Owner's Care Guide · Diet, Housing & Enrichment
Here at C.A.Gs in Midland, Texas, USDA-licensed breeders Mark & Teri Benjamin have hand-raised captive-bred, CITES Appendix I Congo and Timneh African Greys since 2014 — and this is the same diet, housing, enrichment, lighting, and health routine we hand every family.
Feed it right, house it well, and an African Grey is a talking companion for 40 to 60 years.
The short version
Feed formulated pellets as the foundation, plus fresh veg and a little fruit — never seed-only, never avocado.
A single Congo needs at least 36" W × 24" D × 48" H with ¾–1" bar spacing in stainless steel.
Greys are intensely social — they need hours of attention and out-of-cage time, not just space.
Full-spectrum UV-B on a 10–12 hr cycle lets a Grey make the vitamin D3 it needs to absorb calcium.
Regular bathing controls powder-down dander and keeps a Grey's feathers and skin healthy.
A yearly wellness exam catches illness a Grey instinctively hides until it is advanced.
An African Grey is a multi-decade commitment — plan a guardian for it in your estate.
Every C.A.Gs Grey is captive-bred under CITES Appendix I — never wild-caught, fully papered.
Be first to hear when a hand-raised Congo or Timneh chick is ready, plus the seasonal care reminders we send every C.A.Gs family.
African Grey Diet · Nutrition
An African Grey thrives on a base of 60–80% formulated pellets, around 20% fresh vegetables, and only limited fruit — our African Grey pellet food and diet guide covers this calcium- and vitamin-A-supported plan in depth.
Diet is the single biggest factor in whether a Grey reaches its full 40–60 year lifespan in good health, so here at C.A.Gs we send every bird home on the exact diet it is already eating.
A formulated pellet such as Harrison's Adult Lifetime Fine or Zupreem Natural should make up 60–80% of the diet.
Pellets deliver a nutritionally complete base that a seed mix simply cannot match, and they prevent the selective "seed-junkie" feeding that drives most diet-related disease.
Build the fresh portion around dark leafy greens (kale, Swiss chard, collards) and orange-pigmented veg (sweet potato, carrot, butternut squash, bell pepper).
These are rich in beta-carotene, which a Grey converts to vitamin A — the nutrient most often deficient in poorly fed birds.
Because Greys are prone to calcium deficiency, our full African Grey diet and feeding schedule leans on cuttlebone or a calcium block free-choice plus regular greens.
A few nuts or a slice of apple make great training treats, but keep fruit and nuts occasional — they are sugar and fat, not the main meal.
Some everyday foods are genuinely dangerous, and a Grey is small enough that a single exposure can be fatal.
Independent avian-medicine resources such as the LafeberVet African Grey information sheet reinforce the same toxic list we hand every buyer. Never feed any of the following:
It is not a food at all: PTFE (Teflon) fumes from overheated non-stick cookware are airborne, odorless, and can kill a parrot within minutes.
Keep your Grey well away from the kitchen, and retire non-stick pans, self-cleaning ovens, and aerosol cooking sprays from any room a bird breathes in.
Because PTFE fumes travel on the air, the simplest safeguard is distance: move the cage well away from the kitchen before you cook, and keep the bird out of any room where a non-stick surface is being heated.
Here at C.A.Gs we cook only on stainless steel and ceramic and have retired every non-stick pan in the house — it is the same precaution we ask each family to take before a Grey comes home.
Cage Size · Housing Setup
A single Congo African Grey needs a cage of at least 36" W × 24" D × 48" H, with ¾"–1" bar spacing in stainless steel — wider bars can trap the head, narrower bars can trap toes.
A Timneh African Grey can live comfortably in a slightly smaller footprint, but for a species that forages up to twelve hours a day in the wild, bigger is always better.
36" W × 24" D × 48" H is the floor for a Congo; ¾"–1" bar spacing is the safe window. Horizontal bars on at least two sides give a Grey something to climb — these are athletic, ground-and-canopy foragers, not perch-sitters.
Choose stainless steel. Avoid zinc-coated bars (common on budget cages) and any flaking paint, which may contain lead — both cause heavy-metal toxicosis, an avian emergency. The same rule covers cheap chain, clips, and bell toys.
