Hello, Frank Indiviglio here. Most of us associate brightly colored finches with warm climates, and indeed the vast majority of popular cage birds do hail from the tropical and sub-tropical regions. However, one of the most beautiful of all finches is native to temperate and downright cold areas of the world. Ranging across most of [...]

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here. Parrot owners often tend to focus on their birds’ speaking abilities, but it is the many vocalizations that our pets make naturally that represent their true efforts at communicating with us. Following are a few commonly-heard parrot sounds and their usual meanings.

Beak Grinding
People often grind their teeth at night, [...]

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here. Male canaries (Serinus canaria), long prized for their beautiful songs, may have unique learning abilities that explain their outstanding performances. Most birds acquire singing abilities by listening to others of their kind early in life…without appropriate role models, they fail to develop normal songs. Young canaries, however, seem able to switch [...]

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here. In Part I of this article I introduced our largest finch cage and discussed some of the reasons that aviculturists should strive to provide even the smallest of birds with as much space as possible. To continue, another nice aspect of the room provided by the 5’ x 2’ x 5’ [...]

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here. Hand-raised birds of all types make wonderful pets, and the process itself seems appealing and attracts many bird owners. However, there are a number of misconceptions concerning the need for hand-raising birds, and also regarding the ease of doing so.
The Question of Bonding
Parent-reared birds can bond quite strongly to people and [...]

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here. Even the smallest lovebird can deliver a painful bite, and larger parrots are capable of inflicting serious injuries. If a parrot bites and holds on, you must respond appropriately in order to limit the bite’s severity.
Do Not Pull Away
In a lifetime of working with animals, I’ve actually been bitten by more [...]

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here. As a small boy leafing through books on exotic birds from faraway lands, I recall being awe-stuck by a bird that, to me, symbolized all that was wild, foreign, beautiful and unknown – the golden pheasant (Chrysolphus pictus). The long-tailed males, which display gold, deep red, rust, blue, tan, orange, [...]

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here. Lories (parrot subfamily Lorinae) have long attracted aviculturists, yet there are many factors that weigh against their choice as pets. Noisy and aggressive towards other birds, all species feed on nectar and fruit, which, along with watery feces, they fling about their cages…keeping their living quarters clean is quite a chore.
Why [...]

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here. People who breed canaries, shama thrushes and other noted songsters often comment that housing males within hearing distance of one another improves the quality of their songs. This theory has now been validated by researchers studying song sparrows (Melospiza melodia) at the University of Miami.
Typical and Improved Songs
It seems that male [...]

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here. Pet birds of all kinds sneeze on occasion, and such is not always cause for alarm. However, sneezing can also be the first sign of a sinus infection, and so should signal us to pay extra attention. When accompanied by nasal or eye discharge, or red, swollen eyes, immediate action is [...]