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Feb 17, 2021 13:30
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Qubee posted:Does anyone have recipe recommendations for a budgie? I give a seed mix / pellet diet evenly split, but when they eat the seed mix, they'll ignore everything and only go for the millet. It's a bit frustrating and I wish I could find seed mix without the drat millet. I figured I'll start making veggie mashes or whatever it's called when you blend a bunch of veggies together in a food processor. To get Banane to fly to my hand on command I would get him to hop on my finger from further and further away until the sight of an outstretched finger was basically a command to get him to fly to me. Just reward them each time they hop on. My current budgies won't fly to me on command but Pesto flies to my finger sometimes. As for food, it can be tricky. Banane would want to eat anything I was eating whether it was appropriate for budgies or not. It was really fun having a pet that I'd prepare birdy meals. Plain scrambled eggs, veggies and things like that. Budgies given seed mixes will always just preferentially dig around for their favorites. Some people make their own seed mix. If you're ever at a bulk-spice type of place, you might find different types of loose seed to purchase. That being said, whether there's millet in the seed mix or not, they always go berserk over spray millet. It's so cute when Mayo notices I'm holding millet and she slowly makes her way over, scooch by scooch. Plant MONSTER. fucked around with this message at 13:48 on Feb 17, 2021 |
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Feb 17, 2021 13:45
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Pesto just landed on my finger from across the room! First time he did that from that far. All I had to do was outstretch my finger! I walked him over to the millet. Best part is he did it twice again right after. Turns out he just wanted me to open the bathroom door.
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Feb 17, 2021 21:52
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Sinbad gets really, really mad at us doing the most sedate exercises and I can't figure his problem. We aren't hopping around flailing our arms or moving quickly back and forth at his cage. We're talking push ups and planking stuff here and he just starts honking if he even sees exercise clothes. It's especially odd because he's generally been sweetness and light since we moved.
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Feb 18, 2021 00:42
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SuperKlaus posted:Sinbad gets really, really mad at us doing the most sedate exercises and I can't figure his problem. We aren't hopping around flailing our arms or moving quickly back and forth at his cage. We're talking push ups and planking stuff here and he just starts honking if he even sees exercise clothes. It's especially odd because he's generally been sweetness and light since we moved. you're laying on the ground, thus you must be ded. if you are wearing the ded clothes you are clearly about to die
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Feb 18, 2021 04:20
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I can't even handle the cuteness. New baby budgie - called Wasabi as they're lime green - hasn't been eating much formula, had me worried as I thought they might be ill or stressed, despite seeming rather relaxed around me. Turns out Chickadoodle has been regurgitating food for the little bugger, no wonder they have barely been eating formula. Wasabi also picks up new habits astoundingly quick, they're already foraging and cracking open seeds. At this stage in Chickadoodle's life, they were pretty much utterly dependent on me and were on the formula big time. We had the first solid flight today, managed to go from the cage door all the way up to the pullup bars, just to be close to Chickadoodle. They both then flew to the top of the AC unit and preened like crazy, absolutely wholesome. I had a go at making veggie mash but they're not fans of it. Anything with a tiny amount of moisture on it makes them shake their heads / sneeze. I sprinkled some seeds on top to entice them but it hasn't really worked, Chickadoodle ignored it and tried to get to the seed bag instead of tasting the veggie mash flavoured seeds, oops. Qubee fucked around with this message at 12:50 on Feb 18, 2021 |
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Feb 18, 2021 12:45