Offer at least three perch types of varying diameter (around an inch is ideal): natural wood such as manzanita or java for foot health, a rope perch for grip, and a flat platform for rest.
Skip uniform plastic dowels — they cause pressure sores.
Position the cage against a wall rather than marooned in the centre of a room, at roughly human eye level, away from windows with harsh afternoon sun, and far from the kitchen and its PTFE fumes, aerosols, and gas-stove carbon monoxide.
A high-traffic living area where your Grey can watch the household come and go tends to produce a far more confident, socialised bird than a quiet back room.
Give the cage a calm corner for sleep, too: Greys need 10–12 hours of dark, undisturbed rest, and a sleep-deprived Grey is a cranky, nippy, plucking-prone Grey.
Many of our families use a smaller, quiet sleep cage in a darker room so the bird gets its full night's rest even when the household stays up — it is optional, but it is one of the simplest ways to guarantee a Grey the dark hours it needs.
A Grey can doze through background noise, but light tells its body to stay awake — covering the cage or moving it to a genuinely dark room does more for real rest than simply turning the television down.
Every C.A.Gs Grey is already used to a consistent lights-out at the aviary, so we ask new families to keep the same early, predictable bedtime for the first few weeks — it settles a young bird far faster than a late, irregular schedule.
Enrichment · Out-of-Cage Time
An African Grey needs 3–4 hours of direct interaction and supervised out-of-cage time every single day — for a bird with the cognitive ability of a four- to six-year-old child, mental stimulation is not a luxury, it is essential healthcare.
The intelligence that makes a Grey the world's best talking companion parrot is exactly what makes a bored, under-stimulated Grey scream, plucked, and miserable.
Keep 5–7 foraging and puzzle toys and rotate them weekly so your Grey never habituates. Hide pellets inside cardboard, shred boxes, and wrapped foot toys — making a clever bird work for its food is the closest thing to its wild day.
Three to four hours a day in a bird-proofed room is non-negotiable.
Windows and mirrors covered, ceiling fans off, other pets secured, no open water or toxic plants — supervised freedom is where a Grey burns energy and bonds with its family.
Most Greys begin attempting words between 12 and 18 months. Our 7-step African Grey taming guide walks the same gentle method: short, positive 10–15 minute sessions a few times a day with a target stick and a favorite reward.
Never punish a Grey for not performing — fear permanently damages trust.
A Grey does not act out to be difficult — conservation references such as the World Parrot Trust's grey parrot encyclopedia describe a profoundly social, intelligent animal, and feather-destructive behavior and constant screaming are simply how that bird tells you its needs are not being met.
The single most common mistake we see is treating a Grey like a cage ornament.
Teri puts it plainly to every C.A.Gs family: "A Grey will fill whatever you give it — give it puzzles and conversation, or it will give you problems." Build a predictable daily rhythm of feeding, foraging, interaction, and sleep, and most behavioral issues never start in the first place.
Not always — boredom and stress are the most common triggers, but feather-destructive behavior can also be the first visible sign of a medical problem, so it is never safe to assume a plucking Grey is simply under-stimulated.
Skin infection, low vitamin A, hypocalcemia, and PBFD can all drive a Grey to pull feathers, and enrichment alone will not fix a bird that is actually unwell — an avian-vet workup should come before you rebuild the toy rotation.
If a family tells us their Grey is plucking despite a rich, social routine, we point them straight to their avian vet first — getting the medical question answered early is the kindest, fastest path back to a comfortable bird.
Grooming · Bathing · Hygiene
Bathe an African Grey two to three times a week with plain lukewarm water, and keep nails, wings, and beak in check with an avian vet's help.
Greys are a powder-down species — they produce a fine white feather dust that keeps plumage waterproof but also coats the room — so regular bathing is as much about your Grey's skin and feather health as it is about the dander.
Offer a shallow dish, a gentle mist, or a shower perch 2–3 times weekly — plain water only, no soaps.
Bathing controls powder-down dust, keeps feathers conditioned, and discourages the over-preening that can tip into plucking. An air purifier helps dander-sensitive households.
A Grey with proper perches and chew toys usually keeps its own beak and nails in shape.
