Never incite the scorn of a food-displeased Budgie

I was not feeling great this morning, so I took the liberty of giving myself a break and gave the birds some dry mix. This dry mix is one I make myself, and should not properly be called a mix, considering I keep most of the components separate so I can dish out the appropriate things to each bird. My dry smorgasbord, as it were, options include my seed (or grain, which is more accurate) mix, which is millet, puffed amaranth, quinoa, oats, and a few other things, plus various types of dry noodles (brown rice, quinoa, kamut, etc) dry individual larger grains (purple corn is popular) special seeds (milk thistle, sunflower, pumpkin...) dried veggies and fruits, special treats (Avian Organics Veggie Bars, Papaya Crisps, and Green Granola currently) and more. Very varied, as you can see. They do not get all that at one meal, of course. I also use parts of my smorgasbord as treats or for training, and add an item or two with my other meals. When I am giving a meal just of dry mix, as this morning, it usually includes some of the basic grain/seed mix, and several of the other items. My birds overall appreciate the variety and enjoy their shelf stable items as a contrast to all the fresh food.

Keep in mind I do not feed dry mix meals all the time, it is something I do when I am feeling particularly bad, as I was this morning. By taking the easy route, I give myself time to re-charge without getting burnt out. The dry mix meals are still quite healthy (I even have cooked and dried beans, so complete protein!) and as most people with parrots know, dry mix meals of some kind are usually quite popular. I do not think there is anything wrong with skipping the fresh food at a meal every now and again if you are particularly busy, tired, or sick. After all, for parrots living out in the great outdoors, meals are hardly devised by a nutritionist to be balanced and varied, optimum for each individual. They often eat just one, or just a few kinds of food while it is in season, and switch to another when the first runs out. They are not always at an "all you can eat health food buffet." Therefore, the occasional dry mix meal is fine.

All that said (and re-said and re-said and re-said, bored yet?), Ava was not pleased. No, not pleased at all. A sprinkling of dry treats throughout the day and with a fresh meal is fine, but all on their own? Puh-lease.

By dinner time, not only was the food still there, but Ava was giving me one of her stares, the one I call the "gentle reprimand gaze." If not attended to, it is later followed by the "disdain glare," and the "scornful air." I try my best to avoid those.

I have learned my lesson. I still do not feel well, but I have a pot of some Avian Organics mash cooking (with lots of extra dried raw kale and cilantro flakes added at the end, they love them and so easy!) along with butternut squash and peas. Hopefully Her Highness will accept my apologies for the lazy breakfast and graciously allow me back in her favor. She really is quite good about that.

And finally, a few quick pics of the Aussies from yesterday-

Miss Patty loves the view. 

I think it is funny how the reflection in the window 

makes it look as if there is a building out there....

nope, just trees and grass.

Sleepy time for Ava. Whatever they tell you about a 

goodnight sleep, Ava feels a good afternoon nap is 

equally important.

Miss Patty and Linus, hanging out.

Yo-yo, who is only in one picture since he spent most

if the time on me. In this pic he is asking to come to me.

In a minute he will fly over.

Fluffy Linus!!

Pretty Miss Patty. She is really showing her age, 

and her bald spots on her face just keep inching bigger and bigger, 

but she is just as sweet and nearly as active as ever.

And she certainly keeps Yo-yo on his toes!

Amazon Companionship Study

I find this study on young amazon parrots very interesting. You must be a member to read the full text, but the abstract is more than enough to give any parrot (or other bird) keeper plenty of food for thought. Whether parrots should be kept in pairs for their own happiness, whether parrots kept in pairs have fewer behavior problems, whether paired parrots are better/worse companions, etc., are all issues that anyone keeping parrots for very long at all has come across, very likely in the form of a heated argument or at the very least a strongly voiced opinion, one that often verges on or fully embraces a warpath. All that debate comes with good reason, as there are legitimate points on both sides. However, I am not going to try to hide the fact that I think parrots are happier and better off if they can be kept with a compatible friend or mate!

Please, though, if you are thinking about going out and getting a friend for any of your parrots, from a budgie to a macaw, remember that like people, birds will not get along with every bird. They pick their friends as well as their mates. Also, if you parrot has been kept without any other bird for a long time, or was raised away from other birds, they may not recognize other parrots of even the same species as potential friends at all. The Amazon parrots in this study were parent raised (and note that they were being handled regularly by humans, and seeming to enjoy doing such), which makes a huge difference as they not only know they are parrots and know how to interact with other parrots. This is not to say, though, that it is impossible to get a friend for a single parrot! Even if they are not allowed to play together, just having another parrot in the room can be very rewarding for parrots. Parrots in the wild will not eat alone, sleep alone, or do anything else alone! With another parrot (I admit I think same species or compatible species from the same geographic area and/or similar size is best) they will have someone to be with all the time.

