Need your opinions about potential rescue grey

Hi all. Some of you may recognize me From the budgie and tiel forums. My husband and I have been in search of a great for a few years (used to have a Timneh many years ago). I found a local one that someone is looking to rehome. He/she is 25 and a single owner bird since 6 weeks old. E connected through Facebook as we have a couple of mutual friends. She describes her bird as:
Very tame, talks, sings, lots of sounds, loves attention, loves his toys. She states she is rehoming him because her life has changed and she can’t give him the time and attention he deserves. We chatted back and forth interviewing each other and she feels we would be a great fit for her bird. We are very interested in meeting him. After a good amount of back and forth we agreed to meet this week and I asked her if she had any pictures of him and was a little surprised when I saw the pictures. He/she has random red feathers throughout his wings and on his chest. I could tell he has chewed at his feathers some but he is currently fully feathered. I asked her if he has ever plucked and she said yes on 2 occasions. One being when she got divorced and her ex took the other 2 birds in the home. That makes perfect sense to me. What I don’t know is this red feather thing. I researched and what little I could find said it could be one of 3 things. The regrow then after plucking, him receiving antibiotics during a moly or it could be an indication of an illness like liver or kidney disease. So of course now I am concerned about potentially adopting this bird. If we have him a home and he fell ill we would most certainly take care of him with our CAV. But I don’t want to “buy” an illness (I hope that makes sense). I truly believe she loves and adores this bird. She asked me some good questions and I offered up as much as possible about my home and family life. But I am always skeptical about people looking to rehome birds because there can be so many undesirable traits or conditions that are the real possible reason they are giving them up rather than just life changes.

So I am attaching pictures. I would love to know if anyone has any experience with these mysterious red feathers and what would your opinion or advise about potentially adopting this fid that needs to find a new home be. It’s a lifelong commitment that I don’t take lightly so I am reaching out to this community that knows a lot about these birds and has a ton of adoption experience. TIA!!!

Oh wow what a beautiful bird and in such a sad situation. I know zero about greys but I’ve read a few anecdotes about greys with a “red factor” that often disappears after their first moult or two - whether the previous plucking has anything to do with it I don’t know.

If you’re able to meet him you may get a better vibe as to his current situation and whether he will be a good fit for your household. He would certainly have a better chance of a happy future with you than many other potential adopters! I wish you the very best for a successful meeting and maybe welcoming him into the forum family

He looks beautiful! Some CAGS have this red feather thing, very pretty, is normal..

Thanks guys. I went ahead and asked her and she said they grew in after his last pluck in 2017. He has never been on antibiotics which can cause it too. My gut is telling me she is being honest about his health and this is just the way he is. I can’t imagine after having him for the past 25 years, since he was just a baby, that this is easy for her and I hope she respects my asking a million and one questions before committing our life to him for the remainder of his days. I appreciate your kind words LaManuka. I like to think I give my feathered friends a wonderful home.

We will be meeting him in his home one evening this week or next Sunday at the latest so, yes, I think we will be able to get an even better feeling about his situation as well as be able to see his personality. I’m nervous but very excited about the possibility of bringing a grey into our lives again, especially a rehome. I feel like that’s a whole other situation that I’m going to have to educate myself about hard over the next few days. If anyone has advice about bringing home a “rehome” bird I would love to hear it.

Hello Aavogaro,

I've also heard of the 'red factor' and I've seen a lot of images of Greys with random red feathers.

When you get a minute please read this:
http://www.parrotforums.com/congo-timneh-greys/59366-cag-101-a.html

It will help you understand him/her a little better.

Good Luck, I'm very excited for you all.

Tami2 said:

Hello Aavogaro,

I've also heard of the 'red factor' and I've seen a lot of images of Greys with random red feathers.

When you get a minute please read this:
http://www.parrotforums.com/congo-timneh-greys/59366-cag-101-a.html

It will help you understand him/her a little better.

Good Luck, I'm very excited for you all.

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Thank you! Funny enough I literally JUSTfinished reading that. Found it on another recent post. Great read!

I don’t think it is red factor. Like his owner said they appeared after a pluck. His diet is Pretty Bird African pellets and fresh fruits and veggies. I don’t know anything about that brand of pellets. Ingredients look like a lot of corn and corn meal filler. Perhaps his diet contributes some to the plucking or the red feathers.

Deep respect for taking a measured approach to adopting this CAG. You'll likely have closure once meeting the bird and seller.

I only have Timneh experience, not CAG so am not familiar with random red feathers aside from "red factor."

