Happy Thanksgiving!

A little late.......

The chickens are grateful for the compost. 

Accidentally got them in this photo, but you have to look hard.

(lower middle-left, bits of white)

(ok, so they are hidden well- does not change their love for compost!)

If you visit, Kipperkites will steal your stuff 

(like the hat she is on) for her naps.

She will pretty much ignore you otherwise. 

Except to try and steal your food if she is awake.

The dogs can only nap after you leave, though.

They are always so excited to have new people.

You would think I just ignored them all the time,

for how excited they are over guests.

It leaves them exhausted when the guests depart.

Just a Note

Hopefully everyone that is celebrating a holiday this weekend has a good one. I have some family coming over today, but since so many here are hormonal, I do not think they will appreciate the company. I suppose that is only fair, since the company is unlikely to enjoy the parrots, either. I will be well satisfied if there are no casualties, and everyone leaves with all digits, noses, and without the need to use an ear trumpet. The little things in life, folks, that is all you need.

Oh well. I think I will make them a special treat, some banana-pumpkin bread, and that they certainly will enjoy. After all, can you expect them to be at optimum annoyance on regular food? No, not at all, not at all.

Also, I was happy this week to be asked for permission to re-print one of my previous posts at the new blog by Elaine Radford, peachfront, so maybe my post in its "new- larger size!" audience it will help someone, or at least that is my hope!

Valentine's Day contest for African Grey girls!

I have talked about Oliver's Garden Bird Toys before, a parrot toy store run by a friend of mine, Susan. Anyone who has looked through Susan's website knows that she is not only very creative (her toys are all handmade and quite original!) but also has an incredible sense of what parrots like. Anyone that has talked to Susan also knows how much fun she is! So naturally, owing to the former knowledge, any contest she holds with her toys as prizes is something I am very interested in. And owing to the latter knowledge, I know that any contest she holds will be unlike any other. So it is with the contest she is currently holding on her Facebook fan page, (you can also enter via the email on her website) in which she, or rather Oliver, her African Grey, is looking for his true love by making his own little black book. Any and all female greys, Congo or timneh, are welcome to enter with their picture, location, and a brief write-up about themselves. As the prize, Susan is making a dowry for Oliver's choice- a drawing will take place on Valentines Day, and the dowry already includes a platform perch, a new toy called Dinner 4-2, and a rescue rope, and Susan has said if she gets more entrants she will add more to the dowry. However, Oliver is looking for 50 girls for his book, and so far he only has 32! Anyone out there with a lonely grey girl to introduce? I know Oliver (and Susan!) would love to hear from you!

Reflection for the New Year

I do not often write too much about myself specifically on this blog. I am a rather private person, quite frankly. But these past few years have been rather hard for all of us here. My health deterioted drastically, and my MCS became much worse. I had to move around several times, but never had a very healthy place for myself to live. Each place I got worse in, and had to move on to another in a continual downward cycle. Often I was unable to walk, and for 8 months I could not even hold my head up on my own. For a while I lived in a stripped, cleaned, and remodeled Airstream. It has been hard. I was without many of the things people in this country take for granted, and I am not even including my health in that statement. In the Airstream I did not have indoor plumbing and no hot water unless I boiled it myself. Although it is hard for people with no experience with MCS to imagine, our modern world is full of chemicals, many of which could have easily killed me, very quickly. I did not live like that by choice. I was not able to be around very much, even things like magazines were a problem. I could only see a very, very few people, countable on one hand, the only members of my family able or willing to get fully unscented and non-toxic, so to speak. Obviously, even for a somewhat loner like myself with a wonderful flock of parrots, a dog, and with access to the internet (most of the time....), that isolation takes a  a serious tole. It does not help that I am not very good at translating internet aquaintances into real friends, a fact which makes one feel even more isolated. Combine that with having a severe illness (I have no memory of ever being without pain, but these last few years have been trying even for me) and constantly having to watch for something that can end it all in a few minutes leads to one nasty stew.

