CONGO AFRICAN GREY

The basic coloring is a gray body with various shades depending on region, and a bright red tail. Both upper and lower beak are black and the iris is pale yellow or a dark gray to black in juveniles, with the skin around the eye being white.

Greys should have a varied diet with lots of fruits and vegetables, pellets, legumes, and some seed. Calcium is an important part of a grey's diet and cuttlebone should be provided at all times. Greys are very much creatures of habit and do well in a routine type household. If you feed them at 7:00am you better do it everyday at that time as they will expect it. Play time out of the cage should be at set times also. A grey likes repetition. We may find it monotonous and boring but a grey likes it that way. They are not fond of change or surprises and will let you know by their infamous growl, a noise not common with parrots but a trademark of the grey.

Congos are very independent birds and tend to go to one or two people, though there are exceptions to every rule, it is the norm with these birds. Considered a very quiet bird as parrots go, their unique chirps, whistles, and other odd noises are much more tolerable then the raucous cries of an amazon or macaw. They can be excellent talkers, mimicing the human voice like living tape recorders. Having a very long life expectancy, they are truly considered life long companions living well over 50 years. The most popular of the african grey species, the Congo will be around for a very long time as it is very well established in aviculture.