BirdChannel Forum / BirdChannel Community / Misc. Bird Talk

Random

Erines11 — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 11:12:15 GMT

Okay have you ever had a random thought bout your birds and not want to open up a whole topic cause you think it s kinda silly to open up a whole topic? Well I have I know i am probably crazy and maybe some of you guys havent but i have. lol so I thought this topic could be random things bout your birds. Like ill start.

I finally figured out what cheerio means when she puts her foot up. She wants out of her cage so shes "stepping up" on the air lol.

Mystic and cheerio are getting a long better. they where sitting on my fingers one on each hand. Though cheerio did try to bite mystics toe but it wasnt agressive more like oo... my mouth can fit around that i think. They didnt make contact to eachother though.

So now you guys can share those things you dont want to start whole topics about if you want. Just a random though I had.

Suprise!!!

Conure — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 21:06:31 GMT

When Dax and Tuvok first met, they tried to kill each other. I wasn't paying lose enough intention, and I didn't think that they would actually hurt each other. They've had several other encounters. They totally hate each. So when I walked into my room and saw Dax in Tuvok's cage, my heart stopped. I started to freak out before I took a closer look. Dax had her head on Tuvok's chest, and Tuvok was preening the back of her neck! They were cuddling! I was so happy! What do you think could have made 2 birds hate each other - and then suddenly adore each other? Hmmmm...

I hope I don't have little Green Cheeked Quakers running around. Although that would be cute... I'm kidding!

Hate to say it...but it looks like we may have to rehome buddy

BirdCrazy — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 12:49:04 GMT

Hey all,

There is a good possibility that we will have to re-home Buddy due to his behavioral problems. We have noticed that he really hates the dogs...but he is starting to become aggressive when anybody (doesn't matter who) enters the room he is in, he bites at everyone- most of the time lunging at you, and he's starting to aggressively bite me and my brother. We're giving him awhile longer...but he may have to go. We don't know what else to try to change his behavior! The whole family is at a loss of what to do.

Do any of you guys know any good rescues? I'd like to just be able to re-home him, but he's so aggressive, I don't know how to go about it, and I think it may be best to put him in a rescue setting....but I don't know.

Advice please!

Squirt my big protector

rockybirdlove — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 21:43:53 GMT

I had a leak in my front window so I had to have the maintenance man from my apartments come and redo the dry wall around my window seal,,,I NEVER have really big maintenance problems and my bf usually takes care of the stuff he can do

well Rocky is my little lover he loves every one (I know thats not good cause he can be easily stolen which is why they stay home all the time

But anyways thies 2 guys came in my house and Squirt freaked (he knew tha6t was NOT his daddy) he started flying at their heads and screaming this awful squawk...he was protecting me and so all day Squirt has been getting extra extra love

My sweet baby...you guys probably understand so thought I'ld share

This came to my email

luvmycadillac — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 17:20:14 GMT

I subscribe to very few newsletters but when avianenrichment.com opened up I had to check it out. Anyhow this news letter arrived in my inbox not to long ago and I thought I'd share. Most of what the article is about most of us already know but there is a code at the bottom should you want to purchase something from their site for 10% off so if your looking for perches, full spectrum lighting and so forth you can use the code for the discount.

How to Keep your Exotic Bird Healthy, Safe and Warm this Winter

The winter months are upon us and they present some unique challenges when it comes to keeping our birds healthy and safe. The colder temperatures, lower humidity and shorter days of winter can all negatively impact our bird's health.

Fortunately, although most exotic birds come from warm tropical climates, healthy birds are very capable of adapting to the cooler temperatures we experience in winter. Sudden changes in temperature and drafts are more dangerous than a bird's gradual acclimation to cooler temperatures.

Feathers are a bird's built-in insulators and are the key to their ability to regulate body temperature. Contour feathers overlap like shingles to hold nature's elements at bay and a bird's downy feathers trap air and heat close to their body. Birds who are pluckers are extremely challenged when it comes to regulating their body temperature so extra care must be taken to ensure their environment is controlled. Exposure to extreme temperatures can stress a bird's immune system and make them more susceptible to illness.

Winter also presents the challenge of low humidity, especially in homes with forced air heating systems. Low humidity can lead to dry nasal and breathing passages as well as an increase in dust and dander in the home environment.