Still...............

There were many things I gained from all that. Living in the Airstream in many ways could almost feel like a privilege. On the edge of the woods, with a wild field in front and beside me, I felt almost part of the landscape, and the local wildlife seemed to accept me as such. Windows in airstreams are low enough that when an animal is right outside, they really are right next to you. And I was fortunate to live in an area with abundant wildlife, from black bears, coyotes, and foxes, to eagles, osprey, and owls, song birds of all types, insect life of incredible variety, deer, the most adorbale bob white families, and all manner of smaller mammals. On top of that, being someone that already valued simplicity and disliked waste, I found it a useful experience to live without so much. It really is possible. 

Throughout most of this I had my parrots with me. I was fortunate enough to have some wonderful family members to help me look after them when I was unable to give them all, or even any, of their care. No, they were not kept in the standards I hold, but they did get my very basics (good food, toys, etc), and we stayed together. Although there were periods some had to be moved into smaller cages, they were in their big cages for much of the time, even in the airstream, which had little else besides cages! Through all this, I was rather amazed, although I felt like we had a good bond before, just how much of a flock we became. It truly shows how incredible parrots are. They all become so conscious of one another, and even more so of me. I am including Gwen in this statement, as my cat stayed with my sister through these many transitions. Even Chester, who formerly hated birds, particularly the little ones, has become rather attached to them, protective. They all talk to each other alot. We all got through it together.

This time last year I was testing a new place to live, and stayed there for 2 months, hopeful that it would work out, although in the end it did not. It was a long way away, and the trip was horrendous, so I am very glad I survived. My parrots were unable to be with me then, so they stayed, again, with my darling sister. Being away from them was quite hard, and according to my sis, they were none to happy with the situation, either. Fortunately, she is quite patient and understood their pain.

I say this all now in my new house. My new safe house. My new safe house in the mountains, with plenty of fresh air surrounding me. I have a beautiful view, and lovely yard, and am surrounded on three sides by woods with a huge and absolutely storybook perfect cow pasture in front. My closest neighbors are extremely nice, into animal rescue, and totally unscented. All of my parrots are here with me, and loving their new life. I cannot believe I made it, and I feel so fortunate. Obviously, my plans for the best possible captive parrot environment (in a home, I mean) are huge. They are slow going, but we will ge there. But more importantly, after being here several months, I am already so much better, and with my new treatment and program, hope to be far better very soon. I can do so much more, and really give my parrots what I want them to have. For one thing, they all have room to fly here, even Miss Claudia!

Since coming here I have adopted a starving English Shepherd puppy. And against my initial better judgement (which turned out to be false, for once) a wonderful African Grey, whom I will introduce soon. I hope to start fostering again soon as well. In fact, one of the people who worked on the house, before I came here, is rather desperate for me to take their cockatoo. My MCS is getting better, and I hope to be going places and seeing people more. And I just cannot say thanks enough for all of this, and most importantly, for my parrots and dear Gwen. I would not be here without them, and although they seem content enough just being with me, I feel obliged to make it up to them as well as I can. Being part of a such a flock (and who knew there could be such a close band of such a group of misfits from different continents and animal kingdoms?) is truly amazing.

So, here's to 2012. I hope the rest of you have as much good luck in this next year as I have had in this one!

Happy Holidays!

My tree! I use a dead tree branch due to my sensitivity to fir/pine trees,

but I think it is sooo pretty!