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Qubee posted:I can't even handle the cuteness. New baby budgie - called Wasabi as they're lime green - hasn't been eating much formula, had me worried as I thought they might be ill or stressed, despite seeming rather relaxed around me. Turns out Chickadoodle has been regurgitating food for the little bugger, no wonder they have barely been eating formula. Wasabi also picks up new habits astoundingly quick, they're already foraging and cracking open seeds. At this stage in Chickadoodle's life, they were pretty much utterly dependent on me and were on the formula big time. We had the first solid flight today, managed to go from the cage door all the way up to the pullup bars, just to be close to Chickadoodle. They both then flew to the top of the AC unit and preened like crazy, absolutely wholesome.  I’m so glad they’re getting along
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Feb 18, 2021 13:17
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Qubee posted:I can't even handle the cuteness. New baby budgie - called Wasabi as they're lime green - hasn't been eating much formula, had me worried as I thought they might be ill or stressed, despite seeming rather relaxed around me. Turns out Chickadoodle has been regurgitating food for the little bugger, no wonder they have barely been eating formula. Wasabi also picks up new habits astoundingly quick, they're already foraging and cracking open seeds. At this stage in Chickadoodle's life, they were pretty much utterly dependent on me and were on the formula big time. We had the first solid flight today, managed to go from the cage door all the way up to the pullup bars, just to be close to Chickadoodle. They both then flew to the top of the AC unit and preened like crazy, absolutely wholesome. if you don't post enough photos of baby budgies they explode btw
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Feb 18, 2021 14:56
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Qubee posted:I can't even handle the cuteness. New baby budgie - called Wasabi as they're lime green - hasn't been eating much formula, had me worried as I thought they might be ill or stressed, despite seeming rather relaxed around me. Turns out Chickadoodle has been regurgitating food for the little bugger, no wonder they have barely been eating formula. Wasabi also picks up new habits astoundingly quick, they're already foraging and cracking open seeds. At this stage in Chickadoodle's life, they were pretty much utterly dependent on me and were on the formula big time. We had the first solid flight today, managed to go from the cage door all the way up to the pullup bars, just to be close to Chickadoodle. They both then flew to the top of the AC unit and preened like crazy, absolutely wholesome. this is lovely. don't worry too much if they're not that into eating a lot of produce, especially if they're good about eating pellets. how "mashy" is your mash? my guys are fruit eaters in the wild so it's a larger portion of their diet, but i dice it and it's never soupy. you might try putting in a whole fresh blueberry or something as a treat occasionally, or a kale leaf that they can tear up and play with, or a piece of broccoli. i find birds love to eat the little orbs off the ends. Youth Decay posted:if you don't post enough photos of baby budgies they explode btw  
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Feb 18, 2021 15:36
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mediaphage posted:a piece of broccoli. i find birds love to eat the little orbs off the ends. hell, same.
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Feb 18, 2021 17:26
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Who here did not eat the green tops off broccoli as a child and pretend you were a grazing dinosaur? And are birds not in fact the descendants of dinosaurs? Q.E.D.
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Feb 18, 2021 17:39
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My vet recommended full spectrum lighting for the birds. It's something I never thought was necessary because their cages are both right in front of windows so they get sunlight virtually all day. Anyway, I have a few questions. What's the best setup? Their cages are are close enough I was thinking I get one lamp in the middle of them. Should I get one for each cage? Also, how much of that do they need? I assume it shouldn't be on all day every day.
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Feb 19, 2021 00:18
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Jose Oquendo posted:My vet recommended full spectrum lighting for the birds. It's something I never thought was necessary because their cages are both right in front of windows so they get sunlight virtually all day. I just have a big floor-standing lamp that I have a full-spectrum LED bulb in. It's very low energy use and it provides great light all day so unless it's actually sunny outside, it's usually on for most of the 12 hours that Auri is uncovered.
