flock. If Dylan has a toy in his beak or foot, Annabelle may decide that it is the exact toy she was looking for and stomp over to Dylan and without any hesitation, snatch it from his grasp. Sometimes, Dylan will protest, but more often than not, he will defer to her and allow her to have her way. When he does protest and attempt to chase her down to retrieve the stolen toy, she will run to the side of the cage and deliberately toss it ouside the cage to the floor, as if to say, "now, since you had to act like a selfish moron, neither of us have a toy to play with!" Dylan is truly hen pecked!
Annabelle and Dylan both have large vocabularies, and at times, they talk in context and are great mimics. They sometimes put a new spin on phrases and create their own new phrase in the process. Dylan talks to Annabelle in "human" more than she does him.
I noticed the topic on "digging" and Dylan has done that since day one at our house. He digs in the corner of his cage when he wants attention or to be let out. They are both used to being uncovered and fed at 6:00 am in the mornings and if I am late by as much as 15 minutes, Dylan will begin to scratch and dig in the corner of his cage. If I don't come within a decent amount of time, which he determines, he will scream, "let me outa here!"
They are beautiful, intelligent birds and I am so glad they have each other for companionship when I am not here at the house. They also have 4 other birds and two dogs in the house to amuse them in my absence. Even though, it was not in my plans to be a owned by two grey babies, it is a wonderful experience, and for me, a grey flock of two is twice the fun!
Kathy