There are a million and one things that can be dangerous to your parrots during the Holidays, and another million that can be upsetting to them. Plus, if your parrots are anything like mine, they are already planning a million ways to cause trouble over the Holidays. In the first category are fragrances, perfume, and candles, to cooking incidents with non-stick cookware, to toxic plants, like poinsettias, to toxic decorations (many vinyl trees still have lead) and a whole host of other things to think about. In the second category, there is the stress of all the changes in the appearance of the house, possible cage moves, parties, people visiting, changes in schedule, and the prospect of being shunned after destroying someones brand new 32 HD flat screen tv by chewing through the cord and knocking the whole item off the table in the ensuing scramble. In the last category, I am sure some of things your parrots may be considering are-- 1. sneaking a large amount unhealthy food and becoming deathly ill at approximately two in the morning on Christmas Eve, 2. telling your Great Aunt Polly exactly what they think of her name and her dietary habits (cracker, anyone?), and 3.  screaming non-stop through your family meal. Oh, and there was that incident with the tv, too. Not to mention knocking several ornaments off the tree.

So now, if you have somehow survived that diatribe of disturbing events and implications without  hyperventilating, passing out, eating far too much of your chosen item (my mom prefers chocolate) becoming hysterical and ranting all over the house, or perhaps having a heart attack, I commend you. Personally, I have always had quiet Christmases, but I know that is not the case for many people.

In the end, remember that this is a time to have fun. It will end soon, so enjoy it, and encourage your parrots to enjoy it in their own way. If you are new to birds, start some new traditions involving them, such as watching holiday specials together, learning Jingle Bells, or taking them with you in their carrier to see the Christmas lights, provided you do not open your windows and let in all the gas fumes and cold air. I see nothing wrong with letting your parrots have treats on the holidays that they would never have the rest of the year, although  I firmly believe some things like cookies and anything fried should never be offered. Obviously keep anything toxic well away from them, because those items are not only dangerous but also are often quiet coveted.

I have my dog biscuit dough chilling in the fridge, and have been saving a bag of Avian Organics bird bannock for their Christmas morning feast. Miss Kipp-kipp will be getting some new catnip toys I will make. I am hoping to get some things hung in the ceiling for them this weekend, as well, so they can finally have hanging gym fun here. So, in the end, (despite the loss of your new tv,) I hope everyone has as wonderful a Holiday as I hope too, whichever holiday(s) they celebrate!


P.S. I could not think of a really good topic for the Holiday post, and so queried my family for ideas. As you can see, I got nothing. Unless you count the exasperated suggestion that I tell everyone to go find/buy/adopt some ekkies, both male and female, and hang them around the house as they match the traditional holiday decor so perfectly. Mmmmm, not quite what I was looking for.

Happy Easter!

To everyone that celebrates it, I hope you had a wonderful Easter! And hopefully neither you nor your birds got sick on either eggs or candy! Particularly the candy in the birds' case, as any candy is too much for a parrot. And for the egg issue, while I usually limit my birds' egg consumption to one or two appropriate-for-the-parrot-size servings a week, whether that is alone, or spread out in a treat like birdie bread, (see this Easter post from a few years ago) I think Easter is one time when a bit extra egg won't hurt! I keep thinking it would be a wonderful foraging experience to give the larger parrots a whole egg and let them crack it themselves, but I don't want to give them that much egg...

And just for the fun of it, go check out the American Bird Conservancy's bird of the week here!

A cute egg picture, one of Yo-yo and Patty's, from a few years ago.

And while everyone is thinking (if briefly) about eggs, a quick update on the Aussie hormones in this house: Miss Patty laid one egg a couple of weeks ago without too much trouble, and non since, and no effort to follow that lone egg with another in the foreseeable future! And to add that final wonderful cherry on top, all of my tiels have lost their hormones somewhere in the spring rains, and are back to their usual sweet, friendly, quiet (for a parrot) selves!! Yay! Even better, they are all best friends again, snuggling together, their brief rivalry a thing of the past.

Merry Christmas!

To one and all, from the parrots, from myself, and maybe from Gwen, the dog, if she is in a heartwarming mood. We had a great day, and I hope you all did too, whether or not you celebrate Christmas; safe, stress free(ish), and joyous.

My birds' day was particularly nice, thanks to my wonderful secret Santa Santa Nikki! I love her store, The Cheeky Parrot; a huge selection and great prices!