Studies like this are important because they show what could be possible if you applied knowledge to raise better parrots from the beginning, in this case keeping them in pairs from the start, instead of trying to fix problems later after they occur.

If a person has an untamed pair of parrots, either a small or large species, and much prefers tame cuddly parrots, they will be fully convinced the only good companion parrots are kept singly. On the other hand, many people have mated pairs of parrots, again from the very small to the very large, that are still wonderful and tame and very interested in people (and sometimes still enjoying scritches as well), so naturally they will have a very different view of things. My point? I try very hard not to put out statements based solely on my own experience. Most people only have experience in their own home with one parrot of a species, possibly two or three of that species. That really is very little to go on, and while individual experiences taken along with individual circumstances can be, collectively, very important and extremely useful, each piece on its own is not nearly so valuable, and can be very misleading. That makes studies like this, as rare as they are, even more important as a tool to cut through that cloud. The parrots are raised and kept under the same conditions, making comparisons possible that give the rest of us something to go on, and apply in our own homes.

And to reiterate, please go read this article! It is not very long, so really, please read it.

This just about sums it up

Ann Brooks, Paying Forward

Please go to the above link and read it. Please. Instead of boring you with re-typing what she has just said in my own words for this blog post, even if it does need to be shouted from the rooftops, I will quote-

• One way we can help parrots is to encourage adoption.  Let’s inform people that all companion birds deserve to have a succession of good homes.  Someday your bird will likely need one or more new homes too, and you’ll want those to be good ones.   Let’s promote adoption as the norm, not just something for the “rescues.”

• Another way we can help parrots is to teach people that birds are resilient, regardless of their past.  Nature has built them to be adaptable in order to survive. Phoenix Landing rarely uses the word rescue because this word conjures up a sense of abuse, neglect, harm, and baggage.  Most of the birds that come to us are from loving homes where it is just no longer possible for them to care for a bird; but even true rescue birds are likely to adapt if given an opportunity to thrive.  I have yet to meet a parrot that was not adoptable, there is usually an appropriate family for each and every one.

Really, I mean it, please go to the above link on the Phoenix Landing blog. And if you have not seen it already here is the Phoenix Landing website.

Well Hello Folks!

Hope everyone is doing ok through this hurricane season! I left coastal NE Va and went west to the mountains to my new house to escape Hurricane Irene, but as there is no internet hooked up there yet I have been totally cut off, so to speak, until I got back last night. Fortunately, my guys are all great travelers, hopping right in their carriers just ready to go, so the trips went well, very little stress overall. They did seem to approve of the new house as well, or what they saw of it. The first-floor/basement is not ready for them yet so they just stayed in their travel carriers upstairs. Hopefully it will be ready soon, though. I am very excited planning it all! Plenty of room for everyone.

To end this post, I will change the subject quite suddenly to share a funny (although at the time it was rather nerve-racking) story about Gwen and the birds. As I said, the birds were staying upstairs in my bedroom in their travel cages. I occasionally have the ekkies out around Gwen, as she knows her stop/come/drop/leave commands very well, and has not showed any aggression towards them. She is actually quite afraid of them when they are out, and surprisingly seems to view them when locked up as a true part of her family. However, I never, ever, ever have her out with the smaller birds. In the past she has showed aggression towards them (does seem to regard them as family now, though), but more than that, they could fit in her mouth and I do not take chances with predators and prey!

Anyway, getting back to the story after all that background, I had all the birds in their travel cages, and Gwen was also in there, asleep on my bed. I was outside in the main room. The birds were doing their normal daily vocalizations, but over time I have learned the difference between a very excited "something-is-wrong" call (not meaning the alarm call- that is totally different) and their normal "I love screaming to the heavens" calls. As soon as I hear the "something might be wrong/off" calls I always go check, as I did yesterday morning. I have talked in the past about the wonderful ability Yo-yo has to escape cages and he had once again been at work, getting out of what I was sure he would not. This part would normally have been very upsetting, considering that Gwen was in the room with them, particularly considering Yo-yo was in the process of letting Ava and Linus out and Miss Patty was following close behind. However, Gwen was clearly not in the mood for birdie chase, and shot out of the door like a rocket as soon as I opened it. My mother was there with me, and she collected the shivering Gwen in the hall, before putting her down so Gwen could run downstairs to hide. Really, I had no idea she was so upset by the prospect of loose birds! I know I joke about the long held plan my Aussies have to take over the world, lead by Yo-yo, but I had no idea she took me seriously!

I still do not have any good pics of the new house/bird area yet, but hopefully soon I will have some!