When a nail trim or wing clip is needed, have an avian vet or experienced groomer do it — a clipped quick bleeds fast, and a badly cut wing leaves a bird unable to land safely.
Healthy Grey feathers are smooth and tight. Frayed, chewed, or missing feathers, or an overgrown or flaking beak, are early warning signs — of diet gaps, low calcium or vitamin A, or disease such as PBFD — and are your cue to book a vet visit before the problem spreads.
UV-B Lighting · Vitamin D3
Yes — we strongly recommend a full-spectrum UV-B light, because African Greys are uniquely prone to hypocalcemia and need vitamin D3 to absorb the calcium they eat.
A Grey can have plenty of calcium in its bowl and still crash if it cannot make D3, and indoors, behind window glass that filters out UV-B, it usually cannot.
This is exactly why, here at C.A.Gs, we raise our Greys with UV-B lighting and vitamin D3 support from the start — so the routine is already second nature by the time a bird goes home.
No — ordinary window glass blocks almost all of the UV-B wavelength a Grey needs to make vitamin D3, so a bird sunning behind a closed window gets the warmth but not the benefit.
Unfiltered outdoor time in a secure, shaded harness or an outdoor aviary works, but a dedicated indoor UV-B lamp is the reliable, year-round answer.
Match the lamp to a natural 10–12 hour day and switch it off at night — Greys need genuine darkness to rest, and round-the-clock light disrupts the sleep that keeps a bird calm and healthy.
Put the UV-B lamp on a simple plug-in timer set to your Grey's wake-and-sleep hours, and the light cycle takes care of itself even on the days life gets busy.
Watch for the warning signs that calcium metabolism has gone wrong: muscle tremors, weakness, falling off the perch, or seizure-like episodes are a veterinary emergency in a Grey.
Get the lighting and diet right together and you remove one of the most common — and most preventable — threats to an African Grey's health.
African Grey Health · Common Issues
The conditions we coach owners to watch for most are hypocalcemia, feather plucking, and vitamin-A deficiency, with PBFD as a serious species disease to screen against.
Because a Grey is a prey animal that hides illness until it is advanced, prevention and early detection matter more than treatment — and every C.A.Gs Grey starts life with an avian-vet exam and the written health guarantee behind it.
African Greys are specifically prone to low blood calcium more than most parrots. Signs include muscle tremors, weakness, seizure-like episodes, and falling off the perch — treat any of these as an emergency.
Prevent it with a calcium source, a vitamin-A-rich diet, and UV-B light plus vitamin D3 so the bird can actually use the calcium it eats.
The most common behavioral complaint in the breed. It is usually rooted in boredom, loneliness, stress, or a change in routine — but it can be medical too, so rule out infection, low calcium, and disease first.
The fix is rarely a quick one: more enrichment, more out-of-cage time, predictable sleep, and patience, guided by an avian vet.
The classic consequence of a seed-heavy diet. Too little vitamin A causes chronic upper-respiratory infections, blunted choanal papillae, and a shortened life.
Prevent it the easy way — our African Grey diet guide covers the fix exactly: a pellet base plus beta-carotene-rich greens and orange veg.
Psittacine Beak and Feather Disease (PBFD) is a recognised viral disease of parrots that damages feathers and the immune system, and is one of the conditions a responsible aviary takes seriously.
Every C.A.Gs Grey is examined by a board-certified avian vet as part of our health protocol before placement, and you receive that health certificate with your bird.
Veterinary Care · Annual Wellness
Every African Grey should have an annual wellness exam with an avian-certified veterinarian — and a baseline visit within the first few weeks of coming home.
Greys are prey animals; they instinctively mask illness until it becomes critical, so by the time you notice an obviously sick bird, it may already be seriously compromised.
That single instinct is why proactive vet care is essential rather than optional for this species.
A good annual exam includes a complete blood count (CBC) to catch anemia, infection, or organ trouble; a gram stain to screen for bacterial or yeast overgrowth; and a careful weight check.
Weight is your best home early-warning system: a loss of even 10–15 grams (2–4% of body weight) can signal disease in a Grey that still looks normal, so keep a weekly weight log on a kitchen gram scale and call your vet if the number drifts down.