Preparing for the Holidays?

I am sure most or even all of you have by now read many articles on handling the holidays with parrots, but despite that, I intend to face you with yet another. You can never be too prepared, right? The holidays can be very stressful, with all the decor changes, lighting changes (less sun, long artificial light hours) new people coming in, favorite people going out or staying busy, hustle bustle, and noise. This is all assuming you yourself are not stressed by holidays, which naturally can worry your parrot. So much stress can be a huge burden for any parrot! Despite all that, the holidays can also be a happy time for your parrot, and a wonderful opportunity for them to come out of their shell a little (if they have one, that is) and have new experiences. Nothing beats a little environmental stimulation to combat life boredom. A few simple tips will help ensure your holidays are a happy time for your parrot, so here are three things to consider for a better holiday season!

Problem: Thanks to human nature and impressive ad campaigns, many people firmly associate happy holidays with heavy artificial scents. This is not only very un-healthy for your parrot over the long term (meaning you may not be able to see damage immediately, but like pain, damage is not always visible, and that should not lessen it any) but can be immediately lethal in the worst cases, it all depends on the individual parrot. And new evidence is starting to emerge showing these artificial fragrances are not much safer for people. There is no one regulating what goes into them in the U.S. (Other countries are stricter), and they do not have to disclose ingredients to anyone. A few labs have studied the ingredients and found many known carcinogens and toxins that ARE strictly regulated by the government, as breathing even small amounts is known to be very hazardous to your health. Talk about a major loophole! With all that risk, why use them?

Solution: Try opening the window just an inch or so for five minutes; even that short amount of time can really freshen things up! If you want homey scents, try the real thing- fresh evergreen branches, oranges studded with cloves, and cinnamon and apple slices simmering on the stove.


Problem: Visitors, whether over night or just dropping in, are a regular thing for many people throughout the holiday season, Without knowledge or experience with parrots, close encounters between visitors and your feathered companion can quickly turn nasty for both parties. Most people do know, however, that sharing food is a great way to make friends with any animal, but what foods are dangerous for parrots is not nearly as widely shared. Late nights and loud (or even moderately quiet) parties can cause a lot for stress for some parrots, particularly those only regularly handled by one person. And if the guests arrive wearing heavy perfume or other fragrance, that is another burden on your parrot's system.

Solution: Talk to your parrot about what will be happening. Even with the busy schedule, take time each day to focus totally on him or her, or each of them in turn with more than one, and let them know what will be going on. Know your bird(s).

If you have a bird room or keep your parrots in a room other than where the guests will be, the best idea is to keep that room off limits. If your parrot really likes people and is trustworthy, you can bring them out to visit. You would definitely want to make sure that you are there to supervise the whole time, and that you explain some basic parrot handling rules before hand, such as how to hold your hand, what not to do, whether to pet or not, and why sticking your face in theirs or pulling their tail is not recommended. A friend of mine that I thought was so wonderful with all animals, very quiet and nice, for some reason thought it hilarious to pull my tiel's tale. So cover the basics even when you are sure it is not necessary. If there is a group of people, I would not recommend bringing your parrot out at all unless they have shown themselves to enjoy such situations and be very trustworthy, as things can get out of hand quickly.

If your parrots' cages are in the main part of the house where visitors will be, I highly recommend getting them accustomed to another cage (such as a sleep cage) in another part of the house. This way, you can control what is happening, and if the party is going on past your parrots' bedtime, they can be removed. I would not leave them in the party area unless you have explained to everyone there not to stick anything in the cage, and not to share food or drink with them. This is assuming, of course, that your parrots love being around people. If they are stressed by such goings on, you would of course want to remove them from the beginning. And to bring up the fragrances again, if any of your guests wear heavy fragrances, I would move them to another room regardless.