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Feb 19, 2021 00:26
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Hi guys! Please point me in the right direction if there's a general post for total newbies, but this thread is ... extensive and I didn't see anything from a cursory glance. So. We're considering getting a cockatiel. Or two. We have absolutely no idea what we're doing. I've done a bunch of research over the last couple of weeks. We've ordered a fairly large cage and plan to get some toys soon to set up. I've looked up how to begin to tame/train a bird and get them used to people. I guess my main question is: should we get one cockatiel, or two? I know they are social birds. My husband and I both work full time but we do plan to spend as much time with the bird(s) as possible when we're home in the evenings. I just don't want to get one and it be totally bored while we're away. And as far as two birds go, we don't want bird babies down the line so we were thinking of getting two of the same sex. Good idea/bad idea? We have cats. We plan to keep the bird(s) in a quiet, safe room until they are accustomed to us, and then we introduce to the furry assholes. We have a spot in the living room to keep the cage while we're home, and while we're not home we plan to wheel the cage into the safe room, door closed. So basically, even if the cats are totally amazing with the birds, they will never be left alone with them. We also have a five year old daughter who is generally pretty chill, but is also young and therefore insane at times. We plan to lay down the law that she needs to be calm and quiet when interacting with the bird(s). Are cockatiels a good choice for a five year old? Any other tips or tricks for bringing a new bird into the home? Thanks!
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Feb 19, 2021 04:58
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more experienced bird friends can help you out though i will say typically you want to try to bond with one bird when possible before introducing a second, especially since you are so new. i would look for breeders in your area if possible; they’ll generally be able to help you out and do some hand-holding when you have questions. plus, good breeders will tend to give you healthy, well-adjusted birds. just make sure they are banded before you get them. about the cats...i can’t stress enough how delicate birds are. cockatiels are small, cats are large, and you’re basically introducing flying bacon to a creature that evolved to catch it. birds will want to spend a substantial portion of their time out of their cages, often riding around on your shoulder. can you trust a cat not to go after it? or leap and fail, and scare the bird into going to a place where it could be caught? if your bird comes clipped you’re almost certainly going to want to let its flight feathers grow back in for safety. frankly i am honestly getting mildly stressed just thinking about keeping cats and birds together. the same goes for kids; birds can be a good way to get kids to care about them, and if your kid is gentle and listens to you, great! just. you know. constant supervision.
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Feb 19, 2021 10:05
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Kenshin posted:I just have a big floor-standing lamp that I have a full-spectrum LED bulb in. It's very low energy use and it provides great light all day so unless it's actually sunny outside, it's usually on for most of the 12 hours that Auri is uncovered. Getting Name of the Wind vibes.
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Feb 19, 2021 10:35
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mediaphage posted:can you trust a cat not to go after it? or leap and fail, and scare the bird into going to a place where it could be caught? As a cat person I say that the answer is no. The only thing you can trust that a cat will do is be a cat. You are not going to reliably train a cat out of attacking birds or other prey animals. Also, you are not faster than a cat. If a cat decides to go for a bird, you’re probably going to be too slow to do anything about it. And that’s if you even see it coming. Cats are quiet and stealthy and love stalking things, and humans have lovely attention spans. Look at the Velcro birds in this thread. Imagine trying to keep the cats a safe distance away from a bird that always wants to be with you. Are your cats going to be happy with that kind of enforced distance? Is it fair to the cats to banish them for the safety of the birds? Is it fair to the birds to cage them often so the cats can roam? I just cannot see it working out well.
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Feb 19, 2021 10:50
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https://youtu.be/ou4hDuQtGRA
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Feb 19, 2021 11:49
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Thanks for the input, guys. I know birds and cats don't exactly mix well, but I thought I had read (even earlier in this thread) of some instances of people having both in a household and having it work out. Our cats are fairly old (14 and 13) and don't get up to much these days, but to be fair we don't know how they would react to having a small, tasty bird in the house.
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Feb 19, 2021 14:48
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I believe Eric the Legend represents the collective opinion of parrotkind when it comes to cats https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AVzI6Gh08Ns
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Feb 19, 2021 15:46
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Yeah, no. Even if they're 'never alone together' your eyes are not on the bird or the cat 100% of the time. That's asking for a dead bird. It doesn't even have to be trying to hurt it - cat saliva alone can gently caress a bird up.
