Enjoy this random shot of Toady. :)
Sunday, March 6, 2011
A little rant
Haven't posted in a while. Toady and Kei have been driving me bananas. The last few days have been good but before that they were fighting constantly! I got some Avicalm from Kathie at www.mysafebirdstore.com which I think might be helping. I'm playing it by ear, but am considering dividing the bird room so they can't fight. If the Avicalm does the trick then I will not have to, but if I see one ounce of fighting then I will be dividing up the bird room. This will be a pain, but safety comes first.
Enjoy this random shot of Toady. :)
Enjoy this random shot of Toady. :)
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Progress with Toady
I have been meaning to post about the progress I'm making with Toady.
Toady has been letting me scritch his head and most nights before bed, he's been regurgitating for me. This is huge progress for a bird who was kept as a breeder and not handled for several years. :)
Love you Toady.
Toady has been letting me scritch his head and most nights before bed, he's been regurgitating for me. This is huge progress for a bird who was kept as a breeder and not handled for several years. :)
Love you Toady.
Happy Hatchday Kei!
Today is Kei's Hatchday. He is 7 years old!
I got Kei right after Christmas in 2004. I was 14 and he was my Christmas and Birthday present from my dad. We drove to the very Southern most tip of Missouri to get him. His old owners lived in Arkansas and met us there. My grandma lived in Missouri so we went to visit her for Christmas and then drove down a few days later to pick up Kei. We met them in the parking lot of a gaming/hunting store. I won't ever forget it. His old owners were sun conure breeders. They were in a van and were smoking with Kei and several baby sun conures inside (with a window cracked).
Kei was in a tupperware container. I remember the guy man handling him. He grabbed him out and pulled open his wings to show me a retched clip job he had done. All primaries as well as several secondaries had been clipped. Some of his secondary feathers took a few years to grow in fully. When I got him, he'd fall like a rock whenever he tried to fly. He had obviously been flighted before they sold him to me because he kept trying even though he couldn't get any lift. I'm actually surprised (and relieved) that he didn't fracture his keel bone.
He was on a mostly seed diet and he would only eat corn, grapes, and apples for fresh food. It took me years to convert him to veggies.
When I first got him I admit I didn't care for him the best, but I learned quickly from joining a pionus forum.
Eventually I learned about feeding a good diet and let his wings grow out (my vet at the time told me to keep them clipped so they were for a year or more).
He has been my best friend for years.
He actually helped me get through depression in my teen years. I learned to keep living to keep him happy and healthy.
The last 6 years I've kept that mantra. I live for my birds. I love him to pieces. I hope to have many many more years with him.
LOVE YOU KEI! Happy Hatchday!
I got Kei right after Christmas in 2004. I was 14 and he was my Christmas and Birthday present from my dad. We drove to the very Southern most tip of Missouri to get him. His old owners lived in Arkansas and met us there. My grandma lived in Missouri so we went to visit her for Christmas and then drove down a few days later to pick up Kei. We met them in the parking lot of a gaming/hunting store. I won't ever forget it. His old owners were sun conure breeders. They were in a van and were smoking with Kei and several baby sun conures inside (with a window cracked).
Kei was in a tupperware container. I remember the guy man handling him. He grabbed him out and pulled open his wings to show me a retched clip job he had done. All primaries as well as several secondaries had been clipped. Some of his secondary feathers took a few years to grow in fully. When I got him, he'd fall like a rock whenever he tried to fly. He had obviously been flighted before they sold him to me because he kept trying even though he couldn't get any lift. I'm actually surprised (and relieved) that he didn't fracture his keel bone.
He was on a mostly seed diet and he would only eat corn, grapes, and apples for fresh food. It took me years to convert him to veggies.
When I first got him I admit I didn't care for him the best, but I learned quickly from joining a pionus forum.
Eventually I learned about feeding a good diet and let his wings grow out (my vet at the time told me to keep them clipped so they were for a year or more).
He has been my best friend for years.
He actually helped me get through depression in my teen years. I learned to keep living to keep him happy and healthy.
The last 6 years I've kept that mantra. I live for my birds. I love him to pieces. I hope to have many many more years with him.
LOVE YOU KEI! Happy Hatchday!
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Stop Breeding Cockatiels!
I just wanted to make a post about the huge number of unwanted cockatiels out there. At MAARS, the rescue I volunteer at, we have around 50 cockatiels. They make up half of all the birds we have.
Many rescues will no longer take in cockatiels because there are simply too many to find homes for.And even humane societies are becoming overwhelmed by them.
This is a huge problem that needs to be addressed. If people just stopped breeding cockatiels (or bred less) and more people adopted cockatiels instead of going to pet stores or breeders, this would help so much.
I think the main reason there are so many unwanted cockatiels out there is because they are so long lived (some living over 25 years) and they also breed like rabbits.If you adopt an older tiel, it's not as big of a commintment, and if you stop breeding, you will not be adding to the overpopulation of this species.
So please, stop breeding cockatiels and start adopting them. :)
Many rescues will no longer take in cockatiels because there are simply too many to find homes for.And even humane societies are becoming overwhelmed by them.
This is a huge problem that needs to be addressed. If people just stopped breeding cockatiels (or bred less) and more people adopted cockatiels instead of going to pet stores or breeders, this would help so much.
I think the main reason there are so many unwanted cockatiels out there is because they are so long lived (some living over 25 years) and they also breed like rabbits.If you adopt an older tiel, it's not as big of a commintment, and if you stop breeding, you will not be adding to the overpopulation of this species.
So please, stop breeding cockatiels and start adopting them. :)
Friday, January 7, 2011
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
My Veggie Mix
Pionus are prone to obesity, liver disease, and gout. They require a diet low in protein as it is easier on their kidneys. Too much protein is what causes gout.
So Pionus do best on a diet low in pellets, nuts, and dry seeds; and high in veggies, fruits, and seed sprouts.
Kei and Toady get around 2 tablespoons of veggies every day. Their dry cage mix is also full of dehydrated veggies and some fruits. Fruits I use in moderation as they have a high sugar content, especially when dehydrated.
For my mix the base is usually frozen organic veggies (a mixture of corn, peas, carrots, and green beans), then I add several varieties of organic veggies, fruits, brown rice or other cooked grains, and seed sprouts.
I do not use a lot of bean sprouts, as they are higher in protein as well.
This mix makes up around 60-75% of their diet.
I make it in batches that last 3-4 days. If I make a large batch, I will freeze some of it. The mix will not be good after a few days.
So Pionus do best on a diet low in pellets, nuts, and dry seeds; and high in veggies, fruits, and seed sprouts.
Kei and Toady get around 2 tablespoons of veggies every day. Their dry cage mix is also full of dehydrated veggies and some fruits. Fruits I use in moderation as they have a high sugar content, especially when dehydrated.
For my mix the base is usually frozen organic veggies (a mixture of corn, peas, carrots, and green beans), then I add several varieties of organic veggies, fruits, brown rice or other cooked grains, and seed sprouts.
I do not use a lot of bean sprouts, as they are higher in protein as well.
This mix makes up around 60-75% of their diet.
Monday, January 3, 2011
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