Gretchen baby!

Ive recently got my long awaited Grey! We have had her about a week now. The place i got her from didnt know much about her. She's apparently 4 and was told she talks. She has adjusted very well to us, she cuddles and has started making kissing noices back to me but im wondering if she does talk? I understand she needs time to settle in still but she's doing so good this far.. Also I think they fed her alot of people food, she will run towards whoever has food or even climbs off her cage when we are eating dinner, how other than just not feeding her any am I gonna be able to get her to chill on that?

Congrats! Greys can be slow to open up, they have to scope out the neighborhood first for awhile. Generally, table food is not parrot food unless you are eating very vegan and blandly. Most people food has salt and sugars that are not part of a parrots diet. You might try serving her a special meal at nite at dinner, say some fresh veggies or chopped up hot peppers, which are great for them. Sharing meal time is important to grey parrots, they are flock eaters in nature.

I tried that last night, only thing I've found she will eat is a salten cracker that I scrape the salt pieces off of. She won't eat any fruit or veggies.. ill keep trying for sure!!!!! Shes even super picky about her seed. She doesn't eat any of the big pieces, so I'm having to get her the small parrot seed.

You gotta try with the veggie and fruits for a long time. My CAGS just start eating bananas after four years, a little bit of pepper too. You need to have patience with them; it takes almost forever for them to commit to something.

Congratulations, greys are amazingly complex and stubborn companions!

Transitioning to a healthy diet is critical, but you must balance Gretchen's less than ideal desires with acclimating to your home and bonding. Too many rapid changes may create unwanted behavioral reactions.

I'd suggest creating two identical bowls of veggies and fruits and offer one to Gretchen. Begin to eat from yours, expressing excitement with "mmmm" sounds and head bobbing. Whether to offer during family mealtime is your best judgment. Parrots are flock eaters and you are a member!

Seed vs a quality pellet is personal decision, not without controversy. I've transitioned my flock to veggies/fruits and pellets with occasional whole nuts as treats.

A few popular threads from our Parrot Foods, Recipes, and Diet forum:
http://www.parrotforums.com/parrot-...converting-parrots-healthier-diet-tips-7.html
http://www.parrotforums.com/parrot-...afe-fresh-foods-toxic-food-lists-sprouts.html
http://www.parrotforums.com/parrot-food-recipes-diet/49831-chop-day-recipe.html

You can also bake nutrition into "birdy bread." http://www.parrotforums.com/parrot-food-recipes-diet/65841-poppy-s-jolly-jungle-bread.html

Be patient with foods, it can literally take years or decades for a bird to try and like a familiar item.