One or two visitors that can be trusted to follow parrot handling rules are a blessing, though, don't forget that! Our parrots can often get stuck in the same routine, seeing just the same people day in and day out. Even as fascinating and wonderful as I am sure you all are, everyone likes to see a new face once in a while! For parrots that are scared of new people, this can be a good time to adjust them to seeing someone else, even if all they do is stand in the door way and whisper hi.


Problem: Stress. Stress. And more stress. For many people, the holidays simple spell out stress. Time to clean, cook, shop, decorate, act nice, wrap presents, send cards, go to parties/engagements/performances, visit family, have family visit, and deal with neighbors that call with dog complaints on Christmas eve night (had to throw that one in there for my family.) Say it with me: S-T-R-E-S-S. As you all can guess, your parrots pick up on this immediately, and their behavior will show it, just adding to your (one more time now) stress.

Solution: Besides a day at the spa or permanently banning the holidays from crossing your threshold, there are ways to help with your, and therefore your parrot's, stress. In fact, your parrot may be one answer to your stress, and instead of giving tips on making schedules, managing time, setting priorities and any other advice people usually get, that is the one I am going to focus on. Whatever else your schedule includes, make sure it includes special one-on-one time with your bird. If necessary, take time to close your eyes and breathe deeply for a minute or two before this, so you really can focus on your parrot and reassure them. If you parrot likes being held, just hold them for a few minutes. If not, just sit near and talk to them. The "blinking game" is a great way to relax. Just make eye contact with your parrot, and then slowly close your eyes and open them again, your parrot should respond to this by blinking on his own, but it can take a few tries for him to get the idea. Mine even initiate the blinking game now.

After some calming, mind clearing, and reaffirming one-on-one time, think of ways to include your parrot in your activities. Baking is not safe with parrots in the kitchen, but prep work, as well as list making for groceries or anything else, is. Writing Christmas cards can also seem more pleasant with your parrot, providing you keep them on their gym with their own letters (little treats and toys wrapped in paper.) If you need an authoritative opinion on what the best present for your boss really is, look no further than your parrot. I am sure they will agree (as soon as you convince them a chewed up shirt and half eaten egg carton are not good ideas,) that nuts are a great present!

Most importantly, if there are going to be any big changes, explain them to your parrot well in advance. If you can manage it at all, keep up whatever base schedule and favorite activities you and your parrot have now. That will not only keep them happy, but it will help keep you happy, as well.

Hope your holidays are happy!

Claudia on her well-chewed Christmas swing.

Happy Holidays!

Goodness it has been a long time since my last post; time always seems to get away from me! It has been rather busy here, and I hope for things to calm down in the new year.

It is always rather frustrating for me to buy parrot products, like toys, food, perches, etc. I much prefer to buy from small, more personal stores, but all too often products from such places arrive smelling strongly of scented laundry detergent or some other fragrance. Needless to say, I can not be around them, and neither therefore can my birds. I used to try ordering one or two items from a store, to see how they were, but after several failures, I decided it was not an economically feasible plan. For a while I kept with two stores where I was able to find most of what I needed. Last year, when one of those started arriving smelling like cigarette smoke, I decided I needed to find some new places! Feeling brave, I tried emailing a few online from-home bird stores to ask if they used scented laundry detergent. Although I explained myself, I am sure it was still very confusing for them to know how to answer, and most of my responses reflected that. Only one of the stores came back with an understanding response, as she herself had some chemical sensitivities. As of now, I have three stores I know are safe and scent/smoke free:
The Bird-Safe Store
Grey Feather Toys
Hello Bird

They are all quality stores. The first and last carry mass brands and most common products, and I get most of my food and the planet pleasure toys from them. The middle one is the one run by a lady with some sensitivities herself, and it is full of incredible handmade toys and toy parts, as well as good organic food; I am simply thrilled that I can buy her products! And in case anyone reading this is interested in a great dog/cat store that is scent/smoke free, I use Olive Green Dog.

