mary@dinorah.wustl.edu (Mary Leibach) (11/04/88)
I think the header speaks for itself. I had been reading rec.birds hoping
to find some info on how to catch a stray parakeet that came to our bird
feeder. Alas, it no longer comes around. But in the meanwhile, I caught
all your articles about the wonders of a cockatiel. When I was going to a
lot of petshops here in St. Louis looking for keet info, I looked at the
cockatiels at one. And fell in love. Unfortunately, the shop was well
known by me as a place that sold diseased animals. I had gotten some
fish there once, and two-thirds of them died within a month. So I was
extremely hesitant about spending $100 on a bird there. I really wasn't
intending to get a cockatiel anyway. The next day I talked it over with
my mother (the two of us share her house and the expenses.) She said to
go ahead and get one, if we rescued the parakeet, it(p) would be her bird.
Well, I decided to try the petshop that had been closed on a previous trip,
it had an animal hospital attached, and looked clean. There I met an
adorable, hand-fed, twelve-week-old pied cockatiel. When they let me hold her,
she proceeded to climb up my arm, and onto my back to play in my long hair.
Could I say no? Two seconds after I got her home, she made herself at
home. The two seconds consisted of convincing her that she was supposed
to go in the cage rather than climbing up it! No problems getting her
to eat, she hasn't stopped since I got seed in her seed cup. We decided to
call her Cally (the telepath in Blake's 7). I have never
seen such an intelligent bird in all my life. In one week, she would step
on my finger, step (begrudgingly) on a stick, let me pet her on her head and
back, scratch her neck, kiss her head, come out of her cage and onto my hand
when I opened the door, and woof-whistle. We are still working on going
back in the cage and talking. She is a grand champion seed thrower (Olympic
caliber at least), an expert in unhooking her ladder and swing from the cage,
absolutely superb at removing bells from her swing (without damaging either
the bells or the circle of wire that holds them on), mistress of the martial
arts (what else do you call unhooking her ladder that is bigger than she is,
carrying it around on her perch, and throwing it to the cage floor? ), and
professional demolitions expert. Her current project is to reduce her
very sturdy, wooden ladder to a fine pile of sawdust. To fuel all of this
activity, she eats and eats and eats! I got her a pringle's size can full
of seeds, and in a week and a half she has eaten half of it! That does not
count treats! Between demolition work, seed husks and rejects from her seed
cup (a seed guard keeps the stuff in her cage, but I won't bet on it lasting
long), and her bird-dirties, I have to change her paper every day.
I am very happy with baby Cally, and glad I got her. Thanks to the net for
all of your articles, please keep them up. I do have the odd question or
two though:
1. How do you get the seed husks out of her cup? Currently I dump
the contents onto a sheet of paper, take it outside, and grab big handfuls,
sprinkle them back on the paper blowing like mad to get rid of some of the
husks. This is time-consuming, and dependant on the weather. I have to
do this nearly everyday due to the large quantities she eats. Is there a
better, faster way of doing this?
2. What all can I train Cally to do? She is so intelligent, at
least as smart as our dog. She can pick up on sounds relating to events
quickly. It took her only a few days to figure out that the garage door
closing when I am away means I just got home. She also is mechanically
smart, she can unhook things, and even can raise her cage door a little
and then drop it for dramatic effect. The only problem is that she
has a mind of her own. She has her own ideas on what she wants to do
and pretty much ignores my ideas on the subject. When I want to do stick
training she wants to be petted. When I want to pet her, she wants to
figure out how the light switch works and why wallpaper is unclimbable.
Forget treats. She would rather sit on the edge of the can and eat her
fill than do a trick and be rewarded. Millet sprays don't work either,
she just sits there and does them in. She's really attached to me,
and very tame, but she has no room for any concept of authority or
cooperation. In other words, she is a bratty, spoiled-rotten baby bird
and I love her very much.
3. How do you get a cockatiel and a dog to be friends?
Any help will be appreciated. I love Cally and I want to do the absolute
best I can by her.
