Do you have any questions regarding your new bird? Email me and I can try to help, or I can refer you to someone who can! |
Making the decision to bring a new bird into your home is one of the biggest and most important decisions you can make. I honestly would NOT recommend parrots as companions to most people. If you must share your life with birds, I would recommend one of the smaller species for the first-time bird guardian. Birds like Budgies and Cockatiels, Canaries and Finches are usually easier on an unexperienced person, and also more forgiving, but they DO require the same levels of care as the larger birds. There are many things you will need to consider before you decide to take on the responsibility of caring for an exotic bird. The Gabriel Foundation, a non-profit rescue organization, estimates that only about one percent of the population is equipped intellectually, emotionally, financially and physically to provide the proper environment for parrots. Parrots have a very long life span, compared to other companion animals like dogs and cats. Some of the larger species can live for 80 years or more! Even the smaller species like conures can live well into their 30s. Are you prepared to make arrangements for your bird after your death? What will happen to your bird if you end up getting married, having a baby, getting divorced, moving to an apartment that does not allow pets, developing allergies to bird dust? There are many natural life changes that should be expected, because not all life changes prove beneficial for the birds. Parrots can be very difficult creatures to live with. They are loud, messy, and demanding. If you want a bird because you want a pet that talks, you should reconsider your decision. Not all birds talk, even the birds with reputations for talking ability, like Greys and Amazons. In fact, instead of talking, you might end up with a bird that mimics car alarms and telephone rings all day! Even the smaller birds like Cockatiels make quite a bit of noise. Birds like budgies tend to make a constant chattering noise throughout the day. There is no such thing as a "quiet bird." Well, actually, there is. A quiet bird is a sick bird! If you want a bird because they're beautiful, get a picture instead. Not all birds remain in good feather. Stress, illness, or other problems can cause birds to pick at, chew, and pull out their own feathers. Some birds under extreme stress can develop neurotic behaviors including mutilating their own skin. If you want a bird because you don't think you can afford a dog or cat, think again. Birds are not cheap to care for. Foster Parrots, another avian rescue facility, estimates that a bird owner will spend anywhere from $200 to $2000 a year on a companion parrot, depending on their size. Costs you can expect are food, toys, vet care, cages, play stands, and other accessories. Birds require regular veterinary care, since birds naturally hide signs of illness. Average well-bird checkups can run you between $45 and $75 on average, depending on any lab work you have done. Emergency veterinary care can be quite expensive. If you bird is bitten by another animal, even another bird in the house, you may be looking at fees for admittance to the hospital, x-rays, anethesia, surgery, etc. Costs and rise into the thousands. You should only consider caring for an exotic bird if you know you will have the financial means to care for your birds long-term. Are you ready to parrot-proof your house? Parrots have very sensitive respiratory systems. You'll need to clear out any scented candles, room sprays, plug-in room fresheners, and non-stick cookwear, which emits toxic fumes that can kill birds very quickly. You'll need to be very careful with anything scented around your birds, even air fresheners in your car when taking them for vet visits! To parrot-proof your house, you'll also need to look very carefully at the area designated for the bird. Birds should not have access to anything you couldn't accept having destroyed, like furniture, blankets, electrical cords and equipment, magazines, photos, plants, etc. I've even had items of clothes destroyed when my bird chewed little holes in them while I wasn't looking! If you have thought long and hard and decided that you still have more thinking to do. You now have to determine which species is for you, and maybe even which subspecies. Visit my Articles Page for informative articles on specific species of birds. After choosing the species, you must decide where to obtain the bird. You have a few choices. You can go to a pet store (either a chain pet store or a specialty bird shop), a breeder, private owners, or rescue organizations. Birds are expensive! Even rescue organizations must charge an adoption fee, along with any other fees they deem necessary. I would urge anyone with plenty of time and resources to choose a Rescue Organization above all else. The problem of unwanted parrots is very real. If you choose to go the pet store route, I would choose a small specialty bird shop over a pet store. Click here to read a portion of an article by Pamela Clark that demonstrates how huge of a problem this is. Birds are very specialized creatures, and many large or chain pet stores simply cannot or do not eduate their staff as to the needs of birds. Read this article about a well-known chain pet store that sells birds. Choose a clean bird shop with helpful, educated staff. Go in with a checklist of standards for a quality bird shop like those offered by Sally Blanchard. If you choose to use a breeder, get references from local Avian Vets and/or your local bird club. A good breeder should ask you many questions to determine if you would be a good match with his or her birds. You should also have plenty of questions to ask before you decide on your breeder or bird shop. .If you decide to check out a Rescue Organization, be aware that