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Feb 19, 2021 18:58
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My cat killed one of our budgies when I was a kid
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Feb 19, 2021 19:03
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A beloved cockatiel on the local parrot group got bit by a cat that, "Hadn't acted aggressively towards the bird in ten years." Cat bites are toxic to parrots, so the cockatiel is clinging on for dear life getting pumped full of antibiotics. It has lost most of the feathers near the spot of the bite, like it got splattered with something toxic. I love the thought of new, caring cockatiel owners being in the forum. I really do. But I cannot stress enough how ill conceived cats and parrots are together.
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Feb 19, 2021 22:32
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Captain Log posted:A beloved cockatiel on the local parrot group got bit by a cat that, "Hadn't acted aggressively towards the bird in ten years." Never have cats and birds together that doesn't involve them being seperated by a cage that is narrow enough to not allow the cat to swipe through the bars. Any time I see a video of someone interacting a cat with something that is a prey animal to it I feel really upset knowing there's a good chance it'll end up in tragedy.
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Feb 19, 2021 23:34
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Hannah the African grey appears to be doing better. He's doing most of his normal routines. The vet called today and said his bloodwork was all within normal ranges (but will get better once he gets the UVB lighting). She also said he's the best looking grey she's seen in the clinic in a long time so I'm glad I've been managing to do some things right. As far as lighting goes, would something like this work: https://www.amazon.com/Zoo-Med-Avia...01M6DIDB2&psc=1 Another thing I thought of is just using the bulbs in the ceiling light in their room: https://www.amazon.com/AS%E2%80%91C...Y6FSGRCKXG4KH33 Would that work as well or is it better to get the light closer to them with that floor lamp? Jose Oquendo fucked around with this message at 01:29 on Feb 20, 2021 |
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Feb 20, 2021 01:18
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I guess I should clarify that by "introducing the cats" I meant more like, putting the cage out in a shared space and letting the cats and the bird see each other from a distance, with humans present. I never intended to have the bird out around the cats, even supervised. Not trying to argue with anyone because you've all had very valid points and concerns, which is exactly what I wanted to hear. I just wanted to clarify that point.
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Feb 20, 2021 01:53
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Grabbed the drinking bowl to see if Chickadoodle was thirsty, imagine my surprise when they start trying to bathe in it. I decided if they're going to bathe, we'll do it properly, so I got the big dog bowl I bought as a bath and filled it with lukewarm water. Chickadoodle hopped in and started dunking themselves and shaking, it was mega cute. I think the water was a tad shallow though as they weren't able to easily get themselves wet, but it was so nice seeing them go at it. I tried with Wasabi as he is a bit stinky, kinda smells like Iranian cuisine for some reason? He wasn't interested though. Chickadoodle has always had that smell you get when sunlight is on clothes for a long time, mixed with fresh air. Like baby smell but for birds. I may just give up on trying to get them to like crushed pellets. Now that they've tasted the sweet, sweet nectar of millet, they don't even bother with anything else. I will have another go with veggie mash, though. I think I might have blitzed it too fine in the food processor, but they're not big munchers. If they can't crack something within 3 seconds, they discard it and don't bother again. So having small cubes of veggie or whatever just has them attempting to shell it, and then spitting it out. This millet craze is frustrating, as I know they aren't going to get the nutrients they need.
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Feb 20, 2021 11:44
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It's the same issue with say, dogs and chickens; unless you get VERY well trained animals (and of course it's way easier to train dogs than cats) then sooner or later the predator is going to help itself to the easy prey. You don't have any reliable way to make the cats not see a snack, and as well documented, cats kill for fun. It's like getting cats and mice or rats. Some pets just aren't safely compatible.
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Feb 20, 2021 13:51
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What is the best available resource on the keeping of pigeons and doves? Considering my household, something like that may be the best option for me. and they seem like such delightful lovely birds with their many forms, soft feathers and pleasing coos.
