The Phoenix Landing Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to promoting and protecting the welfare of parrots, recently hosted a Wellness Retreat for pet bird enthusiasts. The event focused on bird brains. It also honored the late Liz Wilson, who was a pioneer in parrot behavior and spent a large part of her life teaching what she knew to bird owners, her fellow vet techs, and avian veterinarians.
Parrots can be categorized according to Old World psittacines and New World psittacines. Are your parrots “Team Old World” or “Team New World”?
Most of the qualities you’d really like in a parrot are found in the gentle, amenable cockatiel. Read on to find out what makes cockatiels such a wonderful pet.
Here’s an annual event that bird lovers can help celebrate — Earth Day, which takes place on April 22 each year. In honor of Earth Day, here are seven ways bird lovers can make a difference in our own neighborhoods and abroad.
No wonder conures are a popular pet bird companion. They are smart, active, cuddly, and social. There are many species of conure, and each group has its own unique set of traits. See the similarities and differences between the fiery-colored Sun conure of the Aratinga genus to the diminutive green-cheeked conure of the Pyrrhura genus.
Parakeets as pets are a manageable size, entertaining, social, and talkative. Small enough to fit in your apartment and travel with you, parakeets can make great pets. Check out these 8 perks of sharing your life with a parakeet.
There are many pet birds that only eat one or two types of foods, but that’s because they haven’t been offered much else or the foods offered don’t appeal to them. Here are four ways we can sabotage our birds’ appetites and how to avoid them.
Nursery-rhyme books and others that cater to a young audience also make great reading material for parrots — these books are designed to be read out loud and with extreme silliness. Dr. Seuss books certainly fit the bill!
if we care for birds either near or far, we help birds everywhere, and we help our human kind as well.
A new year is upon us and with that comes another set of New Year’s resolutions (or a re-do of last year’s!) While there’s plenty you can do for your pet bird to make the new year great, here are three things you can do for yourself that will also reap benefits for your pet bird.
Find out the real reasons why budgies and cockatiels can make wonderful pets for children, as well as all the wrong reasons for bringing a small bird into your home.
Parrots are structured to survive as flying, flocking, feathered denizens of the sky and trees. Check out these Five Fun Parrot Facts and you’ll have an even greater appreciation of your bird’s uniqueness!
November is a month of harvesting the great bounty of the earth, including fall-season foods that are good for our companion birds to eat! Let’s start with the foods that are good for our birds at Thanksgiving!
Fall is the time of change – particularly along the northern tier in the United States. While we often think about how autumn affects us, a change of seasons also brings out changes in our pet birds.
You may be a pet person. You’ve had a dog or a cat for a pet, and maybe several of each. But now you’re a bird owner. Wow! Here are some of the things that make companion birds interesting, and things that make them different from dogs and cats.
Birds have been part of the Halloween tradition for a long time — even before the demonic few from Alfred Hitchcock’s “The Birds” in 1963! The birds most commonly shown are crows and ravens, which are members of the corvidae family.
It’s easy to assume that birds must like other birds. But before you buddy up two birds consider that fact that many avian veterinarians treat bird patients that were injured by other bird housemates.
Spending more time with your bird and serving a healthy breakfast are just two ways to start your bird’s day off right.
Pet parrots can be prime targets of pet theft because of their perceived monetary value. Here are some steps pet bird owners can take to “theft-proof” their beloved companions:
Don’t wait until the last minute to prep for your pet sitter; put your plan in place before you leave so your sitter has all the information he or she needs to take wonderful care of your companion bird.
Providing projects that occupy busy beaks and stimulate avian Einsteins is one of the never-ending challenges of parrot ownership. The quest for that perfect bird toy takes us trekking to innumerable pet shops and bird marts, and pouring through countless catalogs.
But before you fire up your backyard grill or unroll the pool or spa cover, take a moment to see what steps you need to make to ensure your bird’s safety and well-being all summer long.
Use these five fun suggestions to create Pampered Parrot Days that are all about your feathered friends. They deserve to be treated as VIPs, too!
From using newspaper as cage liner, cardboard as chew toys, to wadded-up paper to hide foraging treats, we bird owners can be quite creative in our thriftiness. Here are a few other items that can get a second life before going into the recycle bin.
To many pet bird owners, yesterday’s news is today’s cage liner. In addition to the long-held practice of lining the bottom of the birdcage with newspaper, here are four other ways to get the most bang out of your newspaper subscription buck.
While most responsible pet bird owners strive to make their birds feel part of the family and offer them plenty of one-on-one time whenever feasible, there are times when your bird should perch elsewhere.
Here is a look at furniture types that might be vulnerable to the feathered kind, and what you can do about it.
Can you imagine a parrot perched in the White House? It’s probably happened at some point during our country’s history; after all, some of our past presidents had parrot companions during their presidencies. Here is a list of presidents who really did have parrots during their White House days.
A better cage, new toys or perches, healthier foods and treats — what is your New Year’s resolution regarding your bird?
The holidays can bring added dangers to a bird’s typically safe life. Being aware of these dangers can prevent accidents and tragedies, and a trip to your emergency avian veterinarian.
Life with parrots can be complicated, but it gets simpler if you avoid these 18 things. If you haven’t avoided them all, keep trying!
I love Thanksgiving, in part because I am an avian vet and this is a bird holiday involving a very special bird – the wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo). Here are some fun turkey facts to pass around your Thanksgiving table.
Nothing charms us as much as birds. They possess the power to profoundly alter our lives and, if we set our egos aside and see and honor them for who they are, they can forever change the very essence of who we are and of how we perceive other species around us.
Some frightening things can happen to our birds if we are not vigilant during Halloween festivities. But you can do a lot to prevent any problems by planning ahead.
Those “Lazy, Hazy, Crazy Days of Summer” are here! Check out how the activities of the season could affect your bird.
The wide variety of nutritious foods and treats from Lafeber ensure that your bird gets the right nutrition and is never bored.
Need a nudge for a bird-related New Year’s resolution? Check out our ideas for making the year ahead with your bird a great one!
The holidays are a fun time, but also a bit crazy. These tips help you anticipate, and prevent, some hazards or stresses your bird might face.