As caring bird owners there are several things we can do to ensure our birds remain healthy, safe and comfortable throughout the winter months:

1) Reduce your bird's exposure to drafts by insulating your windows and relocating your bird's cages away from windows, doors and heating ducts.

2) Utilize a cage cover or well fitting blanket over the cage at bedtime.

3) In the wild, many birds will roost in flocks in part to share body heat. Pet birds often enjoy the opportunity to climb into a snuggly tent for shelter and warmth.

4) Birds lose a lot of body heat through their feet. Thermal perches are available to keep your bird's feet comfortably warm.

5) Use a bird safe space heater to keep your bird room warm. Be sure to avoid using fuel burning heaters due to the potential for fire as well as heaters with toxic Teflon coatings.

6) Bird safe heat lamps are a great way to focus heat on your bird's cage but be sure to keep them out of your bird's reach.

7) Fireplaces can pose a smoke hazard which is especially dangerous for a bird's very sensitive respiratory system. Never leave fires unattended and utilize smoke detectors in your house.

8) To combat the effect of lower humidity we suggest you utilize a humidifier and give your bird daily misting baths or showers each morning so that they have the warmth of the day to dry.

9) Daylight hours are much shorter in the winter months and this has an impact on the biological cycles of our birds. We recommend using full spectrum lighting in your bird room to maintain and promote your bird's health.

10) In the winter we typically keep all of our doors and windows shut which means our houses are poorly ventilated. As a result fumes from cleaners, candles and body care products have no where to go. Be sure to limit the use of unnecessary chemicals and choose only bird safe cleaners and candles for use in your house.

We wish you all a very Happy New Year !

Sincerely,

The Avian Enrichment staff
AvianEnrichment.com

For more information, check out our related articles and products at AvianEnrichment.com:


Avian Enrichment Articles ● All About Feathers ● Temperature - The Hot and the Cold of It ● Humidity ● On the Bright Side - The Benefit of Light ● Hush-bye Birdie, in the Tree Top ● Controlling Feather Dust ● Rub-a-Dub-Dub, Birdie in a Tub ● Selecting Bird Safe Household Cleaners	Thermal Perches	Snugglies

	Bird Safe Candles	Bird Safe Cleaners

	Cage Covers	Heat Lamps

	Bath Time	Full Spectrum Lighting

Join Our Mailing List!

Save 10%	Special winter savings ! Enter the following coupon code at checkout to receive a 10% discount on your order: AEJAN09 More good news! This coupon is transferable so be sure to share this email with fellow bird owners who may benefit from this offer as well as the indepth information at www.avianenrichment.com
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www.Bird.com

angelicarboreals — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 14:40:58 GMT

I have a week until school starts back, and because I am scared to leave the house until Harley gets a green light from the vet that he will be okay, I got online and did a little birdy shopping today.

I absolutely LOVE www.bird.com and their prices on bird toys. I spent $120 today and got 32 toys for the birds. I am not even sure I could make toys myself for that cheap! I cannot wait until they get here, I love rearranging the bird's cages.

Just wanted to pass this along in case anyone else is interested in a little bargain birdy shopping.

Learn From My Mistake

angelicarboreals — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 19:07:55 GMT

Before I start my story I want to get two things across- first, I spent alot of time beating myself up over this so any outside scrutinizing is not needed. I want to share my story for those of us who may get too comfortable with our bird keeping skills and forget that accidents can and will happen. I got lucky for several reasons, but I will explain as I go. This will be long, so bear with me.

It has taken me two days to post my story, as I had to realize that what happened was not intentional on my part and had to become brave enough to admit that I was in the wrong, even though it was accidental. I have also had to deal with taking care of an injured bird.

On Friday night my boyfriend and I went out to dinner, leaving the fids at home in their cages. We were gone for four hours, we decided to run some errands as well, and as soon as I walked into the door I headed straight for the bird room to spend some time with the birds. As soon as I walked through the door I knew something was wrong- there was a weird silence in the air, and there were feathers and food scattered everywhere outside of Harley's cage.

