Enjoying the warmth of the heated section of the aviary on a cold winter day

There is a big difference between parrot rescues and parrot sanctuaries. Parrot rescues are faced with a daunting challenge. Their goal is to take in unwanted, sometimes very ill and emotionally unsettled parrots and make them right again so they are adoptable. In most cases, rescue birds are transient. If all goes to plan, they eventually find a home, leaving an open cage for another unwanted bird. I have unlimited respect for those who are able ...

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Greenwing macaw

As usual, there are a lot of conflicting opinions bouncing around in the avian community. One that has been troubling me for a while is with relation to carbohydrates in the parrot diet. One person or site will say: “Down with carbohydrates! They turn to sugar in the blood stream! They are bad for birds!” Someone else will brag about the “healthy bowlful of grains” their bird had for breakfast.

Both are right, yet both are wrong at the same time. Yes. Carbs do turn increase blood sugar levels. But ...

Isn't it sweet how he lies his head on my shoulder? A deceptive picture - he's looking straight down my top to check out what bra I'm wearing...

“I’m sorry I’m late for class, but my parrot broke my bra,” I said to my lecturer as I slipped into a laboratory class 10 mins late. Naturally, this happened when the entire class was listening to the lecturer so suddenly hundreds of students were staring at my chest, trying to see through my top for ...

Q: I have 2 cockatiels who mean the world to me and my husband. We are doing some renovation on our home and we were wondering if this could be dangerous for the birds.

-Chloe J., Paramus, NJ

A: I am glad you thought to ask this question beforehand because some of the procedures and supplies used in common renovation can be harmful to birds.

The main concern is air quality – that always presents the biggest danger to birds during remodeling. A bird’s respiratory system is remarkably efficient and dynamic, ...

Cong african grey

This is not a lengthy topic, but one that requires discussion. It is usually something that comes up only rarely, but two separate people made inquiries about this just this past week. Time for a blog post…

Parrots love nuts. They are an important part of the diet, an essential part with some species. They are very high in protein and minerals and are huge in delivering the essential fatty acids Omega 3 and 6. They are also very high in saturated fats and have to be fed keeping ...

blue throated macaws

I think this spring season has been the hardest one I have dealt with in a very long time. My two formerly egg-less female birds have both produced their first eggs this year – in the case of my goffins cockatoo, the only one in 28 years. It is an ongoing battle that calls for constant changes to the environment to keep her and Libby, my quaker, from any further laying.

The male cockatiels spend every second of their out of cage time in the search for someplace dark ...

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