Things I wish I Had Known When I First Got A Parrot

People who are new to parrot keeping will agree on one thing: having a bird in the house is a challenge. There is a lot of reading you should do to understand a bird’s needs and wants, and how to keep them safe in the human environment. This is all vital information.

Here, though, are some tips that I have stumbled across during my own journey with my birds that you won’t find in the parrot care books. I wish I had known these things from the beginning…

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Your Parrot’s Digestive System

 

Camelot macaw

Camelot macaw

Birds eat…and they poop…and then they poop some more. A cockatiel might relieve himself every 15-30 minutes – that’s a lot of relief. Have you ever wondered about the journey your bird’s food takes before it becomes an embarrassing stain on your shoulder?

Let’s go through each step…

The Beak and Esophagus:

It all begins in the parrot’s mouth. The tongue and the inside of the beak are dry – a fact which your fingers may have discovered in ...

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What Feathers Tell You About Your Parrot’s Health

Alexandrine parakeet

Alexandrine parakeet

One of the hardest things for bird owners to come to terms with, especially new bird owners, is the fact that we can’t rely on our eyes to determine the health of our birds. Because sick parrots are targeted by predators in the wild, they hide the appearance of illness until they are no longer able to do so. Eventually, as their illness progresses, they become lethargic, their wing begin to droop and their perching becomes ...

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How Much Should My Bird Weigh?


Galah

The domestication of animals is something that humans have done through breeding for millennia to manipulate animals with the intention of creating ones that are used for service or companionship, that are suited to be in human society and are aesthetically pleasing.

Domestication is what we have done with dogs, which started out as wolves. Humans bred dogs together which both possessed qualities they wanted to carry on – from personality traits to size to coloring and markings. It ...

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Gardening for Parrots and People: Ten Easy and Nutritious Foods to Grow for Your Flock

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My Senegal Parrot helping my garden

Gardening for parrots is not the nightmare you might imagine, and that’s coming from someone who doesn’t have a green thumb! Now that spring is here, it is the perfect time to start planting for you and your flock — or to begin planning for the summer. Start small. Anyone with a garden or little patch of grass can grow their own produce, and doing so is a great way to save money. Feeding your flock is, after ...

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Is Your Parrot’s Best Nutrition Going Out With The Trash?

Q: Should I peel my bird’s fruit and vegetables?

-Christopher B., Jackson, MS

 A: Many rinds or skins taste bitter to humans and it is our habit to remove them. It seems right to prepare our parrot’s foods in much the same way as we prepare our own. However, we are short changing them when we do. Not only do parrots like a lot of bitter tasting things, but some of the best nutrients in produce are found in the parts we typically throw away or avoid eating.

  • Kiwi – the fuzzy outer skin of the kiwi ...

     

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