-Mary
and Cally(Cockatiel)
and Muffy(dog)
and Persephone(Paradise fish)
and misc. finny friends.kaufman@maxzilla.Encore.COM (Lar Kaufman) (11/07/88)
In article <599@dinorah.wustl.edu> mary@dinorah.wustl.edu (Mary Leibach) writes: >Well, I decided to try the petshop that had been closed on a previous trip, >it had an animal hospital attached, and looked clean. There I met an >adorable, hand-fed, twelve-week-old pied cockatiel... No problems getting her >to eat, she hasn't stopped since I got seed in her seed cup... > >She is a grand champion seed thrower (Olympic caliber at least... > >I am very happy with baby Cally, and glad I got her. Thanks to the net for >all of your articles, please keep them up. I do have the odd question or >two though: > > 1. How do you get the seed husks out of her cup? Currently I dump >the contents onto a sheet of paper, take it outside, and grab big handfuls, >sprinkle them back on the paper blowing like mad to get rid of some of the >husks. This is time-consuming, and dependant on the weather. I have to >do this nearly everyday due to the large quantities she eats. Is there a >better, faster way of doing this? > -Mary > A primary natural function of hookbills is to spread seeds around. They do not eat all they get access to, as you already noticed. However, you should probably resign yourself to some wastage. If you continue to recycle seeds, you run the risk of allowing mold cultures to develop in the seed. All birds are at risk to aspergillosis, caused by exposure to the aspergillis mold. This can rapidly degenerate into pneumonia, and death. I recommend that you completely discard the wastage from the seeds, and thoroughly clean the food and water cups daily. (I use extra cups, so I can wash one set while others are in use.) What you can do is to feed smaller quantities, more often. Also, if you use small quantities, the bird is forced to eat a wider variety of seed in the mix, rather than simply picking out the favorites; this will provided a healthier, more varied diet. You should be aware that the common practice of simply providing seed mix for the birds does not provide a balanced diet for the bird. You should also supplement the food with bits of spinach, cauliflower, snow peas, squash, corn, and the like. Raw is best. Another technique that some birds accept is the use of a pelleted diet. Products such as LeFever's pellets and Purina Bird Chow for Small Hookbills are very healthy and produce no wastage in the form of hulls, etc. Some birds don't like them, unfortunately, but I would try them if I were you. Start them out by mixing pellets with the seed, and then gradually reduce the amount of seed. I wouldn't go exclusively to pellets, of course. Smart birds enjoy their dietary variety just as we do. BTW, you did right to buy from a clean, well run business. Sloppy, ill-run pet stores are inhumane and a blight on the world of pets. -lar Lar Kaufman <= my opinions Fidonet: 1:322/470@508-534-1842 kaufman@multimax.arpa {bu-cs,decvax,necntc,talcott}!encore!kaufman
bamford@ihlpf.ATT.COM (Harold E. Bamford) (11/08/88)
In article <599@dinorah.wustl.edu> mary@dinorah.wustl.edu (Mary Leibach) writes: > 1. How do you get the seed husks out of her cup? Currently I dump >the contents onto a sheet of paper, take it outside, and grab big handfuls, >sprinkle them back on the paper blowing like mad to get rid of some of the >husks. This is time-consuming, and dependant on the weather. I have to >do this nearly everyday due to the large quantities she eats. Is there a >better, faster way of doing this? The problem is that Cally isn't able to get all the seeds from the husks. If you put much less seed in the seed-cup, Cally will get a higher percentage of the seed and then it will be practical to just throw away the rest without trying to blow away the hulls. Also this is much more sanitary. It DOES mean that you must refill the seed-cup more often. Be sure to give Cally other kinds of food besides seed or vitamin depletion could result. Harold Bamford
jla@inuxd.UUCP (Joyce Andrews) (11/09/88)
> A primary natural function of hookbills is to spread seeds around. Madeira (Blue-Front Amazon) puts her head down in the dish and goes "BLLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLB" And you think your bird can scatter seeds? Let's have a contest! > You should be aware that the common practice of simply providing seed > mix for the birds does not provide a balanced diet for the bird. You Here in the Florida Keys (KoKoMo), everyone has a hookbill. A favorite food is chicken leg bones (the drumstick). I haven't given any to Madeira, but others let their birds break the bones open and eat the marrow. I am afraid of pointed splinters of bone (the reason you shouldn't give them to dogs and cats), but my friends tell me that the birds have a better crushing apparatus than dogs and cats, and the marrow is good for them. does anyone else feed chicken bones to their hookbills? -- Joyce Andrews King att!inuxd!jla AT&T, Indianapolis (This message brought to you from the Florida Keys via the miracle of modern communications.)
