Must Rehome my Congo African Grey

I feel like sh!t and I realize now that when I purchased him 3 years ago I did so out of impulse and emotion. I'm not what he deserves... I want a better life for him. He has no issues.. Is a happy, healthy fully feathered fully flighted 8 year old clown. Has been handled by men, women & kids. Will bite the crap out of a dog or cat if they pester him. He likes watching YouTube videos of other parrots. He eats Harrison's pellets. His favorite snacks are.. Eggs, apples, bananas, almonds & chicken. I want his cage to go with him.. He likes bells.. Hates play stands. Doesn't like showering alone. Will let you dremel his nail & beak. Will try to kill you if you come at him with clippers. Loves being outside so it's important that is continued (he's outside 6-8 hours a day during the spring & summer months) He burps & farts but no cursing I promise. Located in NY

I'm sorry to hear that you are having to pass him on. Some further details could be really helpful here; are you asking a rehoming fee? You say he has no issues, but is there an incident that is spurring you to rehome him, that a potential adopter might need to know about so that he isn't passed on again soon? Has he been DNA sexed? Are you willing to ship? Any specific fears he has? Are you looking for/hoping for a certain type of home for him? What made his original home pass him on? Does he get along with other birds?

I truly hope you find the right home for him Just a heads up, since you are new you won't be able to send or receive PMs right away, but our great moderators are always happy to pass messages on if you PM them

Hi Claudia, and welcome! The things that SS asked for would be very helpful--I wanted to note since you're new and don't know us all yet that letting us devoted parronts know of any issues he might have won't reduce his chances of being adopted. The reason we ask is because we know how flighty birds can be (great pun, right?) and we understand it completely, but we have to know all the quirks to make sure a re-homer could fit into our flocks!

Sounds like a normal CAG to me. No issues, probably means he's happy...

Also sounds like you're selling yourself short. Are you sure you want to do this?!

And are you sure YOUR BIRD wants you to do this?

It sounds like you're already giving him a wonderful home. Am confused as to why you'd want to rehome him.

Ditto on all of the above.

I bought him from a woman who said she was a breeder (she did have ALOT of birds) and wanted to only keep her smaller birds.. They weren't parakeets but not as big as parrots I can't remember. Anyway I only paid $600 for him and that seemed reasonable as the pet stores were asking twice as much & more. I picked him because he was friendly and came right over starting rummaging through my bag. She had other treys for sale but they seemed a little timid. My marriage was in trouble then...and we've finally settled on divorce. I realize now I was looking for a distraction..affection. He's keeping the house & I am moving in with my sister for now. She has three kids, 2 have asthma and while she has checked with her pediatrician who said as long as the bird is confined to a room that the children do not frequent, my sister is understandably hesitant to allow him into her apartment. And even before this I was considering rehoming Christian because of the amount of time Im away from home and wanting him to be somewhere he would get more attention. Even though he seems fine with being alone a lot.. I can't really say what issues he has because I honestly don't think he has any. Im certainly no expert on bird behavior but I always though the birds that pulled themselves bald or screamed a lot were considered having issues? He is not bald, and I've never seen him pull his feathers out. And he is pretty quiet, he will get noisy if you play loud music or watch cop shows, he likes to whistle and do siren sounds. His cage is huge, I paid $400 for it.. I'd like for it to stay with him. I know the rescues say don't give pets away and its a way for scammers to make money by selling your bird. I have also know "rescues" to take free birds and re-sell them to ANYONE. I'm just hoping the right situation presents itself.. Obviously you need to be financially stable to care for these guys properly and I think any decent person would offer something for a healthy animal with it's belongings. Im not sure Id be comfortable shipping. Please don't tell me to surrender him to a rescue... I know they provide a valuable service.. But Id rather try to find him a better place myself.

That makes sense. I understand now. I personally cannot take on more than I have now, but I'm sure there are well qualified people on this board who would love to take in a well behaved, no issues CAG and give it a good home.

No one is telling you to take him to a rescue. YOU are doing the right thing. If you don't feel that you can cintinue to care for him like you feel you should, I am positive someone on here will step up.

The questions asked are not to belittle you, most of the people on here are very experienced with birds and know how to work through issues that birds may have they just like to know upfront if there are any.

That being said, It sounds like your boy is a well settled and loved bird. If they is any way to keep him you should. If not, Like I said before someone will give him a loving home. I would take him if my flock wasn't too big already and the distance wasn't too great...

Claudia said:

I feel like sh!t and I realize now that when I purchased him 3 years ago I did so out of impulse and emotion. I'm not what he deserves... I want a better life for him. He has no issues.. Is a happy, healthy fully feathered fully flighted 8 year old clown. Has been handled by men, women & kids. Will bite the crap out of a dog or cat if they pester him. He likes watching YouTube videos of other parrots. He eats Harrison's pellets. His favorite snacks are.. Eggs, apples, bananas, almonds & chicken. I want his cage to go with him.. He likes bells.. Hates play stands. Doesn't like showering alone. Will let you dremel his nail & beak. Will try to kill you if you come at him with clippers. Loves being outside so it's important that is continued (he's outside 6-8 hours a day during the spring & summer months) He burps & farts but no cursing I promise. Located in NY

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Hi Claudia, I would consider taking him, as I have quite a large home with several well trained birds. But only after you have sat down with the bird and seriously gave it thought if that's what you really want to do.

^ see what I mean!!!

I wish I were in a position to take him, but I'm not. I understand your sister not allowing him as well, since all she can see is a serious health risk to her human children. I did not mean to sound ugly with questions, it's just hard but important to know the whole story. I'm sorry to hear about the hard times you are going through personally, and I hope that someone on this forum is able to help you find a home for your bird.

Also consider a temporary home until you get things sorted out. We've all been through bad situations in our life and I can honestly tell you love your bird. You might have some feelings now about him being a distraction, but he might turn out to be your best friend through everything, who doesn't judge you and gives you unconditional love.

I can't tell you what to do, but you are doing the right thing by coming here and talking with us, so don't feel guilty about whatever decision you make.

I so wish you were in Canada, we would love to have him join our family here in NS. Good luck finding a home, he sounds like such a wonderful boy.

i would love to have him---i live in the country---raise my own vegtables for me and the birds--have had parrots for 30 yrs--retired last year so i got alot of free time

I just promised a friend who lost her Timneh a year or so ago that if I ever saw a Grey, I would put her in touch. Feel free to have an admin PM me your contact information, if you are interested. She would be an excellent home.

Any moderator will forward my email to interested parties

Jersey Wendy or any other mod - could you please put me in touch with Claudia?

Thanks
Kim

Message sent.

I am very interested in taking this bird. Please PM me.