So I got the chance to talk with that breeder last night. I don't know if I just had my expectations set too high or what, but I was kind of disappointed overall.
I wrote the email explaining that I wanted an outgoing bird who wanted to be with me and would tolerate my attempts at training tricks. It seemed to me that the breeder was more concerned with what color her new baby will turn out to be than what his temperament will be like.
She pretty much told me that there is no way to get an idea for how their personalities will develop, even during the later stages of handfeeding. She also told me that she wouldn't hold a bird to figure out it's personality unless I put a deposit down, which I understand.
I guess I went into it like I was shopping for a puppy and maybe that's just the wrong way to approach a bird breeder? She did say that overall her GCC's are very sweet, very people orientated and really want to be with people. She also warned about the nippy phase, which I appreciated. She had just sold two GCC's to a different breeder and that breeder said they were the sweetest GCC's they've met, so that's something too.
Is this normal for a bird breeder? Did I have my expectations set too high? Am I going to have to risk putting a deposit down on a 3 week old baby and just forfeit it if they turn out to be an ass? I did find a few more breeders in the cities that I'm going to contact, but I don't want to go into it as blindsided as I felt this time.