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Post by nancyd on Apr 3, 2006 19:42:15 GMT -7
I am swamped with work but wanted to give an update.
I mentioned in an earlier post that I had found 2 breedersat the bird fair. 1 who lives only 15 miles from me and the other lives 2 hours from me.
Well I have been trying to call the breeder that lives 15 miles from me. At the bird fair she told me her TAG was sitting on eggs. I have called and left 3 messages on her answering machine over the last 4 days, with no reponse !!!
Now why doesn't that surprise me !!!!!
What is aggravating me more at the moment is that I am swamped with work at this time of year, I start work at 6am, break for breakfast with my tiel at 8:30--never eat lunch and have dinner at 7 or 8 in the evening-I barely have time to make a phone call and people don't have the common courtesy of calling me back.
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Post by John on Apr 3, 2006 21:09:10 GMT -7
Nancy, I thought you had deciced to go with the other breeder because you liked the vet they used. I am sorry to hear that you are having such a time getting a TAG but in the end it will be worth the effort. Tax season is almost over so maybe you will have a break soon.
I will keep my fingers crossed for you to get a TAG.
John
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Post by nancyd on Apr 4, 2006 17:45:05 GMT -7
Yes John you're right--I did decide to go with the breeder that used the great vet but guess what--that's who wasn't returning my calls--at least not until today when she called and told me all her eggs were clear, so there are no babies--AGAIN
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Post by John on Apr 4, 2006 18:41:47 GMT -7
Sorry to hear that Nancy. Your day will come and you will have your Grey.
John
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Post by nancyd on Apr 6, 2006 22:36:18 GMT -7
Things may be looking up !! Since the other day, I did contact the other breeder that I met at the fair. She still has one chick she hasnt sold but she thinks it 's a girl and won't DNA for another couple of weeks. Her birds are acting ike they're getting ready to mate again too so even if this little one is a female--at least I'd be on her list for the next clutch. Also got a breeder from a referral. She also has a chick but she too suspects its a girl. As she ususally gives away a book with her babies and I already have the book, she is willing to DNA the baby for me. ANd then I found another place on the internet that I will check into. Along with the fact that I am on three other peoples lists--I think my chances are pretty good.
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Post by spookyhurst on Apr 6, 2006 23:09:19 GMT -7
Out of curiosity, why don't you want a girl? Glad to hear you're making progress on the search again  . Speaking of DNA, Nikko will be getting a test on Saturday. I'm taking him to a local bird breeder to get his nails groomed, and she asked if I wanted a DNA test at that time. I hadn't intended on ever getting it done, since I'm not going to breed Nikko. But she gave some compelling medical reasons for why it's a good idea. She said, "It's good to know with Greys. I'm sure you've heard or read that they can be a little deficient in calcium. Because of that little quark in greys, you want to know if you have a hen, which will require more calcium monitoring as she matures and becomes able to lay eggs. When they go through 'puberty', calcium fluctuations can create havoc in terms of how hens feel - they can even appear sick and it's good to know if she ends up going to the vet - it saves days off of a diagnosis." So I thought, what the hey. By knowing Nikko's sex, I'll know what medical conditions "he" can/won't be susceptible to. But if "he" turns out to be a she, that will be quite an adjustment to get out of the habit of calling him my sweet little boy. |
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Post by John on Apr 7, 2006 9:39:01 GMT -7
Nancy, I am glad to hear things are getting better for you. Hope you get your Grey.
John
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Post by nancyd on Apr 7, 2006 19:19:03 GMT -7
I am a bit paranoid I guess about female pets whether it be birds or dogs, (although I must admit that the cat that adopted me is very gentle and I've not had any problems with her yet).
Years ago our family purchased a male parakeet --we were teachin it to talk and he would say pretty bird and hi and a few other things. Well it started to lay eggs so obviously it wasn't a male. The egg laying became more and more frequent. I have no idea why my mother didn't take him/her to the vet except that there may not have been an avian vet anywhere around back then but anyhow, the bird died and we were all pretty devasted. Then a few years back I had a Samoyed. Actually I found her and although we looked for the owners for 6 months--noone ever claimed her so she joined our family. Well after about 5 years, this mangy stray mutt got to her and before we even knew she was pregnant, she had to be hospitalized. The vet said the fetus's looked like something straight out of a horror story. While in the hospital she was treated for what I guess was doggy toxemia and she seemed to be responding quite well. The vet went home one evening leaving her the run of his office and when he came back in the morning he found her dead. I still cry when I think about her and this was quite some time ago. So--thanks but no thanks--no females for me !!!
