Rose Breasted Cockatoo and African Grey

While Jamie and Dave are freeflying with their students in Moab, Utah, I am packing up my apartment so I can hitch a ride to Orlando with them on their way back.  They are going to be on the road for two years starting in December, and I am going to be staying at their house while they’re gone.  This is going to be the start of some big changes for me and the flock.

For the past five years, following my divorce, I have ...

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White Budgie

I was lying on my bed watching the History channel this morning, when Theo, my goffins cockatoo, toddled up to the side of the bed wanting to come up.  I swung my leg over the side of the bed and she hopped on my foot waiting for the elevator ride up.  She marched right up and took her usual spot on my chest, resting her head on my chin.

It was just a couple of minutes before I could feel all of her body weight on the side of ...

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Congo African Grey Parrot

Veterinarians say that obesity is the most common health problem they see in companion parrots today.  Many experts say that owners tend to overfeed their birds, offer too many snacks, or are just poorly educated about nutrition.

Parrots suffer from the same ill effects from obesity as do humans. An obese parrot is predisposed to cancer. They are at risk for  atherosclerosis, where fatty substances are deposited on the walls of thick and hardened arteries, including the ones leading to the heart.  This can lead to collapse ...

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Blue throated macaw, Camelot macaws

Wild birds learn everything that isn’t hard-wired into them from their parents. Everything from what is safe to eat to how to bathe to what to be afraid of is learned by watching.

Many of our companion parrots have been captive bred and have not had the advantage of having a feathered mom or dad teaching them the ins and outs of being a bird.  It makes perfect sense that our parrots learn from one another.

When I first got Theo (goffins cockatoo), she was sedentary.  She didn’t ...

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Hyacinth Macaw & Camelot macaw

The very best advice anyone is going to give you is to know your bird and understand its body language. Know what calms them, know what excites them, know what motivates them.  Know what tone of voice they respond best to, and know which actions (or inactions) indicate aggression.  Know their favorite foods.

Know when they’re tired or that they are over stimulated from too much play.  This knowledge is the very best tool in helping you to control their behaviors, assessing their health and preparing their ...

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Blue Fronted Amazon Parrot

If you have parrots and potted plants in your house, you have probably watched in awe at the speed with which your feathered backhoe can empty the contents of the plant pot onto your carpet.  You likely have a ground foraging species like the cockatoo, cockatiel, budgie or african grey to name a few.  Digging is a natural behavior for a ground forager and if he’s found his way into your secret garden, you will  have to pretty clever in your attempts to keep him ...

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