many of these facilities will interview you extensively to determine if you and one of their birds would be a good match. Some of the birds in rescue situations may be physically disabled and/or have serious behavior difficulties. These birds should probably only go to homes with experienced bird people who have the time and resources to provide a lifelong home. Once you have made the decision on where to get your bird, your next step should be to determine if they have the bird you want for sale or adoption. You should be prepared to wait a while if the type of bird you want is not available yet. Use this time to purchase a cage, toys, food, etc. Also use this time to find a good Avian Veterinarian. Veterinary care is very expensive- you need to factor this cost in along with the bird and all the accessories that come along with it. Once your little baby has hatched, the breeder or bird shop should give you regular updates on his/her progress, along with insisting you come and visit the bird. If there is more than one baby bird of your preferred species available, the shop or breeder should try to match you with the baby that best fits your lifestyle. Depending on the species of bird, weaning time will vary. Smaller birds like cockatiels should wean in 4-6 weeks. Larger birds like African Greys should wean in 13-16 weeks. The largest Macaws could take a year to wean. Unless you are an experienced hand feeder you should NEVER take home an unweaned baby bird! It is too easy to kill a baby bird if you are unsure of what you are doing. A good bird shop or breeder will refuse to sell you a bird that is not weaned. They will also use a technique similar to Phoebe Linden's Abundance Weaning to wean your bird. Birds who are weaned too quickly can develop serious behavior problems that you will have to deal with! Birds should not be routinely gavage fed. Gavage feeding involves placing a tube directly into the bird's crop to provide nourishment. The bird never gets a chance to taste food this way, and can develop serious emotional problems because of it. Gavage feeding can be done in emergency situations to try to save a bird's life, but should not be done in order to save time and raise more chicks. Read this article by Sally Blanchard about the problem of breeders who raise chicks for profit only. Birds should not be weaned on a strict timetable, but on the bird's own schedule. Birds should be feed by breeders on demand. In the wild, hunger means the baby has been abandoned. The feeling of hunger makes birds very insecure. Be sure the bird will be weaned onto a good diet. The jury is still out on what exactly a "good diet" is, but most people with parrots feed pellets, along with vegetables, grains, and some treats. Bird should NOT be weaned onto a seed-only diet. Once you finally get your bird home you can relax, right? Wrong! This is usually a very stressful time as you get used to the added responsibility of having a parrot. You should schedule a new bird exam as soon as possible The bird shop or breeder should give you a health guarantee in writing, and this guarantee should give you enough time to get the bird to a vet and get all test results back. A guarantee only good for a few days is inadequate. A month is more like it. If you have other birds in your house you MUST quarrantine. This involves keeping your other birds out of contact with the new bird for a specified period of time. Your vet will tell you how long- it is generally around a month or two. This quarrantine period insures your new baby, whose immune system is still immature, does not acquire any illness from the birds you already have. You also want to protect your own flock from the new bird. During the quarrantine period, you should begin teaching your new bird behavioral guidlines. A good place to start is with Sally Blanchard's Nurturing Guidance techniques. You should also be introducing your bird to LOTS of good foods. Getting your bird used to varied foods will help to guarantee he or she will accept new foods in the future. Another good idea is to spoon or syringe feed your bird on a regular basis. This is different from hand feeding in that your bird does not depend on this type of feeding for nourishment. Feeding soft warm foods from spoon or your fingers helps you bond with your new bird, and most birds absolutely LOVE being fed this way. Good foods to spoon and finger feed are cooked sweet potatoes and oatmeal. Syringe feeding is a good way to insure your bird won't fight you if you ever need to medicate her orally. Birds can be fed warmed baby food, like carrots, sweet potatoes, and winter squash. If you use a microwave to warm these up, be sure to stir it thoroughly to avoid hot spots. When syringe feeding, just use the syringe to dribble the food into the beak, don't attempt to squirt it down the throat. This can cause your bird to choke. During this time you should also focus on socializing your bird. Read this article by Chris Shank on raising parrots to be the best pet they can be. You should not encourage your bird to bond only to you. Parrots should feel comfortable with many different people, should you need to leave the bird with someone while on vacation, for instance. If you are an adult, you also need to think about the fact that you may outlive your bird! Hopefully your bird would be able to live peacefully with another family should you not be around to care for him. Please read the articles listed in my Articles Page, check out the websites on my Info Page, and read my article, Keeping Your Bird Healthy. Another good source of information is college libraries, where you can sometimes find scientific journals regarding parrots, and veterinary textbooks. Make it a point to educate yourself about your parrot. You are ultimately responsible for your parrot's happiness! Good Luck! Copyright © 2001 by Rebecca Margison |
