I had two days off in a row this week!!  I know that doesn’t sound like a big deal, but when you work in retail, believe me, it’s rare.  It feels like spring break.  I intended to tackle some projects that needed tackling.  I actually tackled two.  And they were, of course, bird projects.

New cage covers were desperately needed for Linus, my umbrella cockatoo, and the cockatiels, so I moved this to the top of the to-do list.  I went to the quilting section at the fabric store and bought about 2 miles of dark broadcloth.  Linus has a really big cage.  He also has a really big beak and had shredded his cover beyond usefulness.  He has a favorite side to his cage for sleeping, and there was so little fabric remaining on that side that he recently decided to move to the other side for a good night’s sleep.  I know this because his back-end has been positioned over his water bowl all night for about a week now.  I don’t think I need to say more.  I constructed the cover and attached it to the cage using grommets and quick links.

The cockatiels.  My sweet little darlings.  The only thing worse that waking up to the horrors in Linus’s water dish is waking up to the cockatiel’s belting out a tune at 6:30am when I worked late and got to bed at 1 the night before.  Don’t get me wrong.  I love hearing their joyous little voices.  Just not then.  I made them a darker cover to encourage them to sleep a little later.

I was so excited when I went to bed last night, new cage covers in place, knowing I could sleep until I woke up rested.  Well, that was the plan, until I woke up to my alarm clock buzzing at 6:45.  Apparently, I had set it the night before out of habit.  The good news is that I did not hear a peep from the cockatiels at 6:30…if that can be construed as good news.  Oh, and by the way, I came down stairs to find that Linus had torn a hole in his new cover, right at his eye level, and every movement I made was being monitored by a blue eye ring surrounded by black cloth.  Creepy.

Today’s project was toy making for the cockatoos.  Linus was pouting this morning as if to say:  “Mom, I have nothing to do with my beak.”  I was thinking how he found something to do with it earlier that involved his new cage cover, but kept quiet.  I went to the lumber store for a pile of 2X4s and cut enough 1″ pieces to fill a 10 gallon bin.  I drilled holes into each piece so they could be strung onto chains.  I made HUGE toys for both Linus and Theo, my goffins cockatoo, who didn’t even notice the wooden behemoth in her cage.

Linus was thrilled, though, and spent most of the day transporting bitten off chunks of wood to his stainless steel pail for further processing.  I noticed about an hour ago that he has managed to give himself a black eye, something he does several times a year in the course of going to battle with his toys.  Sometimes they hit back.  He has already gone through about 7″ of wood, or the equivalent of 15 boxes of toothpicks (if I were counting, or thinking about going into that business).  I guess we both had a productive day.  Next project on the list:  Easter baskets for the cockatoos, and Easter…boxes for the little guys.

Parrots are instinctively highly attuned to everything around them.  It is this awareness of their environment that keeps them safe from predators.  So it’s easy to understand why parrots are so quick to pick up on the energy levels of their owners and the home they live in. This is something we can use to our advantage and is just one more example of how having an understanding of a wild bird’s nature will help us with the birds we keep in our homes.

Have you ever noticed that when you stand in front of your bird and act silly and animated that he will start bouncing up and down on his perch and become vocal?  Have you observed that when you stand quietly and speak to him in quiet tones that he will turn his head to the side and listen intently to your words?

The energy level present in the home is often responsible for the behavior, or misbehavior, of our parrots.  If things have become too chaotic or noisy, sometimes all it takes to restore peace is a quiet chat.

When Linus, my umbrella cockatoo, decides the time is right for his afternoon vocalizations, I can nearly always quiet him by speaking softly to him.  Even when he is in  full-on scream mode, I can generally stop it by standing in front of him and continuing to speak quietly.  He may not be able to hear me over his own loud voice, but he can see me, and I figure he has to come up for air at some point.  My low energy gradually rubs off on him.

