Home >> November, 2008

Fetch It Pets Polly Wanna Piñata Product Spotlight: Behavioral Enrichment for Budgerigars, Lovebirds, Cockatiels and other Parrots

Posted on: Friday, November 28th, 2008 in: Bird Product Review, General Bird Care

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here.
Behavioral enrichment came into vogue in zoos in the last 10 years or so, and is now a “buzzword” throughout the industry.  Of course, good zookeepers and pet owners have long known that captive animal health (and, as concerns bored, screaming parrots, captor sanity!) is aided by the provision of opportunities to [...]

Research Update: Male and Female Crimson Rosella (Platycercus elegans) Parents Differ in their Responses to Hungry Chicks

Posted on: Wednesday, November 26th, 2008 in: Bird Research or Recent News

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here.
Crimson rosellas, colorful parrots much favored as pets, follow a unique strategy when rearing their young.
The Typical Scenario
Rosella eggs, like those of all parrots, hatch in the order they were laid, so that the first chick to emerge has a few days head-start on the last.  In most bird species where this [...]

The Macaws: An Overview of a Spectacular Group of Parrots, Part I

Posted on: Monday, November 24th, 2008 in: Bird Species Profiles

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here.
Macaws in a store or the wild draw the eye instantly – loud, gorgeous, active and intelligent, they are the ultimate parrot pets in the eyes of many hobbyists.  Indeed, when prices were lower, a macaw was often the first parrot purchased by those new to the hobby.
Some Preliminary Considerations
However, these strong-willed [...]

Avian Health Questions: “I’ve been told that Nolvasan (Chlohexidine diacetate) added to my bird’s drinking water will kill bacteria. Is this true, and can it harm my pet”?

Posted on: Friday, November 21st, 2008 in: General Bird Care

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here.
Nolvasan is effective in eliminating a wide range of bacteria and other micro-organisms when used as a cleaning agent, and I relied upon it throughout my zoo career. 
Many aviculturists utilize Nolvasan as an additive to drinking water and hand-feeding formulas, most especially where the yeast Candida albicans is a concern.  Its effectiveness [...]

Research Update: Zebra Finches Provide Insights into the Acquisition and Timing of Birdsong and Human Speech

Posted on: Wednesday, November 19th, 2008 in: Bird Research or Recent News

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here.
The chipper little zebra finch, ever popular in the lab and home, has once again shed some light on topics important to those who study both birds and people.
Hearing and Correcting the Song
Researchers at Switzerland’s Zurich University have shown that certain cells in zebra finch brains become active when the bird makes [...]

Avian Health Concerns: “My Parrot Seems Healthy, but Sometimes Passes Whole, Undigested Seeds in its Stool. Is this Normal”?

Posted on: Monday, November 17th, 2008 in: General Bird Care

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here.
The presence of whole, undigested seeds in a parrot’s stool is cause for concern.  It is usually associated with hyper-motility of the gastrointestinal (digestive) tract — in other words, food is passing too quickly through the system, and digestion is not taking place.  The problem usually centers in the glandular stomach (proventriculus) [...]

Breeding the Melba Finch (Green-Winged Pytilia), Pytilia melba – Part II

Posted on: Friday, November 14th, 2008 in: Bird Species Profiles, bird breeding

Click: Breeding the Melba Finch (Green-Winged Pytilia), Pytilia melba - Part 1 to read the first part of this article.
The Importance of Insects in the Diet
The Melba finch’s beak is much thinner than that of those finches, such as the Gouldian, that rely on a seed-based diet.  In the wild this species consumes a good deal of insect [...]

Breeding the Melba Finch (Green-Winged Pytilia), Pytilia melba – Part 1

Posted on: Wednesday, November 12th, 2008 in: bird breeding

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here.The hardy Melba finch is among the most popular of the Estrildidae (an order of approximately 130 species of waxbills and grass finches), but after reading most husbandry accounts, you would quickly abandon any hope of breeding it in captivity. Most authors suggest not even attempting such unless you can provide the [...]

Parrots Behaving Badly: Beer-Guzzling and Swearing Lands British Birds in Hot Water

Posted on: Monday, November 10th, 2008 in: Bird Research or Recent News, Fun Stuff

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here.We’ve all handled our share of troublesome parrots, but 2 incidents that caught my attention recently seemed worthy of passing along…enjoy.
A bad Actor…or a Brilliant Prankster?
An Amazon parrot set to debut in a Christmas play for a professional theatre company in Dorset, England was summarily dismissed for replacing his painstakingly-learned lines with [...]

Product Review: Alternative Bird Foods – Yesterday and Today, Part II

Posted on: Friday, November 7th, 2008 in: Bird diet, Field Notes and Observations on Birds

Hi Frank Indiviglio here.
Last time we took a look at some of the fine foods available to those who keep softbills and lories as pets (Please see Alternative Bird Foods – Yesterday and Today, Part I).  I mentioned that these products have greatly simplified the captive husbandry of a number of species, and alluded to [...]