While I am sure most people reading this have never given any thought to what their bird products arrived smelling like, I hope you can at least understand how irritating it is for those of us that must consider it. I recently won a very nice climbing net through an online contest, something which I was quite excited about! Unfortunately, it arrived smelling very strongly of some fragrance, so I am sure I will never be able to be around it. Quite a let down, needless to say. I am trying to see if it will air out enough that my parents can use it with their birds, and if not, I am not sure what I will do with it. Sometimes I think moving to Canada might be a good idea- I hear they are not only stricter on which chemicals can be used, but are also are creating fragrance (including bounce!) free buildings, businesses and towns. Not a bad idea!

Happy Easter!

For those that celebrate Easter, I hope you have a wonderful Easter!

I think most parrots enjoy Easter for one simple reason - hard boiled eggs. I give my parrots one serving of eggs a week, far less than they feel they deserve. I have received numerous complaints on this subject, needless to say. Despite that, one serving a week, or on rare occasions perhaps two, is all I allow.

As Easter is a time of excess eggs for all, I thought I would share my viewpoint on feeding eggs.

-First of all, it is in no way cannibalism. Really. Humans are as closely related to cows as chickens are to parrots. This is the absolute truth, 100%. Cows and humans are both mammals, and chicken and parrots are both birds. For some reason public opinion places all birds as being closer related than all mammals, I can not say why. If you would like further information on this, here is a good post written by Rebecca O'Connor on the subject.

- You should be careful of how much egg you feed. As with everything, too much of a good thing is often quite bad. (As a note, this is often taken to mean avoid the good thing all together, as with the seed controversy. As bad as too much of a good thing is, none of a good thing is often worse.) When I say one serving, I am referring to one parrot sized serving. For the budgies, this is only a third a teaspoon; for the tiels, a scant half teaspoon; for the quakers, 3/4 a teaspoon; for Yaz, a 1/2 teaspoon; and finally, for the ekkies, one egg white. These are all estimates, but it gives you a general idea of how much I feed the size parrots I have. Also, another important thing to remember, all my parrots except for Yaz are caged in pairs, so if you have a single parrot, it would be about half what I said.

- I only ever give my ekkies egg white, because of the amount of cholesterol found in the yolks. When ekkies are hormonal, they naturally build up their cholesterol to high amounts; therefore, to avoid encouraging hormones, ekkies do better on a lower cholesterol diet. I am not sure if this applies to other parrots, though I have never read about in regards to any other species. Because of this, I do not worry too much about giving my other parrots some egg yolk along with the white.

Also, a quote about egg nutrition from this article by Carolyn Swicegood:
------------------------------------------------------------------
EGGS--Considered by many to be the perfect food, eggs are a powerhouse of nutrients. Eggs have one of the highest biological values of all protein sources. Offering all nine essential amino acids, they are an excellent source of high quality protein and they are a natural source of calcium when offered with the shell. Although capable of creating a new living being, one large egg contains only seventy-five calories and an incredible amount of nutrition. Scientists frequently use eggs as a standard for measuring the protein quality of other foods. Protein quality is expressed as biological value which measures the rate of efficiency that protein is used for growth. At 93.7% eggs score higher than any other food. Eggs are an affordable protein source for parrots and can be stored in the refrigerator for up to three weeks without affecting their quality. When my adult eclectus parrots are feeding babies, hard boiled eggs are a sought-after food.
---------------------------------------------------------------------

Easy to see why I include them as a part of my parrot's diet!

Merry Christmas, with another egg laid!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas, or any other holiday they celebrate at this time of year.

And as the title implies, Claudia laid her second egg this evening. I was worried she was going to have trouble with this one, since I thought she should have laid it yesterday, and she was very swollen today, and acting very sick. But after several warm "tail end" soaks, she laid it safely this evening, at about the same time as the first one. Hopefully, this is the last egg, and her interest in parenthood soon passes.