On the other side of that coin is instigating play.  For the parrot that tends to be a perch potato, some music and lively dancing and singing on your part might be just the things to get him moving, and exercising.  Sometimes birds are afraid of, or disinterested in, new things.  Since your bird trusts you, your enthusiasm with new things will make him feel comfortable with, and an excitement about, the things you introduce him to.  Once you tell him something is okay, it will be.

Talking to your parrot serves a number of purposes.  For the new parrot in the home, it is trust building.  Your new parrot can learn to feel relaxed with you as you continue to show him that you are a safe playmate.  As his comfort increases, you can begin to show him that you are fun as well.

Talking to your parrot can prepare him for events coming up in the future as well, such as your trip to Europe and his subsequent trip to the boarding facility, or any other big change that is approaching. Tell your parrot that a change is coming, but that it is a temporary arrangement and that everything will be fine.  Assure him that he is loved, and throw in how beautiful and good he is.  The more time you spend talking to him, explaining and reassuring him, the better prepared he will be for your absence.  I realize this sounds silly, and I can already see some eyes rolling, but this really does help, and I don’t know of a single parrot expert who doesn’t agree.  While they don’t understand your words, they will certainly take your tone to heart.  Somehow, this reaffirms your relationship with them and carries them through what might otherwise be a traumatic event.

In every case where a parrot that has the benefit of an owner that takes the time to talk to him, he will  feel included as a member of the household.  This improves your relationship with him, betters his life and will make him more family friendly.

A while back, a friend and I were talking about some of the behavioral oddities of my umbrella cockatoo, Linus.  I call them Linuisms.  I was explaining to her that he has this thing about me sitting on the floor.  He doesn’t like it.  If he is out of his cage when I’m on the floor, he will always make his way over to me, usually thinking evil thoughts.  She asked me how I handled this and I told her that I don’t sit on the floor.  She thought it was pretty funny that I do what my bird tells me to.  We laughed about it because my solution to the problem certainly did make it look like that, but  it really has nothing to do with a battle of wills or who won.

Many cockatoos are aggressive when they are on the ground, it’s a character trait.  This doesn’t explain, however, his objection to me being on the ground while he is in his cage.  I have no idea what his problem is, I just know that it bugs the heck out of him, so I don’t do it.  And I see no reason to bother trying to change this idea he has, because, frankly, I don’t care.  There has been only one time when I found it necessary to be on the floor, and that was when I was going through a box of family photos with my daughter one day.  I simply moved him to another room.

It isn’t important to me to wage war against trivial things.  I am a firm believer in that our birds have a right to their opinions, likes and dislikes, and need to feel they have some control over their lives.  And I don’t believe it’s right to subdue the expression of their wants or needs, so long as it’s done in a reasonable manner.

Birds have idiosyncrasies just like people do, it’s part of what makes them interesting.  I suspect our birds have long lists of things we do that drive them crazy, but they seem to look beyond our faults to the good things (unless you’re me and your sitting on the floor.)  Do you see where I’m going with this?  Our birds have so many confinements and restrictions already that I see no reason to impose another just so I can sit on the floor.  That’s why I carefully pick my battles with them.

If my bird is doing something that is interfering with daily life, or is a danger to itself or others, then I recognize the need to make changes. A bird that doesn’t work well with the lifestyle of his family will find himself without a home.  But do we sometimes expect too much? Life with parrots is always changing.  We might be settling into a nice routine that seems to fit everyone’s needs, and BAM! -along comes spring.

I think the key to forming a successful alliance with a bird is to just go with the flow and let their personalities shine through.  Never mind your ideas for the perfect pet, never mind the occasional hiccup in your daily routine, and never mind that you might never get it just right.  By no means is life a free-for-all  with my parrots – there are rules that I expect to be followed.  I just don’t sweat the small stuff.  I prefer to save my energy for the big problems.  I don’t need perfection from my birds, just cooperation, and I give the same in return.

