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I could rescue an old African Grey -please help-room temperature troubles

Max83

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Hi guys, first of all please sorry for my english but I'm not a native speaker.

I'll try to make a long story short: there's an african grey to rescue, has been neglected and locked in a cage for 20+ years (no one says how many precisely). After the death of the original owner no one in the house cared about him.
Everyone said it was aggressive but that's not true, not with me from what I've seen, he likes head scritches and is playful), I go to vist him every day from 1 month.

I want to give this bird at least the last years of his life in a decent home. I've alredy had a rescued african grey for ten years previously, so I know this kind of parrots and obviously I always try to learn.

So my question: My fear is the room temperature in my house, in winter is rerely above 17-18celsius (62-64 F degrees). He is severe plucked, almost no feathers on the chest and under the wings and on the legs. So no protection from cold I guess.. Should he be fine at that temperature? I've an old house so pretty hard to keep warm. I currently own a cockatiel in the room when I'll locate him and he's basicaly free in the room preety much all day, I work from home so my animals are almost never alone.

Thanks for your patience for read, every reply and suggest is well accepted!
 

Mizzely

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You can get him a heat bulb or similar if needed :)

Just be careful that the grey and cockatiel are kept separate. Greys can be a little aggressive with other species.
 

Max83

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You can get him a heat bulb or similar if needed :)

Just be careful that the grey and cockatiel are kept separate. Greys can be a little aggressive with other species.
Thanks! yes I imagine, I'll have to find a system to keep my cockatiel (Mango) away from the Grey cage, I thought about a mosquito net to set above the Grey cage when Mango is free in the room...so pretty difficilt set even an heat lamp but I'll find a way if it's needed.
 

Mizzely

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Nikomania

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Thank you SO MUCH for wanting to give this deserving grey a good home. Please keep us posted on how everything is going!
 

Lady Jane

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Grey's don't do well with the feather dust from cockatiel. Can you get an air filtration machine. There are heating panels for bird cages that may help as well as heated perches.
 

Erikalynnha

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Grey's don't do well with the feather dust from cockatiel. Can you get an air filtration machine. There are heating panels for bird cages that may help as well as heated perches.
I thought African Greys were dusty too? A air purifier is always a good buy though.
 

Sarahmoluccan

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I used to keep my place around 17°C (to keep cost down) the birdroom was always warmer than the rest of my apartment thou. I had a little heater that worked well too. So it can be done just use caution and supplement heat with something. Just make sure its bird safe. I didn't think about Teflon being in little heaters, thankfully I didn't have any issues. But it's better safe than sorry. Also birds benefit from regular baths just make sure to keep them extra warm after until they are dry
 

SandraK

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Could you post some photos of your fids? I'd love to see photos of the grey.
 

hrafn

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I have an old, chilly house too, so I have a portable room heater specifically for the bird room.
 

Hankmacaw

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I've used space heaters, both radiators and electric fan types with great success. If your bird room is not too very big these work fine. I always have a ceramic heat bulb available for those especially cold nights and they also work great. You will need to hang the bulb high enough outside the cage that it won't get too hot for the bird and that will be far enough away that the mosquito net won't catch on fire.

Thank you for thinking about taking this bird in. BTW - 20+ years is not old at all for an African Grey - he's just a young adult.
 

Max83

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lol I wrote wrong. 30+ years she has. the lady from which I took her has only a photo of her of 1982 and she already had yellow eyes (not black like babies).
 

Hankmacaw

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Well, that makes her middle aged and on the bottom end of middle age - she has a long life ahead of her.
 

MnGuy

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My CAG has one of those 5-sided diamond-shaped corner cages. I clip cotton shower curtains to the two back sides to direct dust and debris back into the cage/toward the air filter. I make sure she cannot reach the cloth from inside so that she does not ingest any of the fibers.

Perhaps a similar arrangement could help keep in the warmth, or, keep out the drafts, for your CAG? (In addition to the other good recommendations here.) I clip the curtains onto the bottom seed catcher trays with binder clips, and on the top with stainless steel bird toy clips.

Good luck.
 

Max83

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thank you I'll probably put a blanket on the side if it's needed. at the end my wife agreed that if she start to shiver we'll make her fit in the kitchen in some way (paying attention to fumes etc of course). That room is smaller and easy to keep warm (never below 19 Celsius).
 

Hankmacaw

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@Max83 Jasper is 25 years old. I've had her since she was 6 1/2.
 
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