Hidden Nut

Instead of just handing out walnuts today, I hid each one inside a bathroom dixie cup. It certainly didn't slow the birds down for very long, but they had to work a little harder to get to their treat. Then, after they ate the nut, they tore up the paper cup! Two activities in one.

Rico saw what I was doing and simply said, "One?" He loves to count and when I dropped the folded cup into his bowl, he thought he could finagle another by starting the counting game. No, Rico, only one!

Bob didn't waste a minute. He quickly defrocked the walnut and began eating to his delight. Catching this shot with his eyes closed, shows how much he relishes his walnuts!

Just Passing Through

Here are two parrots that have taken an interest in each other. The grey in the foreground is the famous Cassie. She was in a temporary situation while her mom recovered from a disability. Cassie is a footless grey that really knows how to play. Watching her is Chubbles, a 55 year old Blue Front Amazon who resides at that home. He, too, is an earnest player. Both birds like to grab toys and roll around on their back with them secured in their feet (or stumps, with Cassie).
I feel that birds, with their terrific memories, can enjoy the company of guests and not suffer when they move along. My own flock as grown very comfortable with guest birds coming in and out. They often call their names and seem to rejoice on the returning guests!
Cassie is home now and in the arms of her loving mom. Chubbles seems to be as comfortable and entertaining as always. No harm, no foul.

Distractions

These two characters were getting into a snit during my watch. I tossed a couple of spare blocks of wood on top of their cage and they diverted all that energy to the blocks. The fact that they couldn't easily grab them made it all the more challenging. They spent a long time competing to get a grip on each block. Sometimes a toy on the outside of the cage is more interesting than one on the inside!

PJ amidst shredding chaos

My attempts to get PJ to shred everything but herself has been thus far successful. As you can see, it's not a pretty sight. Her cage is crammed with stringy, shreddable, and companionable elements. Wherever she roosts, there is something to share her space and shred or eat. I installed In and Out Crocks throughout her cage. A little food in each. These are available widely if you google Smart Crocks In and Out Crocks.

I sometimes have to outfit a cage when I am the only person here. I can reach to many of the desired positions by extending my arm through the food ports. However, the In and Out crocks are easy to put anywhere by using packing tape to hold the bracket while I go around to the other side to screw on the plastic bolt. Then I remove the tape, of course. A parrot doesn't need hundreds of toys but he/she should have lots of activities. Shredding is a favorite activity! Messy, but popular.

Behavior Rewards

You might wonder why this photo of Moki, my dog, is posted on a parrot blog. Well, one time long ago when I was in a good mood and had time to play, I was making my bed. I always lay a fleece throw on top of my bed since there are frequent visitors that like to nap there. I was flapping it to position it and Moki jumped up to play underneath as I flapped. She loved playing peek-a-boo! We had some fun. However, now I am expected to play this game each morning! It wouldn't be fair to her to deny this activity.
The same thing happened when I had extra time and allowed Lucy my scarlet macaw to climb out of her cage and up to the top. This isn't the easiest place to control a scarlet macaw. I played with her for quite some time by tossing a ropey toy to the top and catching it when she would toss it off. It was a fun activity and she got lots of exercise flapping her wings and romping about on top of the cage. However, now she skedaddles quickly out of the cage at every opportunity. Same problem...sometimes I have the time to play and sometimes I don't. But she does not know the difference!
If we create a behavior, we have to understand that the behavior will continue. The worst example that I have is the first time that my cockatoo Josey Wales jumped down and chased, Cali, my son's pit bull out of the room. I laughed. Big mistake but imagine a fluffy white cockatoo commanding the pit bull! But that one laugh was rewarding enough to create this behavior every time Cali and Josey were in the same room. Cali, to this day, quietly leaves the room whenever a parrot is put out to play. Sorry Cali!
Keep in mind that bad behaviors can be inadvertently rewarded and reinforce their being repeated. Biting, Screaming, Plucking...if the parrot has an investment in doing one of these, for a reaction from you, it will continue. It's very difficult to not react or take a personal sense of guilt with our parrots, but that emotion will not help.