Might you consider basic lab tests to assess overall health prior to adopting? Perhaps the seller would contribute a portion as good faith measure? (I know that is a dicey proposition, just tossing the idea out there)

Hello! I have heard of feathers coming in randomly as red in greys after injury/plucking. There’s also the red factor possibility out there as well or a combination of both. If you decide to adopt (love the thought tho tbh) maybe the current owner would allow for multiple visits before taking him/her home so the change won’t be so abrupt. Only thing I’d say to be on the lookout for is renewed plucking due to stress. You can remedy that tho with training and rewards and it could be a nonissue. Following!


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LeaKP said:

Hello! I have heard of feathers coming in randomly as red in greys after injury/plucking. There’s also the red factor possibility out there as well or a combination of both. If you decide to adopt (love the thought tho tbh) maybe the current owner would allow for multiple visits before taking him/her home so the change won’t be so abrupt. Only thing I’d say to be on the lookout for is renewed plucking due to stress. You can remedy that tho with training and rewards and it could be a nonissue. Following!

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Truly great advise from one of our top resident Grey Folk!

Please, Yes, Multiple visits!!! With the first starting a fair distance from the Grey. Get background, history, diet, general life style stuff, while the Grey has an opportunity to watch you!

I would recommend that prior to the exchange of money, they consent to release the Parrot's Medical Files to your Avian Professional... May even be the same AP. This allows your AP to move forward with a history to work from.

My Enzo (15yrs old) was a red factor when i took her in, after 30 months with me her red has all but gone apart from a few on her back, and they are disappearing each moult as well. It has been mentioned on here that it is a good sign for them to lose the red factor although it did look spectacular.



Id imagine such an intelligent bird would start to self harm if he/she suddenly loses the interaction/love that they are used to, and the previous owner confirms that this is likely the case. Her/his feathers have clearly grown back which id imagine as a great sign. Id still take the bird in even if plucking was a permanent rather than a temporary thing..... apply love a healthy diet and exercise id hope in this case.



Id love it if you rescued him/her, but as mentioned above, if you could take the chance to be able to spend a little time with the bird that would be fabulous. I met Enzo a few times before I took her in.... I wasnt even considering a grey when I first met her, a CAG seemed a scary big bird to me at the time! It was clear she wanted to interact with me and she herself convinced me to take her home. But i do consider myself very very lucky and bonding with her was easy mode... I realise this is the exception rather than rule, however, if i was ever in the situation where I took another CAG in, id still want to interact with the bird first and try and at least get a little level of trust between yourselves.


good luck

Aavogaro said:

Thanks guys. I went ahead and asked her and she said they grew in after his last pluck in 2017. He has never been on antibiotics which can cause it too. My gut is telling me she is being honest about his health and this is just the way he is. I can’t imagine after having him for the past 25 years, since he was just a baby, that this is easy for her and I hope she respects my asking a million and one questions before committing our life to him for the remainder of his days. I appreciate your kind words LaManuka. I like to think I give my feathered friends a wonderful home.

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If for any heartbreaking scenario where I had to give Enzo up, I would expect a million questions to be asked!!!!! The more you know, the better start you will have. The lady rescue who i adopted Enzo from wrote a few pages of information for me about Enzo, her likes/dislikes, her favourite toys, treats and even her normal daily routine....from having a warm drink from a mug in the morning all the way through to what she says when she wants to go to bed (ni-night, ni-night..... obvious but nice to know!)
I also was given Enzo's cage, a few weeks worth of her diet, treets and even her cages cover. This im sure helped enormously when settling Enzo in to her new surroundings and 'dad' as she calls me

Yes yes and yes. This is all great advice, which I will follow to the best extent I can.
1. Medically the owner claims he/she has never been sick so I don’t know if there is any medical records to transfer although I certainly intend to ask.
1. Visits - I plan on keeping the visits on the bird’s terms. Perhaps sit near while We get to know more about him from the owner. Hopefully see the owner have the opportunity to interact/hold him so we can see how he is with the people he is familiar with. If he seems relaxed and willing then perhaps we would be able to hold/touch him. Ideally a second visit a day or two later and see if he/she relaxes quicker. And go from there. Ideally I’d like a minimum of 3 visits before bringing it home but her schedule is proving quite difficult to schedule meetings.
3. I anticipate the likelihood of some plucking or feather chewing (which is what he is currently doing) with the stress of losing his only owner and moving into a new home. But that’s ok. It’s not a deterrent to me at all and yes, the fact that his last plucking episode was not severe or permanent I feel is a very good sign. I have seen pictures of his cage. It’s minimal at best in my opinion as far as toys, perches and I saw nothing that offers foraging opportunities which I think is a MUST ASAP for this bird. The cage looks to be a decent size although I plan on upgrading it when I can find the right one available secondhand (missed a perfect opportunity this weekend darn it).