When you bring home a C.A.Gs Grey, that head start is already built in: each bird leaves with a board-certified avian-veterinarian health certificate dated within 10 days of travel, and Mark & Teri stay reachable for diet, behavior, and health questions long after pickup.
Finding your own avian vet before the bird arrives — many general-practice vets do not treat birds — means you are never scrambling in an emergency.
Look specifically for an avian or exotics veterinarian — ideally one board-certified in avian practice — rather than a general small-animal clinic, because diagnosing and treating a parrot is a distinct specialty.
Searching a professional directory of avian vets, or simply asking us and other Grey owners for a local referral, is the fastest way to have a name and number on the fridge before you ever need it.
Fluffed-up posture for hours, tail-bobbing while breathing, sitting on the cage floor, sudden quietness, a drop in appetite or droppings, or any weight loss are red flags in a species built to hide illness — when in doubt, call the vet rather than wait and watch.
Plan on roughly $75–$200 for a routine annual wellness exam, plus a cushion for the unexpected — a bird this long-lived will eventually need diagnostics or treatment, and budgeting for it up front is part of responsible Grey ownership.
The families who never face a hard choice in an emergency are the ones who quietly set aside a little each month — we suggest treating a Grey's vet fund the way you would any other long-term, four-decade commitment.
The husbandry is the same — diet, lighting, enrichment, and vet care don't change between the two species — but the size and temperament differences do shape the day-to-day.
A Congo African Grey is larger, needs the bigger end of every cage and perch spec, and tends to be more sensitive to change, while a Timneh is smaller, calmer, and often a more forgiving first bird. Here is how our two Greys line up side by side.
Compare Care · Congo vs Timneh
Here at C.A.Gs we hand-raise both, and neither is harder to care for than the other — the Congo simply needs the larger cage and a steadier routine for its sensitivity, while the calmer Timneh is the gentler introduction for first-time owners. Both get identical diet, UV-B lighting, enrichment, and vet care.
| Feature |  Congo African Grey The classic, dramatic talker |  Timneh African Grey Calmer, earlier to bond |
|---|---|---|
| Species | Psittacus erithacus | Psittacus timneh |
| Size | 12–14 in · 400–600 g | 9–11 in · 275–375 g |
| Tail color | Scarlet red | Maroon / dark crimson |
| Lifespan | 40–60 years | 40–60 years |
| Talking ability | ★★★★★ exceptional | ★★★★☆ excellent, earlier |
| Talking onset | ~12 months | ~4–6 months (earlier) |
| Temperament | Confident, dramatic | Calmer, steadier |
| Best for | Experienced owners | First-time owners |
| Price (from C.A.Gs) | $1,700–$2,500 | $1,500–$1,600 |
| Available now | Roys · Amie · Bery · Jins/Jeni | Elad · Evie |
| PCR DNA sexed | Yes | Yes |
| CITES docs | Appendix I, captive-bred | Appendix I, captive-bred |
This Week's Aviary
Every Congo and Timneh African Grey we hand-feed here at C.A.Gs is PCR DNA-sexed, examined by a board-certified avian vet, CITES Appendix I-documented, and fully weaned at 12–16 weeks — and each one goes home on the exact diet and routine this guide describes, with lifetime support from Mark & Teri.
Baby Boy Midland, TX
Male · 4 mo · Congo African Grey
"Energetic, curious, and impossible to ignore."
Hand-raised male, 4 months old. Thrives in a lively home where there's always something to watch.
Ships nationwide · $185 airport · $350 home
New Arrival Midland, TX
Female · 3 mo · Congo African Grey
"She mimics your laugh before you finish it."
Premium hand-raised female, 3 months old. Full social training. Responds to her name already.
Ships nationwide · $185 airport · $350 home
Best Value Midland, TX
Female · 1 yr · Congo African Grey
"Gentle, easy, and the bird first-time owners dream of."
Soft temperament, easy to handle. 1-year-old female — personality fully developed, ready to bond.
Ships nationwide · $185 airport · $350 home
Timneh Midland, TX
Male · 5 mo · Timneh African Grey
"Smaller bird. Bigger personality than you expected."
Hand-raised male Timneh African Grey, 5 months old. Full social training. Ready to go home.