At first glance I did not realize what was wrong. It simply looked like he was sitting on his perch, holding his toy and had had tons of fun while we were gone, making a mess of his cage. However, when I got closer I realized that he was stuck and all the mess was from him trying to free his too long toenail, which had gotten stuck in a metal piece in his homemade bird toy (not made by me, came with him when I got him). It took me several minutes to free him, I had no idea how long he had been like that and I had to scream to get my boyfriend in there to help hold him and the toy so we could untangle the two. He was of course scared and possibly hurt, and we had no idea how bad it was until we got him out and saw that he could not put any weight on that leg at all.

I knew he had been needing a toenail trim for the past few weeks. I had tried doing it myself, but he hated anyone touching his nails, and would readily bite if I tried. I had planned on taking him to the vet before we left and got sidetracked, and last week was all about getting home and unpacking and resting. Little did I know that a simple nail trim would have saved me from the nightmare I was about to endure. I was crying inconsolably as I held Harley in a towel in one arm and dialed my vet's number with the other. I keep the vet's number posted in the bird room for emergencies, but never expected to use it. This was around eight at night.

I knew that my avian vet shared an office with several other vets and that they had a 24 hour emergency service. What I was not aware of, however, is that he is the only doctor in the office avian certified and that he only worked certain days on 24 hour call. So, when I called, there was a vet on call but he was not qualified to deal with birds. I was given another number to call (not 24 hour) and ended up trying to google bird vets in the Nashville area holding Harley, who I was not still sure was even going to be okay. After calling eight vets in the Nashville area, all of which were either closed, or were 24 hour emergency service but did not see birds I gave up and did the only thing I knew to do.

I called the University of Knoxville Vet Hospital, where I took my birds when I lived in Knoxville. They are one of the only exotic vet schools in the country, and I knew that they had a 24 hour emergency service that would see birds. By this time I had wasted thirty minutes calling everywhere I knew to get Harley seen, and Harley had fell asleep in my arms from complete exhaustion from his ordeal. I explained what had happened and told them I was driving up that night. This was a three hour drive from my house, but I could not wait any longer.

Several hours and $200 lighter, Harley left the vet with the diagnosis of a possibly sprained leg and I was sent home with a newly toenail clipped limping Amazon and a prescription of pain medicine. He has to go back to the vet on Friday (my normal vet) to be reexamined. Until then, he is confined to a clear rubbermaid container and limited movement. I am lucky because he has improved since Friday and is getting back to being his normal self. I have not left his side since this happened, and have caught myself beating myself up several times mentally for the ordeal.

It could have been worse, the vet said that he could have broken his leg and would have had to been put to sleep in order to Xray his leg to know where and how to fix it .However, it was my procrastination that got us into this in the first place, and I hope that maybe my story will save another bird from being injured. I just am so thankful that it happened while I was in town and my boyfriend was home as he helped calm me down.

My advice to everyone is two fold: don't procrastinate if it has anything to do with the health and safety of your birds, and make sure that you are aware of your vet's hours before you need them in an emergency. They may advertise being 24 hours, but may not have an avian certified vet there 24 hours.

The one good thing that has come out of this is that Harley apparently knows how to say alot more than he has been letting on, and since being given the privilege of sleeping in my bedroom he has become quite the talker, saying many things I never knew he could say.

cockatiel description

rockybirdlove — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 20:49:21 GMT

cause we all know what a cockatiel is but I thought when it said about thieir voice how the first thing was LOUD I thought was amuzing cause my boys are loud but I love them just the same

Adult male

Size: L 12.5"

Description: Common in captivity and often escapes, but as yet there are no stable feral populations.

This is an Old World parrot.

Voice: Loud, clear whistles.

Notes: This guide covers 28 species of parrots that are sometimes seen in the wild in North America. Other species of parrots seen regularly in recent years but not established include Senegal Parrot, Patagonian Conure, Green-cheeked Parakeet, Orange-fronted Parakeet, Orange-chinned Parakeet, Red-shouldered Macaw, and several species of large macaws. Parrots are long-lived, and a single release or series of releases may create a local population that persists for many years without ever reproducing in the wild.

squirty the big bird

rockybirdlove — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 12:08:20 GMT

he is soo funny and this is a new thing he is doing

I will ask him show me how big you are? amd he squats down and spreads his wings as big as he can it is so cute thought I would share

Anyone feed their Fids grapes?

conure_mama — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 16:14:37 GMT

I was just curious if anyone feeds their fids grapes? I know grapes & rasins can be very toxic to dogs. I just wanted to know if they were ok to feed to Sunny before I give them to him!

