stewartw@cognos.UUCP (Stewart Winter) (12/08/90)
In article <Dec.3.17.49.58.1990.5160@galaxy.rutgers.edu> whitling@andromeda (Donna Whitlinger) writes: >With the holiday season approaching, Daniel is looking forward to another >vacation with grandma and grandpa. However, my brother is also coming home >and he is bringing his DOG! Alex is 50% golden retriever and is convinced >his job in life is to chase birds. We are understandably concerned about >how the two will get along. My brother is afraid for the bird's life. Both you and your brother should be concerned. A couple of weeks ago my brother-in-law's gordon setter ate his 20 year old amazon parrot. Not a pleasant scene. Birds and dogs can get along, but this doesn't sound like the ideal time to try to arrange it (Christmas is stressful on animals as well as people.) If the bird has a tendency to fly around and check things out, then I think they should be kept in separate rooms at all times. If the bird stays on a shoulder or on his playpen, then they could be in the same room, but you might find this places a lot of strain on the people in the room if they are constantly concerned about the two of them. Also, as a precaution, I would ensure that the cage is placed well out of reach and is sitting on something that can't be knocked over (like a freezer) rather than a stand. Dogs can learn (if taught with supervision) to quickly respect a large parrot. This knowledge is easy to transfer to a smaller bird. Unfortunately (with a cockatiel), there isn't enough bird there to force the dogs respect. Even if the dog respects the parrot, you should be cautious of one more thing - should the cockatiel fly and land on the dog, the dog's reaction could be quite dangerous to the bird. Stewart -- Stewart Winter Cognos Incorporated S-mail: P.O. Box 9707 VOICE: (613) 738-1338 x3830 FAX: (613) 738-0002 3755 Riverside Drive UUCP: uunet!cognos!stewartw Ottawa, Ontario The bird of the day is .... Severe Macaw CANADA K1G 3Z4