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Feb 20, 2021 14:27
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Jose Oquendo posted:Hannah the African grey appears to be doing better. He's doing most of his normal routines. The vet called today and said his bloodwork was all within normal ranges (but will get better once he gets the UVB lighting). She also said he's the best looking grey she's seen in the clinic in a long time so I'm glad I've been managing to do some things right. Oh that is good news! I know nothing useful about lights I'm afraid, but I'm awfully glad to hear he's doing a bit better  If it's of any use or interest, I put a mineral/vitamin sprinkle in Pookie's wet food. I have no direct evidence it helps, since we've made various changes including this, plus very regular nights sleep, and far less seed/nut supplementation, but since we made the changes, she's almost completely stopped chewing her feathers and is generally very cheerful and ungrumpy. Her weight has stayed completely stable throughout too - she's a permanent 1 pound girl. Her wet food is a fairly basic lentil and chickpea curry mixed with butternut squash or sweet potato and also some lentil or pea protein pasta. She adores actual pasta, so putting lentil fusilli in her food is a great way to get her to eat good stuff that she thinks is people food. Its backed up with some african grey pellet food to supply any deficiencies. Hannah is such a handsome, smooth boy, I very much doubt he needs any of this info, it's more for anyone else who might be interested.
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Feb 20, 2021 20:57
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Dogs are hired to guard chickens and endangered penguins. It's acknowledged that a number of the birds are going to die due to a dog going "wait isn't that a food walking around??!!!!?!!" but that it's far less than the number of birds that would die to attacks by other wild predators, and the loss is factored into the "increase number of chickens/penguins" equation the bird wranglers are working. The difference with that is you can have acceptable loss when you're raising chickens you are going to kill, or penguins who are wild animals you mostly let do their own thing. There's rarely an acceptable level of loss when it comes to cute pet baby birds who you love and give names to and basically see as a weird feathery baby in the "looking after a baby" part of your brain. (Cats work the same way.)
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Feb 21, 2021 03:21
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https://twitter.com/katheubeck/status/1363263279708135424?s=21
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Feb 21, 2021 04:09
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https://twitter.com/FranklyHart/status/1362795444083056641 e: tweet got deleted, but I found a backup in the discord! https://imgur.com/qjwX4H9 redgubbinz fucked around with this message at 19:36 on Feb 21, 2021 |
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Feb 21, 2021 04:09
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Agrinja posted:What is the best available resource on the keeping of pigeons and doves? Considering my household, something like that may be the best option for me. and they seem like such delightful lovely birds with their many forms, soft feathers and pleasing coos. The Ramsey Loft is a fantastic resource for all things pigeon care! She's currently working on a project to breed temperaments for therapy/emotional support birds and also currently has a pair of ringneck doves and has worked with them in the past as well.
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Feb 21, 2021 08:27
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I cannot comprehend having a cockatiel that does cutesy tricks while talking.
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Feb 21, 2021 09:05
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PacoTheThird posted:I guess I should clarify that by "introducing the cats" I meant more like, putting the cage out in a shared space and letting the cats and the bird see each other from a distance, with humans present. I never intended to have the bird out around the cats, even supervised. As someone who lived with both cats and birds, I sadly have to agree that it's a bad idea. It's true, it can be done, but it works right up until it doesn't. At that point you either have a dead bird or a traumatized cat. I was lucky and got the traumatized cat route, but it was not fair to my birds (the budgies, being in their cages at almost all hours. And the parrot, who became more cage defensive and would stalk the cats after that point) nor to the cats. I mean this was with supervision (supposedly, I was at school) the cat jumped into the open parrot cage and tried to have a go at him. The parrot instead lunged at the cat and the cat, no joke, hid under beds and in cupboards the rest of his life. Thankfully the house was split soon after that incident and both animals got to live separately at that point. If you felt comfortable with the setup and had the funds, I would argue that possibly a small outdoor aviary setup with indoor only cats could work. But these would not be cuddly birds. They would be aviary birds, and they generally don't need people and don't want them. That doesn't sound like what you are looking for. I should also mention that my parrot, having very little contact with children, hated them. They never did any wrong to him but he hated their erratic movements, their loud noises and was extremely aggro towards anyone who wasn't completely calm 9/10 of the time. If your cats are the age you say they are perhaps it's a better idea to wait. Then your kid will be older and when the cats do pass you may have a safe opportunity for cuddly pet birds in your lives. In completely other news, I am so glad that Hannah is going to be alright. He's a good boy and I hope he enjoys his new light!