Bringing Home a New Bird |
Making the decision to bring a new bird into your home is one of the biggest and most important decisions you can make. I honestly would NOT recommend parrots as companions to most people. If you must share your life with birds, I would recommend one of the smaller species for the first-time bird guardian. Birds like Budgies and Cockatiels, Canaries and Finches are usually easier on an unexperienced person, and also more forgiving, but they DO require the same levels of care as the larger birds. There are many things you will need to consider before you decide to take on the responsibility of caring for an exotic bird. The Gabriel Foundation, a non-profit rescue organization, estimates that only about one percent of the population is equipped intellectually, emotionally, financially and physically to provide the proper environment for parrots. Parrots have a very long life span, compared to other companion animals like dogs and cats. Some of the larger species can live for 80 years or more! Even the smaller species like conures can live well into their 30s. Are you prepared to make arrangements for your bird after your death? What will happen to your bird if you end up getting married, having a baby, getting divorced, moving to an apartment that does not allow pets, developing allergies to bird dust? There are many natural life changes that should be expected, because not all life changes prove beneficial for the birds. Parrots can be very difficult creatures to live with. They are loud, messy, and demanding. If you want a bird because you want a pet that talks, you should reconsider your decision. Not all birds talk, even the birds with reputations for talking ability, like Greys and Amazons. In fact, instead of talking, you might end up with a bird that mimics car alarms and telephone rings all day! Even the smaller birds like Cockatiels make quite a bit of noise. Birds like budgies tend to make a constant chattering noise throughout the day. There is no such thing as a "quiet bird." Well, actually, there is. A quiet bird is a sick bird! If you want a bird because they're beautiful, get a picture instead. Not all birds remain in good feather. Stress, illness, or other problems can cause birds to pick at, chew, and pull out their own feathers. Some birds under extreme stress can develop neurotic behaviors including mutilating their own skin. If you want a bird because you don't think you can afford a dog or cat, think again. Birds are not cheap to care for. Foster Parrots, another avian rescue facility, estimates that a bird owner will spend anywhere from $200 to $2000 a year on a companion parrot, depending on their size. Costs you can expect are food, toys, vet care, cages, play stands, and other accessories. Birds require regular veterinary care, since birds naturally hide signs of illness. Average well-bird checkups can run you between $45 and $75 on average, depending on any lab work you have done. Emergency veterinary care can be quite expensive. If you bird is bitten by another animal, even another bird in the house, you may be looking at fees for admittance to the hospital, x-rays, anethesia, surgery, etc. Costs and rise into the thousands. You should only consider caring for an exotic bird if you know you will have the financial means to care for your birds long-term. Are you ready to parrot-proof your house? Parrots have very sensitive respiratory systems. You'll need to clear out any scented candles, room sprays, plug-in room fresheners, and non-stick cookwear, which emits toxic fumes that can kill birds very quickly. You'll need to be very careful with anything scented around your birds, even air fresheners in your car when taking them for vet visits! To parrot-proof your house, you'll also need to look very carefully at the area designated for the bird. Birds should not have access to anything you couldn't accept having destroyed, like furniture, blankets, electrical cords and equipment, magazines, photos, plants, etc. I've even had items of clothes destroyed when my bird chewed little holes in them while I wasn't looking! If you have thought long and hard and decided that you still have more thinking to do. You now have to determine which species is for you, and maybe even which subspecies. Visit my Articles Page for informative articles on specific species of birds. After choosing the species, you must decide where to obtain the bird. You have a few choices. You can go to a pet store (either a chain pet store or a specialty bird shop), a breeder, private owners, or rescue organizations. Birds are expensive! Even rescue organizations must charge an adoption fee, along with any other fees they deem necessary. I would urge anyone with plenty of time and resources to choose a Rescue Organization above all else. The problem of unwanted parrots is very real. If you choose to go the pet store route, I would choose a small specialty bird shop over a pet store. Click here to read a portion of an article by Pamela Clark that demonstrates how huge of a problem this is. Birds are very specialized creatures, and many large or chain pet stores simply cannot or do not eduate their staff as to the needs of birds. Read this article about a well-known chain pet store that sells birds. Choose a clean bird shop with helpful, educated staff. Go in with a checklist of standards for a quality bird shop like those offered by Sally Blanchard. If you choose to use a breeder, get references from local Avian Vets and/or your local bird club. A good breeder should ask you many questions to determine if you would be a good match with his or her birds. You should also have plenty of questions to ask before you decide on your breeder or bird shop. .If you decide to check out a Rescue Organization, be aware that many of these facilities will interview you extensively to determine if you and one of their birds would be a