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Post by spookyhurst on Apr 8, 2006 8:36:40 GMT -7
Yeah, I think you're paranoid  , but it's probably best you get the sex you're most comfortable with. In the case of our dog, we wanted a female over a male, because we didn't want a humping-leg-lifting dog. But the female was already sold, so we went with the male. Turned out to be a good deal, because Spencer neither humps nor lifts his leg (he's a squatter ). He's some much better behaved than the other males at the dog park. So many of them hump anything that moves, and pee on everything, even the water dishes, people, and other dogs. As for birds, I'd probably take a male over a female if given a choice (so I wouldn't have to deal with egg laying), but if there was no choice, I'd take the female (with the exception of a canary, because I want a singing one). In the case of Nikko, I was presented with the opportunity to adopt a TAG, and since TAGs are not a common occurrence at the bird rescue, I snatched it up. Who knows if/when they'll get another one in. Cross your fingers the breeders are wrong about only having girls left. I've never heard of a way to visually sex a TAG, so they must be going on gut feelings. Maybe they'll be wrong. |
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Post by nancyd on Apr 8, 2006 20:06:44 GMT -7
Actually two breeders have told me this---if there are 3 birds in the clutch and two are larger and one small, they assume the small one is the female. Sometimes they give it a guess by the size of the head. But yes they are just guesses. The breeder has sent me some pictures of the baby that I am hoping is a male. She put this teeny little chick next to her cell phone and "size-wise" there wasn't much difference. When I asked her how old the chick was when the pic was taken she told me it was about 3 1/2 weeks. She refers to the baby as a peanut !!! She has taken some other pics for me 'cause I mentioned that I sure would like to have a bit of a scrapbook started if it did turn out to be a male, and I chose it. She refused a deposit as she'd rather wait until its sexed, which will be in another week or so. And, if it turns out to be a female--well--she says her birds are messin around with the breeder boxes so she expects that she'll have more real soon. Unfortunately, one of the other breeders that I had been in contact with prior to this, (and via email), seemed rather upset/angry when I said I definately wanted a male, and mentioned that she was pretty sure that the baby she had was female. She said that she usually has all her chicks sold long before the vet can sex them as the vet travels cross country taking care of greys-holding sexing clinics, etc. She also said that she couldn't believe that if I visited the chick weekly and then found it was a female, that I would choose to give the baby up after being with it. (Obviously this is why I was asking for a male right up front). She signed off at the end of her email with--"I wish I could help you". making it sound like there was nothing that she could or would do. Well, when she emailed me that, I immediatly began talking to another breeder. Now she's come back and offered to DNA the baby. What a turn-around !!! I really don't know what to think !!! Anyhow, I am really hopin this peanut is a little boy.
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Post by spookyhurst on Apr 8, 2006 20:51:33 GMT -7
I hope so too! I wish I had some pictures of Nikko when he was a baby. They're so sweet looking with those big dark eyes. I took Nikko for his nail trimming today, and the breeder said she thinks he's a boy (gut feeling I guess). We'll find out in about a week. Poor guy, we were having a nice little visit, building some rapport, and then she betrayed him by wrapping him in a towel . He cried, which frankly, was worse than the screaming he did a the vet. She was very gentle with him though. Only problem was none of his nails were bleeders, so she had to cut a little higher on one to get the blood sample. It was a good thing I was wearing a red shirt, because when she let him out of the towel, he scuttled up my shoulder, and the nail hadn't stopped bleeding yet. You can tell it's a little sore, but he was in exceptionally good spirits tonight, so he must be doing well. He was so good, I was very proud at how well-behaved he was. A couple other things. The breeder deals in some different Australian parrots, like Crimson Rosellas and Twenty-Eight Parrots. But she said she finally found a mate for her Timneh hen, and they're acting like they're going to breed soon. The other thing was she was telling me about her friend's CAG who was adopted from TARA, and it turns out it's the same woman who did Nikko's home visit. Very small world . |
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Preston
Super Talker
NEED HELP? WE WILL ANSWER AS FAST AS WE CAN (Note: Preston passed away in 2012. We hold his memories dearly, he was a great person and super moderator.)
Sisika and Pete
Joined: January 2005
Posts: 5,912
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Post by Preston on Apr 11, 2006 23:40:38 GMT -7
Nancy,
Don't let it get you down. I went several months without Pete in a seperation, and if you read the post I wasn't bird shopping when something made turn into a pet shop, and there was my baby girl Andi. God hasn't made you lil' one yet, but he's there; he'll find you!
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, but it's probably best you get the sex you're most comfortable with.
