Congo African Grey Free Flight-  

Cressi - The African Grey and The
Adventure Of Free Flight!

Flying in the Rain & Snow - Seattle, WA - March 28, 2008

This was Cressi's first attempt to fly in rain and snow.  We kept the flights short since she wasn't used to the cold climate.  Also, you notice that person to the left ducking out of the way.  This was part of her training to keep her from landing on strangers.  I understand that in the future she may need to land on strangers, or may choose to, however I want to enforce strong habits from the beginning.

Desert Flying - Moab, UT - April 4-8, 2008

Cressi had some great flights in Moab.  It was her first time moving on to another level in her outdoor skills.  She went from flying big open fields, to flying above canyons, hillsides, and even in the canyons while going on a walk with her.  It was an experience to remember.  I wrote a great article about the whole experience, which can be read in our "Parrot Magic" newsletter (issue 14). 

Pictures of Our Fly Bird Cressi in Moab

Seagull Encounter - Cocoa Beach, FL - April 17, 2008

This was a frightening experience!  After much thought, we decided to give this a go.  I took all the precautions I could, and obviously it ended safely.  Here's my thought process: We took Bondi in a travel cage, and Cressi, to the beach.  I packed a lunch and we sat there and ate for about 30 minutes. The section of the beach that I was on was about 100 or more feet away from people in all directions.

I gave her plenty of time to check out the area and become familiar with it.After feeling like she was familiar with the surroundings, we took her out and did the typical A to B recall flights.  This is how we always start the day.

I've also noticed that when she doesn't want to fly, she won't do the A to B.  We've had that happen on days where she saw a hawk, and we didn't... until it was flying overhead.  Which made us believe that she knows when it's safe to fly or not... so we continued.  Cressi decided to do her regular circle flights around us, when about 40 seconds into the flight, she was engaged by a seagull.

That seagull chased her over the water, where she jinked and evaded.  It was quite amazing to watch, although it was also quite scary. 

As soon as she evaded the first seagull, three more were on her.  Then eight seagulls went after her, then eleven!  She tried evading over and over, then tried to slow down to land on us, but knew if she slowed down she'd be toast! So up and over the pier she went.  I sprinted after her (as she was now just out of sight), and as I approached the underside of the pier, I blew the whistle, she saw me, and came to me for protection.

So here's my final thoughts on the day.  First of all, was she ready?  Many non-flyers would say no, however she did survive and she did come back.  

From my experience, and from the advice of professionals who have been consulting me on this, I do feel she was ready.  She successfully evaded 11 seagulls, and returned, thus reinforcing me as a safe spot even more than before.  We did everything by the book, and it all ended well.

It's a false hope to think that your freeflighted parrot will never encounter a chase.  Everyone who flies has had their birds chased at one point or another.

I've even seen some remarkable pictures of a macaw out maneuvering a peregrine falcon!  The whistle I got is from a scuba shop, designed to carry for miles.  While being chased by seagulls, I continued to blow the whistle. When frantically trying to evade a chase, I quickly realized that she should not have to focus on where I was, and instead she should focus on escaping.

By me blowing the whistle she never once had to worry about finding me, as she knew the entire time where I was by that sound.  Just a bit of advice to anyone who is flying their birds.

  More Congo African Grey Free Flight With Cressi