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Feb 21, 2021 09:38
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Speaking of parrots who hate unfamiliar shapes or sizes of things which are otherwise familiar ; about 5 years ago, our dog Daisy died. She was a 16 year old shih tzu who was little more than a puppy when we got baby Pookie. So these two literally grew up together. We were dumb, but very lucky in that we used to let the two of them interact without any real trouble except that Pookie liked to pinch Daisy on the butt. Not hard, but definitely in a "you know how badly I COULD get you" kind of way. Anyway, about 6 months after Daisy died, we tried adopting a rescue pug mix - she was small and black and speedy. Pookie LOATHED that dog - she roar-growled and fluffed up like a football every time she even caught a glimpse of her. As far as she was concerned this 'dog' was a demon monster from the abyss. Apart from this, the dog also very very quickly revealed a very strong prey drive, so we felt we had no option but to return her to the rescue1  A few months later again, we saw an ad on the back page of the paper, saying that a local dog rescue had a white/brown shih tzu up for adoption. We got in contact, and the rescuer was very clear that the dog had major, major trust/anxiety issues2 and would be a very big job to rehabilitate. Despite having no experience whatsoever, we decided to give it a go.The dog (who turned out to be barely more than a puppy), was dropped over that evening, and one of the first things we did was bring him into the room where Pookie's cage was. Her reaction? She fluffed up like a very very happy football and made her Hello Friend! noise.   As far as Pookie is concerned, this is the only acceptable form dogs come in  1I checked back on her listing for the next few weeks and she was adopted again very soon, so it did end well. 2 Sad little puppy is now a largely very content and happy 5 year old Henry - he's still prone to anxiety, but he now comes to us to be safe and comforted
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Feb 21, 2021 10:39
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  I thought Chickadoodle looked hella cute, especially when they struck a pose in the second picture. Veggie mash all on their beak. I also don't think anything has made me as happy this past year as seeing the two dinosaurs swooping around the room playing. They'll call out to each other and then immediately take off together, do a few laps, land, then repeat until they're all gassed out and ready for a nap. Oh, and the fact they'll happily come down from the perch every now and then to fall asleep on my shoulders or play around, that makes me smile so much. Wasabi straight up fell asleep on me and I just went to town giving him scratches and cuddles and that made him plop down on his stomach, his eyes didn't open no matter what and I thought maybe something serious was happening but he was just deep asleep. When they're both preening me, I die. Qubee fucked around with this message at 15:29 on Feb 21, 2021 |
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Feb 21, 2021 15:25
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 I actually came in here today because Crows. The one I am particular friends with ("H") gave me a penny for his lunch yesterday and I thought Pookah would like that. More in line with that tweet, he also cawed really aggressively at a poor, like, ten year old girl that had the audacity to walk past me on the sidewalk a few minutes later. It's a public sidewalk H. It's not just our sidewalk. Please let the children use it.
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Feb 21, 2021 18:41
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| # ? Apr 27, 2024 03:01 |
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Qubee posted:
 Similarly, the Pookie/Daisy/Henry story warms my heart every time I hear it. Every person on this website should know of Pookie and her shih tzus.
LITERALLY A BIRD fucked around with this message at 18:48 on Feb 21, 2021 |
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Feb 21, 2021 18:42
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