Archive for April, 2009
Parrot Tricks and Training – Understanding Your Pet’s Nature and Needs
Apr 17th
In the coming weeks, I’d like to devote some time to parrot tricks. My work with intelligent, social creatures such as parrots, elephants and marine mammals, has convinced me that the true value of training does not lie in the amusement value of the tricks (undeniable as that is!). Rather, it is that a properly trained captive is much more likely to fit easily into the unnatural world it inhabits.
I’ll start here with some thoughts on the essential nature of our feathered pets, and how we might approach parrot training in a way that is both effective and enjoyable (for parrot and owner!).
The Parrot Dilemma
Thrusting complex, social animals into an unfamiliar world is a recipe for disaster. Such creatures are interesting to be around, yet they have learning abilities, instincts and social needs that are largely impossible to fill in captivity.
It is no coincidence that sea lions, parrots, primates and elephants have long been at once both the most sought after and highly frustrating of captives. Observe great apes in the wild and you will quickly realize that today’s multi-million dollar exhibits cannot begin to meet their needs. With parrots, however, we can do better – if we take the time to observe and learn.
Understanding Parrots
The essential key to a stress-free relationship between yourself and your parrot is a clear understanding of exactly what a parrot is, and how evolution has shaped it to survive. However well-intentioned, viewing any animal as a “fur or feather clad person” will ultimately confuse and frustrate both pet and pet owner.
A bird which is not trained in a way that respects its unique characteristics, which have evolved over millions of years, will in almost all cases lead a stressful existence – unaware of where its limits lie and, bright as it may be, completely in the dark as to why we act as we do.
Predator-Prey Considerations
Wild parrots are preyed upon by a wide variety of animals, from ocelots in Panama to amethystine pythons in Australia. Their instincts and impressive learning abilities are directed towards escaping capture, not making friends with huge, strange beings. Add to this the fact that confinement cuts down the instinctive flight distance (the point to which the parrot will allow a threat to approach before fleeing) dramatically, and you can begin to see the problem.
Of course, with care, we can modify instinct, but the bird’s essential nature will remain…please keep this point in mind. We cannot approach a parrot as we would a dog. Dogs are predators, and their way of “viewing the world” differs radically from that of a prey species.
Pet or Domesticated Species?
Dogs have been living in association with people for over 15,000 years, and are fully domesticated (despite this, most mammalogists consider them to be subspecies of the gray wolf, not a distinct species). Although parrots have been kept sporadically since the times of ancient Rome, serious interest is a new development…even those bred for hundreds of generations (i.e. budgies, cockatiels) are not domesticated in the true sense of the word.
Further Reading
Understanding of your parrot’s needs is the first step in creating a good relationship. Please check out our comprehensive line of Parrot Care Books http://www.thatpetplace.com/pet/cat/info/22314/category.web.
You can learn how instinctual parrot behaviors often lead to misunderstandings between bird and owner at http://www.silvio-co.com/cps/articles/1997/1997blanchard1.htm.
On to the training basics next time…Until then, enjoy your birds and please write in with your questions and comments. Thanks, Frank Indiviglio.
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Loading ...HR 669 – The Nonnative Wildlife Invasion Protection Act
Apr 15th
What would the world be like without pets? A new bill proposed in House could make this a reality. All pet owners should be aware of a pending federal government resolution. HR669 stands for House Resolution 669 which is designed to change the way the government classifies non-native species. If passed into law it will have a tremendous impact on keeping pets in America. It will make it illegal to sell and breed many animals common in the pet trade including most species of tropical fish, ferrets, most reptile and amphibian species, corals, and many others. Though That Fish Place/That Pet Place is in favor of an effective invasive species law, we are convinced this is absolutely not the legislation to accomplish that. Please check out my HR669 blog here to find out more and learn what you can do to help prevent this from even being introduced as a proposed law.
Thanks,
Frank
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Introducing a Beautiful African Finch, the Green Twinspot
Apr 15th
Parrots, pheasants, doves, shama thrushes – hobbyists are fortunate in having a great many species of widely differing birds available as pets. It is the tiny and relatively inexpensive finches, however, that offer us the easiest route to a mixed collection of gorgeous species…among no other group is such a diversity of interesting and hardy birds so readily available. Today’s subject, the green twinspot (Mandingoa nitidula), is a perfect example.
Description
Rich olive above and with nearly black wings and, in males, a bright red face, this 4 inch African native is a sight to behold. What truly sets it apart is the breast and abdomen, which are jet black with numerous pure white spots. The overall effect is of a fine hand-painted toy!
Natural and Captive Habitats
Green twinspots are birds of rather open country, but never stray far from thick brush or similar retreats. They favor forest edges, woody scrub and the overgrown margins of rice fields and farms. Captives fare best when given plenty of cover, with a well-planted outdoor aviary being ideal.