kaufman@maxzilla.Encore.COM (Lar Kaufman) (11/10/88)
In article <1282@inuxd.UUCP> jla@inuxd.UUCP (Joyce Andrews) writes: >> You should be aware that the common practice of simply providing seed >> mix for the birds does not provide a balanced diet for the bird. You > >Here in the Florida Keys (KoKoMo), everyone has a hookbill. A >favorite food is chicken leg bones (the drumstick). I haven't >given any to Madeira, but others let their birds break the bones >open and eat the marrow. I am afraid of pointed splinters of >bone (the reason you shouldn't give them to dogs and cats), but >my friends tell me that the birds have a better crushing >apparatus than dogs and cats, and the marrow is good for them. >does anyone else feed chicken bones to their hookbills? > > Joyce Andrews King Interesting. My Bluefronted amazon, Vashon, also has a passion for chicken bones. He particularly likes the soft ends of the drumstick and thigh bones. I also give him the breastbone "keel", and he likes to eat the cartilage and soft bone. This is very nutritious, of course, and many domestic birds do not get enough calcium, so I am inclined to indulge this treat. Vashon never attempts to eat bone splinters and also seems to understand that some things are to be cracked open and only the contents consumed. My bluecrowned conure, Elliot, seems only to like small slivers of chicken or pork, and will not deign to get his feet greasy handling bones. I have to say I miss Vashon, as he is now "put to stud" and is no longer a companion bird. He is reported to be happily united with a lovely female bluefront in Connecticut, and will probably breed this winter or spring. I'm contemplating acquiring a pair of lorikeets which I can keep in my apartment and still breed (the birds can breed, that is), and getting a mealy amazon as a companion. In the wilds, parrots seem to get some animal protein in the form of insects. Some of them, such as the keas of New Zealand, are omnivorous. I figure that if they will eat it and it's non-toxic, then it's OK. There are limits, of course. Parrots use their opposable beak to pre-grind seed and the like before swallowing it, so their "gizzard muscles" are much less developed than in most bird species. To accomodate the varied diet, however, I always keep a supply of grit and crushed oystershell handy as a dietary supplement to aid the digestive process. Also, I supplement their diet with yoghurt, which assures a benign bacterial culture in their crop and protects against sour-crop syndrome. Finally, I never give them avocado or raw tomato; two foods that have been implicated anecdotally in dietary deaths in parrots. (Vashon likes the tomato sauce in his helpings of pizza, though. Also the pepperoni. :-) ) -lar "...no retreat, baby, no surrender!" - Bruce Springsteen Lar Kaufman <= my opinions Fidonet: 1:322/470@508-534-1842 kaufman@multimax.arpa {bu-cs,decvax,necntc,talcott}!encore!kaufman
njs@scifi.UUCP (Nicholas J. Simicich) (11/10/88)
In article <1282@inuxd.UUCP>, jla@inuxd.UUCP (Joyce Andrews) writes: > > A primary natural function of hookbills is to spread seeds around. > Madeira (Blue-Front Amazon) puts her head down in the dish and > goes > "BLLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLB" > > And you think your bird can scatter seeds? Let's have a contest! > > > You should be aware that the common practice of simply providing seed > > mix for the birds does not provide a balanced diet for the bird. You > > Here in the Florida Keys (KoKoMo), everyone has a hookbill. A > favorite food is chicken leg bones (the drumstick). I haven't > given any to Madeira, but others let their birds break the bones > open and eat the marrow. I am afraid of pointed splinters of > bone (the reason you shouldn't give them to dogs and cats), but > my friends tell me that the birds have a better crushing > apparatus than dogs and cats, and the marrow is good for them. > does anyone else feed chicken bones to their hookbills? > > -- > Joyce Andrews King > att!inuxd!jla > AT&T, Indianapolis > (This message brought to you from the Florida Keys via the > miracle of modern communications.) Well, I've heard of and seen lots of hookbills eating chicken bones. If we try to feed some to ours, the greyhounds go over to the cages and beg, and the birds throw the chicken bones at them. I'm serious. We usually offer table food such as vegetables, eggs, slices of fruit, and so forth to our parrots. It is best if we slice the stuff into aerodynamic shapes so that the parrots can get good distance and velocity from them as they throw it as far as they can. An easy supplemental food to feed the hookbills is Monkey Chow, or ZuPreem. They seem to like crumbling the stuff, although I'm not sure how much they eat. But it provides an easy to feed alternative to just seed. We offered it for several weeks before they ate even one piece. Now they eat it all the time. When the birds throw the Monkey Chow to the greyhounds, I'm not nearly as worried. The greyhounds, incidentally, are retired racing greyhounds. ASPCA estimates that 50,000/year are disposed of because they are too slow. We are involved with an organization (non-profit) called the Midlantic Greyhound Welfare League that trys to find homes for some of these dogs. They make good pets for people who are willing to keep a large dog. "Retirement" age for these dogs is two-four years old, on the average. Generally, the dogs are in good health. The owners typically would like to find homes for these dogs, provided that you promise not to breed them. You don't get the papers. email me for info. If you are not in the NY/Tristate area, we will try to find someone who is near you. Give me your U.S. Mail address and we will send you info and an application. Nick Simicich --- uunet!bywater!scifi!njs -- Nick Simicich --- uunet!bywater!scifi!njs --- njs@ibm.com (Internet)
jla@inuxd.UUCP (Joyce Andrews) (11/10/88)
> > Interesting. My Bluefronted amazon, Vashon, also has a passion for > > I have to say I miss Vashon, as he is now "put to stud" and is no > longer a companion bird. He is reported to be happily united with a > lovely female bluefront in Connecticut, and will probably breed this I was thinking of finding a stud for Madeira, but I'm afraid she'd nag him to death. -- Joyce Andrews King att!inuxd!jla AT&T, Indianapolis (This message brought to you from the Florida Keys via the miracle of modern communications.)