Holy Moly!

birdlover76 — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 20:33:13 GMT

She is only 10 1/2 weeks old!!!! Starburst has learned "No" and it is quite clear. With 7 birds in the house, and a teenager, I guess we say that often. Well, she tells us "no" and at appropriate times, too. She is working on "I love you", "hellOOO", and "Hungry". I have a feeling that "I love you" will get her lots of attention from daddy, so will be the next words. LOL!

It is amazing what you can learn...

_Bird_Lover_ — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 13:38:45 GMT

On Saturday, my family had a big new year's party at our home. We invited a lot of people from our church over, including some people who were our neighbors before we moved to the country (The neighbors have 3 kids around me & my sibling's ages). When they saw my parrots, they got all excited--I came to learn that they were once english budgie breeders--they bred and handfed show quality ones (now maybe I can learn how to handfeed--yeah!)! They had a red lored amazon, a senegal, sun conure, cockatiels, and a couple of other species. What is strange is that I have known these people for over half of my life, and I never once knew that they owned parrots! Unfortunately, after their first daughter was born the parrots started developing unwanted behaviors due to lack of attention--the sun started screaming and the amazon started attacking. So they made the hard decision to find them new homes. They shared with me that as soon as their youngest leaves the house that they are getting a Moluccan Cockatoo. I wish I still lived near them!

My husband asked....

luvmycadillac — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 11:46:31 GMT

My husband just asked as I was cleaning Cadillac's cage the following

"Why doesnt he have to move his jaw when he speaks"

I dont have an answer.. So I turn to you to answer the question or research it on the internet because I am to lazy to do it

Weekly Member Spotlight -- ladyhawke50

Pepper's Pa — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 04:35:59 GMT

Username: Ladyhawke50

Species and the names of the birds currently under your care: U2, GCC, Fischer Lovebird

When did you first share your life with a bird (year, bird species, how or why you chose this first bird)? 1956,it was a green Budgie that was outside in a tree and my grandpa and I caught him with a cracker on my sixth birthday. It was the best birthday gift that ever came to me. My grandpa ran out and got me a cage and food and the bird lived with our family in an open cage environment until he passed when I was 15.

Of your current birds, which have you been caring for the longest and for how long? Fergie the U2, since 2002, my 20-year-old male tiel passed this year, so it's hard to forget he is no longer with the family.

How did your current companion birds enter your life (purchase, adoption, rescue)? I have always wanted a Cockatoo, and started looking to rescue one. The more I delved into Cockatoos and rescuing the more I was determined to give an unwanted Too a home. It was the right time in my life to do this. Echo came as an adoption from friends that were moving and felt that their small children were not working out well with Echo.

What is it that makes a companion bird special to you? To me, all birds are special, wild or companion parrots. I never tire of watching and sighting wild birds. All animals are special but no other companion animal can fly to you, talk to you, carry a tune and dance with you but a parrot. Their communication level and interaction is very special with their humans.

How do you observe your fids sharing his or her bond with you? Fergie manipulates and requires human interaction to build a bond. She observes what we do and refines her responses/reactions to get what she needs or wants from us. Once she trusts a reaction from us she expands on it especially if it brings her attention and interaction from us. Currently she is using her singing skills to bring me to the cage, because she knows I love to sing with her.... so she is refining her parrot singing to persuade me to give her the attention she needs. She is abandoning the unwanted screaming for the singing.
Echo is pretty self sufficient in comparison to Fergie. She has a special screech that is a call to me to get her on my body as she loves to hitch hike around the house with me when I am doing chores. She also is joining in with Fergie’s singing and dancing, she bobs her head and clicks her tongue to music and dances back and forth. Echo likes acrobatic time and good food so she was easy to bond with. Echo does not trust most people so if you get near her cage she will not allow most people to interact unless she is away from the cage. She also knows I ignore her bites so they also have lessened as she has bonded with my son and me. With both of them time has built trust.
My Fischer lovie was not hand raised and the best bond I can make with her is her taking a grape from my hand.