Veggie Confetti

This is a dark and rainy day. I realize that the birds feel it as well. I wanted to serve a warm and colorful breakfast to keep the decibel level under control.

I heated some of the cooked grains (Psittacine Cuisine) and added some canned pumpkin. This is a great way to add beta carotene, vitamin A, and calcium and make a plain meal more nutritious.

Then, I finely chopped some chard, purple cabbage, carrot, and added kernel corn.

When served, the bowls looked great and the birds (both large and small) dug right in. Can't quite say that the house is quiet, but it's "relatively quiet!"

Sometimes a parrot that won't touch large chunks of vegetables will eat vegetables when they're in tiny pieces. Variety is the spice of life.

Big Red Macaws

This is Rico (above) and Lucy (below). Both are big red macaws. However, Rico is a Greenwing and Lucy is a Scarlet. The easiest way to tell the difference is by the facial "stitching" on Rico, the Greenwing. When you see a white face with no "stitching" lines, it's a Scarlet. The other difference is Rico is a bigger and heavier bird. The Greenwing typically is a gentle giant. Scarlets are typically a little more feisty and seem to use their beak to pinch. Of course, these are generalizations and those are not written in stone. The other factors that confuse the issue are the hybrids that are created. If someone allows a Scarlet and a Greenwing to have babies, they are known as Ruby Macaws. In my humble opinion, people should be discouraged from breeding hybrids. It muddies the gene pool and makes the outcome impossible to predict.

If you'd like to make a call...

PJ is a feather challenged bird. She wears a plastic collar much of the time to keep her from "over preening". While she is staying here, she is distracted by the new surroundings.

She enjoys a good drenching shower and then some time without her neck shield. After all, a bird's gotta preen!

Recently the phone books were delivered. Not sure who still uses a phone book but I find them very useful. They make great shredding enrichments! (Bintel, another Goffins Cockatoo, taught me this one!)

Within minutes of hanging the smaller phone book from the top of PJ's cage, she started to shred. (The pages of the book, not herself...)


Feather destruction is a challenging and guilt ridden problem. All we can do is try to address every aspect of any potential causes.
Good full spectrum lighting.
Frequent showers.
Natural and Nutritious Diet.
Comfortable Cage Set Up without a lot of traffic.
Lots of activities, especially for hyper parrots.
And, no drama reward when picking occurs.

There is no sure fired cure. Just patience and unconditional love.

Make Eating A Challenge

I have lots and lots of foraging toys.

My slender billed cockatoo, Chauncey, can figure out every one of them in minutes.

However, when I have parrot guests they are usually delighted to see a new challenge.

This is Lincoln trying to get an almond out of an acrylic toy. He worked on this one for a long time.

When a parrot is trying to solve a problem, they are not pulling out feathers or feeling bored.

Always attempt to make a mundane task (like eating) a challenge. Wrap the food in paper, mix the food in an ample supply of beads or nut shells, distribute the food around the cage in various small cups.

Whatever it takes to make your parrot think and solve a problem. You'll be surprised how entertained (as well as entertaining) they become.

One Way or Another

This is my Buster. He is a good eater. His favorite favorite vegetable is cooked carrots. Go figure. If they are served raw, he shows very little interest. If they are cooked ahead and reheated...not so good. He like a freshly made batch and he prefers al dente. Not too mushy, not too hard. I have a household of parrots and each of them has their preferences. What one relishes, the next one disdains. I am a slave to the picky ones. But once a successful item is found, voila! I feel great! The tough ones are the messy ones. This morning I split a pomegranate and every cage looked like a crime scene when I returned! Yuck! But they look like they ingested at least some of it! Parrots have got to be the messiest of all pets. You gotta love em.