Psittacosis may not be the most common disease in your flock, but it is the one you need to be most aware of. This is because Psittacosis (or more technically Chlamydiosis or Chlamydia) is the one disease your birds may give to you, and unless recognised, it can be fatal! The Chlamydia organism, which is … Read more
I receive lots of calls and visits from pet bird owners. All of them with the same question, “My sweet bird is beginning to pluck feathers. What do I do?” The first thing I ask them is, “Have you had them examined by your avian veterinarian?” Most of the time, the answer is, “NO.” whenever … Read more
The first thing that a breeder must have accomplished before attempting to breed is to have healthy, well exercised stock that has been fed a nutritionally balanced diet. Depending n the size of your breeding operation, it would be advisable to select a few breeders and have them checked by a good avian vet. Cultures, … Read more
Breeding is not a decision to be made lightly. If you haven’t read the article about deciding whether you should breed yet please do, otherwise, read on. Cockatiel breeding is not especially difficult but it will require time, commitment, and thought. First of all you need a pair of suitable birds, a male and a … Read more
You may be thinking “Breeding is natural isn’t it?”. Or maybe one of your question would be, “What can possibly go wrong?”. I’m here to tell you, if you can think of it going wrong, it’s most likely a potential problem. Breeding cockatiels is often very simple but sometimes it just doesn’t succeed. Some things … Read more
In the past five years, as I have continued to increase my knowledge about birds, and have become enriched by my contacts with other aviculturists, I have become fascinated with a subject which has rarely been addressed in the literature. That subject concerns how and why birds behave the way they do, and the ways … Read more
Just this side of heaven is a place called the Rainbow Bridge. When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to the Rainbow Bridge.There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together. There is plenty of food, water and … Read more
Most people regard what’s in the bottom of their bird’s cage as something they’d rather not look at, but much can be learned by taking a closer look. IN GENERAL: We recommend you use newspaper to cover your cage bottom. Its non-toxic, inexpensive and gives you a clear view of what your bird has dropped … Read more
There was mention in the last issue of Eclectus Forum that apple seeds contain cyanide. This information was questioned by one individual who feeds apple seeds to his Eclectus, so I traced the information to a list of foods containing cyanide by Gillian Willis.She explains: ” Sorry if I have confused you…. The body can … Read more
Too bad there aren’t standard IQ tests for birds. Jazz is a cautious soul, never daring to throw himself into any activity until he’s completely comfortable. I’m learning that his lack of daring-do certainly doesn’t mean he’s dim-witted. Nor does it bother me in the least that my answer is “No” to the most asked … Read more