What is your favorite activity to share with your fids? Singing and dancing. I bought a nursery rhyme CD and the simple words and tune seem to really get their attention. Fergie loves music with a heavy beat, she responds immediately. I sometimes feel like a kindergarten teacher with my fids with all the singing and dancing. Currently with Echo we are helping her to use her wings and fly with the lovie. They have bonded so monkey see monkey do. Just this month she has taken to solo flying to me when I call her.

What’s your favorite part about being a member of this message board? For me at first, it was somewhere to find out answers to my questions, so I lurked on here for a long while. And when I realized that everyone was sharing the same problems and I wasn't the only one with poop cleaning issues, food problems or screaming issues... I decided to join. I needed a friendly place to get support and talk about my fids. My friends didn't have a clue, so talking to them was useless. And talking to my vet was costly. LOL Even though my vet helped me immensely with Fergie he really didn't want to talk about the best way to clean poop off, or a good food mixture for a picky Too. I saw Peppers Pa's link to his Sennie and living with his Sennie and I thought this is the day-to-day things that I need to know, and that what I am experiencing is normal right down to the biting. So I joined.

If your fids’ diets include pellets, what brand or brands do you provide? Roudybush for Fergie, ZuPreem for the little fids.

What are your fids’ favorite fruits or vegetables to eat? Raspberries, apples, carrots, sweet potatoes, grapes, romaine lettuce, sprouts, peaches. Fergie will eat none of it unless disguised in a "gloop". Maybe a slice of apple or one grape raw. She is a horrible eater. The little fids love anything I give them.

What behavior have you learned to observe that tells you when you might be bitten if you reach for your fid? Fergie can be a lunge bitter when hormonal and I go to take her out of her cage. She also has a way of looking at you sideways and her head is down low that could signal a bad chomping. Its usually also during hormone times. And it comes out of nowhere. Also a good chunking can occur when she is highly active and wound up. Echo has a distinctive way of puffing up and standing real tall and chasing the person away from her cage.

If you could meet all the requirements for its care, what companion bird would you choose to add to your flock? Why? I would choose more lovies because they are just so darn industrious and fun to have in the home. Because I have my forever Cockatoo I am very happy with having her in my life. My husband would choose a CAG, he is in love with their communication skills. My son likes all conures. I do have a slight enchantment toward Hawk-Headed Parrots and White-Capped Pionus.

What is one suggestion you can share that you think is most helpful in providing for the needs of your fids? Do everything with a lot of patience and compassion.

Barbie, Fergie, Echo and Little Ham

bird ID needed

beardiedawg — Sat, 03 Jan 2009 09:42:22 GMT

On a wild bird board that I am on, we're trying to identify this parrot seen as part of a "wild" flock at the Los Angeles Arboretum in Arcadia, CA. Any ideas?

I laugh every time!

Bilbo_Misty — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 11:45:23 GMT

OKay, so ya'll seen the pix of Cooper on my computer. Right now ALL of my fids are on it, watching me play BC. They like watching me scroll the page up and down. All four of them had their butts in the air, and heads down, watching me. SO then I put the mouse pointer up by them, and ALL of em started to bite at it, and trying to get it off the screen! I have to laugh every time, cuz they don't know they can't get it!

FID COMPETITION!!!!!

macawlover2 — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 19:09:34 GMT

Future Aviculturist and I have noticed that there has been quite a bit of tension here on the board (sorry, some of that is me. I'll try to learn how to bite my tounge more often), so we are hosting a fid competition to make things happier again! For those of you who haven't done one of these before, here are the rules:

Choose from the list of categories to enter a picture of your bird in, and on Saturday, either Future Aviculturist or I will post all of the entries up in a poll for people to vote upon. Whichever birds get the most votes for each department win!
When placing entries, please place your bird's name and which category its picture is being entered in.
You can enter only one bird per category (so people with more birds won't have an advantage over a single department), but you can enter the same bird in multiple categories!
You can enter each picture in only one category. For example, you can't take a single picture of your bird and say "I'm entering this picture into ALL of the categories!"

