What you can learn from parrots in the wild as a pet owner

I can relate to what Jim McKendry (bird behaviourist) says about getting out into the wild to see what real wild parrots do. I live in the bush with daily visits around my hut from parrots including Sulphur-crested and Black Cockatoos, Pink and Grey Galahs, Rainbow and other Lorikeets, King Parrots and more.

To watch their antics and the way they interact in the wild is so worth it in terms of helping you understand bird behaviour in parrots kept in captivity. One thing of importance that I have noticed is the lack of hostility between wild birds of different species. Because there is plenty of space and plenty of food and water to go around, they don't fight like parrots in captivity will often do if different species are put in the same cage. Here is a link to Jim's Parrot Behaviour & Enrichment Consultations page or you can click to send him an instant message with a bird question.

Nesting season approaching Some things to consider when breeding time is near for pet and aviary parrots

Pet and aviary parrots are just like all other living beings, when its breeding season behaviours change and not always for the better! Sometimes your tame Sun Conure or Green Cheek will give you a much too hard grip with her beak when nesting time approaches as will most other parrots. The bigger the beak the bigger this problem will be for you! My advice is to let them be. Keep hands out! The breeding pair will just want to protect their nest and have privacy. The link will lead you to articles with more informaton on bird care.

Escaped Cockatiels

I get a lot of enquiries about pet cockatiels escaping and what to do. When a bird escapes a cage or flys from its house it will usually panic of course and fly wildly around in circles. It will usually also call you over and over again. Clues from this behaviour are to LISTEN while walking around your house yard and house block. It will quite often land in a neighbour's yard. For this reason it is a good idea to do a leaflet drop and or door knock the area to let folk know that you are missing your bird. An advertisement in the local paper and on key websites like The Pet Directory website will quite often have your phone ringing.

Winter for Cockatiels - Cold weather can bring out illnesses

Check out the bird articles on The Pet Directory website for information on bird care for you pet or aviary bird. Winter is a time when birds, like us, get low resistence to illnesses that they are predisposed to. Keep an eye out for green droppings. If you see this take your bird to an avian bird vet immediately. They will be given a dose of special bird medicine for this and a little course of it to give to them at home for around 8 to 10 days. In winter drafts are your birds enemy.

KEEP YOUR BIRD WARM!!!

Wing Clipping - Should I clip my parrot's wings?

The aim of a wing clip is not to stop the bird flying but to reduce its ability to gain height, so if it tries to fly it will quietly flutter down to the ground. This is safer for the bird as it removes access to many of the “nasties” that exist in most households and it also reduces the ability to fly away and get lost. The link is to an excellent short article by an avian bird vet Dr Mike Cannon where he gives the pros and cons of clipping your bird's wings. This applies to parrots commonly kept as pets such as Cockatiels, Budgerigars, Lorikeets, Galah, Eclectus, African Greys, Amazons, Macaws etc. Remember to only trim the first 6 flight feathers and no more. Here is a link to another short article on facts about wing clipping from the bird vet.