good match. Some of the birds in rescue situations may be physically disabled and/or have serious behavior difficulties. These birds should probably only go to homes with experienced bird people who have the time and resources to provide a lifelong home. Once you have made the decision on where to get your bird, your next step should be to determine if they have the bird you want for sale or adoption. You should be prepared to wait a while if the type of bird you want is not available yet. Use this time to purchase a cage, toys, food, etc. Also use this time to find a good Avian Veterinarian. Veterinary care is very expensive- you need to factor this cost in along with the bird and all the accessories that come along with it. Once your little baby has hatched, the breeder or bird shop should give you regular updates on his/her progress, along with insisting you come and visit the bird. If there is more than one baby bird of your preferred species available, the shop or breeder should try to match you with the baby that best fits your lifestyle. Depending on the species of bird, weaning time will vary. Smaller birds like cockatiels should wean in 4-6 weeks. Larger birds like African Greys should wean in 13-16 weeks. The largest Macaws could take a year to wean. Unless you are an experienced hand feeder you should NEVER take home an unweaned baby bird! It is too easy to kill a baby bird if you are unsure of what you are doing. A good bird shop or breeder will refuse to sell you a bird that is not weaned. They will also use a technique similar to Phoebe Linden's Abundance Weaning to wean your bird. Birds who are weaned too quickly can develop serious behavior problems that you will have to deal with! Birds should not be routinely gavage fed. Gavage feeding involves placing a tube directly into the bird's crop to provide nourishment. The bird never gets a chance to taste food this way, and can develop serious emotional problems because of it. Gavage feeding can be done in emergency situations to try to save a bird's life, but should not be done in order to save time and raise more chicks. Read this article by Sally Blanchard about the problem of breeders who raise chicks for profit only. Birds should not be weaned on a strict timetable, but on the bird's own schedule. Birds should be feed by breeders on demand. In the wild, hunger means the baby has been abandoned. The feeling of hunger makes birds very insecure. Be sure the bird will be weaned onto a good diet. The jury is still out on what exactly a "good diet" is, but most people with parrots feed pellets, along with vegetables, grains, and some treats. Bird should NOT be weaned onto a seed-only diet. Once you finally get your bird home you can relax, right? Wrong! This is usually a very stressful time as you get used to the added responsibility of having a parrot. You should schedule a new bird exam as soon as possible The bird shop or breeder should give you a health guarantee in writing, and this guarantee should give you enough time to get the bird to a vet and get all test results back. A guarantee only good for a few days is inadequate. A month is more like it. If you have other birds in your house you MUST quarrantine. This involves keeping your other birds out of contact with the new bird for a specified period of time. Your vet will tell you how long- it is generally around a month or two. This quarrantine period insures your new baby, whose immune system is still immature, does not acquire any illness from the birds you already have. You also want to protect your own flock from the new bird. During the quarrantine period, you should begin teaching your new bird behavioral guidlines. A good place to start is with Sally Blanchard's Nurturing Guidance techniques. You should also be introducing your bird to LOTS of good foods. Getting your bird used to varied foods will help to guarantee he or she will accept new foods in the future. Another good idea is to spoon or syringe feed your bird on a regular basis. This is different from hand feeding in that your bird does not depend on this type of feeding for nourishment. Feeding soft warm foods from spoon or your fingers helps you bond with your new bird, and most birds absolutely LOVE being fed this way. Good foods to spoon and finger feed are cooked sweet potatoes and oatmeal. Syringe feeding is a good way to insure your bird won't fight you if you ever need to medicate her orally. Birds can be fed warmed baby food, like carrots, sweet potatoes, and winter squash. If you use a microwave to warm these up, be sure to stir it thoroughly to avoid hot spots. When syringe feeding, just use the syringe to dribble the food into the beak, don't attempt to squirt it down the throat. This can cause your bird to choke. During this time you should also focus on socializing your bird. Read this article by Chris Shank on raising parrots to be the best pet they can be. You should not encourage your bird to bond only to you. Parrots should feel comfortable with many different people, should you need to leave the bird with someone while on vacation, for instance. If you are an adult, you also need to think about the fact that you may outlive your bird! Hopefully your bird would be able to live peacefully with another family should you not be around to care for him. Please read the articles listed in my Articles Page, check out the websites on my Info Page, and read my article, Keeping Your Bird Healthy. Another good source of information is college libraries, where you can sometimes find scientific journals regarding parrots, and veterinary textbooks. Make it a point to educate yourself about your parrot. You are ultimately responsible for your parrot's happiness! Good Luck! Copyright © 2001 by Rebecca Margison |
Do you have any questions regarding your new bird? Email me and I can try to help, or I can refer you to someone who can! |