The categories for this contest are (and you don't have to enter all of these, just the ones you want to):

Most Beautiful Fid
Most Photogenic Fid
Sweetest Pair
Smartest Fid
Messiest Fid
Naughtiest Fid
Cutest Fid
Fiercest Fid
Funniest Fid Picture

---------------------------------------------------------------------

I'll start.

Oscar, Smartest Fid:

News on Starburst!

birdlover76 — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 15:09:11 GMT

She took her first flight today! We are so proud of her and she is so proud of herself. We have to let her get good at it before we can clip the wings. Many people don't know this: baby birds instinctively stop eating, or greatly reduce how much they eat, in order to lose weight so they can fly. If you clip the wings prematurely, the baby may become malnourished due to not eating enough. The babies think they are too heavy to fly. So she will not get a wing clip for a week or two and will be given every safe opportunity to master her flight skills first.

Weekly Member Spotlight

Pepper's Pa — Sat, 03 Jan 2009 19:53:09 GMT

In an effort to help continue to build and develop our feeling of being a friendly and supportive group here, we will begin having a “Weekly Member Spotlight”. It is hoped that this will allow us to gain even a better insight about our members, what has guided them to a love of companion birds, and some of the reasons they have been successful with the care of their birds. Each week, a different member will have their profile posted. The first profile will be posted this Monday, on January 5th.

Here are the details about the “Weekly Member Spotlight”:

Members will be selected for sharing their profile by first their participation category (Feather Fanatic first, Big Talker second, etc) and then the specific order by “pulling names from a hat”. Only members who added posts in the thirty days prior to the solicitation of information would be included.

Information will be solicited in advance and members are free to choose to participate in this sharing and what they choose to share. A few of the questions asked are to help other members with providing the best care they can for their fids.

All the “Feather Fanatic” members fitting the criteria have received a survey. Those members wishing to participate have returned their survey. "Big Talker" members will be invited to participate in this when a survey is sent to them in early February.

We hope this activity will be fun, interesting and possibly helpful to you.

Competition Voting- Cutest Fid and Funniest Fid picture

macawlover2 — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 15:57:27 GMT

Cutest Fid Entries:

Sunny

Little Whinging

Byrd

The Christmas Angel aka Beep

Lieutenent Dax

Pearly

Sydney

Marisol

Baby Red

Cali and Noel (sorry I have to combine these two into one because of limited Poll Answers I can put in)

Funniest fid picture entries:

Peanut

Chili

Yoshi

Orrin

Fawkes

For Cutest fid, you may vote for 2. For Funniest fid picture, only one!

Newquakermomma, Erines11, Honey_Bunches_Of_Oats, and Zimbasmom, I'm so sorry but your pictures didn't show up for me! If you send them again, I'll try to add them.

Competition Voting- Sweetest Pair and Naughtiest

macawlover2 — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 15:45:41 GMT

Sweetest pair entries:

Shafttails

LittleRainbowBird and Sunny

Sydney & Penny

Albert and Victoria
.

Taj & Mahal

GCC and Lovie (I don't know their names...)

Kona & Hagrid

Naughtiest fid entries:

Clyde

Mrs. Beasly

Fergie

Tupi

Baby Red

Pocco

Daphne

You may vote for up to 2 in each category!

Competition Voting- Most beautiful and Photogenic

macawlover2 — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 15:22:24 GMT

Most Beautiful Entries:

Babycakes

LittleRainbowBird

Unnamed Gouldian Male

Miah

Cali

Lady

Aries

Most Photogenic entries:

Tuki

Misty

George

Beep

Kito

Apple-Jack

Cali

Go ahead and place your votes! You may pick 2 from each category! If I missed any, please let me know!

Competition Voting- Fierces, smartest, and messiest

macawlover2 — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 15:20:06 GMT

Fiercest Fid Entries:

Oliver

Julio

Cadillac

Buzz

Zuri

Kanye

Smartest Entries:

Oscar

Chico

Orrin

Fawkes

Messiest Fid Entries:

Doby (white one)

Sydney

Tarzan & Jane

Cheerio

Since these don't have as many entries, please only vote for 1 in each category.

homemade bird receipes?

GB — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 08:24:24 GMT

I was wondering if anyone has receipes on how to make calcium blocks for small to medium sized birds? I've seen some people set up at different animal functions with homemade calcium blocks that they made themselves. Understandably, they don't hand out the ingredients and instrutions on how to make them.