When housed indoors, they should be provided with as much room as possible – the Blue Ribbon Peaked Bird Cage is perfect for 2 to 4 twinspots. Some hanging silk plants and thin cotton cable perches will make them feel right at home.
Diet
Green twinspots have higher protein requirements than most finches, and should be offered a diet rich in insects. They readily accept small crickets, mealworms and waxworms and, if kept outdoors, will spend hours chasing small flying insects (which, like minute falcons, they catch on the wing).
Zoo Med Anole Food (dried flies) , canned silkworms , Cede Eggfood and bits of hard boiled egg should also be offered on a rotating basis. A Vita Kraft Sprout Pot will enable you to offer your finches fresh shoots, a favored and important food item. The balance of their diet can consist of high quality finch seed mix to which has been added a bit of Pretty Bird Softbill Select .
Further Reading
You can read about the green twinspots in the wild at http://www.birdsinsa.com/birds/mandingoanitidula.htm.
Please write in with your questions and comments. Thanks, until next time, Frank Indiviglio.
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Outdoor Aviaries: Their Role in Promoting Breeding and Good Health – Part 2
Apr 13th
Hello, Frank Indiviglio here. Please see Part I of this article for basic information on our new line of Outdoor Aviaries.
The influence of natural light, weather cycles and the additional space provided by an Outdoor Aviary often promotes breeding in birds whose reproductive urges have lain dormant for years.
Exercise for Body and Brain
Outdoor aviaries can also serve as exercise areas for birds otherwise confined to cages, and may allow you to keep species which, while they “get by” in typical cages, really do best with more room, at least for part of the year. Birds which fall into this category include mynahs, larger parrots, toucans, most doves, red-crested cardinals and turacos.
Your pets’ interest in what is going on around them will increase markedly as well – this is good for their well-being, especially as concerns parrots and other highly intelligent birds.
Pheasants, Wild Birds and Other Outdoor Species
Other species, some of which I will highlight in future articles, are nearly impossible to keep unless an outdoor aviary is available. Included among these are the golden and other pheasants, most quail, fruit doves, ducks and fancy (or “plain”!) chickens.
If, like I, you are a licensed wild bird rehabilitator, an outdoor aviary will greatly expand the list of species with which you might become involved (I tried caring for owls, small herons and gulls indoors…trust me, it’s difficult!).
Along with the fun, there are some special considerations involved in keeping birds outdoors…please write in for details concerning the species in which you are interested.
Further Reading
Outdoor aviaries are indispensible to those who rehabilitate injured native birds, and, where legal, for keeping native birds. Please see my article Rehabilitating Native Birds for further details.
Please write in with your questions and comments. Thanks, until next time, Frank Indiviglio.
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Research Update: Stress Experienced by Finch Chicks Affects Adult Behavior
Apr 10th
Research at the University of Glasgow (March, 2009) has established that zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) exposed to stress as chicks exhibit a more intense and longer stress response as adults than do birds raised in a stress-free environment.
The Effects of Early Exposure to Stress
Pairs of sibling finch chicks were used for the experiment. To simulate a stressful situation, one member of the pair was injected with corticosterone, a hormone produced by birds in response to stress; the other sibling was used as a control. As adults, the resting corticosterone level of the birds was identical. However, when subjected to a stressful situation, all previously-stressed chicks produced greater amounts of stress hormone than did their siblings, and their stress response lasted for a longer period of time.
Stress and the Health of Pet Birds
Pet keepers should take an important lesson from this research, as an unnaturally strong stress response has been shown to be damaging to health in a variety of species, humans included.
Stress arises from disturbing situations that evoke fear as well as from poor diet, improper hygiene, disease and inappropriate housing. Exposure to these and a host of other factors can shorten your pet’s lifespan dramatically by weakening its immune system.
The effects of stress on the immune system are well known. While working at the Bronx Zoo, I learned that birds transferred to a new exhibit (a major stress) invariably came down with a severe Aspergillosus infection, despite the fact that this fungus is ever-present in the environment yet rarely causes health problems for birds living in secure situations. The current research findings are significant in highlighting just how serious and long-lasting are the effects of exposure to stress.
Captive vs. Wild Caught Birds
This research also highlights the importance of purchasing only captive-bred birds, as wild-caught individuals are exposed to the highest degree of stress imaginable.
Lessening Stress – Knowledge and Nutrition
Knowing and meeting the needs of those bird species which you keep is a vital first step in providing them with a stress-free environment. Please write in with any husbandry questions you may have.
Vita Flight Vitamin Supplement, specifically formulated for birds under stress, should be kept on hand to help see your pets through the difficult situations (new arrivals, breeding, molting, illness) that arise in every collection. Please see the article noted below for more information on the interplay between diet and stress.
Further Reading
An interesting article on the importance of proper nutrition to birds in stressful situations is posted at http://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/abs/10.1086/515888?journalCode=pbz.
Please write in with your questions and comments. Thanks, until next time, Frank Indiviglio.
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