There are countless sources of information about parrots online.  There are online forums and web pages that are dedicated solely to the specific bird you are looking for.  There are sites for conures, macaws,  cockatoos, eclectus, you name it.  Within each group you can learn the habits of the individual species.

The behavior differences between a macaw and a cockatoo are enormous, but even within a family of birds, different species behave differently.  For instance, the goffins cockatoo species is entirely different from the umbrella cockatoo.  Then when you throw in the independent personalities of each bird, there’s a lot to consider before you buy.  If you do your homework by looking into the natural inclinations and behaviors of a species that you are interested in, you are less likely to have a parrot that doesn’t fit in your household.

Ask yourself these question.  Within each question are more question to break it down further.  I will use a “typical” african grey as an example of how this species might or might not work in different households:

1.  Which parrot will fit with my my lifestyle?

• Do you live in a noisy, chaotic home that is filled with children and other pets? This may not be the best environment for the typical african grey, which has a tendency towards fearfulness.  A calm home that is not full of surprises is a better match.
• Do you live in an apartment or have neighbors in nearby? Since they are not considered to be loud parrots, african greys are great apartment birds.  This is not to say that they can’t raise the roof, it’s that they generally don’t choose to.  Be prepared for morning and evening vocalizations with whatever species you select.
• Do you work out of your home? This is the ideal situation for an african grey.  Since they are quiet(ish) as parrots go, you can go about your paperwork and phone calls without much interruption.  And your bird will get to have you around all day!

2.  What kind of owner am I going to be?

• Are you looking for a bird that might talk? Needless to say, the african grey is at the head of the classwith its ability to talk and comprehend.  Know, however, that yours may not.  Some prefer to imitate sounds  like the telephone, car alarms, kitchen timers, dripping faucets, and the alien spacecraft that apparently landed in your backyard recently.  (Half the fun in this is trying to identify the sounds and figure out where he picked them up.)
• Do you want a bird that enjoys being handled? Not all greys like to be handled. While there are some snugglers out there, this is not a typical trait.  Some prefer to watch from a distance.
• Will you make time to devote to a pet that requires a lot of care and interaction in order to thrive? The african grey is very intelligent and perceptive, perhaps even hyper-aware of its environment.  It requires a lot of interaction and needs to be included in the life and energy of its owner.
• Can you bring up a parrot the right way? African greys are are no different than other species in their need to be well-adjusted.  How your bird behaves in general depends on being taught him how to play independently to occupy his time on his own.  A parrot that feels bonded to its people, and has a sense of security, will find no need to play attention getting games.

There are many more questions to ask with regards to your environment and level of care you are willing to give.  There are some situations that are preferred for this particular species, but it will vary from bird to bird.  I know greys that are quite outgoing and love a house filled with craziness.  I know one that has never uttered a word or imitated a sound.  Some prefer multi-bird homes, others prefer to be the only child.  Your birds personality plays a big role in how well it will adapt, but knowing the probabilities will help you make the right selection.

After you’ve done all your research and found a great species match and your cockatoo turns out not to be a snuggler, or your cockatiel  prefers to hang out in its cage instead of in the family room, will you be accepting of that?

With springtime fast approaching, we have to be on the lookout for “quirky” behaviors that are related to onset of hormones.  I have often compared hormonal parrots with teenagers.  They both know what is right or wrong in terms of their behavior, but neither seem to be able to control themselves at times when hormones are involved.  Your once placid parrot may overreact to things that he would normally overlook, and he might express himself with aggression.

Linus, my umbrella cockatoo, always seems to be walking a fine line when he is excited.  Throughout the entire year, I have to carefully watch his body language to make sure his play doesn’t escalate into aggression.  He gets to a point of excitement where he seems to lose control, and is quick to bite.  It really appears to be temporary insanity.  Sometimes he seems as shocked by his actions as I am, and he quickly tries to make amends by doing something cute.  Or he walks away grumbling something along the lines of: “Look what you made me do!”