New Year's Resolutions for our FIDs

Tucker'sMom — Sat, 03 Jan 2009 10:25:41 GMT

Tucker's New Year's Resolution would be to tease my little sister Haley less (she's 5 going on 6). He likes to sneak up on her when she's not paying attention and then make a move at her just to scare her, not to actually get her. He also wants to try and get over his fear of men. (We're working on that one).

What's your bird's?

Has anyone used Avian Biotech?

birdlover76 — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 16:19:08 GMT

I just ordered collection kits from Avian Biotech to get a blood DNA test on Starburst. I decided that I really would like to know for sure. Has anyone here had experience with them? Good or bad I would like to know.

What?

cloud dancer's mom — Sat, 03 Jan 2009 10:15:04 GMT

Today, Cloud Dancer has announced, loudly, and several times, "I'm a snow cone!" Where do fids come up with words not used around the house? My daughter and I were trying to think where CD might have heard snow cone, not from us and nothing on TV we're aware of. He's come up with several mystery words like that. Do any of you have this experience with mystery words?

How do you all teach your fids not to bite?

conure_mama — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 18:17:21 GMT

Sunny, who is only about 5 1/2 months old, occassionally nips pretty hard. He doesn't do it every time I hold him, but he is doing it more often then I would like. When he sits on my shoulder he'll find my ear and grab it really hard. No matter what I do I can't seem to stop him from doing this. I've tried a time out......and that has worked but not every time. I read some on another site that blowing in their faces will make them stop.....ummmm no that does nothing at all.

Now if I'm trying to get him off my shoulder by telling him to step up and he bites my finger, I gently push into the bite and sometimes that will make him stop and step up. Other times it doesn't. He knows step up and step down, in fact I've heard him trying to say "step up" when I get him out of his cage!

For the most part he is very sweet and loves sitting with me. But what I would like to know is how I should go about his occasional nipping. Any suggestions or techiniques you could share would be very much appreciated!

Stolen B&G Macaw from Petland in central, ny

mamie1019 — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 07:18:25 GMT

I was reading the news this morning and came across some sad and distrubing news that someone has stolen a B&G Macaw from Petland in Cicero, NY. I have gone to that store a few times and have seen and held this macaw. The macaw is very friendly. It would lay on it's back and let you pet it's stomach. It's sad that someone would steal him. I have posted the link down below so anyone can read it.

http://www.9wsyr.com/news/local/story/Exotic-bird-stolen-from-Petland/HGN55hsrT0K94yjq6JK9Uw.cspx

Amy

My Senegal Has This Funny Quirky Thing He Likes To Do

I.C.Feathers — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 08:03:41 GMT

When I take my Senegal up to his sleeping cage for the night he has taken a sudden interest in the walls as we go up the stairs. I have him on a perch when I take him up and he will reach over to the walls (we have hard rough plaster walls--it's an older farmhouse) and try to bite the walls with his beak....but now he seems to like just dragging his beak along the wall as we go up the stairs. Maybe he likes feeling the roughness on his beak or the sound it makes?

It is funny to watch because now he seems to love doing that every night....and if I forget to put him close to the wall he reaches for all he is worth to get to it....crazy bird!

angelicarboreals

luvmycadillac — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 07:13:16 GMT

In regards to the comment about the birds taking their own cages apart........

I cant even find where the bolts are coming from! I look and look and I see nothing. I now have 3 bolts, no screws and I cant find the screws with the missing bolts. I just find bolts at the bottom of his cage during morning poop inspection and paper change

Any suggestions?!

Bruised cere on budgie??

nels2985 — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 12:48:48 GMT

Hi! I am owned by 4 beautiful fids, but my question today is in regards to Suzie, my budgie. She is about 8 months old and her cere was always kind of a light beige color until the past couple of days. Now it's a deep purple, nearly brown actually and it looks like a giant bruise! She seems to be acting just fine and doesn't seem to be in any distress or pain, but it just looks so awful. Do I need to get her to the vet or is it something normal? Sorry if this is a silly question...she's my first budgie. (I'm more comfortable with the macaws if you can believe that!)