Ships nationwide · $185 airport · $350 home
Timneh Midland, TX
Female · 6 mo · Timneh African Grey
"Calm, clever, and ready to come home."
Hand-raised female Timneh African Grey, 6 months old. Full social training. Gentle and sociable.
Ships nationwide · $185 airport · $350 home
Must-Go Pair Midland, TX
Pair · 4–6 mo · Congo African Grey
"Two birds, one bond. They go together — and so do you."
Unrelated pair, must be adopted together. Jins (male, 6mo) + Jeni (female, 4mo). Both hand-raised with full social training.
Ships nationwide · $185 airport · $350 home
Raised, not just soldEvery chick we place is hand-reared on the exact routine this guide describes. Join the list and reserve one before it goes public.
Care Questions
A healthy African Grey eats a base of 60–80% formulated pellets (Harrison's or Zupreem Natural), plus fresh vegetables — dark leafy greens, bell peppers, and orange veg like sweet potato and carrot for vitamin A — and only limited fruit. Never feed avocado, onion, garlic, chocolate, caffeine, alcohol, or fruit pits, all of which are toxic. We send every C.A.Gs bird home on the exact diet it is already eating to prevent digestive stress.
The minimum cage for a single Congo African Grey is 36" W × 24" D × 48" H with ¾"–1" bar spacing — narrower traps toes, wider traps the head. A Timneh can use a slightly smaller cage. Use stainless steel, never zinc-coated or painted bars, and bigger is always better for a bird that forages up to 12 hours a day.
An African Grey needs 3–4 hours of direct interaction and supervised out-of-cage time every day. They are intensely social, and chronic loneliness or boredom is the leading cause of feather-destructive behavior. A second bird does not replace human time — both birds still need individual attention.
Yes — we strongly recommend it. African Greys are prone to hypocalcemia (low blood calcium), and they need vitamin D3 to absorb the calcium they eat. A full-spectrum UV-B bird lamp on a 10–12 hour cycle, mounted within 12–18 inches of a perch and replaced every 6–12 months, lets a Grey synthesise D3 indoors. We raise our Greys with UV-B lighting and D3 support so this routine is already familiar.
Offer a bath two to three times a week — a shallow dish, a gentle mist with plain lukewarm water, or a perch in the shower. African Greys produce powder down (fine white feather dust), and regular bathing keeps that dander down, supports healthy feathers, and discourages over-preening. Skip soaps and additives; plain water is all a Grey needs.
African Greys are not the easiest first parrot — they are sensitive to change, can develop phobias, and have complex emotional needs. A prepared first-time owner can absolutely succeed, but of the two species the calmer, earlier-talking Timneh African Grey is a gentler starting point than the more reactive Congo.
Properly cared-for African Grey parrots commonly live 40 to 60 years, and some documented birds reach 70+. This is a genuine multi-decade, lifetime commitment — many owners name a guardian for their Grey in their estate documents. We talk every buyer through that reality before placement.
Feather plucking in African Greys is most often behavioral — boredom, loneliness, stress, or a disrupted routine — but it can also be medical, including low calcium, vitamin-A deficiency, skin infection, or disease such as PBFD. Because Greys hide illness, any new plucking warrants an avian-vet workup first, then a review of enrichment, sleep, diet, and out-of-cage time.
Yes. African Greys are prey animals that mask illness until it is advanced, so an annual wellness exam with an avian-certified veterinarian — CBC, gram stain, and weight check — is essential, not optional. Every C.A.Gs Grey also leaves with a board-certified avian-vet health certificate dated within 10 days of travel.
Still deciding? Bringing one of our Greys home is a 40–60-year commitment we walk every buyer through, and if you want the full picture before you commit, our complete African Grey guide and guide to avoiding parrot scams cover everything this care guide doesn't.
Ready When You Are
Every Grey from C.A.Gs is hand-raised on this exact routine, fully weaned, PCR DNA-sexed, avian-vet certified, and placed with full CITES Appendix I documentation — never wild-caught.
Tell us about your home and which Grey caught your eye in the form below, and Mark or Teri will reply within 24 hours. Already comparing the two species? Our Congo Greys and Timneh Greys are both ready to meet you.
We review every application. Expect a response within 24 hours.