Linus is not a bad bird.  He is typical of a cockatoo in every way, except he has a bit of an edge.  Over-stimulation is something that affects all species of birds.  I bring it up now because it is a behavior that is exaggerated by hormones this time of year.

How much is too much for our parrots?

The signs of an over-stimulated bird look very similar to typical signs of aggression, but they are easy to confuse with a bird that is excited by play. A parrot that is playing hard will have raised feathers, pinned eyes and a fanned tail at times.  Since these are also the signs of an angry bird, the best way to figure out if your bird’s mood is by assessing how it is responding to you at that time.  A playing bird will encourage you to join in the fun, or at least want you as an observer.

For instance, when I get on the floor and roll a ball to Linus, he might grab the ball, throw it over his back and run after it.  He’ll look at me to make sure I’m watching.  He’ll grab the ball, run back and forth with it and then drop it.  He’ll look at me to see that I am watching and cheering him on.  Then he’ll grab the ball, bang it on the floor a few times, maybe smack it into the wall, and then stop to see that I am paying attention.  This is a happy-excited bird, who is behaving in an interactive way with me.

However, the tone can change quickly.  I will retrieve the ball and toss it to him again and he will go through his repertoire of moves.  After doing this several times, he becomes possessive of the ball, and is no longer including me in play.  He is now eying me wearily and is taking the ball in a direction away from me.  If I approach him, he takes on a defensive stance and might hiss at me.  It is a perplexing behavior, and frustrating to say the least.  Playtime comes to an abrupt halt.

What could I have done differently to avoid over-stimulation?

The first and most important thing to remember is that your bird keeps a scorecard.   The card has two categories:  good experiences and bad experiences.  Any time something unpleasant happens, he puts a note under bad experiences.  When that column is full, behavior problems begin, even if there are an overwhelming amount of entries in the good experiences category, and even if the bad experiences are brought on by himself.  Any experience that is perceived as negative, regardless of our level of involvement, can be related back to us, so we want every interaction to have a positive conclusion.

That said, we need to halt the escalation of a potential problem BEFORE we get there.  Knowing Linus has a short window for play, I should have stopped the game while it was still fun and interactive.  There’s nothing really gained by continuing until the bird is tired or bored with the game anyways.  Keeping him wanting more will only make it that much more fun the next time.  I should have stopped after a few tosses of the ball, and moved onto something different.  Once I am able to notice subtle changes in tone and attitude, the game is already over.

How do I handle my bird once he has reached the point of aggression?

Usually, over-stimulation is easy to calm.  Remember that it was just seconds ago that the two of you were having fun.  I find that lowering levels of excitement and speaking in quiet tones gets the job done quickly.  Parrots are quick to match our energy levels.  Since your bird is just high-strung at the moment, and you have not committed an atrocity for which you must be repaid, a parrot will generally relax quickly.  A period of quiet cage time is a good idea at this point, not as punishment because he’s done nothing wrong, but to maintain calm and assure his level of stimulation has lowered.  Playtime can resume, more carefully, in a while.

My work days are sometimes very long and it often feels like bedtime the minute I get home.  I want to have plenty of time to spend with my birds since that is the highlight to my days.  Bird related chores and meal preparation sometimes cuts into our fun-time so I try to get these things done with the most efficiency possible.

I want my birds to have fresh foods everyday, but there are some mornings when I know that I will be running against the clock and 20 or so  minutes of washing and chopping just won’t fit into the schedule, especially when the chopping has to accommodate 4 different sizes of birds.  These are the days when I have to rely on what I have in the freezer.  I try to always have a stock of frozen meals prepared that require only that I remember to put them into the refrigerator for thawing the night before.  Not only do these meals offer convenience and big savings, but they add variety to the menu.

