Raising a Wild Baby Raven Right

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Wild Galah, springtime, Melbourne, Australia.

 

Spring has sprung here in the Southern Hemisphere. In most bird homes, this means an influx of hormones and seasonal behaviours  but surprisingly that’s not a problem I seem to be having this season with my own pet flock. Instead, spring seems to be making itself felt in the wildlife rescue part of my life. Gale force winds and bird’s nests don’t tend to get along! We’ve had our share of them with the change in season.

 

Last year, ...

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When Do I Re-Home my Bird?

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Cute Caique

The question of when to re-home a bird is an extremely difficult one. It’s not as simple as just giving up the bird to ensure its happiness, because the very act of re-homing will cause the bird emotional trauma.

Here’s how parrots function: When you move them from home to home, they grieve for their people, their flock. It’s not like giving a dog a new home. After a short period of time, a dog will often be overjoyed with attention; they tend ...

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Should We Allow Our Birds To Live Cage Free?


Theo, goffins cockatoo

Several years ago, back when I lived in Austin, I was contacted by one of my vet’s technicians about a goffins cockatoo that was in need of a new home. Her former owner, who loved her dearly, felt she was no longer thriving in his care. He did the right thing in making a hard decision that was for her benefit – even when it was ...

 

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Why You Shouldn’t Sleep With Your Bird


Budgie

I was chatting the other day with Wendy, who answers the phones here at Birdtricks.com. Out of curiosity, I asked her about the nature of the phone call she gets. Some, of course, are customer service related, some are from people are looking for advice, but she explained that she gets a concerningly high number of calls from people whose birds have died. Sometimes these people are calling to cancel their toys or pellets subscriptions and in the ...

 

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When Is it Time?

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We don’t ever forget the animals we’ve lost

 

This is a very difficult and delicate post to write, and one that brings a lump to my throat just considering: The question of when a pet’s time has come, and whether to consider euthanasia, is easily the most difficult part of animal ownership. Ending needless suffering is a responsible thing to do. It’s difficult because no one wants to do it too soon – or ever.

I have had many pets in my lifetime. For most, ...

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