Thanks so much for you help!

Angela

Bird safe paint

looniebirds — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 17:10:14 GMT

This spring I'm going to have to paint my room. Any bird safe paint you all can recommend? Anybody ever heard of Milk Paint?

Nail trim ques

motherbird — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 13:10:50 GMT

We just bought the PediPaws nail trimmer for our dog. Has anyone tried it for a parrot nails? I was just wondering before I attempted it...

Strange question about Macaws.

birdlover76 — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 11:23:17 GMT

Does anyone with macaws know why they sometimes give off a musky smell? It is not a bad smell, in fact, it is actually kinda pleasant. Is it because they are happy? I sure hope so! Starburst has started to "make" this odor. I know Amazons have a very pleasant smell that they give off when they are excited or happy. Does anyone know? I tried to google it but didn't get much help there.

Zeno is swinging!

newquakermama — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 11:38:02 GMT

Zeno, my rescue quaker, has finally begun getting on his pretty blue acrylic swing. I attached one of his favorite treats, a honey seed stick with a chain in the inside, on one of the sides. And I put an orange football-shaped toy with holes in it, in which I stick peanuts in, in range of where he sits on the swing. So he's liking the swing.

He seems to be loosening up. He's really liking it when I sing and read to him. I even made up a song about him getting on his pretty new blue swing, and I know he knows what I'm singing about- he'll go over and peck at it when I'm singing that little ditty! He wants to be out of his cage, or at least have the cage door open, the minute I get home.

I am looking forward to setting up his new full-spectrum light he's getting from Bird Paradise. I got a timer and a surge protector for it. I will keep everyone posted when his moods improve.

I am also excited about the flagstone perches I sent for from Bird on the Rocks. I know I wouldn't want to have to stand on my feet every minute of my entire life.

So things are looking up with Zeno. I can't wait for the day he voluntarily comes to me and steps up on my finger!
newquakermama

Happy HD Anni!!!

Kito&TupisMom&Dad — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 04:50:29 GMT

Happy Hatch Day Anni!!!!

K&T MOM

Funny bird moment

Polly — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 14:06:53 GMT

Basically right now I am getting all ready and all pretty to go to a new years party. I finally straightened my hair and then looked in the mirror left and right to make sure all of my hair looks fine then I notice on my black fancy shirt there is something there.....and thats when I discover bird poop on my shoulder! I just thought how funny it would have been if I had been in the party and someone noticed I had it on me! It's something I am so used to yet others without a fid would probably flinch in disgust and walk away from me. Dont worry though....I removed it from me!

Can anyone tell if Sydney is a boy or girl?

_Bird_Lover_ — Sun, 28 Dec 2008 17:11:48 GMT

Okay, okay, I know I have started a topic or two about this subject before. I have written on various bird forums with the same question: is my little Sydney a boy or a girl? So far no one can tell for sure. I'm hoping now that with spring and the breeding season approaching that someone can tell what he really is.

Syd (I've been calling it a he) is over a year old, and he is a recessive pied (the cere pigmentation is different than that of most budgie mutations). My other budgies, Daphne and Penny, are females and have recently developed their brownish, crusty ceres. Sydney's cere, however, stayed whitish. Over the last week or so it has seemed to darken a bit. It almost seems purple-ish around his beak. I'll post some pictures, but they aren't very new (or good... ). I'll get better ones as soon as I can.

I appoligize for the pictures! I'll get some better ones posted here later. Thanks for all of your help!

How do y'all.... (UPDATED)

luvmycadillac — Sun, 28 Dec 2008 13:27:29 GMT

I have seen people post videos of their birds talking,singing and actually moving. How do you get your bird to continue doing this once the camera is on? I want so badly to post a video of Cadillac doing turkey calls but as soon as he see's the camera he shuts up. Also where do you post your videos do you mostly use YouTube I tried to upload a video of my son opening one of his gifts for christmas on youtube and it took forever not sure if my connection was slow or if the whole uploading process is slow....

Click the link its not the video I wanted but man oh man did it take forever to upload a 2 minute 5 second video. I have one of him doing a turkey call and yelling at my son "come here" then barking and telling him RUN RUN (which is what I wanted to post) but I am sooo inpatient

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dJVmJuYGgM