15 Bean Soup Mix: In the dried bean section of your supermarket, you will find 20 oz packages of 15 bean soup mixes.  It makes an awesome slow cooked soup.  Quite often, though, I will buy a package that I use only for the birds.  The greatest thing about these packages is it gives me a huge variety of beans in a not so huge quantity – just enough to cook and freeze without any spoilage.  The packages contain different kinds of kidney, lima, black, navy, and pinto beans, split peas, black eyed peas, lentils and more.  I soak the beans overnight, rinsing a few times before I go to bed and then again in the morning.  I fill the pot up with fresh water and cook them for about 40 minutes until they are tender.  Small birds have no trouble biting into the whole cooked beans.

Multi Veggie Chopped Mix: You can get really creative with this.  With a small food processor and a variety of raw veggies you can make the most nutritionally complete and economical meals for your birds.  Simply mince the foods and put them into a fine mesh strainer so that excess liquids can drain out (it will freeze and keep better).  There is no limit to the number of veggies you can use in a single batch, in fact, the more the better.  Sprouts and cooked grains also mix in perfectly. Try adding parsley, carrot tops and cilantro…use your imagination!  The more things you add, the better balance this diet will offer.

The best thing about this mix is that since the foods are chopped so small, they will often eat things they didn’t intend to because the foods will cling to one another, which will sometimes add a new option for foods they will eat and enjoy.  And it’s cut small enough to work for any sized birds from a parakeet to a macaw. I have a couple of birds that don’t care for celery, green peppers, or garlic.  I  don’t add these to the mix, only because they are so strong in flavor that they tend to permeate the rest of the mix and have caused these birds to turn down the entire meal.  Sometimes I will freeze these foods separately for those who appreciate them.  I know many people who serve their chopped mix everyday.  If your parrots love it, it will provide them with a nutritious and varied meal.

Freezing And Thawing The Meals: A Seal-A-Meal type of vacuum sealer works great for these meals, but Ziplock freezer bags work fine too.  Since my birds all get fed the same thing everyday, I put enough into each bag to serve them all, but the serving sizes can vary however you need them to.  As I mentioned, the dryer the chopped mix is, the longer is will last in the freezer, so drain it well before bagging it.

As long as you get as much air out of the bag as possible. the meals will last 3-6 months in the freezer.  The trick is to remove as much air from the bag as possible to avoid freezer burn.  Linus, my umbrella cockatoo, bit through the cord of my unplugged Seal-A-Meal a couple of years ago and I have yet to replace it.  So I resort to a trick my mother taught me years ago, although, I laughed at the time.

When I was a kid, my parents had a deep freezer, which is a freezer that maintains a temperature below 0 degrees, as compared to the  below 32 degrees that regular freezers are kept at.  Being one of six kids, my parent learned to shop economically, buying larger quantities of food for less and storing it in the deep freezer.  Since, unlike the freezer in the kitchen which was opened and closed constantly, the deep freezer was only opened for the retrieval of food for dinner, and everything kept beautifully.

Long before the invention of vacuum sealers, my mom figured out that the foods kept better if air was eliminated from the bags.  I remember watching her process of preparing the food for the deep freeze.  She would seal off a plastic bag, except for about a 1/2 inch in the corner, with the edge of a  cool iron.  Then she inserted a straw, sucked out the air, and managed to seal off the remaining 1/2 inch without letting more air into the bag.  Pure genius.  Of course, her technique was revised with the invention of  Ziplock bags.  As much as I giggled at her, it worked, still does.  Of course, you have to be careful to suck the air out, and not blow your germs in all over the food!

She also taught me to wash and reuse the Ziplock bags.  I go through a number of them, and this alone has saved me a ton of money.  Just be sure to dry them thoroughly before your store them for re-use.

Thawing your parrot meals is easy.  Just take the bag and place it in the refrigerator overnight.  The pieces are tiny and will thaw quickly, even in the fridge, and once thawed they will keep there until you serve them in the morning.  Sometimes, I will pop them into the microwave for a few seconds to take the chill off.  Make sure you stir the mix or beans up well so there are no hot spots.

Less time we spend in the kitchen means more time for fun with the birds!