kaufman@maxzilla.Encore.COM (Lar Kaufman) (11/12/88)
In article <1284@inuxd.UUCP> jla@inuxd.UUCP (Joyce Andrews) writes: >> I have to say I miss Vashon, as he is now "put to stud" and is no >> longer a companion bird. >I was thinking of finding a stud for Madeira, but I'm afraid >she'd nag him to death. > Joyce Andrews King I am not yet a parrot breeder, although I have had some success with finches, so this information is second-hand: I am told that many parrots of the Amazona family become "debonded" with humans after selecting a partner of their own species, and while they may or may not become averse to human company, they will no longer be the warm, loving "pets" they once were. In the case of Vashon, who earlier this year (in an apparent adolescent hormonal surge) suddenly became much more vocal and rambunctious, I just said goodbye to him and wished him a fullfilling and prolific life. This was less traumatic than, say, a divorce, but it was an emotionally wrenching experience. I had acquired Vashon as an imported bird at a pet store, and he was never what you would call a "loving" bird, although he was friendly enough. We certainly had mutual respect and affection. Vashon is a bird of great personality and charm. I just want to caution you to be prepared for emotional storms of your own if you choose to breed your pet parrot. Bluefronted Amazons are not yet endangered, but at the current rate of destruction of their environment I predict that they will become so within the next 5-8 years. In that case, you may want to consider whether you have a responsibility to help perpetuate the species. As conservationist parrot-lovers, we have some tough decisions to make. Personally, I hope to be able to set up an aviary within the next two years with the intention of breeding endangered species. I will limit my companionship relations with birds to the more easily bred, unthreatened species. -lar PS Is Madeira named after the place, the product, or what? Vashon and Elliot are both named after places in Puget Sound - green and beautiful as it is. (Actually, Elliot is named after a little boy of prankish and precocious personality, too, but the dichotomy was intentional. I'm not really sure of the spelling of Seattle's Elliot Bay.) Lar Kaufman <= my opinions Fidonet: 1:322/470@508-534-1842 kaufman@multimax.arpa {bu-cs,decvax,necntc,talcott}!encore!kaufman
jla@inuxd.UUCP (Joyce Andrews) (11/13/88)
> In article <1284@inuxd.UUCP> jla@inuxd.UUCP (Joyce Andrews) writes: > > >> I have to say I miss Vashon, as he is now "put to stud" and is no > >> longer a companion bird. > > >I was thinking of finding a stud for Madeira, but I'm afraid > >she'd nag him to death. > > Joyce Andrews King > > Bluefronted Amazons are not yet endangered, but at the current rate > of destruction of their environment I predict that they will become so > within the next 5-8 years. In that case, you may want to consider > whether you have a responsibility to help perpetuate the species. As > conservationist parrot-lovers, we have some tough decisions to make. > Personally, I hope to be able to set up an aviary within the next two > years with the intention of breeding endangered species. I will limit > my companionship relations with birds to the more easily bred, > unthreatened species. > -lar > > PS Is Madeira named after the place, the product, or what? Vashon and > Madeira is a river that flows NE into the Amazon. I was being a bit facetious, though, when I mentioned breeding her. I know she wouldn't be my buddy anymore...she wouldn't sit on my shoulder and watch the colors change on the monitor. But she's such a TERRIFIC bird, she probably should be bred. I live in a great place to breed parrots. I wouldn't have to provide any heat...parrots (macaws, Amazons, etc.) live wild here after they escape. We had a breeding pair of blue and gold macaws living in the Keys until some stupid A*****E shot them. Now, see, there I go getting my blood pressure up again. I'm really much too old for this sort of thing. The reason I posted the jocular message was because I'd gotten so hot over the hunting thing. Why don't all of you just come down here, do a little bird watching, visit the Florida Keys Wild Bird Rehabilitation Center, and calm me down? -- Joyce Andrews King att!inuxd!jla AT&T, Indianapolis (This message brought to you from the Florida Keys via the miracle of modern communications.)