So now I have a NEW QUESTION.
As we consider bringing this bird into our home I have been thinking of things we will need to do, provide and adjust to give him the kind of environment he needs. I have decided we would place his cage in our family room so he can be a part of the action even if he is choosing to be on/in his cage. However this presents a problem with the required amount of sleep he needs as that room is typically only dark and quiet for about 6-7 hours a day. So I have been thinking I can get a second smaller cage and put it in the laundry room to ensure a dark and quiet place for sleeping only, but my question is what size cage can I get away with just for sleep? It would need to go on a countertop. What would need to be in a sleeping cage? A toy? Food/water? Would love any help in that area.

I have been chatting with the owner more this weekend about the bird. He/she really does sound like a well rounded well adjusted bird for a CAG if her description is honest. She says he does not bite and that he is fairly quiet for a parrot although he does talk sing and make noises. He does eat pellets and fresh food and plays with toys so all this sounds good. When I asked her to share her good/bad/ugly with me and she said the only bad she could think of was that he currently doesn’t like the shower (ummmm.....not uncommon). A part of me hurts to think that we might take him away from the only home he has ever known, but I have to keep my eyes on the long term.

Enzo's home is in the kitchen, which is the largest room in my small house, in our main living room i have a stand and 2 ceiling mounted triangles where she prefers to hang out around us. When she gets tired, or if she wants to stay up later than she should, i can take her 'begrudgingly' to her cage, for interest I always spend a good 5-10minutes with her in the kitchen before she goes to bed, I have a lamp that I can control with an alexa to drop the the light level over this time so its pretty dark when she actually settles on her top perch. This works quite well for us both as she goes to bed relaxed and loved (she loves head scratches before bed).


So, what works for us is her main cage lives in the kitchen where I spend a lot of time when im home, in the evening she can roost/chill on her stand/triangles, then bed time she goes back to the quiet room (kitchen). The funny thing is, no matter how quiet i am when fetching a beer from the fridge, she will make a drink pouring sound.... she is a very light sleeper for the first hour or two.


All parrots bite, but generally you will be warned, he may pressure test you to begin, just to know where the pain threshold is..... so yelp sooner rather than later
Diet sounds good, lots of fresh veg (i steam enzo's) and fruit less often but as treats.
Enzo hates the shower but loves being with me in the shower (from the top of the glass.... the steam is good for the feathers you know.


Good luck to both of you, you seem to be asking all the right questions and have all the right intentions at heart.


HTH and sorry to ramble.

Never place a Grey in the Laundry Room!!!!!!!!!!
- You will forever be running around trying to figure out why the washer and/or the dryer are running.

Sleeping room: One of the Bedrooms? Commonly your's.

@bigfellasdad - you sound like you have the exact opposite plan as us. Lol. My cockatiel and budgies live in our kitchen eating area. They have a divided flight cage that is 63”wide (it’s a HUGE cage) so that’s the only wall space big enough I had to keep a cage that size. Their tree stand is on our family room which is where they spend all their time while we are home. For the CAG I figured we would flip it and keep the cage in the family room (have been thinking of creating a ceiling play gym like you have) and I will purchase another mobile tree stand for the kitchen area or wherever we are spending time not in our family room.

@SailBoat - dying laughing at your comment about forever trying to figure out why my washer and dryer are running. While we don’t do laundry at night I get what you are saying. Maybe on my desk in my bedroom is best. Would a travel type cage be sufficient for a sleeping cage? I found ones with a BIG door that are 14”w x 18”d x 14”h with food and water dishes. I think for sleeping purposes only that size would be fine? Also, when first bringing him home would I start with the sleeping cage routine on night one, provided He would allow me to handle him?

I have a small sleeping cage in my bedroom and host a bird every night! A size sufficient to allow outstretched wings is acceptable. Food and water are welcome, they often greet the morning with an appetite!

Yup, what Scott said!

I know of a family that made that error!!! They have since corrected the issue, but their washer and dryer is a topic of discussion every time we get together! High Humor!!!

I have to say that I am a little sad to read that the average lifespan of a CAG in captivity is apx 44 years with many living to 30-35 on average. With this guy being 25 already I am realizing that we wouldn’t have as many years together as I originally thought. Not really a game changer, but just surprising information that leaves me feeling a bit disappointed.

Aavogaro said:

I have to say that I am a little sad to read that the average lifespan of a CAG in captivity is apx 44 years with many living to 30-35 on average. With this guy being 25 already I am realizing that we wouldn’t have as many years together as I originally thought. Not really a game changer, but just surprising information that leaves me feeling a bit disappointed.

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Indeed but with good care you can help defy the odds.


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Aavogaro said:

I have to say that I am a little sad to read that the average lifespan of a CAG in captivity is apx 44 years with many living to 30-35 on average. With this guy being 25 already I am realizing that we wouldn’t have as many years together as I originally thought. Not really a game changer, but just surprising information that leaves me feeling a bit disappointed.

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Wow, i hadnt realised that either, i thought 80 is a good age.