Lee Dobbins asked:


One common misconception about pet birds is that they live for hundreds of years and need to be willed to someone in order to ensure their care after you’re gone. While birds do live for quite a long time in the wild, their lifespan in captivity is actually much shorter. Below are some common pet birds and their average life span in captivity given that they receive superior care and a proper diet.

Macaw – 50 years

Cockatoo – 40 years

African Grey – 25 years

Amazon Parrot – 50 years

Conure – 15 years

Parakeet – 15 years

Parrotlet – 15 years

Lovebird – 10 years

Canary – 15 years

Finch – 5 years

Certainly with a lifespan of 50 years, a bird could outlive you however there are many hidden dangers lurking around that can cut your birds life short. Birds are very fragile and need to be cared for properly in order for them to live a long life.

Here are some things you can do to help keep your bird safe and healthy:

One major danger for birds as fumes from chemical products. Aerosol sprays, Teflon pans and even such things as furniture polish can kill your bird. Keep anything that has a strong odor away from your bird and make sure you use it in a well ventilated area. I suggest you get rid of all your Teflon pants however if you insist on keeping them make sure your bird is nowhere near the kitchen when you’re cooking with them and also be sure not to heat them up without food in them as this will cause the Teflon to emit more odor.

Pet birds love to chew on things and will in fact chew on anything they can find whether it’s good for them or not. It’s important not to let them chew on anything that is welded as they can get lead poisoning from the slaughter in the joints. They also will love your household plants and will nibble on them so you need to be sure that any plants you have are not poisonous to birds.

Birds love to eat fresh fruits and vegetables but you need to take care not to leave the fruits and vegetables out too long or they can start to rot. Just like you wouldn’t feed a piece of pineapple that was sitting on the counter for three hours to your family, you shouldn’t be this to your bird either. Something should never be offered to birds as food such as coffee chocolate and avocado as these are toxic to our feathered friends.

The holidays pose a special threat to birds as they may want to fly into your tree and chew on it. You need to be very careful with this, however as many trees are sprayed with stuff that is toxic to birds. In addition, the ornaments, tinsel and electric lights might seem attractive to your pet bird but, of course ,could be very dangerous for him to chew on.

Birds that are allowed to fly around the house can be fun but you need to think of safety first if your bird does not have clipped wings and has free reign to fly wherever he wants. Obviously, you want to make sure your windows are closed so that he cannot get out. In addition, you probably want to pull down the shades or close the curtains when your birds flying around as you don’t want him to fly into the closed window and hurt himself. If you cannot do this, then put some decals on the glass so that your bird will know not to fly into it. The same goes for Mariners or any reflective surface. This is very important as your bird can actually break his neck by flying into them.

Another thing to be careful of is standing water such as water in the sink or toilet you don’t want your bird to get in over his head and drown!

Please refrain from cooking while your bird is flying around as you don’t want him to win on the stove and burn himself.

Finally, make sure that you do not answer the door while your birds perched on your shoulder. Even a bird with clipped wings could get away in an updraft and their many dangers outdoors such as cats and cars that can harm your bird.

Feeding your bird a nutritious diet and keeping him safe may not ensure that he outlives you but it will go a long way to making sure that he has a long healthy and happy life!



Annette

Low Jeremy asked:


The bird with the scientific name Poicephalus Meyeri originated from the wilds of Central and Eastern Africa. Meyers have gone thru countless hybrids without having to consider instant look “standard” in plume color and other features. Meyer parrots appear to be of six sub-species; each looking perfectly similar with the rest, resulting to lack of dominant marks to distinguish each from the others.

It is believed that breeding has started from the wilds where the bird originated, and gone thru with disregard in the proper manipulations and considerations on the bird’s total breed. Meyeri parrots are inferior in size compared to other birds, preferred choice for household pets. Being small saves you from preparing a large cage, conducive to smaller space in its foster home.

Like other parrots, there’s no assurance that the Meyer will talk. It takes a lot of patience and determination to let it mimic in return to efforts done in training. The disadvantage of its having gone thru unprecedented hybrid processes is believed to have started while on captives in the forests; original breeders, mindless to focus on basic colors.

Later breeders have difficulty in their assessments; as to whether they could still resolve to come up with the desired feather color combinations, that may under mind a fixed determining appearance of the bird. They are less capable to detect how many species are scattered, making for a whole population of confusing inter hybrid in captivity.

Six Sub-species of the Meyer Parrot (Poicephalus Meyeri)

1. Poicephalus Meyeri Meyeri

2. Saturatus

3. Reichenowi

4. Matschiei

5. Damarensis

6. Trasvaalensis

It takes a very knowledgeable observer to detect which this and that, of its sub-kind because of the complicated spread in overall plumage. It’s a general vague overview on the breeding approach; and presenting today a big controversy what touch in hybrid to concentrate, if only to settle to one image. Meyers’ bird breeding has similarities to what was done with the Senegal bird; kind of “mind twist” run-down observation tests which, and what sub-species.

Plumages’ dominant hue is of gray and brown. Back part is gray, and bills are dark gray. Thighs, wings, crown, and shoulders are yellow. Heads and beaks determine what apparent *** it belongs. Males obviously have flatter heads; but to get total assurance of its *** is thru operation or DNA test.

Mature Meyers weigh 100 to 135 grams, measure between 7 to 9 inches (20 to 22 cm.), and length of wings spread to full span is 5 to 6 inches (14 to 14.9 cm). It reaches sexual maturity from age three to four years old, and lay 3 to 4 eggs, hatched after a period of 3 months (12 to 13 weeks) but could leave nest after 9 weeks.



Ricky

Andri Irawan asked:


Having a pet companion at home can certainly be rewarding.  Having pet birds can be both a rewarding and challenging experience.  Birds are intelligent and fascinating to look at.  But it is important to choose the right bird for you and at the same time prepare yourself for the responsibilities.  Birds when properly cared for can live for a long time.

Before getting yourself a feathered friend, there are some things you need to answer first

• Can you still care for a bird?  Birds are social creatures, they also need time.  So make sure that you or your family still have the time to care for a bird.

• Is your home and your neighbours okay with some bird noise?  Birds can be extremely noisy in several occasions. And can disrupt some neighbours.  But you can pick a smaller bird which can still make some noise inside the house but not disrupt the neighbourhood.

• Do you have other pets?  Some pets interact with each other easily posing no problems at all.  But also there are some pets who may harm the new pet due to jealousy.  Your pet bird can easily be killed by a jealous cat or dog.  These are some factors you would have to consider.

Giving some thought over these questions and still able to identify that you would still like to have a pet bird, then let’s go over to the selection process.   When choosing the right bird, make sure to do some research about the birds.  There are some birds which are overly demanding in terms of social and physical needs, these birds are better kept in the wild.  

Some good bird choices would be canaries, finches, cockatiels, parakeets, and lovebirds. These breeds of birds have long been bred in captivity and have already resulted into some domestic breeds.  The good thing about these birds is that the supplies they need can readily be purchased.  

On the other hand there are some birds which are better left alone in the wild, like some breeds of parrots, macaws, cockatoos, and toucans.  These birds have not undergone the breeding process that the domesticated birds have experienced.  These birds tend to be demanding to live with.

When choosing your pet bird, consider the following factors:

• Size – the rule is that the bigger the bird the bigger the responsibilities.  If you are just starting to be a bird owner,  then it would be best to start with a smaller up until to medium size.  The size of your bird will determine how big will the housing and other physical requirements.

• Nutrition- a bird fed accordingly can live up to fifty years!  It is important to provide the proper diet to your birds.   Bird not only feed on seeds, they also require fruits and vegetables and lots of water.  Bird seed are not enough for your bird.

• Housing -  let us apply the rule again, the larger the bird, the larger the cage it requires.  A proper cage should have the bars spaced closely enough, close enough so that bird heads would not get caught between bars and for small birds to escape the cage.  The cage should be spacious enough so that the bird can move freely and have enough exercise.

• Budget and finance – birds, as well as any other pet, can pose some financial obligations.  For birds, the cage, accessories, maintenance, food and veterinary care can be costly.  When looking for a bird, then you should make yourself familiar with the cost of raising one. You want to have a pet that you can afford.

• Time and maintenance- unlike to what other people think, birds are not really low-maintenance pets.  There are some pet birds which would require daily exercise and constant social interaction. Time and  maintenance would include feeding, cleaning the dishes and the cage. Some parrots show some behaviour problems if they do not receive regular attention from pet owners.



Kim

Jay Schindler asked:


Many times known as the Major Mitchell’s cockatoo, Leadbeater’s Cockatoo is most probably one of the world’s most beautiful of all cockatoos. This is purely because most of the Leadbeater cockatoo’s are chiefly white! Nevertheless, there is simply no factually evidence to the fact that this species do not make a great pet bird, indeed they do.

They incredibly absurd nicknames given to Leadbeater’s cockatoos they are either hated or simply adored by aviculturists. The trick to having one of them as a pet is to make sure that they are raised in the proper manner.

In the wild, the Leadbeater’s cockatoos mainly eat grass seeds and roots. Their habitat is extremely erratic throughout the arid parts of Australia and in the breeding season it varies particularly depending on the area of the continent. It is common among the Leadbeater’s cockatoos to nest in the eucalyptus trees and chew out the bark that is inside to provide soft shavings for their little ones. In captivity, you are suggested to feed your pet a good pellet or a seed mix formulated for small parrots. Tremendous amounts and a great variety of fruits and vegetables alike should be given and supplemented with some meat like chicken bones or cooked chops. You should also bear in mind that since these birds comes around to getting easily bored, you should try and keep them busy with loads of branches to chew on and pine cones to shred.   Leadbeater’s cockatoos are known to be extremely keen chewers, so be sure that their cages are quite strong! These birds may also be intensely loud, as they have a unique shriek. When they are young they are very affectionate, but as soon as they grow older they will try to claim some authority over you and must be prohibited with a determined hand. When they are raised in the appropriate manner, they then become very loving, entertainingly playful and generally a joy to own.

At maturity, the Leadbeater’s cockatoos are about 14 inches in length and approximately weigh from 300 grams to around 425 grams. The females weigh slightly more than the males. Their plumage is white and the have crests that arch forwardly. The ****** and the heads of these birds are salmon pink and there are red bands across their crests. One subspecies has a yellow band on its crest. The females have a reddish brown iris whereas the males have a very dark brown or simply black coloured iris.

In 1831, it was first sighted by the Vigour’s. Leadbeater’s cockatoos are native to the desert and mostly grassland regions of Australia, apart from the northeast part of the country. These birds are known by numerous silly names, including Desert Cockatoo, Pink Cockatoo, Major Mitchell’s Cockatoo, Wee Juggler, Cocklerina or even Chockalott! Even thought they are common in most parts of Australia, generally the Leadbeater’s cockatoos are quite rare to find!



Doris